The First-Born Ones

"For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the FIRSTBORN among MANY BROTHERS" Romans 8:29.

Christ - The firstborn One

In every sphere of God's marvellous scheme, Jesus Christ is the Firstborn.

PAST: Firstborn over all creation (Colossians 1:15) - He was God's Son before any of creation came into being, and thus, by right, he has the authority of a 'firstborn' over every thing that exists (Genesis 27:29,36-37).
PRESENT: Firstborn from the dead (Colossians 1:18; Revelation 1: 5) - As firstborn, Jesus, the Risen One, holds supremacy over all who will follow in His footsteps.
FUTURE: Firstborn among many brothers (Romans 8:29) - When all that God has planned is completed, Jesus will be the Firstborn in the great Family that God has adopted as His own (Ephesians 1:5).

Thus, Jesus has the highest position of honour in...

The realm of creation
The realm of redemption
The realm of eternal destiny.

The Church - The Firstborn Ones

"But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God...TO THE CHURCH OF THE FIRSTBORN (ONES), whose names are written in heaven" Hebrews 12:22-23.

Part of God's magnificent plan is not only that Christians would be 'adopted' into God's family, but would be raised to a position of being 'firstborn ones'. Not that this in any way usurps the position of Jesus: God has designed it so that Jesus is the Firstborn by RIGHT; we have become the firstborn by GRACE. The Lord Jesus, our elder brother, is to "have the supremacy" in everything (Colossians 1:18). But as firstborn ones by grace, Christians receive all the rights and responsibilities of the firstborn position.

What Does It Mean To Be A 'Firstborn One'?

In the Old Testament, the first son born into a family was given special privileges and responsibilities. The firstborn was designated to receive:

Authority over the family
The priestly ministry
A double portion of the inheritance.

As firstborn ones in God's family we are also given these rights:

Authority

Next to the father, the firstborn was the representative of authority in the Old Testament family. He was 'lord' over his younger brothers (Genesis 27:37) and was responsible for them. At the meal table, especially at formal occasions, the sons of the household were seated according to their rank and "in order of their ages, from the firstborn to the youngest" (Genesis 43:33). Because of the authority that came with being the firstborn, David's elder brother could 'command' David to join the rest of the family for a time of sacrifice - even though David was in the king's palace (1 Samuel 20:27,29). The reason that he was given special authority was that in the first born the family-line was carried down, and with it the full authority of the family name.

As the Church of the Firstborn, our position in Christ places us in authority "far above" all power and rule that exists both on the earth and in the spiritual realms (Ephesians 1:16-23; 2:4-7). We have been given the family name - a Name far above any other name that could possibly be named (Philippians 2:9).

"And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven" Matthew 16:19 (see also 18:18; Revelation 3:7).

The Priestly Ministry

The firstborn sons of Israel were separated by God to perform a priestly function before Him on behalf of their families (Exodus 13:2). The nation of Israel was also separated to the Lord as God's firstborn among the nations (Exodus 4:22-23; 19:5-6), but because of the disobedience of Israel as a whole, the tribe of Levi was set apart specifically to be priests unto the Lord in the place of the firstborn of all the tribes (Numbers 3:12,44-45; 8:17-19). As priests they ministered firstly to the Lord, and secondly to the people.

The Ministry of the Church

As the firstborn Church, we are also called into a priestly ministry:

To the Lord in worship

"Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks" John 4:23.

God is not looking for man-made tradition (Mark 7:8), but for worship out of spirit and truth - straight from the heart.

To the people through intercession

"And (God) saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor..." Isaiah 59: 16 (KJV).

As God's "kingdom of priests" (1 Peter 2:9, KJV) we are called to intercede for others - to "stand in the gap" (Ezekiel 22:30) between God and those who are lost (see Genesis 18:20-33; Exodus 32:1-14; Daniel 9:2-3; Nehemiah 1-2 for examples).

A Double-Portion Inheritance

Under Old Testament law, a father had to give his firstborn son "a double share of all he has. That son is the first sign of his father's strength. The right of the firstborn belongs to him" (Deuteronomy 21:15-17). This meant that if, for example, a father had four sons, his total possessions - which included land, livestock and material wealth - had to be divided into five parts. The firstborn received two parts, while the other sons received one part each.

In the same way, we are now "heirs of God and CO-HEIRS with Christ" (Romans 8:17) - firstborn sons of all the promises of God (2 Peter 1:4; Hebrews 10:23).

Jesus is THE Firstborn - but He has chosen to share with us His firstborn rights. We have become firstborn heirs with Him to the Throne of the universe!

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