Joshua and Judges: Mt. Gerizim and Ebal, part 7 - typology and the burnt and peace offerings; Jos 8:30-35.

Title: Joshua and Judges: Mt. Gerizim and Ebal, part 7 - typology and the burnt and peace offerings; JOS 8:30-35.  

 

Announcements / opening prayer:

 

Peace offering = reconciliation and its natural result, fellowship. It might be rendered the offering of completion since it always followed the other sacrifices.

 

The most joyous of all sacrifices was the peace-offering, or, as from its derivation it might also be rendered, the offering of completion.

 

LEV 3:1 'Now if his offering is a sacrifice of peace offerings, if he is going to offer out of the herd, whether male or female, he shall offer it without defect before the Lord.

 

This was, indeed, a season of happy fellowship with the Covenant God, in which He condescended to become Israel’s Guest at the sacrificial meal, even as He was always their Host.

 

Offered on top of the burnt offering it signified the finished work and the believer's joyous understanding of that astounding truth.

 

The entire animal was offered but not all of it was burned. Some of the flesh given to the priest (the breast and the right leg) and the rest went to the offerer.

 

Hence the believer could now dine, or have fellowship with the Lord and it is the Lord Himself who condescends to knock on the soul of any believer who has ignorantly closed this door of fellowship through either sin or lack of understanding, and naturally it is usually both that sees the believer shut the door on God.

 

Any believer who has sinfully and ignorantly shut the door on God may open it at His knock and dine (fellowship) with Him without guilt.

 

LUK 15:20 "And he got up and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him, and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him, and kissed him.

 

LUK 15:21 "And the son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and in your sight; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'

 

LUK 15:22 "But the father said to his slaves, 'Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet;

 

LUK 15:23 and bring the fattened calf, kill it, and let us eat and be merry;

 

LUK 15:24 for this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.' And they began to be merry.

 

Thus it symbolized the spiritual truth expressed in:

 

REV 3:20

'Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him, and will dine with him, and he with Me.

 

At the dedication of the first temple built by Solomon an enormous amount of animals were given in peace offerings so that the priests and all the people could dine with the Lord.

 

1KI 8:56

And Solomon offered for the sacrifice of peace offerings, which he offered to the Lord, 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep.

 

Since you may be wondering as to the location of the mention of the culminating sacrificial meal of the peace offering mentioned:

 

LEV 7:15 'Now as for the flesh of the sacrifice of his thanksgiving peace offerings, it shall be eaten on the day of his offering; he shall not leave any of it over until morning.

 

LEV 3:1 'Now if his offering is a sacrifice of peace offerings, if he is going to offer out of the herd, whether male or female, he shall offer it without defect before the Lord.

 

Expanding LEV 3:1 a bit with the original Hebrew we have:

 

"If his offering [corban] is a slaughter of peace (plural of shalom: shelamim)" Slaughter = Christ's finished work. Shelamim = the entire round of blessings and powers by which the salvation of man is secured.

 

It is awkward to call it the peaces offering, but it is a shame to miss the plural of the noun shalom. Salvation through the finished work of Christ creates peace in the soul, the plural leading us to think of the many instances of peace and in the many situations in which we experience it. The plural is to lead us to think of the many things that God does to give us His peace as well as the many gifts that He gives. The result is an understanding that sin and death are overcome, so the believer no longer has to fear them or fear their tyranny.

 

There is reconciliation with God, so the believer no longer has to sinfully fear God or fear his judgment day, for there is no more judgment or condemnation. This freedom from tyranny produces in the believer a desire to draw near to God rather than seeking a place to hide from Him. As he draws near he discovers more of the love and grace of God, which produces a deeper lust for drawing near to Him, and this, not only to know God more, but also to truly desire to know what God desires to do with the believer's personal life in an excited anticipatory way. In a word it is a desire for fellowship, which through the peace that Christ has brought in reconciling man to God, is now man's right. This is one of those rights that the believer now has that has superseded all the rights of the world that he has lost.