A Sweet Perfume
By Shauna Leis
“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life 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
Not that long ago, Grace’s grandmother gave her a small sample bottle of a wonderful fragrance called Beautiful by Estee Lauder. It is a very light fragrance for the most part. However, when a 4 year old and a 7 year old get into a perfume spraying contest, the end result can be most overwhelming. Apparently the two children decided it would be a fun idea to spray each other with the Beautiful perfume. If they had stopped at just one or two sprays, it probably would have been just right. However, after each had sprayed the other numerous times, we were smelling Beautiful even outside in the garage.
The smell just permeated the entire house, along with my two children. It was almost choking just to be near them. We then had to explain the fine art of the perfume and cologne wearing to our precious children…That a little bit of perfume and other fragrances will go a long way. After a couple of washings of both the kids and their clothes and opening doors and windows, we were finally able to bring the smell back down to a more tolerable level.
However, the incident taught me a very valuable lesson when we think outside the perfume and into what type of fragrance we are giving off as Christians to others and most importantly back to God. 2 Corinthians 2:15 says, “For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.” In other words, we are supposed to be giving off an aroma that God and those around us can “smell” and know to whom we belong. Just like there was no mistaking that my children had sprayed this perfume, when we belong to God and are His child, we have an unmistakable spiritual smell about us that hopefully others will find inviting.
God was very concerned with aromas from the beginning of time as to Him it represented sacrifice, and sacrifice meant that the people were faithful to Him and His commandments. In one of our previous devotions, we talked about that the sacrifices should be without defect. Numbers 29:36 indicates, “Present an offering made by fire as an aroma pleasing to the LORD, a burnt offering of one bull, one ram and seven male lambs a year old, all without defect.” God desired that the offerings be without blemish to show the people’s commitments to God in giving Him the best of everything instead of just the leftovers.
In the first part of this verse, however, we see a bit further into the character of God. He was looking for an aroma that was “pleasing” to Him. Now, I do not know about you, but when we are out walking, I love to pass by a house in our neighborhood that has just put some type of delectable dinner on the grill. The smell is totally unique over all other smells and makes my mouth just water thinking about it now. Why is that smell so enticing? Because we know the outcome – food! God, too, knew the outcome for His people would be hearts that were totally dedicated to Him and His will for their lives. Please remember that in Psalm 51:17 the writer tells us that the “sacrifices of God are a broken spirit.” God desires our hearts above all other things. When we give up our hearts to God, He smells the sweetest aroma that has ever wafted by His nostrils.
Thankfully, today we no longer have to offer physical, burnt offerings up to God to prove our faithfulness to Him. Rather, we only have to believe that Jesus Christ came down from heaven and sacrificed Himself once and for all for the sin of humanity. Hebrews 9:26-28 indicates, “Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”
In essence, Jesus took our place and forever offered up a sacrifice or offering that we could never provide. In that one moment, the aroma that God was looking for was satisfied, and He smelled the sweetest perfume ever known to creation. The only way now to access the Father is through His one and only son, Jesus. When we believe in Jesus and what He did for us, we, too, take on a sweet smelling perfume known as salvation. We are forever freed from the bondage of sin and death and wait for a certain destiny in Christ.
So, what kind of an aroma are you giving off today? Is it a pleasing aroma to God and to everyone else around you? Is it an inviting aroma that tells others the sacrifice you received through Jesus? Or, is it an overpowering aroma that tells others to keep their distance and not come any closer?
Pray with me: Precious God, oh Lord, we want to be a pleasing aroma to You and to all those around us. We want to be an inviting fragrance that tells of Your sacrifice for us on the cross of Calvary. God, we want to bear witness of all that You have done in our lives through Your love and sacrifice. Teach us to not be overwhelming, Lord, but rather a sweet fragrance that draws others in. God, we love You so very much and pray all of this in the name above all names, Jesus Christ! Amen.