Are you experiencing true peace with God?

“If you present an animal from the herd as a peace offering to the LORD, it may be a male or a female, but it must have no defects.”

Leviticus 3:1 (NLT)

Today we look at the third of the voluntary offerings. The peace offering celebrated the peace or fellowship that the worshiper had with the LORD. It was like enjoying a barbecue with God!

One of the most difficult and painful experiences in life is sin that leads to conflict and separation. Whether it is a wayward child, a contrary coworker, or someone else in the church, conflict and separation are traumatic realities of life. The same is true in man’s relationship with God.

The prophet Isaiah wrote:

“Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.”

Isaiah 59:1–2 (NIV)

At one time, all of us were separated from God by our sins. In fact, the Bible tells us that we were spiritually dead in our trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1, 5). But while we were alienated from God, He sent His only Son to die on the cross, so that by believing in Him we could be forgiven and have eternal life. And having been justified by our faith, we now have peace with God (Romans 5:1). There is no more conflict. We have fellowship with God and can celebrate the closeness of our relationship.

The peace offering of the Old Covenant foreshadowed the peace or fellowship we now have through Jesus Christ. They ate a celebration meal. We eat the Lord’s Supper in gratitude for what Christ has done to reconcile us to God. There is nothing better than knowing that our sins have been forgiven, and we have perfect peace with God!

“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”

Ephesians 2:13 (NKJV)

Grace creates gratitude, and gratitude leads to praise. So, what are you grateful to God for today?

Photo by Emerson Vieira on Unsplash