FIRST BORN SONS: EXAMINING THE PRINCIPLE OF FIRST BORN SONSHIP IN RELATION TO KINGDOM INHERITANCE…. 

God has a plan that He designed the end of before He even began. (1st Peter 1:20) That plan set forth Atonement for the sin of man and the final judgment for satan. The Atonement involved both a readily understood gift of eternal life/creating a family of men for God, and a mystery means by which His immature children would be elevated to ruling firstborn sons. The forces of evil responsible for man’s fallen condition are in opposition to God’s plan of this calling a company of men unto His namesake. A company that would, in the end, replace them who are now in authority in this World, and so they employ every device to thwart it. Including obscuring or demeaning that part of His Atonement plan that will most directly be to their demise and affect their current status. That part of the Atonement Plan being the calling to the heavenly kingdom. 

Scriptural history of God’s Word, down through 6000 years, records over and over again His promise by His holy prophets of a Messiah King who would rule over the Earth through the Jewish Nation of Israel. (Some say it is written over 300 times.) It starts with the recording of the Garden Curse as God addressed satan, embodied in the serpent: “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed: it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.”  From this verse, Biblical and secular history has shown that seed of woman was Jesus Christ. “…he was bruised for our iniquities.… and the Lord hath laid on him — the iniquity of us all.” [Isaiah 53] It was this Man who God had foreordained, and in the right time brought Him forth to fulfill this high calling of King of kings. The Holy Spirit brooded over a virgin, and she gave birth to that Man-child who thereby was born without the sin nature of a fallen man. He was the provision of God seen in the following verses. “And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb of a burnt offering? And Abraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering….” God spoke to faithful Abram saying, “And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed: because thou hast obeyed my voice.”  His ancient intention was that in Abraham’s seed, God had determined the future two comings of the Son of Man, and that His first coming would be in sufferings and sacrificial death. For “…Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood (for the blood of an animal could not answer for just recompense for man’s sin) he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.” [Hebrews 9:12] He entered in speaks of His victorious resurrection from among the dead in Hades unto the third Heaven. “…Because thou wilt not leave my soul in Hades, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption…seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in Hades neither did see corruption.” This was prophesied in Psalm 16:10 and the fulfillment of it is spoken of in Acts 2:31. This overcoming in sufferings brought Him up in Resurrection to the right hand of the Father, into the ministry of intercession, that His own might receive the fullness of His offering, which is His present work in His body/church. (Hebrews 7:25) His present work is the further work of grace in each believer to go on beyond mere justification, and unto sanctification for glory, which will be realized in the promise of His second coming. “Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you.” [John 14:28a] With “In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.”  [John 14:2–3] 

The First Coming was as suffering Servant, the Second Coming is as King and the receiving of those who will then accompany Him “whither soever He goeth.” This Second Coming has His taking the lost Kingdom by force in view. The “…bruising of the serpent’s head…” points to the removal of the Serpent from Kingdom authority and the replacing of the current Kingdom government with Christ Himself and His own brethren. (Revelation 19:11-20:6) “The kingdom of the world is become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Messiah; and he shall reign unto the ages of the ages”. [Revelation 11:15] And Daniel’s prophecy of the crushing stone of the Messiah’s Kingdom is now finally come. (Daniel 2:44,45) 

