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Friend, the appointed day: the Feast of Bikkurim and the promise of resurrection!

1 Corinthians 15:20-24  But now Christ has risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruit of those who slept. 21  For since death is through man, the resurrection of the dead also is through a Man. 22  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all will be made alive.  23  But each in his own order: Christ the first-fruit, and afterward they who are Christ's at His coming; 24  then is the end, when He delivers the kingdom to God, even the Father; when He makes to cease all rule and all authority and power.

In the divine calendar of God’s appointed times, Bikkurim (Firstfruits) holds a mystery that stretches from the fields of Israel to the empty tomb in Jerusalem. This feast was celebrated “on the day after the Sabbath” following Passover (Leviticus 23:11) — what we now see as the eighth day, the day of new creation. While the nation of Israel brought their first sheaf of barley to the priest to be lifted before the Lord, giving thanks for the beginning of the harvest, something eternal was taking place beyond the veil of time: Yeshua (Jesus) the Messiah rose from the grave.

It was not coincidence — it was divine choreography. The same morning that the firstfruits of the earth were lifted before God, the Firstfruits of resurrection was presented before the Father. The priest in the Temple waved a single sheaf as a promise that the full harvest was yet to come; and at that very moment, Yeshua, the true Priest and Offering, rose as the guarantee that death itself had been defeated and the greater harvest of souls was assured.

Paul captures this mystery beautifully, declaring that Messiah has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. Just as death entered through Adam, so life now comes through Messiah. In Him, all will be made alive — first Yeshua, the Firstfruits, and then all who belong to Him at His coming (1 Corinthians 15:20–24).

Just as Shemini Atzeret, the eighth day, stands apart from the Feast of Tabernacles — separate yet completing it — so the resurrection of Yeshua stands as the eighth day of creation. The first seven days marked the work of God’s hands; the eighth day marked the birth of His new creation. On that morning, time itself shifted.

What once seemed final—death—was shattered by His resurrection, which opened the doorway to eternal life. The curse of Adam was undone in the Second Adam, who rose as the Firstborn of a new and redeemed humanity.

Bikkurim is not just a feast of grain — it is a feast of guarantee. It declares that what God begins, He will complete. The sheaf lifted before the Lord was a pledge that the full harvest would follow, just as the resurrection of Yeshua is the pledge that all who belong to Him will rise. His resurrection was not the conclusion of redemption — it was the first fruits of it.

Yeshua is the true Bikkurim, the Firstfruits of the new creation. His resurrection was not just a miracle — it was a pattern. It fulfilled the feast down to the very hour and set the rhythm of redemption in motion. He is the first to rise never to die again, and His victory ensures ours. Every believer who walks in the power of His resurrection becomes a living testimony that the harvest is coming — that what was sown in weakness will be raised in glory.

Friend, the eighth day has dawned—the tomb is empty, and life has broken through the soil. The same Spirit that raised Messiah from the dead now breathes in you. Give Him your first—your worship, your trust, your heart—and watch Him turn surrender into harvest. For the Feast of Bikkurim declares: what was buried will rise, what was broken will bloom, and what seemed finished has only just begun. This is the power of the eighth day—the day of resurrection, the day of firstfruits, the dawn of new creation in Messiah.

Your family in the Lord with much agape love,

George & Baht Rivka (Jerusalem, Israel)

Editor's Note: As we continue this deep dive into Shemini Atzeret, the eighth day—the climactic culmination of all the feasts—if it feels a bit “meaty,” go back through the earlier devotions. Each one builds line upon line, revealing the profound truth of this day: the ultimate fulfillment when God will tabernacle with us for eternity!