Long, long before the coming of Jesus, God set a precedent for Christ's propitiation - for the substitution provided to the faithful. He allowed glimpses into the amazing grace to come. John the Baptist recognized Jesus as "the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" This time, all of humanity had been called to account for a debt which they could never pay off, a staggering cost - but for the faithful, God provided a Substitute.

The Baby we celebrate at Christmas means nothing if He does not predate all things, and the Sacrifice we celebrate at Easter is wasted if He does not exist after all things. Only the Living One—the I AM—can have final authority over death.

Jesus the High Priest is significant because He made the final atonement sacrifice on behalf of all the citizens of the earth—and that sacrifice was Himself, enough to wipe away completely the need for ongoing bloodshed.

Where the traditional celebration of firstfruits required God’s people to give up the very earliest results of their labor as a gesture of trust, Christ as the Firstfruits was God giving up His own and only begotten as a gesture of guarantee for our coming resurrection.

He offered Himself up once in death so that He could offer Himself to us daily in life - just enough for that day's need, and just for the ones who go out in faith every morning to receive Him.