God's creation, like His Word, holds multiple layers of meaning that reveal themselves upon closer examination. Among these profound teachings are the sweet savor offerings described in Leviticus, which include the burnt offering, the meal offering, and the peace offering. These offerings, distinct from the trespass and sin offerings, are a sweet aroma to God, indicating that they are not associated with sin but with pleasing devotion. Unlike the repulsive sin offerings burned outside the camp, these sweet savor offerings are burned on the brazen altar, symbolizing God's table where He finds satisfaction, as if savoring delightful food. The burnt offering, also called the whole burnt offering, is unique in that the entire animal is consumed by fire, representing complete, heartfelt devotion to God. It is a voluntary act, offered for acceptance in the stead of the offerer, where a life is given and wholly surrendered as a gift to God. This offering reflects Christ, who lived His entire life as a sacrifice, not merely at His crucifixion, but in every moment of tireless service and perfect conduct. His life was a sweet savor to God, bringing Him joy and satisfaction, as seen in Ephesians 5:2, where Christ gave Himself for us in a manner that delighted God. These sweet savor offerings also instruct us to live in a way that parallels Christ's example. They are not about bearing sin but about living a life so pleasing to God that it is sweet in His presence. Just as Christ volunteered Himself out of love, our devotion must be a voluntary gift, a daily sacrifice of our thoughts, emotions, actions, and strength, fully surrendered to God's will. This total devotion, mirrored in Christ's perfect life, satisfies God's holy requirements and brings us into acceptance before Him through His example.

The concept of a sweet smelling aroma is central to understanding the burnt offering, which is described as a sweet savor offering, pleasing to God. This offering, characterized as a sweet aroma, indicates that it brings satisfaction to Him, in stark contrast to the sin and trespass offerings, which are not pleasing and are burned far from His presence. The burnt offering's fragrance, rising from the brazen altar outside the Temple and Tabernacle, wafts into the place of God's presence, symbolizing His delight in the devotion it represents. God desires to receive this sweet fragrance, showing His approval and satisfaction with the offering. This sweet smelling savor is further illustrated through the life of Jesus Christ, who, in the way He conducted His life, was a sweet smelling savor to God. The burnt offering focuses on life rather than death, emphasizing that God is concerned with how one lives and pleases Him throughout their existence. It reflects a complete and total devotion to God, aligning with the ultimate example set by Christ, who lived His life as a living sacrifice, wholly pleasing to God.

The concept of a sweet-smelling aroma is deeply tied to the sacrificial offerings outlined in Leviticus, specifically the burnt, grain, and peace offerings. These first three offerings, distinct from the sin and trespass offerings, were a sweet-smelling savor to God because they contained no sin and were offered in pure devotion on behalf of the worshipper. They symbolized perfect obedience and communion with God, reflecting His desire for a relationship built on sacrifice. Jesus Christ personified the intent of these Levitical sacrifices, living each day as a living sacrifice in devotion to God and service to man. His life embodied the perfect burnt, grain, and peace offerings, which were a sweet-smelling aroma to God. This perfection qualified Him to become the once-for-all sin and trespass offering, fulfilling the ultimate purpose of sacrifice. Our response to such a great sacrifice is to offer our own sacrifices of praise, thanks, and humble repentance. Through daily acts of obedience, prayer, and service, we present sacrifices that mirror the burnt and grain offerings, always together in devotion to God and service to man. These sacrifices, when offered with the right heart, become a complete meal on God's table, symbolizing a sweet-smelling aroma that signifies unity and peace in our relationship with Him and His extended family. The sweet-smelling aroma serves as a key to understanding numerous scriptures on sacrifice, pointing back to the burnt, grain, and peace offerings. As we walk in sacrifice, imitating Christ who offered Himself as a sweet-smelling savor to God, we complete these offerings in our lives, transforming our carnal nature into one focused on God and others through each act of devotion and service.