THE Reality, common to all Scripture, is that there is a heavenly or spirit realm made of another material, unseen by our natural eye. That the heavenly realm is the greater in both authority and government and quality of Being is also common to Scripture.  “The Lord hath prepared his throne in the heavens; and his kingdom ruleth over all.” [Psalm 103:19] Also see Nebuchadnezzar’s hard lesson in Daniel 4:26. And as far as superiority of Creature there, we have Psalm 8:5 with Hebrews 2:6. Because of its superiority it was then of necessity that the Son of Man be found worthy to rule in that heavenly realm. For it was to there He was called, that He might defeat satan and reign in his stead. Scripture says that “…flesh and blood can not (are unable to) inherit the (heavenly) kingdom of God.…” [1st Corinthians 15:50] Therefore this Son of Man, having been born of earthly material, and unjustly and willingly crucified, was judged worthy to ascend in Resurrection and miraculously change into a transcendent heavenly spiritual body, the First of God’s New Creature Beings, (2nd Corinthians 5:17, Galatians 6:15) He was the First Born “of many brethren…” from the curse of death! He “…was (at first) made (manifest) a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, (and now is) crowned with glory and honour.…” [Hebrews 2:9] “And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit…And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear (In the Greek- let us see to it that we also bear) the image of the heavenly (at the First Resurrection).”  [1st Corinthians 15:45-49] 

The Head, now being absent, calls His Body to faithfully testify of Him in loving sacrificial sufferings, while alive in the earth. “And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together. For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the (firstborn) sons of God.” [Romans 8:17,18,19] It is what is meant by what’s written of the Atonement’s potential. “And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus…” [Ephesians 2:6] “All authority hath been given me in heaven and upon earth”. [Matthew 28:18] It is now within the authority of Christ to raise up a certain quality of man, in like kind resurrection change. (John 5:21) That is to say from an earthy to a transcending heavenly creature, into those whom He judges worthy to reign from the heavens in Returning Glory with Him. (Colossians 3:4, Matthew 16:27, 25:31, Luke 9:26) It is God’s determined purpose to remove satan and his forces (realized Justly through the seed of man) from this realm, both its spiritual heavens and the material Earth where they have ruled wickedly and abusively over mankind since the fall of man in the Garden. 

Isaiah 24:21…“And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth.” 

“He that overcometh, I will give to him to sit down with me in my throne, as I also overcame, and sat down with my Father in his throne.” [Revelation 3:21] (See also verses 26-27) Being raised in the First Resurrection by Jesus Christ assures one of a place in that heavenly kingdom glory, a place of honor. To not be raised is to miss the opportunity of that royal inheritance, and remain in Hades a thousand years until the second resurrection. (Revelation 20:5)  

(*But note that those who are First Resurrected have the additional promise of ruling beyond the 1000 years in that…. “…they shall reign for ever and ever…” [Revelation 20:4-6] And then they only are the promised residents of the great city, New Jerusalem, which will be above. [Revelation 21:2 22:3-5] Those then judged to enter into the kingdom at the close of the 1000 years are not participants of the First-born’s glory as the Bride, and will be but subjects upon the new earth.) 

A COMPARISON OF NEW TESTAMENT REDEEMED WITH OLD TESTAMENT REDEEMED  

See Hebrews 12:22–29…. 

“…But ye are come (with faith’s eyes, to see the privilege and glory of the heavenly calling) unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, (those to be appointed the double portion and are to be the kings and priests of the heavenly kingdom) which are written (enrolled) in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, (glory–filled to be sent back to the worthies at resurrection)… 

And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, (with the heavenly calling) and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things (that of extended mercy and grace) than that of Abel (which speaks only of vengeance). See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth,  (about an earthly kingdom inheritance) much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven: (about an heavenly inheritance) 

Whose voice then shook the earth: (only, as it was limited to an earthly kingdom covenant inheritance) but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, (as that earthly covenant is still relevant) but also heaven (the first heaven where the superior New heavenly Covenant inheritance will be established). And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain (these words have in view the removing of satan’s authority in the earth and heavens forever). Wherefore (the focus of the chapter, if not the entire letter, is not securing eternal life but) we receiving a (promise of that heavenly) kingdom (eternal) which cannot be moved, let us have (not refusing or falling from New Covenant perfecting) grace, (Divine influence) whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: For — our God is a consuming fire (a fearful threat; intended to bring our faith eyes up above, far beyond what He exhibited at Mount Sinai, which has implications to the New Covenant Believer who would refuse to follow Christ’s “Law” in a far superior covenant. A contrast to show the magnitude of His future exhibition in retributive Power in order to shake our lingering interests from this World/Egypt.) 

