In the very next chapter, chapter twelve, a feast was set up. Do you realize that feast was the feast of the peace offering? After nine cases had been covered up through chapter eleven, in chapter twelve they were enjoying Christ as their peace offering. They had already participated in Christ as their sin offering (John 1:29). They had already shared in the trespass offering (John 4). They had enjoyed the burnt offering (John 7:16-18) and the meal offering (John 7:45-46). Now in that little cottage they were enjoying the peace offering (John 12:1-11).
The next chapter, chapter thirteen, is on the matter of the foot-washing. This is the laver to cleanse you. Then in chapter fourteen He had a wonderful talk with them to bring them all into the Holy of Holies. Up to now all the offerings had been applied to them. They had participated in all the offerings. They had shared and enjoyed all the offerings. Now they were brought into the Holy of Holies.
In 14:27 He said, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you.” But they did not get the peace at that time because the offering had not yet been slaughtered. He had not been offered. He had not ascended to the heavens through resurrection. After He was crucified and buried and resurrected and ascended (John 20:17), He came to His disciples on the same day in the night and said, “Peace be to you” (John 20:21). In chapter twenty it was not a promise of peace. It was a fulfillment of His promise in chapter fourteen. He brought the peace with Him. Actually He Himself was the peace. When He came to them, He was peace to them. This is the peace offering.
In brief, John’s Gospel is of twenty-one chapters. At the beginning you have grace, and at the ending you have peace. This is why many of the Epistles in the New Testament begin with “grace and peace to you.” Many of the Epistles also end with grace and peace to you or be with you. All these books are firstly books of grace, and then of peace. What is grace? Grace is just the incarnated God to be your sin offering, your trespass offering, your burnt offering, your meal offering. These four offerings are the very components of the divine grace. What then is the issue? What comes out? Peace comes out! This is the peace offering. The peace offering is the result of the enjoyment of all the other four offerings. And that enjoyment is grace.
In the Lord’s recovery we have talked very much in the past years about enjoying the Lord. But only recently has it become clearer and clearer how we can enjoy the Lord. Please don’t take these messages as just doctrine. You must put all these things into practice. You must apply the Lord Jesus as the Lamb and as the brass serpent lifted up on the cross. You must apply Him as your sin offering and as your trespass offering every day. If you would practice, you would see this is the unique way for you to enjoy Christ. Only the enjoyment of Christ as the sin offering, the trespass offering, the burnt offering, the meal offering, and eventually the peace offering qualifies you to enter into the tabernacling God, to travel in Him, and to stay within Him. Only this enjoyment of Christ as the offerings qualifies you to enter in. The Gospel of John shows you the tabernacle and also shows you how to apply Christ as all the offerings so that you may participate in Him and you may be qualified to enter into God.
By reading the biographies or autobiographies of some of the Lord’s children and by reading church history, you will realize that through the centuries all the dear ones who have enjoyed Christ have had these kinds of experiences. At that time they may not have used this kind of terminology, but they did have this kind of experience. They surely passed through the same way. Firstly, they confessed their trespasses, and then they confessed their sin. They may not have been so clear in their understanding as we are today, but actually they passed through this. Then they accepted and applied Christ as their trespass offering and their sin offering. Every day they made a thorough confession of their trespasses and of their sinful nature. As long as they made such a thorough confession of their trespasses, they enjoyed the Lord as the trespass offering. As long as they confessed their sinful nature, they enjoyed the Lord Jesus as their sin offering.
Every day the Lord Jesus became so dear, so precious, so lovable to them. They wanted to sacrifice everything for the Lord. They became one with the Lord, laying their hands upon the Lord Jesus as a burnt offering. By reading their history, you can realize that their enjoyment of the Lord was so rich. They enjoyed the Lord as the meal offering, so fine, so sweet, so perfect, and so rich. Then within them and among them there was a kind of peace as the environment. They enjoyed peace before God, in God, with God, and at the same time one with another.
This is the real situation presented in the Gospel of John. The disciples enjoyed Christ as all the offerings, and they entered into the tabernacle. Eventually they were in a peaceful situation and condition. This means they were in the full enjoyment of the Lord. This is why so many Epistles speak of grace and peace to us. This is to enjoy Christ as all the offerings that we may be qualified to enter into God and to dwell in Him and even to stay within Him as the tabernacle. This is the way to enjoy Christ.
How to enjoy Christ has never been made so clear to God’s children as it is today. Why through all the years has no one taught in this way? You have to realize this is a kind of science. Science is not any kind of invention. Science is a matter of discovery. For example, hundreds of years ago people did not know what vitamins were, but they still enjoyed the benefits of the vitamins. They did not have the scientific knowledge, but they had the enjoyment. Today people talk a lot about vitamins and they also understand the vitamins scientifically.
I am presenting to you a scientific way to enjoy Christ. I am not just telling you in a general way that we have Jesus and that He is the bread of life from heaven. No, I am telling you that the Lord Jesus is the tabernacle of God, and He is God Himself tabernacling, and this God is enterable. Today God is enterable! The only thing that qualifies you to enter is to enjoy Christ as your sin offering, as your trespass offering, as your burnt offering, as your meal offering, and as your peace offering. Just as you have learned how to pray-read the Bible, now you must learn how to take Christ as your sin offering, as your trespass offering, as your burnt offering, as your meal offering, and as your peace offering.
Through practicing to take the Lord Jesus as their daily sin offering and trespass offering, many have found that the Lord Jesus has become more dear, more precious, more present, and even more practical to them. Their enjoyment of the Lord practically speaking has increased a lot. This surely has been my experience. I have been enjoying the Lord quite much for a long time, but never in such a practical and rich and clear way as in these days. The more I confess my trespasses and take Him as my trespass offering, the more I enjoy Him.
Don’t consider these matters as simply doctrines. They are deep truths, but you need to put them into practice. No matter how busy you are, you must take the time, if possible in the early morning, to apply the Lord Jesus as your sin offering and your trespass offering. To do this you need to confess. Repent and confess. Repent and confess. Every day we need the repentance and the confession. Spontaneously you will apply the Lord Jesus as your trespass offering and sin offering that you may enter into the rich enjoyment of God as the tabernacle.