“The Peace Offering” – Part 4 and Part 5

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Who Are The Children Of The Priests?

God, Christ, and the offerer find satisfaction in the peace offering. But there is one other party who also partakes of this offering, the priest’s children:

Lev 7:31  And the priest shall burn the fat upon the altar: but the breast shall be Aaron’s and his sons’.
Lev 7:32  And the right shoulder shall ye give unto the priest for an heave offering of the sacrifices of your peace offerings.
Num 18:9  This shall be thine of the most holy things, [ reserved] from the fire: every oblation of theirs, every meat offering of theirs, and every sin offering of theirs, and every trespass offering of theirs, which they shall render unto me, [ shall be] most holy for thee and for thy sons.
Num 18:10  In the most holy [ place] shalt thou eat it; every male shall eat it: it shall be holy unto thee.
Num 18:11  And this [ is] thine; the heave offering of their gift, with all the wave offerings of the children of Israel: I have given them unto thee, and to thy sons and to thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: every one that is clean in thy house shall eat of it.

Who are the children of the priest? If the priest is Christ, then His children are His church. But just as Christ is presented to us in many different forms which are needed to portray to us His many functions as sacrifice, offering, offerer, temple, altar, vail and vessels and chief cornerstone, etc., so too, is the church, which is His body, also presented to us in many different forms. The church is also called His body, lively stones, the son of the bondwoman, the son of the freewoman, the first Adam, the last Adam, Israel according to the flesh and the Israel of God, the vail of the temple, His bride, 10 virgins, 5 wise and 5 foolish, the olive tree, the fig tree, Jerusalem and New Jerusalem, etc. etc. Each name reveals another aspect of the church, or another degree of maturity in Christ.
These are all the children of the priest. To partake of the offering at all, “the sons of Aaron and his daughters” had to partake of the offering with the priest. If this offering is received at all it is through the priests. So it is to this day, we receive of Christ only through Christ and His Word. The church is in communion with Christ and His Father through the offering of Christ. The church is, with the priest, receiving nourishment and intercession through Christ in the very presence of God in the holy of holies, where only the priest can go. And lest we get the wrong nourishment, let me point out this verse:

1Co 4:6  And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and [ to] Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think [ of men] above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another.

Now leave out the uninspired words in brackets and read this verse again:

1Co 4:6  And these things, brethren, I have in a figure transferred to myself and  Apollos for your sakes; that ye might learn in us not to think above that which is written, that no one of you be puffed up for one against another.

If you want any hope of properly “trying the spirits” then you had better be willing to “acknowledge that the things… written are the commandments of the Lord.”

1Co 14:37  If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord.

And that is why there is a qualifier when it comes to the priest’s and their children:

Num 18:11 (b) I have given them unto thee, and to thy sons and to thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: every one that is clean in thy house shall eat of it.

This is a spiritual statement about spiritual food because:

Joh 4:24  God [ is] a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship [ him] in spirit and in truth.

This verse is the very basis of this statement by the apostle Paul:

1Co 11:23  For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the [ same] night in which he was betrayed took bread:
1Co 11:24  And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.
1Co 11:25  After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.
1Co 11:26  For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come.
1Co 11:27  Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
1Co 11:28  But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of [ that] bread, and drink of [ that] cup.
1Co 11:29  For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.
1Co 11:30  For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.
1Co 11:31  For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.
1Co 11:32  But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.
Lev 7:20  But the soul that eateth [ of] the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, that [ pertain] unto the LORD, having his uncleanness upon him, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.

Only a “clean priest and his children” are permitted to partake of communion with God. Anything unclean is under the curse of attempting to contaminate the “most holy thing,” Christ and His Word. That is why when we are informed that we have an altar at which those who serve the physical tabernacle have no right to eat, the verse before that is warning us against false doctrines:

Heb 13:9  Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.
Heb 13:10  We have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle.

The reason “they have no right to eat” is that though they are ‘children of the priest… they serve the [ physical] tabernacle… and they are unclean.’ They are nepios, immature sons, no better than a servant, though they are children of the priest. They will not go beyond the six milk doctrines of Hebrew 6, or worse still they are so puffed up in their own spirituality that they are willing to “go beyond that which is written.”

Heb 6:1  Therefore leaving [ going on beyond] the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection [ yet still within “that which is written- the commandments of the Lord”]; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,
Heb 6:2  Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.
Heb 6:3  And this will we do, if God permit.

In either case “they have no right to eat” at our altar and of our meat of the offering, Christ. Christ is not stuck in Heb 6:1-2, nor has He gone beyond “that which is written.”

1Co 11:29  For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.
1Co 11:30  For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.

How are we to avoid this predicament?

1Co 11:31  For if we would judge ourselves [ try our own spirits], we should not be judged.
1Co 11:32  But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.

