You want to be one of God’s firstfruits

Messiah Yeshua (Jesus) is called the firstfruits of the resurrection (1st Cor. 15:20), and why are we called firstfruits of creation (James 1:18)? Pentecost originally was a celebration of the firstfruits of the wheat harvest and followed 50 days after the celebration of the firstfruits of the barley harvest. What is God teaching here about Yeshua and us?

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A few questions:

What is a firstfruit?
Why is the counting of the firstfruits important to God?
Who or what does God count?
Is every firstfruit one of God’s firstfruits?
Does God always pick the firstborn?
If God choses a person as a firstfruit, what does that mean for him or her?
What are some of the responsibilities of being chosen as a firstfruit?
What are the responsibilities of the firstborn child or son?

Gen. 12:1-3 — The beginning of Israel. What does God promise to Abraham?

Gen. 13:14-17 — What does God promise to Abraham here? Is this a replacement of the previous blessing or an addition to it?

Gen. 15:17-21 — What does God promise to Abraham here? Is this a replacement of the previous blessing or an addition to the previous 2 blessings? Are any of these blessings for Ishmael?

Genesis 25:29-34 — What was the Birthright that Esau despised? Did Esau love God? Who ended up with this Birthright?

Ex. 4:18-23 — Who is God claiming as His firstborn now? Is it an individual or a corporate designation? Who is the firstborn among the nations? Who is the firstborn among Israel?

Ex. 13:1-10 — God defines the firstborn here. Does He continue to hold this particular group as firstborn?

Num. 3:12-13; Num. 8:15-18 — How many times does God repeat the replacement of the firstborn of all Israel with the Tribe of Levi? Why is it important that He states this more than once?

How about those who are not of Levite descent? How was David selected even though he was not Levite? (Psa. 89:24-29) What did David get when God selected him? What was a marker of this selection? Did God stop with selecting David and the Messiah as His firstborn?

Jer. 31:9 — Did God change His firstborn? What about David? What about the Levites? Why is Ephraim His firstborn? Does Ephraim’s status as firstborn negate the designation of the other earlier firstborns?

Hosea 9:10-17 — Are Ephraim still the firstborn? Why or why not? How did they despise their birthright? What does this mean for those of us who are alive today?

Micah 7:1-2 — How are those who are not Israelite chosen as firstborn?

Rom. 8:18-26 — How do you become a son of God if you are not already a firstborn? Do we have control over our selection? What is a prerequisite for being counted? What does the Spirit of God do for us?

James 1:17-18 — Who gives us the status as firstborn? What does it meant that God counted us? How do we make sure we don’t discard or lose this status? Is “once saved, always saved” scriptural?

How is Ruth an example of a firstfruit among the nation?