The Resurrection and a Call to Repentance
In 1 Corinthians 15:20, Paul writes, “But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.” In his commentary on Leviticus, Pastor John MacArthur writes, “First fruits symbolizes the consecration of the whole harvest to God, and was a pledge of the whole harvest to come.”[1] The concept of “first fruits” appears in Leviticus 23:10, which states, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When you enter the land which I am going to give to you and reap its harvest, then you shall bring in the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. He shall wave the sheaf before the LORD for you to be accepted.’” In this text, Moses provides enormous insight into what Paul conveys to the reader in 1 Corinthians 15:20. Christ’s resurrection guarantees the future bodily resurrection of all people who die in Christ (1 Corinthians 15:23). As the “first fruits of those who are asleep,” Jesus’ resurrection consecrates the entirety of Christ’s kingdom members who will physically die because of Adam but resurrect because of Christ (1 Corinthians 15:21-22). On the third and glorious day, the brutal suffering of Christ gave way to the powerful reunification of Christ’s body with his soul, resurrecting unto eternal life forevermore. He is the first fruits of all those who die in Him. Are you in Christ today?
If not, please consider the alternative to dying, not in Christ, but in sin. Jesus shows you your fate in John 5, saying:
Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment but passed out of death into life . . . Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment (vv. 24, 28-29).
Dear reader, will you resurrect to spend eternity with Christ in glory or will you receive a new body at the resurrection just for it to be cast into the lake of fire, suffering for your sins? (Revelation 20:15). I plead with you today, look to the first fruits of Jesus, who guarantees the resurrection unto eternal life to all those who live and die in him. If you do not know Christ as your Savior, listen to the good news of Christ here, repent, and know him as Lord and Savior.
Notes:
[1] John MacArthur, The MacArthur Bible Commentary (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2005), 160.