Spiritual words one and all! “Not discerning the Lord’s body” is not “trying the spirits,” it is not “judging ourselves,” it is “eating and drinking unworthily.’

Heb 13:9  Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with meats [ false doctrines], which have not profited them that have been occupied therein.
Heb 13:10  We [ if we are clean children of the priest] have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the [ physical] tabernacle.

The Different Grades Of The Peace Offering

The only grades in the peace offering are the herd and the flock. The peace offering can be of the herd, male or female, or it can be a lamb or a goat of the flocks. There is no turtle dove given as a peace offering. There are no washings of the different parts of the offering. There is no restricting of this offering being only a bullock. Here are the only instructions given for offering the peace offering so far as the offerer is involved:

Lev 3:1  And 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.
Lev 3:2  And 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.

That’s it, the offerer”shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering and kill it at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation…” just like the offering of the herd in the burnt offering. But when we  get to the offering of the flocks the sheep and the goats are treated separately, whereas they are considered as one in the burnt offering. There is no mention here of offering either the lamb or the goat “on the north side of the altar.” There is no mention of being only a bullock. There is no mention of  laying out the parts in order on the altar. There is no mention of washing God’s part of the offering, the inwards and the legs, with water. All of these particulars given concerning the burnt offering are missing and left off in the peace offering. Why would that be so?
The reason why so many of the particulars are not included in this offering is that those who understand this offering will already understand the instructions concerning the particulars given in the burnt offering. If you grasp that you can sit down and enjoy a meal of Christ with Christ and His Father, if you grasp that you are “accepted in the beloved,”  if you understand that you are communing with, and being interceded for in Christ, you will also understand that God’s burnt  offering has to be cleansed through baptism, you will understand that you are being judged from the north, you will understand that you have fellowship with God through Christ, and that your ‘head, inward parts and the very best you have to offer, the fat,’ are all God’s and are offered first. Those who “have a right to eat at our  altar” know and understand these distinctions. So these distinctions are not mentioned in this offering which nourishes God, Christ and the offerer, because they will be generally comprehended by those who know their offering to this extent.

Two Different Reasons For Offering A Peace Offering

1 )  For Thanksgiving and  2)  For A Vow

But lest we begin to think that “the resurrection has already past,” this offering still has two different reasons for being offered, to show us that we, the church, are still in a “body of this death… sinful flesh:”
1 )  For Thanksgiving

Lev 7:11  And this [ is] the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which he shall offer unto the LORD.
Lev 7:12  If he offer it for a thanksgiving, then he shall offer with the sacrifice of thanksgiving unleavened cakes mingled with oil, and unleavened wafers anointed with oil, and cakes mingled with oil, of fine flour, fried.
Lev 7:13  Besides the cakes, he shall offer [ for] his offering leavened bread with the sacrifice of thanksgiving of his peace offerings.
Lev 7:14  And of it he shall offer o ne out of the whole oblation [ for] an heave offering unto the LORD, [ and] it shall be the priest’s that sprinkleth the blood of the peace offerings.
Lev 7:15  And the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving shall be eaten the same day that it is offered; he shall not leave any of it until the morning.

“Leavened bread with the sacrifice of thanksgiving.” Why is leavened bread which “cannot be burned on the altar” accepted “with the sacrifice” of the peace offering?
It is to show us that while the church is flesh and “cannot inherit the kingdom,” and cannot as flesh, be in the kingdom and in the presence of the Father, yet our Priest identifies with us and is nourished with us in our communion with Him:

Lev 7:13  Besides the cakes, he shall offer for his offering leavened bread with the sacrifice of thanksgiving of his peace offerings.
Lev 7:14  And of it he shall offer one out of the whole oblation for an heave offering unto the LORD, and it shall be the priest’s that sprinkleth the blood of the peace offerings.

This is just one more gaping hole in the ‘fulness now,’ ‘the resurrection is already past’ doctrine which still, to this day, plagues God’s church. The church is the “leavened bread” of the Pentecost offering. As long as we are flesh we cannot inherit the kingdom but in down payment “earnest” form.

Eph 1:13  In whom ye also [ trusted], after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
Eph 1:14  Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

And when are we “redeemed?” Are we redeemed already? In down payment form, yes! But not in “the redemption of the purchased possession:

Rom 8:23  And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.

Eph 4:11  And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;                
Eph 4:12  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
Eph 4:13  Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:
Eph 4:30  And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.
Heb 9:15  And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.

