The right thigh of the peace offering was also given to the priest for a heave offering out of the sacrifices of the peace offerings (Lev. 7:32-34). The one cake and the right thigh were for nourishing and strengthening the serving priest. The cake was for nourishing, the thigh was for strengthening, and both were heave offerings. This refers to the enjoyment of the ascension of Christ, to enjoying Christ as the ascended One, the heaved One. This shows that the offering priests, the conducting priests, get the highest enjoyment. The more we serve, the higher the portion of Christ we enjoy.
The breast as a wave offering was a portion of the peace offering to all the priests, including Aaron and all his sons (Lev. 7:30-31, 34). The wave offering is not as high as the heave offering, and the breast is not as strong as the thigh. Thus, all the priests share a portion which is not as high or as strong as that which the serving priests share. The highest and strongest portion is for the serving priests, not for the general priests. The general priests share only a kind of general portion. They share the wave breast, not the heave thigh. The wave offering signifies the resurrected Christ. The heave offering signifies the exalted Christ. The exalted Christ, of course, is higher than the resurrected Christ. Until we experience Christ in ascension, we have not reached the goal. We are still on the way.
The breast does not signify strength; it signifies love. This indicates that as long as the church is still in the stage of love it is not so strong and somewhat low. The church must go on from the stage of love to the stage of strength, that is, from the breast stage to the thigh stage. If there are many general priests among us and few serving priests, our church life will be weak. We need some particular serving ones to enjoy the right thigh as a heave offering.
A portion of the peace offering also goes to the offerer.