A Sweet Aroma to the Lord

I started to read Leviticus today as I was finishing up with Exodus and I was asking the Holy Spirit to show me what I should write about today. And after reading for a little bit, something stuck out to me in the first chapter of Leviticus.

Leviticus starts with a story of God speaking to Moses about what the Israelites need to do when they bring a burnt offering before the Lord. So God tells Moses that the Israelites can bring God a burnt offering from the herd ( a bull ), from the flock ( a sheep or goat ), or from birds ( a turtledove or young pigeon ). And I had read Leviticus and this specific chapter many times before but what caught my eye this time was the fact that in every instance of sacrifice, it was a sweet aroma to the Lord.

Its entrails, however, and its legs he shall wash with water. And the priest shall offer up in smoke all of it on the altar for a burnt offering, an offering by fire of a soothing aroma to the Lord.

Leviticus 1:9 NASB

It didn’t matter that you brought a bull or you brought a pigeon. God didn’t judge you on the size of the sacrifice, but rather on the fact you had sacrificed to Him.

And as I came to this realization, I thought of a couple instances in the Gospel that talked about sacrifice and giving.

And whoever in the name of a disciple gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water to drink, truly I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.”

Matthew 10:42 NASB

The first one that came to me was the teaching on giving a cup of water to a child in the name of a disciple. You see, God will reward those who give because to Him that is another form of sacrifice. And when it really matters is that you give because of Him, then it is truly a sacrifice to Him.

And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury. And He saw a poor widow putting in two small copper coins. And He said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them;  for they all out of their surplus put into the offering; but she out of her poverty put in all that she had to live on.”

Luke 21:1‭-‬4 NASB

The second instance is that of the widow, when she gave all that she had to the temple treasury. She gave out of faith and gave all she had to God as a sacrifice. And to God this was a big deal as Jesus said that she put more in than all the people there, not because of the actual value, but because of the value it was to her. So to God it isn’t about the size of your sacrifice, but rather about the weight of the sacrifice to your life. But remember that the Lord has promised to give back to those who make sacrifices to Him. He won’t make you sacrifice, but wants you to freely give. And He will repay those who sacrifice to Him. So let’s all make a sacrifice to our Father today, and trust in Him.

Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the Lord of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.

Malachi 3:10 NASB

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