Spring is here!
The smell of spring always takes me back to my childhood. On the side of our house grew a rose bush that filled the air with its sweet aroma. We also had a few daffodils in the yard and a beautiful lilac bush that bloomed each year. The smell of lilacs would drift through my bedroom window—that is, until our next-door neighbor cut it down! Still, I can almost smell the fragrance like I can of fresh-cut grass or spring rain. There’s something about the aroma of spring that warms the heart.
Of course, not every smell is pleasant. Growing up by the beach with a marsh in our backyard, I can still recall the sharp odor at low tide—enough to make you close your window. Smells have power. From the comforting aroma of dinner cooking on the stove to the sharp stench of a cow pasture down the road, smells can stir emotions, memories, and even our moods.
Lately, as I’ve been reading through the Old Testament, I’ve noticed several recurring phrases: “I am the LORD your God,” “You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy,” and “I am the LORD who sanctifies you.” But one phrase in particular has captured my attention - “an aroma pleasing to the LORD.” This phrase appears often in connection with sacrifices and offerings. It signifies God’s acceptance and approval of the offerings made by His people. Beyond the physical act, it reveals a deeper spiritual truth - the importance of obedience, worship, and maintaining a right relationship with God.
The “aroma pleasing to the LORD” wasn’t about the literal smell of the sacrifice; the physical aroma symbolized a spiritual reality. God looked beyond the smoke and fragrance to the heart and intent of the worshiper. The offering represented faith, reverence, obedience, and a desire to honor Him. Through these sacrifices, Israel sought atonement for sin, maintained covenant relationship, and expressed gratitude for God’s goodness.
These offerings pointed forward to the perfect and blameless sacrifice we celebrate at Easter—Jesus Christ. His atoning death is described as a fragrant offering to God. (Eph 5:2) Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice, fulfilling what the Old Testament foreshadowed.
Through Him, believers are no longer called to offer animal sacrifices but to worship through the way we live. Just yesterday, I was sharing with my sister-in-law that scripture tells us to guard our hearts with all vigilance, for from it flows the spring of life. I shared that when you guard your heart, you guard your thoughts. When you guard your thoughts, you guard your words. When you guard your words, you end up guarding your actions. Romans 12:1 urges us to “present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” Paul also describes believers’ lives as a “fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God” (Philippians 4) and reminds us in 2 Corinthians 2:15 that “we are to God the sweet aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.”
In other words, the “aroma pleasing to the LORD” has moved from physical sacrifices to the spiritual offering of a life devoted to Christ. True worship now flows from faith, obedience, and the pursuit of holiness—a reflection of the transforming power of the Gospel.
As the earth awakens this spring and the air fills with the smell of new life, may those aromas remind us of the profound truth that Jesus Christ paid the ultimate price. May our hearts align with God’s purposes, and may our lives rise before Him as a fragrant offering, pleasing to the LORD.