The hippie movement of the 1960s sought peace through drugs. Celebrities like Julia Roberts seek it through yoga and meditation, while Richard Gere looks for it in Tibetan Buddhism. Stress at work, problems with kids, and our mental health push us to look for peace in different ways. But the instructions for the Peace Offering in the Book of Leviticus give us a unique insight into how God intends for us to experience lasting peace.
1. To know peace, you need to end the war
The Peace Offering in Leviticus 3 begins similarly to the Burnt Offering in Leviticus 1. The worshipper would offer an animal as a substitute sacrifice – an action that points back to the Garden of Eden. It was in the Garden that we lost our peace, and so we can’t reclaim it without addressing what happened there. Sin destroyed the peace we enjoyed with God, each other, and our conscience, so God uses the sacrifice to point to His means of resolving that problem. The sacrifice of the Peace Offering teaches us that you can’t find peace without dealing with your sin. If you’re at war with God, your neighbour, or your brother, no amount of meditation is going to make it easier to sleep at night. To know peace, you need to end the war – at least as far as it depends on you. The sacrifice that begins the Peace Offering points to Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. As Romans 5:1 says, “We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
2. To know peace, you need time in God’s presence
Some people have confessed their sins and made peace with God through faith in Jesus, but they still struggle to feel that peace. That’s where the Peace Offering is so helpful. The Peace Offering was prepared as a meal. It describes it as “a food offering to the LORD” (Leviticus 3:3) and details which part of the offering is for God. Specifically, God gets the fat which is the juiciest, tastiest part of the animal. Imagine setting aside the best cut of marbled Kobe beef for God as a way of expressing your love to Him. To know peace, you don’t just need to end the war, you spend time in God’s presence expressing to Him what He means to you. Separation from Him robbed us of the peace we crave, and so drawing close to Him fuels that peace and deepens our experience of it.
3. To know peace, you need to celebrate it with others
The unique thing about the Peace Offering was that it was enjoyed in the context of a group meal – a kind of “shalom party.” Leviticus 7:11-13 describes various kinds of breads that were included in the offering, all meant to be shared. These were eaten, along with the sacrifice, in God’s presence. And there were instructions to eat everything right away – leftovers weren’t allowed (Leviticus 7:15). This is unusual since an adult sheep could feed 40 to 50 people. Since eating meat was relatively rare in ancient Israel, the temptation would be to eat a little and take the rest in a doggy bag for the trip home. By requiring it to be eaten in one sitting, it would include the worshipper gathering his relatives, neighbours, and friends. Even then, there would be leftovers, so the poor and needy would be encouraged to join in. And the worshipper would gather everyone and declare to them the wonders of a God who provides peace to people who don’t deserve it.
As our culture increasingly turns to mysticism and meditation, looking within for peace, Leviticus calls us to look upward and outward – to confess, to connect, and to celebrate.
May God lead you into that peace today!
In awe of Him,
Paul
