Two major events stand out in the history of man. One is mankind’s fall in Adam and the other is the elect’s recovery in Christ. By one all men died by the other all the elect shall live. Adam’s disobedience brought death. Christ’s obedience brought life.
Consider in the portion before us:—
I. CHRIST ROSE FROM THE DEAD AS THE FIRSTFRUITS
The reference to the firstfruits brings us to the wave offering of the first sheaf of the early harvest, Lev 23:9-12. The very day that Christ arose from the grave corresponded with the waving of the sheaf of the firstfruits by the priest in the temple. Christ is the fulfillment of the types. Christ was the firstfruits because He was to be followed by the full harvest, verse 23. He is called the firstborn from the dead (Col 1:18) not because there never had been resurrections before for there had. In the ministry of Elijah, Elisha, the Saviour Himself and Paul, the dead had been raised. But Christ was the first:—
1. To rise by His own power.
The Father, (Rom 6:4, Gal 1:1) the Son (John 2:19, 10:18) and The Holy Spirit (Rom 8:11) were all engaged in the raising of Christ from the dead. These statements are not contradictory by rather show the cooperation of the three Persons of the Godhead in this great miracle.
2. To rise and never die again.
I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death, Rev 1:18.
3. Because He will be followed by all who are members of His body.
The rest of the crop shall be harvested, verse 23.
II. THE SOURCE OF DEATH AND LIFE
Adam was the source of death for all mankind and Christ is the source of life for all His elect.
1. In Adam all men died.
The covenant being made with Adam, not only for himself, but for his posterity, all mankind, descending from him by natural generation, sinned in him, and fell with him, in his first transgression. (Answer to Q. 16, S. Cat). They died SPIRITUALLY. Death came upon their souls. They PHYSICALLY began to die. They fell into a state of sin and misery. Man’s existence is one of dying. Life’s miseries are but the motions of death. They shall die ETERNALLY. Sinners who find life to much to bear are most foolish to think that death will bring improvement. The wages of sin are what await the unconverted at the end of physical life, Rom 6:23.
2. In Christ all are made alive. The two ALLs do not refer to the same people. The first refers to all mankind. The second to all the elect. Adam was the federal, or representative, head of the human race while Christ was the federal head of His elect, the church. Those for whom Adam acted bore the consequences of his disobedience. Those for whom Christ acted enjoyed the benefits of His obedience. The words even so, verse 22, indicates the parallels between the position of Adam and that of Christ.
3. Christ in order to redeem His elect He became a man.
Here is the reason for the incarnation. John 1:14, Rom 8:3, Phil 2:7, I Tim 3:16. This is a vital doctrine, I John 4:2.