I swear I have a point.
I have been studying worship a little more to understand the nature of worship and how we can worship better. While studying, I was looking at everything through the lens of Romans 12:1 “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship”. Pleasing to God, that initially reminds me of sacrifices made in the old testament that produce an aroma pleasing to God. While studying, I had this thought, I want to produce and aroma pleasing to God. I want to live a life that captures the attention of heaven, because it… smells good?
Do our actions actually have a scent to God? Or is this just some fun concept that when I worship, God is up in heaven and starts sniffing around because he can smell something good cooking? Well, in the Old testament there were 5 kinds of offerings (sacrifices) that a person could offer to God, three of which produced an “aroma pleasing to him”. There is a burnt offering, which is an atonement of sin and an expression of devotion to God. There is a grain offering, which is an expression of your devotion to God, and it recognizes his goodness and providence. There is a Peace offering, which was an offering of freewill and thanksgiving, with the intention of sharing with another person to create a fellowship of peace. There also is a sin and guilt offering, which essentially are offerings of repentance and atonement, however a sin offering is an offering for a sin you were unaware was a sin and a guilt offering is something you were aware of. (All of this is in Leviticus for reference).
So what do we learn about God through these sacrifices? That there are things we can do that produce an aroma pleasing to him! Themes you may notice from these sacrifices include devotion, praise and worship, thanksgiving, fellowship and seeking peace, and repentance. All of these can produce a scent that is attractive to God. But… is this meant to be taken literally or figuratively? Is this just a poetic phrase? Who knows. I don’t. But I really like to think that I have the opportunity to smell like Chanel to God. Let’s fast forward to Revelation, though. Revelation 5:8 says “And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.”
WHAT. Ok, how cool is that. Every time you pray, that prayer is put in a golden bowl in the throne room of GOD. It creates a scent in the throne room of GOD. Have you ever smelt something that vividly brings back a memory? Smell is a powerful sense that can evoke emotion, bring back memories, and change the energy of a room. Why do we all buy new candles the minute a leaf drops? That literally means that when we live a praying life, we are changing the atmosphere of the throne room of God. What does prayer entail? Prayer covers a lot of topics. Prayer can be thanksgiving, seeking forgiveness, intercession, dependence, seeking wisdom, petitions and supplications, seeking peace, lamentations, salvation, praise, adoration, and worship. That sounds a lot like the sacrifices that were made in the old testament, come to think of it. But we don’t offer sacrifices anymore, we offer our bodies as a living sacrifice to bring worship to God.
Let’s make a full circle, sacrifice, worship, and prayer are all connected. They all intertwine. When you offer your body as a living sacrifice, that becomes your true worship. When you live a praying life devoted to constant communication with the father, you tend to follow his will and offer your body as a living sacrifice. The life you live and the prayers you pray can change the atmosphere of the throne room and capture the attention of heaven. Your prayers are Bath and Body works for God. It sparks joy in our creator, how cool? My prayer for my squad is that we have a scent that is full of love, that attracts heaven and is pleasing to our creator, that wherever we go, we reek of Jesus Christ.
