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Awesome Hands – part 79

“The judgments” Part J

May 29th, 2015

We have covered many of the “judgments” the Lord gave to Moses to give to the Israelites and now we have arrived at the “first fruit judgment”.

This is an important judgment because it signifies to us that the Lord considers the first fruit very important.

On the surface it may seem like a straight forward judgment, but as we look into the words given to us to obey, and weigh them against the sum of the Word, we will notice some interesting spiritual applications that apply to us all today.

The First Fruit

Exo 22:29  Thou shalt not delay to offer the first of thy ripe fruits, and of thy liquors: the firstborn of thy sons shalt thou give unto me.
Exo 22:30  Likewise shalt thou do with thine oxen, and with thy sheep: seven days it shall be with his dam; on the eighth day thou shalt give it me.

When we cover the different “types” of first fruits mentioned in these verses, we will notice there are similarities and differences between each “type” of first fruit.

The first similarity is between the ripe fruits and the liquors. With these two groups, there is no delay to offer them to the Lord. These first fruits are things which are from the earth and are grown, cultivated and “driven” from the earth.

The second similarity is between the firstborn of the sons, oxen and sheep. These three types are all beasts and are things which are “born”, but fruits of the earth are also things that go through a dying process in order to bring forth life and the “next fruit” after its kind.

The first group is offered AFTER it has matured, while the second group referenced as beasts, is offered before it is even off its mother’s milk.

Let’s look at the first group and see what some of the important attributes of it are.

So important is the “first fruit of the land” to the Lord! I am going to read out of Deuteronomy and ask you to pay attention to who was FIRST to be established by the works the Lord had done.

Deu 26:1  And it shall be, when thou art come in unto the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and possessest it, and dwellest therein;
Deu 26:2  That thou shalt take of the first of all the fruit of the earth, which thou shalt bring of thy land that the LORD thy God giveth thee, and shalt put it in a basket, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose to place his name there.
Deu 26:3  And thou shalt go unto the priest that shall be in those days, and say unto him, I profess this day unto the LORD thy God, that I am come unto the country which the LORD sware unto our fathers for to give us.
Deu 26:4  And the priest shall take the basket out of thine hand, and set it down before the altar of the LORD thy God.
Deu 26:5  And thou shalt speak and say before the LORD thy God, A Syrian ready to perish was my father, and he went down into Egypt, and sojourned there with a few, and became there a nation, great, mighty, and populous:
Deu 26:6  And the Egyptians evil entreated us, and afflicted us, and laid upon us hard bondage:
Deu 26:7  And when we cried unto the LORD God of our fathers, the LORD heard our voice, and looked on our affliction, and our labour, and our oppression:
Deu 26:8  And the LORD brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great terribleness, and with signs, and with wonders:
Deu 26:9  And he hath brought us into this place, and hath given us this land, even a land that floweth with milk and honey.
Deu 26:10  And now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land, which thou, O LORD, hast given me. And thou shalt set it before the LORD thy God, and worship before the LORD thy God:
Deu 26:11  And thou shalt rejoice in every good thing which the LORD thy God hath given unto thee, and unto thine house, thou, and the Levite, and the stranger that is among you.

Notice that it is the GREAT nation of Egypt which the Lord established in order to SACRIFICE them so that the “kind of firstfruits” could be established.

Mar 4:26  And he said, So is the kingdom of God, as if a man should cast seed into the ground;
Mar 4:27  And should sleep, and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up, he knoweth not how.
Mar 4:28  For the earth bringeth forth fruit of herself; first the blade, then the ear, after that the full corn in the ear.
Mar 4:29  But when the fruit is brought forth, immediately he putteth in the sickle, because the harvest is come.

It is SEED that is cast INTO THE GROUND which must happen in order that LIFE can happen.

Joh 12:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but IF IT DIE, it bringeth forth much fruit.
Joh 12:25  He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.

Egypt is an earlier form and type of Babylon, and Babylon is the physical representation of the SPIRITUAL Babylon we all must partake of in order to be ‘CALLED OUT OF HER”.

Rev 18:2  And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.
Rev 18:3  For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies.
Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.
Rev 18:5  For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.

We all are the kind of first fruits which must first partake of the FIRST FRUIT in order to be given life, but WHAT HAPPENS to the FIRST FRUIT?

The first fruit is sacrificed.

It is the first fruit of the land which is offered/sacrificed so that the Lord continues to bless the REST of the fruit that comes in.

Rom 11:30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.

Egypt is sacrificed so that the nation of Israel can be born. Physical Babylon is sacrificed so that the remnant of Israelites could be saved.

That pattern continues on so that Jews were converted to Christians and then sacrificed so that the early church could be established. The early church was given over to an apostate mindset so that the true people of God could immerge and continue to serve him.

We are told to “come out of her my people” because we are to see OURSELVES as what we are being CALLED out of! Yes, we start off AS BABYLON (being babes in Jesus Christ) so that the Lord can call us out of spiritual Babylon which calls us her home.

You may be asking yourself how it is I can be comparing Jesus Christ to Egypt or Babylon? How can I be saying that Jesus Christ is a first fruit like Egypt and Babylon? One is a negative application and the other is a positive, but Jesus Christ contained both within Himself.

The difference with Jesus Christ and the rest of all of humanity is that He contains the is, was and will be of the WHOLE SUM of the PLAN of God.

Here is who Jesus Christ is.

Rev 1:11  Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.

Rev 1:17  And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:
Rev 1:18  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 1:19  Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;

Rev 2:8  And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive;
Rev 2:9  I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich) and I know the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, but are the synagogue of Satan.