2) A Vow – Being Faithful To The Word Of God

Lev 7:16  But if the sacrifice of his offering [ be] a vow, or a voluntary offering, it shall be eaten the same day that he offereth his sacrifice: and on the morrow also the remainder of it shall be eaten:
Lev 7:17  But the remainder of the flesh of the sacrifice on the third day shall be burnt with fire.
Lev 7:18  And if any of the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings be eaten at all on the third day, it shall not be accepted, neither shall it be imputed unto him that offereth it: it shall be an abomination, and the soul that eateth of it shall bear his iniquity.
Lev 7:19  And the flesh that toucheth any unclean thing shall not be eaten; it shall be burnt with fire: and as for the flesh, all that be clean shall eat thereof.
Lev 7:20  But the soul that eateth [ of] the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, that [ pertain] unto the LORD, having his uncleanness upon him, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.
Lev 7:21  Moreover the soul that shall touch any unclean [ thing, as] the uncleanness of man, or [ any] unclean beast, or any abominable unclean [ thing], and eat of the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which [ pertain] unto the LORD, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.

This all has to do with trying the spirits to see whether your spiritual food is of God:

1Co 10:21  Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils.
1Co 5:11  But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.
1Co 5:12  For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within?
1Co 5:13  But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.

2Jn 1:10  If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your] house, neither bid him God speed:

1Jn 4:1  Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
1Ti 4:1  Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;

What is the Meaning Of ‘In The Morning…’ And “The Third Day?’
Morning = Resurrection

Psa 49:14  Like sheep they are laid in the grave; death shall feed on them; and the upright shall have dominion over them in the morning; and their beauty shall consume in the grave from their dwelling.
Psa 49:15  But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave: for he shall receive me. Selah.
Exo 12:8  And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter [ herbs] they shall eat it.
Exo 12:9  Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof.
Exo 12:10  And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning ; and that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire.
Rom 13:11  And that, knowing the time, that now [ it is] high time to awake out of
sleep: for now [ is] our salvation nearer than when we believed.
Rom 13:12  The night is far spent, the d ay is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.
Rom 6:4  Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

And that is why there was to be no flesh left until the morning.
Ever wonder why Christ is called ‘the morning star?’

Rev 2:26  And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations:
Rev 2:27  And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father.
Rev 2:28  And I will give him the morning star.
Rev 2:29  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.
Rev 22:16  I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.

Here is why:

Joh 11:25  Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

The Third Day  

Hos 6:2  After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his sight.
Luk 13:32  And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and to morrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.
1Co 15:4  And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Which scriptures? This one among others:

Lev 7:16  But if the sacrifice of his offering be a vow, or a voluntary offering, it shall be eaten the same day that he offereth his sacrifice: and on the morrow also the remainder of it shall be eaten:
Lev 7:17  But the remainder of the flesh of the sacrifice on the third day shall be burnt with fire.
Lev 7:18  And if any of the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings be eaten at all on the third day, it shall not be accepted, neither shall it be imputed unto him that offereth it: i t shall be an abomination, and the soul that eateth of it shall bear his iniquity.

But these verses also foretold Christ’s resurrection:

Exo 12:10  And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; and that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire.
Lev 7:15  And the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving shall be eaten the same day that it is offered; he shall not leave any of it until the morning.

Flesh is not accepted in resurrection, and ‘in the morning’ and ‘the third day’ are both merely different views of resurrection; “in the morning” being the better and brighter of the two.

“With What Body Do They Come?”

This is a question which Paul rhetorically poses:

1Co 15:35  But some [ man] will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come?
1Co 15:36  [ Thou] fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die:

Now for those who believe that perfection is achieved while still in this flesh, look at how Paul answers his own question:

1Co 15:37  And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other [ grain]:
1Co 15:38  But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him , and to every seed his own body.

There are many who teach that Christ being sinless was given a perfect body of sinless flesh when He was resurrected. Is there any Truth to this doctrine? Here is Christ’s own answer to what is a resurrected body?  

Joh 3:1  There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:
Joh 3:2  The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Joh 3:3  Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
Joh 3:4  Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?
Joh 3:5  Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and [ of] the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
Joh 3:6  That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
Joh 3:7  Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
Joh 3:8  The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

Now here is an amazing part of the peace offering which should give us some a scriptural perspective on the state of mankind even in his approach to God as His “sweet smelling savor… peace offering:”

Lev 22:23  Either a bullock or a lamb that hath any thing superfluous or lacking in his parts, that mayest thou offer [ for] a freewill offering; but for a vow it shall not be accepted.

A ‘freewill’ or ‘praise’ offering could be a bullock or a lamb “that hath anything superfluous or lacking in his parts.” A peace offering for a vow could not be of this kind, yet both represent Christ. But ‘Christ ‘ in which of His many capacities and offices? Why can a sacrifice”lacking in his parts” be accepted as a prise offering, but not as a vow?
As we pointed out earlier, leaven is allowed in the meat (meal) offering at Pentecost and in the peace offering only. Why is leavening allowed in both of these offerings? And why are we now also told that…

“Either a bullock or a lamb that hath any thing superfluous or lacking in his parts, that mayest thou offer for a freewill offering” Both the meat offering at Pentecost and the meat offering accompanying the peace offering typify Christ in His elect. Neither typify Him as our unblemished sacrifice, rather both typify the church struggling against the flesh, still fighting the leavening effects of this leavened “corruptible… sinful flesh… lacking in his parts.”

