Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. (John 12:3 NIV)
Today has been a busy, run-around kind of a day. Errands, meetings, mileage…it all adds up. My farthest away errand was at a farm and feed store about 30 minutes away from home to pick up a 50# bag of what we affectionately call “lamb chow.” When we had the sheep shorn at the beginning of May we realized our mama ewe was very thin. Since then we’ve been intentionally feeding her and her twins “lamb chow” which is mixed to provide extra energy and nutrition to the sheep. Since purchasing a new bag of this was my first errand, the sweet smell of this food filled my boring black minivan with a lovely fragrance. Later in the day, every time I reentered the van I was greeted with the lovely smell of the feed.
That got me thinking about smells in the Bible. In my experience, most of today’s churches don’t use smells in worship unless the church is has a higher liturgy. But smells are all over the Bible. Isaac smelled the smell of Esau’s clothes on Jacob, and then blessed him. Each lover chases the fragrance of the other in the Song of Solomon. The myrrh and frankincense given to Jesus’s parents at his birth were expensive but fragrant substances. Jesus’s body (like all those of his day) was embalmed because a decomposing body is a very unpleasant smell. Paul tells us, “For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.” (2 Corinthians 2:15 ESV). Even Jesus is described as being a “fragrant offering.” “And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.“ (Ephesians 5:2 ESV). Finally, I was thinking about the connection between the smell of incense and the prayers of God’s people. These paragraphs were helpful to me:
“In Scripture, incense is often associated with prayer. David prayed, “May my prayer be set before you like incense” (Psalm 141:2). In his vision of heaven, John saw that the elders around the throne “were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people” (Revelation 5:8; cf. 8:3). As Zechariah the priest was offering incense in the temple in Luke 1:10, “all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.”
“The altar of incense, then, can be seen as a symbol of the prayers of God’s people. Our prayers ascend to God as the smoke of the incense ascended in the sanctuary. As the incense was burned with fire from the altar of burnt offering, our prayers must be kindled with heaven’s grace. The fact that the incense was always burning means that we should always pray (Luke 18:1; 1 Thessalonians 5:17). The altar of incense was holy to the Lord and was atoned for with the blood of the sacrifice; it is the blood of Christ applied to our hearts that makes our prayers acceptable. Our prayers are holy because of Jesus’ sacrifice, and therefore they are pleasing to God…
“It is beautiful to know that God considers the prayers of believers to be like a sweet smell of incense. Because of Christ, we can now enter God’s holy presence by faith, with full assurance (Mark 15:38; Hebrews 4:16). We offer our prayers upon the altar, trusting in Jesus, our eternal, perfect, and faithful High Priest (Hebrews 10:19–23).*
Today, breathe in the beauty of God’s creation. Recognize and appreciate the basic smells like mown grass or flowers or wet dog or ocean breeze or hay or a child’s baby powder or lamb chow or…. you get the idea. When you smell something that reminds you of Grandma’s perfume, or your mom’s chocolate chip cookies, or your dad’s hard-working sweat, remember the gift each of those people have been in your life. And remember that to God our prayers are a sweet smell.
God,
Today, may smells remind us of your beauty, your faithfulness, and your gifts. May our prayers be a sweet fragrance to you, we ask in Jesus’s name, AMEN.
*https://www.gotquestions.org/altar-of-incense.html
30 “Make an altar of acacia wood for burning incense. 2 It is to be square, a cubit long and a cubit wide, and two cubits high—its horns of one piece with it. 3 Overlay the top and all the sides and the horns with pure gold, and make a gold molding around it. 4 Make two gold rings for the altar below the molding—two on each of the opposite sides—to hold the poles used to carry it. 5 Make the poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. 6 Put the altar in front of the curtain that shields the ark of the covenant law—before the atonement cover that is over the tablets of the covenant law—where I will meet with you.
7 “Aaron must burn fragrant incense on the altar every morning when he tends the lamps. 8 He must burn incense again when he lights the lamps at twilight so incense will burn regularly before the Lord for the generations to come. 9 Do not offer on this altar any other incense or any burnt offering or grain offering, and do not pour a drink offering on it.10 Once a year Aaron shall make atonement on its horns. This annual atonement must be made with the blood of the atoning sin offering for the generations to come. It is most holy to the Lord.”
34 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Take fragrant spices—gum resin, onycha and galbanum—and pure frankincense, all in equal amounts, 35 and make a fragrant blend of incense, the work of a perfumer. It is to be salted and pure and sacred.36 Grind some of it to powder and place it in front of the ark of the covenant law in the tent of meeting, where I will meetwith you. It shall be most holy to you. 37 Do not make any incense with this formula for yourselves; consider it holy to the Lord. 38 Whoever makes incense like it to enjoy its fragrance must be cut off from their people.” (Exodus 30 NIV)
So he came near and kissed him. And Isaac smelled the smell of his garments and blessed him and said, “See, the smell of my son is as the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed! (Genesis 27:27 ESV)
The mandrakes send out their fragrance,
and at our door is every delicacy,
both new and old,
that I have stored up for you, my beloved. (Song of Solomon 7:13 NIV)
On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. (Matthew 2:11 NIV)