Leviticus 3:1-51And if his oblation be a sacrifice of peace offering, if he offer it of the herd; whether it be a male or female, he shall offer it without blemish before the Lord. 2And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and kill it at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron's sons the priests shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about. 3And he shall offer of the sacrifice of the peace offering an offering made by fire unto the Lord; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards, 4And the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away. 5And Aaron's sons shall burn it on the altar upon the burnt sacrifice, which is upon the wood that is on the fire: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savor unto the Lord. (Leviticus 3:1‑5)
THE THOUGHT in the peace offering is not Christ making our peace with God, but it is rather the communion or thanksgiving offering. The ground of our peace was laid in His death when He made atonement for sin, and so the peace offering is founded upon the burnt offering. In fact it is stated that “Aaron’s sons shall burn it on the altar upon the burnt sacrifice, which is upon the wood that is on the fire.” v. 5. All our joys, our communion, our worship and praise is founded upon that precious death and all that Christ means to God.
When sin entered into the world in the garden of Eden, communion between God and man was broken. Communion could only be restored through Christ who has glorified God in putting away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. Now believers, saved by grace, are brought into a place of favor and acceptance where they have “fellowship with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ.” 1 John 1:33That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. (1 John 1:3). All our guilty fears are gone and we can “joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Rom. 5:1111And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement. (Romans 5:11).
The peace offering might be taken from the herd, or it might be a sheep or a goat. The animal might be a male or female. It seems that the more perfect image of Christ was not sought as in the burnt offering, because here the sacrifice comes down more to man and his having part in Christ. Still it must be unblemished. The offerer laid his hand on the head of the animal; then it was slain and its blood sprinkled round about the altar.
All the fat upon the inwards and certain portions of the animal were burned on the altar for a sweet savor, and called “the food of the offering made by fire unto the Lord.” v. 11. This gives the peace offering a very special character. How complete must be the acceptance of this sacrifice when God can speak of it as His food!
The “fat upon the inwards” represents all the inward energies of Jesus as Man, and thus we learn that not only were His outward actings of obedience so precious to God, but the very motives and all the energies of His blessed mind and nature as a Man were God’s delight — His food. This is very precious.
Much stress is laid on the inwards being offered up to God: “all the fat is the Lord’s.” In the creature, where all was soundness and health, the condition of the fat would show that all was perfectly normal. In our blessed Lord, who was Himself the Creator, it was the energy that went forth in the continual business of obeying His Father with joy of heart. He could say, “I do always those things that please Him.”
In the peace offering then we have in type how God delights to bring His people into His own joy, to rejoice with Him in all His thoughts about His beloved Son.
ML-06/06/1971