Leviticus 12:1-8; Luke 2:21-24; Galatians 4:4-5

• It is a divine requirement!It is written:

‘You shall not delay to offer the first of your ripe produce and your liquors. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to me.‘ (Exodus 22:29)

• Every firstborn belongs to God!

It is written:

‘Every firstborn male among your livestock belongs to me, whether ox or sheep.’ (Exodus 13:2; Exodus 34:19)

It is written:

‘You shall say to Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord, Israel is my firstborn son.” Exodus 4:22

‘You shall not delay to offer the first of your ripe produce and your liquors. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to me.‘ Exodus 22:29

Behold, I have taken the Levites from among the people of Israel instead of every firstborn who opens the womb among the people of Israel. The Levites shall be mine, for all the firstborn are mine. On the day that I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I consecrated for my own all the firstborn in Israel, both of man and of beast. They shall be mine: I am the Lord.’ Numbers 3:12-13’The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.” … And when in time to come your son asks you, “What does this mean?” you shall say to him,

“By a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all the males that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.” It shall be as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes, for by a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt.” Exodus 13:1-2, 14-16

Every firstborn is considered and seen as the star or leader of a family. Through them, destiny is entrusted to be the guide or torchbearer of a generation or family.Our Lord is the firstborn of our Father within a vast family of brothers and sisters. He is our elder brother, our firstborn (Romans 8:29).God, the Father, calls him His firstborn son (Hebrews 1:6), the firstborn of all creation (Colossians 1:15), the firstborn from the dead (Colossians 1:18), the beginning of all things (Revelation 3:14).

• Every firstborn must be redeemed.

It is written:

‘You shall redeem with a lamb every firstborn of a donkey, and if you do not redeem it, you shall break its neck. You shall redeem every firstborn of man among your sons.‘ Exodus 13:13

• The redemption of every firstborn.

* Why redemption?

It is the ransom or redemption, derived from the Latin ‘redimere.’ This term translates the Greek ‘lutrōsis’ or ‘apolutrōsis’: redemption, liberation by payment of ransom, deliverance of one in slavery or prison for debt. The Old Testament constantly emphasizes the idea that Israel belongs to the Lord, having been redeemed from the slavery of Egypt. The firstborns were delivered by the blood of the Passover lamb and were to be redeemed in turn by a sum paid to the sanctuary (Exodus 13:11-15).The entire people, liberated from the house of servitude, now belongs to the Lord (Exodus 19:4-6; Exodus 20:2; Leviticus 25:38; Deuteronomy 7:6-8).

Each Israelite was to pay half a shekel for the redemption of their person (Exodus 30:12-16; Matthew 17:24).The entire New Testament presents Jesus Christ as the redeemer, and it has been said that Christianity is the religion of redemption. We were all slaves to sin, death, the law, Satan. Christ redeemed and liberated us across the board. ‘They are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus‘ (Romans 3:24). He redeemed us from the curse of the Law (Galatians 3:13; Galatians 4:5).

We have redemption through His blood (Ephesians 1:7). Thus, and not with silver (as in the Old Testament), we have been redeemed from our former life of sin (1 Peter 1:18-19). Christ has freed us from death and the power of Satan (Hebrews 2:14-15; Acts 26:18), just as the Passover lamb’s sacrifice once delivered the Israelites from the angel of death and Pharaoh (Exodus 12). The Lord has redeemed us from all iniquity (Titus 2:14).The express purpose of His coming here was to ‘give His life as a ransom for many’ (Matthew 20:28; 1 Timothy 2:6).

However, if we already have the redemption of the soul now, we still await ‘the redemption of our bodies’ (Romans 8:23). Why wasn’t redemption total? Yes, redemption was total, but He also asks us to take actions because there were sacrifices accompanied by offerings as acts of gratitude!Because everything consecrated belongs to God and to God alone, one could lead a peaceful life if the firstborn is redeemed after being consecrated to God.

This text is an excerpt from the book “HOW TO CONSERICT A SERVANT OF GOD“ written by Apostle Beni Hugues Mvemba.