What does Paul say Christ became after rising from the dead?
Paul states that after rising from the dead, Christ became the first fruits of those who have died. This identifies Him as the first fruits, the initial sampling in the harvest pattern that illustrates the coming resurrections, corresponding to Israel's early ripening heads of grain taken before the main harvest.
Les explains that Paul's statement—that Christ has risen from the dead and has become the first fruits of those who have died—is a clue. He says to go back and use the Israeli system of harvest as an illustration of the resurrections that are coming. In Leviticus 19, that harvest had three aspects: first a sampling of the early ripening heads of grain, then the main harvest, and then the corners and gleanings left for the poor. Les ties Paul's words to that pattern. He also notes the subject needs qualification, but he only has so much time.