God created the sense of smell in us, as we are made in His image, and He too has the ability to smell. When Israel is distant from God and steeped in sin, it is a stench in His nostrils. However, when they repent and return to Him, fulfilling the covenant, their odor transforms into a sweet smelling aroma before Him. God accepts them as a sweet aroma in that future time of restoration. The altar of incense in the tabernacle, and later the temple, produces a pleasing aroma that wafts up before the mercy seat. This piece of furniture symbolizes a major way Jesus Christ assists in our approach to God the Father. Whether our personal aroma is pleasing or unpleasant, His righteous sweet aroma covers us as we come before God's throne. When we approach, God senses the pleasant aroma of Jesus Christ, which envelops us. The incense burned on the altar, made from a complex recipe of various fragrances including stacte, onycha, galbanum, and frankincense, represents the diversity of smells—sweet, bitter, pungent, and savory. This mixture, ground fine and burned daily in significant quantities, symbolizes our prayers before God. Morning and evening, the priest burned large portions of incense, indicating that God desires abundant communication from us, urging us to pour out our hearts fully to Him. The incense, drifting through the veil to the Holy of Holies, illustrates how close God is to us when we pray, separated only by a short symbolic distance. The addition of salt to the incense reminds us of the perpetual covenant with God, symbolizing endurance, purity, and holiness in our relationship with Him. As we offer our prayers, like the finely ground incense, we must present every aspect—sweet, bitter, savory, and sour—considering all perspectives to gain wisdom and align with God's view. Through this process, facilitated by Jesus Christ as our High Priest, we can approach God boldly, assured that His intercession and perfect sacrifice open the way for our prayers to be heard and answered according to His will.

The concept of a sweet-smelling aroma is intricately woven into the sacrificial offerings of Leviticus, reflecting a life of devotion that pleases God. Paul, in Ephesians 5:1-2, urges us to become, like Christ, a sweet savor to God, mirroring the essence of these sacrifices. The burnt offering, in particular, exemplifies this through a life of sincere, wholehearted, and loyal devotion, satisfying God's requirements not by death but by the righteous way one lives. This offering, as seen in Leviticus 1:6-9, portrays total devotion through imagery like the bullock, symbolizing patient and untiring labor in service to others, and the lamb, representing passive, uncomplaining submission even in suffering. Such sacrificial living, in submission to God's will, is the most satisfying and acceptable response we can offer Him. Peter echoes this in I Peter 2:4-5, emphasizing that as living stones, we are to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Thus, striving to live as He lived ensures that the daily sacrifice continues, embodying the sweet-smelling aroma of complete devotion to God's purpose.

The concept of a sweet-smelling aroma is integral to the thanksgiving offering, also known as the peace offering, as described in Leviticus 3:1-5. This offering, when burnt on the altar upon the burnt sacrifice, is described as a sweet aroma to the LORD, indicating that there is no sin involved in giving it, and therefore it is satisfying to God. The offering must be without blemish, reflecting the purity and sincerity required in the act of giving. In the context of modern offerings, this sweet-smelling aroma continues to symbolize the acceptability of our contributions to God. Offerings today must be given freely and with pure motives, not tainted by improper sources such as lottery winnings, usury, or borrowed funds. They must be the result of our own efforts, given faithfully and thankfully. If given by someone who is flagrantly and knowingly sinning against God without remorse, the offering loses its sweet aroma and fails to be acceptable to Him.

For Christians, the Bible presents a form of appeasement that always works. Our Savior's death paid sin's penalty in full and serves as the hilasmos, the propitiation for our sins, as referenced in I John 2:2 and 4:10. This Greek word describes a sacrifice that appeases the wrath of God and makes Him favorable toward human beings. Christ's blood atones for all confessed sin, satisfying the Father's anger and meeting the just requirement for breaking God's law. In the Old Testament, while the sin offering represents payment for sin, it is not a sweet-savor offering due to the presence of sin, which is abominable to God. However, the living sacrifices of burnt, grain, and peace offerings are called fragrances of appeasement to the Lord. As noted in Exodus 29:18, these offerings are a smell of appeasement, an offering by fire for Yahweh. These sweet aroma offerings represent different aspects of the life of Christ. It is only through our Savior's sinless life and death that we have the opportunity to conduct ourselves in sacrificial love toward God and men, in a way that satisfies our heavenly Father. Ultimately, the only appeasement that truly works is our Savior's life and death.

The concept of a sweet smelling aroma is central to the burnt offering as described in Leviticus 1, reflecting the pure devotion that is pleasing to God. The burnt offering, characterized as a sweet savor to the Lord, embodies an act of complete dedication, with no sin evident in its presentation. This offering, whether it be a bullock, sheep, goat, or turtledove, is wholly consumed by fire on the altar, symbolizing the totality of devotion, and is described as an offering made by fire, of a sweet aroma to the Lord. Similarly, the meal offering in Leviticus 2, made of fine flour, oil, and frankincense, also carries this sweet aroma to the Lord, signifying perfect obedience without the involvement of sin. Both offerings, through their sweet savor, represent an ideal of devotion and obedience that is fully acceptable and pleasing to Him.

