The peace offering described in Leviticus provides the central picture of communion with God, revealing that fellowship with the Father is achieved through sacrificial devotion rather than mere ritual. When the offering was placed on the altar atop the already-burning burnt offering and meal offering, it depicted God, the priest, and the offerer all sharing in the same meal and being satisfied—filled, gratified, contented, and accepted. This shared satisfaction signifies that all parties are joined in peaceful communion or fellowship, the direct fruit of devoted keeping of the two great commandments: total devotion to God and outgoing concern for others. Because Jesus Christ alone fulfills the whole burnt offering (devotion to God) and the whole meal offering (devotion to man), He alone makes the peace offering—and thus communion with the Father—possible. In this sacrifice, Christ symbolically fills all three roles: He is the offering, the Priest who mediates, and the Offerer who brings the sacrifice. The altar itself represents the place of meeting where sacrificial devotion results in acceptance before the Father. This communion is not abstract but is tied directly to obedience and love. As I John 5 and II John make clear, true love for God consists in keeping His commandments, and this love produces the victory that overcomes the world. Jesus Himself taught that abiding in His love depends on keeping His commandments, just as He abides in the Father's love by keeping His. The fruit of such abiding communion is described in I Corinthians 13—patience, kindness, humility, and endurance—qualities that can only be produced through this sacrificial relationship with God, not through knowledge, prophecy, or even faith alone. Communion with God is also urgent and time-bound. The peace offering had to be eaten within a strict time limit, or it became an abomination and the one who ate it would be cut off. This warning underscores that the present calling is the appointed time for learning and living this self-sacrificial duty; wasting this opportunity risks forfeiting what God intends to give. Just as the foolish virgins and the unbelieving Israelites lost their chance, the called-out must not squander their sanctified time by failing to pursue communion with God through obedience and sacrifice. This present communion is only a foretaste of what is coming. Isaiah's prophecy of the Prince of Peace, whose government and peace will have no end, points to Christ as the One leading all creation toward the Father in perfect, unbroken fellowship. Paul's description of peace that "surpasses all understanding" guarding hearts and minds through Christ anticipates the ultimate fulfillment pictured in Revelation, where the tabernacle of God will be with men, He will dwell with them, and He will wipe away every tear. When Christ declares "It is done!", the perfect peace of God will be fully established—a Family perfectly united with the Father in eternal, unbroken communion and outgoing concern for one another.

God initiates communion with mankind by calling certain individuals out of a world separated from Him since Adam and Eve's disobedience, which created an unbridgeable gulf to the Tree of Life. He redeems them from this world's grip, makes peace with them through covenant, and teaches them His way of life, thereby taking the first steps toward ever-closer fellowship with Himself and His Son, Jesus Christ. The Passover symbolizes this gracious initiative, reminding participants of the relationship God establishes and sustains. He commands its perpetual observance as a festival, not merely as a memorial of redemption from bondage but as a celebration of peaceful, secure fellowship modeled on the peace offering. In this observance the blood of the lamb signifies the life given to purchase and restore those within the household, while the shared meal underscores favor and unity rather than atonement for sin. Jesus Christ observed the Passover in perfect obedience to the command and set the example for His followers by washing the disciples' feet to demonstrate humble service. He further instructed them to partake of unleavened bread and wine as symbols of His body and blood, instituting the New Testament Passover as a yearly memorial of His death that affirms ongoing fellowship, love, peace, and joy with the Father and one another. This annual observance remains essential, for Jesus Christ states that eating His flesh and drinking His blood represented in these symbols is necessary to possess life and inherit eternal life. The apostles continued and taught this practice to both Jews and Gentiles, ensuring that the true church maintains the Passover until His return, when those redeemed through His sacrifice will share fully in the eternal communion He makes possible.