Rev 22:12  And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
Rev 22:13  I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
Rev 22:14  Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Rev 22:15  For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.

Rom 11:16  For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.

With Jesus Christ’s own words He claims to be the FIRST and the LAST.

1Co 15:45  And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.

Jesus Christ had to deal with the first man Adam as well as the LAST man Adam because Jesus Christ was BORN as a son of man as well as a Son of God.

Jesus Christ SACRIFICED the first so that the LAST could be given LIFE.

Mat 12:40  For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

At the beginning of this study I stated, “The first similarity is between the ripe fruits and the liquors. With these two groups, there is no delay to offer them to the Lord. They are things which are from the earth and are grown, cultivated and “driven” from the earth.”

When the process the Lord has put in place is complete, He demands we give Him back what He alone has caused to come to fruition.

Joh 12:24  Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but IF IT DIE, it bringeth forth much fruit.

The Greek word used here to “bringeth forth” reveals a lot about this spiritual process.

G5342

pherō̄

Total KJV Occurrences: 63

bring, 17

Mat_14:18, Mat_17:17, Mar_7:32, Mar_8:22, Mar_9:19, Mar_12:15, Luk_15:22-23 (2), Joh_15:2, Joh_15:16, Joh_18:29, Joh_21:10, 2Ti_4:13, 2Pe_2:11, 2Jo_1:10, Rev_21:24, Rev_21:26

brought, 17

Mat_14:11 (2), Mar_1:32, Mar_4:8, Mar_6:27-28 (2), Mar_9:17, Mar_9:20, Mar_12:16, Luk_5:18, Joh_4:33, Joh_19:39, Act_4:34, Act_4:37, Act_5:2, Act_14:13, 1Pe_1:13

bear, 4

Luk_23:26, Joh_2:8, Joh_15:4, Joh_15:8

bringing, 3

Mar_2:3, Luk_24:1, Act_5:16

came, 3

2Pe_1:17-18 (2), 2Pe_1:21

beareth, 2

Joh_15:2 (2)

bringeth, 2

Joh_12:24, Joh_15:5

reach, 2

Joh_20:27 (2)

bare, 1

Joh_2:8

bearing, 1

Heb_13:13

carry, 1

Joh_21:18

driven, 1

Act_27:17

endure, 1

Heb_12:20

endured, 1

Rom_9:22

forth, 1

Mar_4:8

go, 1

Heb_6:1

laid, 1

Act_25:7

leadeth, 1

Act_12:10

moved, 1

2Pe_1:21

rushing, 1

Act_2:2

upholding, 1

Heb_1:2-3 (2)

Here are a few of these verses examined a little closer. There is a common theme running through all of these verses.

1Pe 1:13  Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;

Joh 15:8  Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

Luk 23:26  And as they led him away, they laid hold upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and on him they laid the cross, that he might bear it after Jesus.

Joh 2:8  And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it.
Joh 2:9  When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,
Joh 2:10  And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now.
Joh 2:11  This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.

Joh 15:4  Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.

2Pe 1:17  For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

2Pe 1:21  For the prophecy came NOT in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.

Heb 13:13  Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach.

Joh 21:18  Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.

Act 27:17  Which when they had taken up, they used helps, undergirding the ship; and, fearing lest they should fall into the quicksands, strake sail, and so were driven.
Act 27:18  And we being exceedingly tossed with a tempest, the next day they lightened the ship;

It is the Lord Himself who is GLORIFIED by what the LORD HIMSELF does to bring about FRUIT of the EARTH. Just like there is a heaven and earth, they will pass away and in their stead will be a “new heavens and a new earth.”

2Pe 3:13  Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

He also requires the FRUIT of the SPIRIT which comes forth from this new SPIRITUAL earth.

Grace is brought, we bear fruit, we bear the cross, we bear the good wine, we bear no fruit of ourselves, a voice came saying this is my Son, prophecy comes via the Holy Ghost, bearing His reproach happens because we are driven outside the camp, we are carried where we don’t want to go, and we are “driven in a boat we have no control over” because it is all being worked out but the counsel of His own will and His own will ALONE.

These are among the reasons why the Lord requires the first fruit “of the land”. Whether a negative or positive application is applied, whether good or evil is caused, it is the Lord ALONE who will work it all out to be GOOD for US!

Gen 50:20  But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

The Lord wants the maturity of the “fruit” He has caused to happen to be His because it is all His work. When we claim a part of it as our works, then we have sinned in our self-righteousness.

Those are the first fruits of the land, but in order for this process to happen spiritually, the Lord wants us to understand that this is a process that happens and doesn’t happen “overnight”.

The “beasts” have 7 days to go through the complete process of judgment before the new man can be born on the 8th day.

Conclusion

How we can take these sets of the first fruit judgments found in Exodus 22:29-30 and apply them to our lives is that no matter the situation we find ourselves in, no matter the circumstances we are dealing with, the Lord is the one who has already caused the wind to blow to direct your sails before your ever started sailing.

The Lord has already caused you to be “coming out of the country” like Simon the Cyrenian was, so that you can bear the cross of Jesus.

Indeed, the Lord has bid you to the marriage supper of the Lamb so that it can be you who is able to “bear the miracle wine of the Lord” to the “Governor” ruling the hearts and minds of the folks you are being sent to.

Whatever the daily ins and outs of our lives entail, the Lord will redeem the soul of His servants.

Psa 34:22  The LORD redeemeth the soul of his servants: and none of them that trust in him shall be desolate.