9 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

10 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, AND SHALL REAP THE HARVEST THEREOF, then ye shall bring a sheaf of THE FIRSTFRUITS of your harvest unto the priest:

11 And he shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, TO BE ACCEPTED FOR YOU: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.

12 And ye shall offer that day when ye wave the sheaf AN HE LAMB WITHOUT BLEMISH of the first year for a burnt offering unto the Lord.

13 And the meat offering thereof shall be two tenth deals of fine flour mingled with oil, AN OFFERING MADE BY FIRE UNTO THE LORD FOR A SWEET SAVOUR: and the drink offering thereof shall be of wine, the fourth part of an hin.

14 And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor green ears, until the selfsame day that ye have brought an offering unto your God: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. ~ Leviticus 23:9-14

These were the offerings that the Israelites were to offer to the Lord at the time of the feast of the first-fruits. First fruits was a foreshadowing of the resurrection of Jesus. In 1 Corinthians 15, the apostle Paul says: “But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the FIRSTFRUITS of them that slept (those who are dead).” ~ 1 Corinthians 15:20

During the feast of firstfruits, the Israelites were to offer

1. The sheaf of the firstfruits to the Lord “to be accepted” for them. Notice the language: the firsitfruits was not rejected in their place, it was an offering that was accepted for them.

2. A male LAMB WITHOUT BLEMISH of the first year for a burnt offering unto the Lord. 1 Peter 1:18-19 tells us Jesus redeemed us with his precious blood as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.

3. A meat offering which is said to be “an offering made by fire to the Lord for a sweet savor.” The meat offerings (AKA grain offerings) were symbolic of Jesus’ perfect humanity. Jesus had no sin in him and according to the Bible, we are sanctified by the offering of THE BODY of Jesus Christ once for all. ~ Hebrews 10:10.

Jesus gave his body (the body by which he took upon humanity, being made in the likeness of men) as the offering for our sins. In John 6 Jesus says, I am that BREAD OF LIFE. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is THE BREAD which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I AM THE LIVING BREAD which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and THE BREAD THAT I WILL GIVE IS MY FLESH, which I will give for the life of the world. ~ John 6:48-51

• Jesus is the first fruits of the resurrection who was ACCEPTED for us.
• Jesus is the unblemished lamb who redeemed us with his precious blood.
• Jesus is the sweet savor offering (pleasing to God) who sanctified us through the offering of his body. He is the living bread from heaven that gives us eternal life.