4.1 Key themes⤒🔗

• For the Feast of Firstfruits, the Israelites brought the first grain from their fields to God.
• In this way they showed that they trusted God to provide the whole harvest.
• The Israelites were also waiting for a greater harvest: God’s kingdom.
• The message of the Feast of Firstfruits is, Trust God and hope in his promises.
• We can be sure that the greater harvest is coming soon, because God has given us firstfruits to prove it:
  - the resurrected Jesus Christ
  - the Holy Spirit, living in God’s people
  - the church

4.2 Leviticus 23:9-14←⤒🔗

^9. The Lord spoke to Moses: 

^10. Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘When you enter the land that I am about to give to you and you gather in its harvest, then you must bring the sheaf of the first portion of your harvest to the priest,

^11. and he must wave the sheaf before the Lord to be accepted  for your benefit—on the day after the Sabbath the priest is to wave it.

^12. On the day you wave the sheaf you must also offer a flawless yearling lamb for a burnt offering to the Lord, 

^13. along with its grain offering, two-tenths of an ephah of choice wheat flour mixed with olive oil, as a gift to the Lord, a soothing aroma, and its drink offering, one-fourth of a hin of wine. 

^14. You must not eat bread, roasted grain, or fresh grain until this very day, until you bring the offering to your God. This is a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all the places where you live.

 © NET Bible

4.3 A month of celebrations←⤒🔗

For the people of Israel, every new year started with celebrations! Three feasts were celebrated in the first month. We already know that the Passover was celebrated on the fourteenth day of the month. The Feast of Unleavened Bread started on the very next day and continued until the twenty-first of the month.

The third feast, the Feast of Firstfruits, was celebrated at the same time as the Feast of Unleavened Bread. But the Feast of Firstfruits was celebrated for only one day, “the day after the Sabbath” (Leviticus 23:11). This was a Sunday.

4.4 A feast of trust←⤒🔗

To celebrate the Feast of Firstfruits, an Israelite had to cut off some of his first ripe grain. He had to take this sheaf of grain to the priest, who waved it before the Lord.

God’s people were not allowed to harvest any of their grain before this feast. They had to give their very first grain to God. In this way God showed them that the whole harvest belongs to him. By giving their firstfruits to him, they showed that they trusted him to provide the whole harvest.

Together with the firstfruits, the Israelites also brought burnt offerings, grain offerings, and drink offerings. In this way they showed that they were giving their whole lives to God. They trusted him fully, not only for the harvest, but for everything they needed.

4.5 The greater harvest←⤒🔗

The Israelites rejoiced over every harvest. But they also longed for a greater harvest to come. That greater harvest is the kingdom of God.

In the kingdom of God, even the wilderness will “rejoice and blossom.” Even “burning sand will become a pool” (Isaiah 35:1, Isaiah 35:7, NIV). There will be abundant food and abundant joy, because God himself will live with his people!

The Feast of Firstfruits reminded God’s people that the greater harvest also belongs to God. He is the one who will bring his kingdom. They can trust him to do it, because he has promised it.

Trust God and hope in his promises. That is the message of the Feast of Firstfruits.

4.6 The firstfruits of God’s kingdom←⤒🔗

As New Testament believers, we are living in “the last days” (Hebrews 1:2). Just like God’s people in the Old Testament, we are still waiting for God’s kingdom to fully come. But we live in a time in which God’s kingdom can come any time. And we know that it is coming soon!

How do we know this? Because God has given us the firstfruits of his kingdom. The firstfruits of God’s kingdom are

• the resurrected Jesus Christ;
• the Holy Spirit, living in God’s people;
• the church.

Let us look at each of these firstfruits.

4.7 The resurrected Jesus Christ←⤒🔗

Jesus died on Passover Friday. On the Saturday (the Sabbath) he rested in his grave. This was the day on which the Feast of Unleavened Bread began.

But on Sunday, the day after the Sabbath, Jesus was resurrected! This means that he was resurrected on the Feast of Firstfruits. God planned it this way, to show his people that Jesus is their firstfruits.

This is clear from 1 Corinthians 15:20. There Paul writes, “But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”

When Paul speaks of “those who have fallen asleep,” he is speaking of all God’s people who have already died. As God’s people, we are still waiting for the day when our bodies will be raised from our graves so that we may live forever in God’s kingdom.

How can we be sure that our bodies will be raised? We can look at Christ’s resurrection. He is the firstfruits, and his people are the full harvest. He was raised from the dead, and so we can be sure that we, his people, will be raised from the dead too!

4.8 The Holy Spirit, living in God’s people←⤒🔗

Life in this world is not easy. But one day we will live with God in a perfect world. How can we be sure of this? Because God has already come to live with us, through his Spirit. The Spirit is the “firstfruits” of the life that we will enjoy one day (Romans 8:23).

The Spirit already gives us a taste of God’s kingdom. He helps us to experience the love, peace, joy, and comfort of the kingdom. He also helps us to grow in holiness (Lesson 3), so that we will be ready for the kingdom when it comes.

4.9 The church, the firstfruits←⤒🔗

In Christ and through the Holy Spirit, the church (you and I) also becomes “firstfruits” of God’s harvest (James 1:18; Revelation 14:4).

As Christians, you and I can look at God’s work in our own lives. We can look at the people in our churches, how they grow in holiness and how God strengthens them in all situations. We can look at believers in the past, how they trusted God, no matter what.

When we see all these things, we can trust that God’s full harvest will come! Yes, we may be struggling now. Our churches may struggle. We may have many sins to overcome. But we can live with hope, because God will not leave his harvest. He will complete the good work that he has begun in us (Philippians 1:4).

God will bring his kingdom soon! We can be sure of it, because he has already given us the firstfruits of his kingdom: the resurrected Christ, the Holy Spirit living in us, and the church. Let us wait patiently for God to fulfil his promises. Let us trust him with our lives, just as the Israelites did when they brought him the firstfruits of their harvest.