Articles
A Pleasing Aroma
Reading: Genesis 8
After 150 days in the ark, “God remembered Noah” (v. 1) and began the process of reversing the flood. Once the waters were dried off the face of the earth. God summoned Noah, his family, and the animals out of the ark to reinhabit the earth (vv. 15-17). Noah had endured the preparation, the need for trust, the fear of the unknown, and the dependence on God’s timing. In response to God’s grace and providence though it all, Noah built an altar (the first one recorded in the Bible, v. 20) and offered sacrifices to the Lord.
This offering brought a “pleasing aroma” to the Lord, and God established covenant promises with humanity once again (vv. 21-22). This phrase is seen throughout the Old Testament Scriptures, particularly in dealing with the Law of Moses’s system of worship. Yet the idea of a pleasing sacrifice can still be found in the new covenant of Christ: Jesus’s once-for-all sacrifice for sin is described as “a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:2). This verse tells us that we too ought to walk in love as Christ did, and indeed, a Christian’s life compares to a “living sacrifice” (Romans 12:1).
Noah’s sacrifice on the altar didn’t earn him his deliverance from God, but it was a grateful and praise-filled response to what God had done and continued to do for him. Likewise, God’s people today do not earn salvation by their own works or efforts. They choose to seek God’s will and please the Father in all that they say, think, and do as a faithful and joyful response to what He has already done, and promises to do, in their lives.
