The Firstborn

I know spring is on its way when the Spring Beauties (Claytonia sp.) come up.  They are known for being one of the first spring flowers around here, bobbing their delicate, striped little petals in the cool breezes among the grass.  This year spring came early (gardeners were told to start their routine of spraying and pruning a month early) and so I think the wildflowers got a jump on things, too, several running neck and neck with the Spring Beauties for the first to be noticed. I couldn't help but catch my breath, though, when I first saw them, lightly sprinkling the grassy roadcut near my home.  They are tender little things; quite camera shy, I found. 


Their white-and-pink-striped flowers open up to an inch or so across to catch the sun rays, and then carefully fold their petals and nod their heads as if in prayer when the evening comes.  Their succulent narrow leaves can be thrown into salads for a little zing and some vitamins.  As perenials they return from their tiny radish-like root spring after spring, often enduring late frosts and cold rains.


Since I think of them as being among the first to flower from winter's "death", these tiny pink flowers instantly reminded me that Jesus is the "Firstborn".  The word says that He is the "Firstborn of creation" (Col 1:15), the "Firstborn of many brethren" (Rom 8:29), and the "Firstborn from the dead" (Col 1:18). 


Death means separation from God - from all that is good - and Jesus is the firstborn - the first raised - from it.  Yes, Jesus, the Man, and the Son of the inseperable Trinity was separated from God ("My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Mt 27:46). Then, because the penalty for sin was paid by His innocent sacrifice, the power of God raised Him, birthed Him, from that separation.  But it didn't just raise Him from separation, it raised Him first from separation.  That means there were more to follow... more to be birthed.  You.  Me. The saints that were seen walking the streets of Jerusalem after the crucifixion because He'd set them free. (Rom 6:4-8, 8:11; Col 2:12-13)  And now that He's raised, He cannot die again, and neither can we.  (Rom 6:9-11) Because He became the Firstborn we now live, without interruption,  in the presence of the Father. 


I grew up the firstborn in my family, and I would have loved, just once, to NOT have to go through stuff first  -- to NOT be the guinea pig of parenting tactics and school changes; to not walk through the strangeness puberty, early adulthood, and leaving home alone; to have someone pave the way for me for a change.  Spring Beauties remind me that I do have a "big brother" who paved the way.  His name is Jesus, the Firstborn, and He has already gone through it all. 

From Jenniffer_4444 on Flickr photoshare (I just couldn't get a good picture)