1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.
Psa 51:5  Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.

But why is this not allowed in a vow peace offering? It is because vows are words that mean exactly what they say. These sacrifices are Christ in His various capacities. And God promised both Adam and Cain that in the end they would ‘rule over sin.’

Gen 4:7  If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee [ shall be] his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

Every word out of God’s mouth is a vow. It will be performed. If we say the word, we too, are to perform it:

Ecc 5:4  When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Has God told us what He will do?

Eze 12:25  For I am the LORD: I will speak, and the word that I shall speak shall come to pass; it shall be no more prolonged: for in your days O rebellious house, will I say the word, and will perform it , saith the Lord GOD.

“… I say the word and will perform it” is better typified by an uncompromising vow than by an offering “that hath any thing superfluous or lacking in his parts,” a sweet smelling savor offered with “leavened bread.” These symbols are far better applied to those who are in bodies of sinful flesh, which cannot inherit the kingdom of God.

1Co 15:35  But some man] will say, How are the dead raised up? and with what body do they come?
1Co 15:36  Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die:
1Co 15:37  And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain:
1Co 15:38  But God giveth it a body as it hath pleased him, and to every seed his own body .
1Co 15:39  All flesh is not the same flesh: but there is one kind of flesh of men, another flesh of beasts, another of fishes, and another of birds.
1Co 15:40  There are also celestial bodies, and bodies terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another.
1Co 15:41  There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars: for one star differeth from another star in glory.

“One star differs from another star in glory?” Why would that be? Are not all these ‘stars’ in Christ? Yes they are all ‘in Christ.’

Act 17:28  For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own [ Pagan Athenian] poets have said, For we are also his offspring.

But while Christ is in us, Christ in this corruptible flesh is “accepted in the beloved” as an “unblemished… without spot” offering, Christ in us in this capacity of His office and in this capacity of His offering, will yet invariably  as  “either a bullock or a lamb…[ have some] thing superfluous or lacking in his parts.”

Lev 22:23  (a) Either a bullock or a lamb that hath any thing superfluous or lacking in his parts

But let us not say what scripture does not say. Let us never say that because Christ is pictured as offered as “either a bullock or a lamb that hath any thing superfluous or lacking in his parts” and offered with leavened bread in the meat offering of Pentecost, and as the leavened bread given with the praise portion of the peace offering, let us never say that this makes our Lord’s offering with either spot or blemish. It is never to be so understood. Just look at the verse immediately before and the verse immediately after verse 23:

Lev 22:21  And whosoever offereth a sacrifice of peace offerings unto the LORD to accomplish [ his] vow, or a freewill offering in beeves or sheep, it shall be perfect to be accepted; there shall be no blemish therein .

All of us, as sinful flesh, are “Either a bullock or a lamb that hath any thing superfluous or lacking in his parts. What is meant by the word ‘blemish?”

Lev 22:22  Blind, or broken, or maimed, or having a wen [ running sore], or scurvy, or scabbed, ye shall not offer these unto the LORD, nor make an offering by fire of them upon the altar unto the LORD.
Lev 22:23  Either a bullock or a lamb that hath any thing superfluous or lacking in his parts,[ but not blemished] that mayest thou offer [ for] a freewill offering; but for a vow it shall not be accepted.
Lev 22:24  Ye shall not offer unto the LORD that which is bruised, or crushed, or broken, or cut; neither shall ye make [ any offering thereof] in your land.

What is ‘your land’, and how could you possibly offer a ‘blemished offering’ to God?

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and [ that] the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which [ temple] ye are.

What are we offering to God in our temple?

Mal 1:7  Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the LORD [ is] contemptible.
Mal 1:8  And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, [ is it] not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, [ is it] not evil? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts.

What is “the lame and the sick” which we are offering to God? The ‘sick and the lame’ are our half- hearted service to God. “The sick and the lame” is the fact that we simply cannot find time in our busy schedules to make time for this man to whom we give so much lip service. Where is our heart? To whom are these words addressed?

Isa 29:13  Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:
Mat 15:8  This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.

1Co 15:42  So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown in corruption; it is raised in incorruption:
1Co 15:43  It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power:
1Co 15:44  It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
1Co 15:45  And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.
1Co 15:46  Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
1Co 15:47  The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.
1Co 15:48  As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
1Co 15:49  And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.
1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

The peace offering, with its two ways of being offered, reminds us that, as Christ Himself we still “bear the image of the earthy [ but] we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.”>

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