December 05, 2023: Birth To Her Firstborn

"And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn." (Luke 2:7, ESV)
 
Jesus was Mary's firstborn. Being the firstborn and male came with many special privileges. Just as Israel is called God's firstborn, it means that she has a special place and privilege among the nations of the earth.

The Son of God, brought into this world by Mary as her firstborn, came with special privileges among all the men on earth. Spiritually, Jesus is the 'firstborn among many brothers and sisters' in the body of Christ. (Romans 8:29). Colossians 1:15 speaks of Jesus as the firstborn over all creation. In Psalm 89:27–29, God says of David, "And I will appoint Him to be my firstborn, the most exalted of the kings of the earth...."

In the book of Hebrews, Christ is "heir of all things" and God's "firstborn into the world." Just as the firstborn son is head over his earthly family after his father, Jesus Christ is head of the body of Christ—the church—after God the Father. Just as the firstborn son receives the most significant inheritance from his father, Jesus Christ receives the world as His inheritance. God says to His Son, "Only ask, and I will give you the nations as your inheritance, the whole earth as your possession."

Jesus was much more than Mary's firstborn! He is the heir of all things!