A Pleasing Aroma to God

Meditations for Ragamuffins

October 31, 2023

A Pleasing Aroma to God

Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Ephesians 5:1-2

Jesus was able to reconcile two seemingly irreconcilable truths he experienced on the cross. By resting in the truth of God’s affirmation of him -- “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy” -- Jesus was able to confront his negative emotions --“My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” -- and return to resting in God’s love -- “Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!” As the followers of Christ, we too are called to reconcile two seemingly irreconcilable truths.

On the one hand, our life, apart from the saving grace of Jesus, is totally repugnant to God. Even so, while we were completely lost in our sin, God loved us, and Christ died for us. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God— not the result of works, so that no one may boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9 NRSV). We have been saved by grace and we live by grace. We can never, ever do anything to earn our right standing with God. Even though God speaks those most precious of all words to us when we come to Him by faith, “This is my dearly loved (Child), who brings me great joy,” nevertheless, our works within our own strength are still repugnant to him because they are offered through our sin-broken flesh.

However, Jesus shows us how to reconcile our life in grace with the works of our hands. Jesus “loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Ephesians 5:2). The Philippians grasped this truth when they sent an offering to Paul while he was in jail. Paul wrote to them that their offering was “a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God” (Philippians 4:18c). When the love of Christ for us moves us to express his love for others, especially when we give sacrificially of ourselves and our resources, our offering becomes a pleasing aroma to God.

My Takeaway: As you seek to make your life a pleasing aroma to God, never forget that it is God working in you to transform your life into a sweet-smelling sacrifice. “For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him” (Philippians 2:13 NLT).

May God, “equip (us) with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen” (Hebrews 13:21).

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2023 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.