The Death of Christ

Christ’s Life-Releasing Death

Concerning His imminent death, Christ revealed that He was as a grain of wheat falling into the earth and dying (John 12:24). What happens a grain of wheat is planted into the ground? Although its outer shell dies, the wheat germ within the grain is released. For the inner life to be released, the outer shell must die—a wonderful portrait of Christ in his death. In the beginning of John’s Gospel, he said, “In Him [Christ] was life, and the life was the light of men” (John 1:4). First John 5:11 similarly testifies that the eternal life is in the Son.

Christ in His humanity was a grain of wheat, and the divine eternal life was concealed within the shell of His humanity. On the cross, the shell of Christ’s humanity was cracked open and the divine life within him was released. The process of Christ’s life-releasing death and germinating resurrection issued in many grains. Prior to His death, Christ was referred to in John 3:16 as the only begotten Son of God. But after His resurrection, Christ is referred to in Romans 8:29 as the Firstborn Son of God. For Christ to be the Firstborn Son of God after His resurrection implies that many other sons were begotten in His resurrection (1 Pet. 1:3). This indicates that there was a multiplication of God’s Son through His death and resurrection just as a grain of wheat is multiplied through the process of “death” by falling into the ground and “resurrecting” to bring forth many grains. Now the Firstborn Son of God has many brothers (John 20:17; Heb. 2:12). The many grains, the many sons of God together constitute the “one bread” (1 Cor. 10:17) which is the one Body of Christ.

[Home] [Redeeming] [Terminating] [Releasing] [Creating] [Experiencing] [Quotes] [Credits] [Links]