THE CHURCH OF THE FIRST BORN 

The church of the firstborn refers to the spiritual partakers of the heavenly primogeniture; the state of being the first born child or having the rights of the First Born. See Deuteronomy 21:17 ….“giving him a double portion of all that he hath: for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his.” 

The right of the firstborn is the ancient privilege of right to a double portion of all the resources, and to rule and serve as priest of the family. God declared to Pharaoh, for Israel to be His firstborn. This right of firstborn is still in effect among the peoples of the earth.  

But among all God’s various created beings, throughout all His vast realms, One is set forth and appointed to be His First Born, Jesus Christ, “…who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth.” [Revelation 1:5] Being Firstborn from the dead, He was the First Who arose, with a double portion in the Father’s Inheritance. That is to say both in the earthly and spiritual realms…and men of the First Resurrection order; those being joint-heirs with Jesus Christ; the First-Born of God, will have authority over all things…”He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my (first-born) son.”  [Revelation 21:7] Along with “and hath made us kings and priests…” [Revelation 1:6] Truly then in this Scriptural principal of the firstborn, we are to be most “Blessed and holy…” [Revelation 20:6] 

So as Israel kept, in earthly type, all the firstborn names registered and held as final authority in the city of Jerusalem, so in the anti-type the heavenly First Born are registered by God in Mount Zion, the heavenly New Jerusalem. And every name presented before Him is kept for their presentation before Him in the heavens, as First Born sons from among the dead. This blessed and holy man is now made capable in Jesus Christ to experience those things of that realm, even the beholding of the Father. Having a blessed holiness “….without which no man shall see the Lord….” [Hebrews 12:13] “Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God (their Father). [Matthew 5:8] 

A DISQUALIFYING FROM THE FIRST BORN INHERITANCE 

The loss of the First Born son-ship rights is second only to loss of eternal life.  As an unregenerate sinner may reject the grace of eternal life and suffer its loss, so a Believer may reject the grace for sanctification in holy living and suffer the loss of glory and kingdom inheritance. But to we who might be tempted to relax in merely born again state, let us consider the threat of such foreboding Scriptures that portray the careless or nonchalant Believer such as this one. “Whoso shall cause one of these little ones that believe on me to stumble, it is profitable for him that a great millstone should be hanged about his neck, and that he should be sunk in the depth of the sea.” [Matthew 18:6]  (Consider also the recompense of the unfaithful servant in the parable of the talents in MATTHEW 25:24-30 along with the unfaithful servants of Matthew 18:32-35, 19:20-24, Luke 12:46, 19:20-26, and 1st Peter 4:17,18)  

ESAU is one firstborn example of loss of the rights of the firstborn. He had little esteem for those rights, as recorded in Genesis 25:27-34 and Chapter 27. Esau did not have to earn those rights but they came by natural birth, but it was necessary for him to retain them. So it is that by our spirit’s rebirth in Christ, we are naturally the possessors of His First-Born rights, yet it is our greatest duty and responsibility to retain them as His faithful servants. And although Esau later regretted his actions, it was impossible to regain the favor of the blessings again. That this is a legitimate example of the loss of a Christian’s inheritance is seen in the “…take heed…” unto a New Testament Believer in Hebrews chapter 12. For the type holds true for us who believe, in that Esau was not a bastard but the true first son of his father, therefore he still received the one relatively small blessing seen in Genesis 27:38. This equates to the believer retaining his rights to eternal life, but which is considerably a great loss when compared to the reward of eternal glory, and inheritance in the heavenly kingdom. 

In Scripture, there are many examples for disqualification from the heavenly Kingdom and First Born rights. For a few, see 1st Corinthians 6:9-10, Ephesians 5:3-7, Galatians 5:19-21…. 

[1st Corinthians 6:9-10] 

“Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor [b]homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.” 

[Ephesians 5:3-7]  

“But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them.” 

[Galatians 5:19-21] 

“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”