Have you ever been out lounging by the pool in your backyard on a sunny summer afternoon and then out of the blue it hits you…the smell of a grill or smoker being put to good use. The smell of charcoal, flames and beef all meandering together to make your stomach smile and want to head in the general direction of that grill. When Marge & I lived at our last house this happened frequently. Our neighbor had a pool and it seemed he was always entertaining. You'd be in the yard doing something and then, wham! It would hit your nose like a freight train. The smell of steaks on the grill. It makes me think of the old Tom and Jerry cartoons. When this would happen, the aroma would appear as a thin line of smoke and the smoke would materialize into a hand and two fingers that would gently grab Tom by the nose and pull him towards the grilled goodness. Yes, there is truth in cartoons.
So, I’m sure by now you’re saying, “Dan hasn’t had breakfast and he’s delusional with hunger.” OK, there is some truth to that but what would you think if I were to tell you that God was a barbequer. Or at least he had his priests barbequing every single day.
We’re in chapter 29 of Exodus and after the first read through it you might find yourself saying…what? Chapter 29 is a rather dry read with lots and lots of minutiae and very specific details about the consecration of the priests and their dealing with the sacrifices to God on behalf of the Israelites. All important stuff, hence why God included it in His Word, but still rather mundane. But after reading through it a few times and consulting a good commentary, something leapt out. Your neighbor’s barbecue.
I discussed the layout of the tabernacle in chapter 27 with the 5MC writing, “The Way to God.” If you missed it, go find it at the5MC.com and catch up. You’ll see that the first thing you encountered after entering the tabernacle gates, was the bronze altar. Before you could approach God, a sacrifice had to be made. An atonement for sins. A payment for transgressions against a Holy God. Today we see much more about the specifics of these sacrifices, what they should be, and how they should be processed. You see, the people didn’t just offer a sacrifice to God every once in a while, but they had to offer a sacrifice as often as they sinned. And how often was that? Well, the people in the Bible were regular old people just like us today so if that is true, then they sinned constantly. As a result of this truth of constant sinning, God required continual sacrifice. In fact, God required two sacrifices per day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. You see, sin doesn’t stop, so the sacrifices can’t stop. Check this out.
“This is what you are to offer on the altar regularly each day: two lambs a year old. Offer one in the morning and the other at twilight. With the first lamb offer a tenth of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with a quarter of a hin of oil from pressed olives, and a quarter of wine as a drink offering. Sacrifice the other lamb at twilight with the same grain offering and its drink offering as in the morning—a pleasing aroma, a food offering presented to the Lord. For the generations to come this burnt offering is to be made regularly at the entrance to the tent of meeting, before the Lord. There I will meet you and speak to you.” Exodus 29:38-42
Dude, that’s a lot of lambs. 14 per week, 56 per month, 730 per year and 7,730 in a decade! That’s a lot of innocent blood shed to pay the high price of sin. And it never stopped. But notice that as the flesh was offered upon the fire as a burnt offering, it was “a pleasing aroma to the Lord.” Fresh lamb being roasted on an open fire would have been quite the pleasing aroma to a human indeed. I can only imagine the smoke wafting throughout the camp, the aroma permeating the air, making tummies grumble. But to God the aroma was different. It was that of sin being atoned for. It’s the aroma of people getting right with God.
Chapter 29 mentions this pleasing aroma not once, not twice, but three times.
“Then burn the entire ram on the altar. It is a burnt offering to the Lord, a pleasing aroma, a food offering presented to the Lord.” Ex 29:18
“Then take them from their hands and burn them on the altar along with the burnt offering for a pleasing aroma to the Lord, a food offering presented to the Lord.”
The ultimate sacrifice was of course God’s only Son, Jesus Christ. God ended the perpetual need for these daily sacrifices and sent Jesus here to shed His precious blood once and for all. For all time and for all people. And how did God perceive the sacrifice of His Son compared with the pleasing aromas of the lambs upon the temple altar?
“And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Eph 5:2
The idea of this pleasing aroma is one that is very interesting. The idea of our sense of smell being associated with God. In fact, what would you think if I were to say that through Jesus Christ, we could in fact, be a pleasing aroma to the world around us? Listen to this:
“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing” 2 Cor 2:14-15
Folks, you are the sweet aroma of a weekend barbecue to this world. As we associate ourselves with the sacrifice of Jesus Christ we carry His pleasing aroma. And as a result, we are a pleasing, almost irresistible aroma to the world. Your job? Spread the aroma. In your walk today, be pleasing to the noses of all that you encounter. Be the sweet smell of rib-eye steaks over hot charcoal to the world. You see, to truly represent Christ we will be that pleasing aroma because that is what He is. Don’t walk through life today smelling like a bunch of stinky fish, that’s not who Jesus is and that’s not His aroma. The aroma of Jesus is sweet to all those who encounter it. It will indeed drift into a nose that needs it and will pick them up and gently carry them off to a better place. A place of freedom, joy, peace, forgiveness, mercy and grace.
If you have smelled that fragrant aroma of Christ in your life, carry it into the world today. Bless a life today with the aroma of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
As you journey this life today, bless the world and the people in it.

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