Recently, I read an article about a peace offering. As you know I am very interested in the Old Testament and in the symbolism of that testament.
Since I read the article, each day at some point, a peace offering would come to mind, therefore I decided to re-read the article and study the subject a bit. I want to share with you what I found.
As you know there are several types of offerings in the Bible and for most of them they simply gave an offering to the priest and that was the end of it. The peace offering was different; it was the only offering that all three people would partake of. The person giving the offering presented it to the priest who took a portion of it for him and his family, a portion of it went to God and the final portion went back to the person who had brought the offering to be eaten by him and his family.
In studying this I found that the bible says the priest receiving his portion was satisfied, God was satisfied as this was a sweet smelling and fat sacrifice to him and the person who brought the offering was satisfied, filled, contented, supplied, pleased and gratified.
In addition since all three shared the meal in satisfaction, it symbolizes peaceful communion between the three involved. Isn’t that interesting!
Peace is the word shalom, my favorite word in the Bible. It means completeness, wholeness, nothing broken or missing. Therefore we see that this was an offering sown for SHALOM, completeness, nothing broken or missing, or as we already discussed complete satisfaction.
It is said that when a kernel of corn is planted every kernel that grows as a result of that seed has the exact same DNA as the seed. Just as when you give a peace offering, everything that grows from that seed will have the exact same DNA as the original seed…peace…shalom…completeness.
Another interesting thing I found about the peace offering was this; the fat and the blood belonged to God. There was great spiritual significance in this. The fat represented the best part; we are to give God our very best part. The blood represents life as we are to give God our very life…completely.
As I was reading different commentaries on this subject one person said that God told the people not to eat the fat, which we know today causes many health problems including heart disease.
I see this same thing often in offerings, giving to God has never been a money issue; it has always been a heart issue. If you love God but despise offerings, you have a heart issue and you need to seek God about that. We can’t eat or partake of what belongs to God and expect Him to bless us – but when we give God what is already His we can expect His peace, His shalom to invade our lives on a daily basis.
I don’t know about you, but for me, this teaching stirred my heart to present a peace offering to God; a seed that will produce after its own kind, just as the kernel of corn does, a seed that will be a sweet smelling sacrifice unto God. It is an offering of completeness, shalom, peace, nothing broken or missing and it is an offering that I want to give cheerfully and abundantly.
I want to honor God with something that symbolizes my peaceful communion with God; that shows Him that He brings completeness to my life every single day. And I want that offering to be a fat one…I am starting to like the word ‘fat’ and I did not always like that word. A fat offering reminds me of a letter I once received with a donation from a partner; she said ‘Lord, I would never give you something that cost me nothing.’ I often think of that letter.
If God is speaking to you about a peace offering, seek Him about what He would have you give and where He would have you give it. For you a fat offering may be $1 or it may be $1,000. For you an abundant offering may be filling up someone’s car with gas or it may be giving a car away. It may be taking someone a meal or something small and simple, it is different for all of us – but if God speaks to you – and only then – present Him with a sweet-smelling sacrifice, a peace offering.