In the offerings described in Leviticus, the concept of a sweet-smelling aroma to the Lord emerges as a significant element, reflecting the satisfaction and contentment God experiences from the sacrifices offered to Him. In Leviticus 3:5, it is noted that Aaron's sons shall burn the peace offering on the altar upon the burnt sacrifice, as an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the Lord. This aroma signifies God's pleasure in the act of devotion and communion with His people. Further, in Philippians 4:18, Paul describes the gifts sent from the Philippians as a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well pleasing to God. This illustrates that the offerings, whether material or spiritual, are received by God with a sense of satisfaction, mirroring the imagery of the Levitical sacrifices. Similarly, in Ephesians 5:2, Paul urges believers to walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. This emphasizes that Christ's life and sacrifice are pleasing to God, embodying the essence of the burnt, meal, and peace offerings, which are the only sacrifices described as sweet-smelling because they involve no sin. The sweet-smelling aroma also ties into the communal joy and abundance produced by keeping God's commandments. In the context of the peace offering, as detailed in Leviticus 7, God receives His portion on the altar, which burns up as a sweet aroma to Him, indicating His happiness and peace with those in communion with Him. This act of offering results in satisfaction for all involved—God, the priest, and the offeror—highlighting a shared sense of well-being and fellowship over a meal, which pictures the abundant life that comes from devotion to God and service to man.

In Revelation 8:3-5, an angel with a golden censer offers a large amount of incense along with the prayers of the saints before God. This combination creates a pleasing aroma to Him, as it would not otherwise be presented in His presence. Though this sweet-smelling aroma may be soothing, the events that follow are far from peaceful, marking a significant transition in the unfolding of divine judgment.

In Ephesians 5:1-7, the apostle Paul urges us to be followers of God as dear children and to walk in love, mirroring the example of Christ who loved us and gave Himself for us as an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. This imagery conveys that when God sees His children conducting themselves in godly love, it greatly pleases Him, akin to the delightful scent of a good roast. It brings Him joy to witness His children voluntarily sacrificing their time, energy, and talents as living sacrifices, repeatedly for the benefit of many, as a way of life. This act of love, rooted in sacrifice, reflects the essence of godly love, or agape, and demonstrates progress in sanctification, showing that we are becoming holy by expressing God's love through such selfless acts. Paul contrasts this with sins like fornication, uncleanness, and covetousness, which are rooted in selfishness and idolatry, the opposite of the outgoing concern we should have as God's children. By walking in love and embodying these sacrificial acts, we become a pleasing, sweet-smelling aroma to God, just as His Son Jesus Christ is.

The smoke that rises from the incense offered by the angel at the altar before God's throne is mingled with the prayers of all the saints. When prayers rise before Him that reveal His children's response to sin to be similar to His own, He is pleased. When He can receive the outpouring of our hearts and know that His standard of righteousness is being engraved in our very beings, He is delighted. When our prayers, as well as our lives, demonstrate that we love what He loves and hate what He hates, our Father is elated. If the prayers of the saints contain God's standard of righteousness as expressed by His people, they may serve as more than just a pleasing aroma. Such prayers could also serve as evidence that God presents against the world.

Ephesians 5:1-2 instructs us to be imitators of God as dear children and to walk in love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. This imagery of a sweet-smelling aroma reflects the pleasing nature of Christ's sacrifice to God, symbolizing the ultimate expression of love and obedience. As we strive to imitate God, our actions, the way we treat others, and our offerings to Him should similarly be received as a sweet-smelling fragrance. In this manner, our lives and sacrifices, through witnessing God's way of life and offering up prayers, should be a pleasing and fragrant sacrifice to Him, embodying the love and dedication exemplified by Christ.

In Hosea 14:6-7, we are called to have a fragrance like Lebanon, a sweet-smelling aroma that reflects our obedience and sacrifices. This scent, likened to the cedar trees and the wine of Lebanon, symbolizes the pleasing nature of our prayers and offerings to God. As described in Revelation 5:8, the prayers of the saints are as incense, and in the Song of Solomon, the church is a garden of spices. Likewise, Genesis 8:21 notes that our sacrifices carry a sweet aroma to God. When we live a life of obedience, and when Israel does so as a nation in the Kingdom of God, our fragrance will be like the hills of Lebanon, a testament to our dedication and the beauty of our spiritual growth.