Christ’s death was not only a terminating but also a releasing death. His death released the divine life concealed within Him (John 1:4). John 12:24 says that a grain of wheat remains alone unless it is sown into the earth. If it is sown into the earth, it dies and then grows up to become many grains. This illustrates the releasing death of Christ. His death not only terminates all negative things; it also releases the divine life—the unique positive thing in the whole universe.
When Christ died, a soldier pierced His side and out came blood and water (John 19:34). These are symbols. Blood signifies redemption, and water signifies life. Blood and water are symbols of the two aspects of Christ’s death. The negative aspect is redemption, and the positive aspect is the release of the divine life. He died, and the life within Him was released. Through His death not only did the redeeming blood flow out; the divine life also flowed out from Him. Today when we believe in Him, we receive the blood and obtain the living water, the divine life. We receive redemption and we obtain eternal life.
On the third day after His death, Christ resurrected. Some wonderful things have been carried out through His resurrection.
First, in His resurrection Christ was glorified. When a carnation seed is sown, it dies under the earth, and then it grows up. When it blossoms, that blossoming is its glorification. Jesus was the unique seed of the divine life. Before His death, the divine life was concealed within Him. His humanity was the shell. When His humanity was broken on the cross, the divine life came out from within Him, and He was glorified in that life (John 7:39; Luke 24:26). Christ’s entering into resurrection was like the blossoming of the carnation seed: He was glorified.
Second, in resurrection Christ was born as the firstborn Son of God. Not many Christians realize that to Jesus Christ resurrection was a birth. Incarnation was His birth as a man, but resurrection was His birth in His humanity as the firstborn Son of God (Acts 13:33).
Christ as the Son of God has two aspects. Before His resurrection He was the only begotten Son (John 1:14; 3:16); then in resurrection He was born of God as the firstborn Son. When Christ was incarnated, He put on humanity; however, His humanity was not divine. It was through death and resurrection that His humanity was brought into divinity. Thus, Acts 13:33 tells us that in His resurrection He was born. The only begotten Son became the firstborn Son (Rom. 8:29).
Ephesians 2:6 tells us that in Christ’s resurrection we, His believers, were also resurrected. When He was crucified, we were crucified. When He was resurrected, we were resurrected. In His resurrection He was born as the firstborn Son of God, and we also were born as the many sons of God. He became the Firstborn, and we became His many brothers (John 20:17; Heb. 2:11-12).
The Bible makes clear that before we were born, we were crucified with Christ and resurrected with Him. In resurrection He was born as the firstborn Son of God, and in His resurrection we also were born as the many sons of God (1 Pet. 1:3). He became the Firstborn among us, His many brothers.