The word in Leviticus concerning the offerings was spoken by the Lord in a little tent, the tent of meeting. In the wilderness, apart from millions of people who were busy doing many things, the very God who created the universe came into a small tent. Whatever the Triune God spoke there was for eternity. Through God’s wonderful speaking, that little tent of meeting will gradually issue in the New Jerusalem. Every aspect of this speaking concerning Christ and our enjoyment of Christ in togetherness with God will be fulfilled in the New Jerusalem. There in the New Jerusalem we will surely realize that Christ is our burnt offering, meal offering, peace offering, sin offering, trespass offering, wave offering, and heave offering. All these offerings will eventually issue in the New Jerusalem.
In Leviticus the offerings are in a particular sequence. First we have the burnt offering and then the meal offering and then the peace offering. The burnt offering signifies that we must be absolutely for God, and the meal offering indicates that Christ is our daily food. When we are absolutely for God and live by feeding on Christ, the result is peace. We have peace with God and with one another. This means that when Christ satisfies us, He becomes the peace between us and God. Today we are in this peace, which is Christ.
Christ is the One by whom and through whom we are absolutely to God and for God. Christ is also the One on whom we are feeding every day. He is our daily food. This Christ is now the peace we enjoy with God and with one another. Therefore, the burnt offering, the meal offering, and the peace offering are the basic offerings for us to enjoy Christ as our peace with God and with one another. This is the significance of the sequence of these three offerings.
When we get out of Christ, we have no peace. If we are short of peace, we are short of Christ. The amount of peace we have depends on how much of Christ we have. Having peace is a measurement to show us to what degree we enjoy Christ.
There is no reason for the church people not to have peace. We should not try to have peace by our own effort. The more we try in ourselves to have peace, the less peace we will have. The only way to have peace is to enjoy Christ every day. In the morning we should take Christ as our burnt offering and offer Him to satisfy God. Then we should take Him as our daily food to meet that day’s particular need.
We should enjoy Christ today and forget about yesterday and about tomorrow. Yesterday is gone, and we are not in tomorrow. Since yesterday is gone, none of us can remain in it. Whether we were a failure or a success yesterday, yesterday is passed. As Christians we do not have tomorrow; we only have today. Do not bother about tomorrow-live today! What do we have today? We have Christ. Christ is today.
We have seen the significance of the sequence of the first three offerings. Now let us consider a number of matters related to the peace offering.
The peace offering is illustrated in Luke 15:23 and 24 by the fatted calf as a peaceful enjoyment between the receiving father, that is, God, and the returned prodigal son, a sinner. The prodigal son came back in a wretched way, but the father was loving, and he immediately became the receiving father. After the father received the prodigal, the fatted calf was slain for their enjoyment. This fatted calf is an illustration of Christ as our peace offering for our enjoyment with our receiving God. The father and the returned son had a rich enjoyment of the peace offering.
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