The Fragrance of Christ

Introduction

In Psalm 118 we read the following:

Psalm 118:22–29 LSB

The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief corner stone. This is from Yahweh; It is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day which Yahweh has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it. O Yahweh, save! O Yahweh, succeed! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of Yahweh; We have blessed you from the house of Yahweh. Yahweh is God, and He has given us light; Bind the festival sacrifice with cords to the horns of the altar. You are my God, and I give thanks to You; You are my God, I exalt You. Give thanks to Yahweh, for He is good; For His lovingkindness endures forever.

I started off with this passage of scripture this morning because as we gather here today we are reminded that He is good and His lovingkindness endures forever and we see that in what He has done over the past year here at Christ Reformed Baptist Church. Today is an important landmark in the life of this church, not because of anything that we as individuals have done, but because of what He has done in our lives. Today marks our 52nd gathering as a body of Christ and, assuming you remember what you learned in school, that means that today marks the one year anniversary of the first Sunday we met together as a small group in the Nolker’s living room. We worshipped together that first Sunday and then we had an amazing time of fellowship. Over the past year we have seen God work in so many different ways in our lives and we just want to glorify and praise Him, not only for the past, but also for the present and the future knowing that He is working all things for His glory and our Good. One of the things that I am most thankful to God for is that He has given me an opportunity to serve a group of believers who are dedicated to bringing glory to God, being obedient to His Word, and have a desire to grow in the grace, the knowledge, and the wisdom of God.

It is with that dedication that we return this morning to our work in the book of Exodus. This morning will actually mark the completion of God’s commands to Moses regarding the tabernacle, it’s implements and it’s priesthood. Through this journey we have seen the many ways in which each of the items that God has commanded to be built or made held not only special meaning to the nation of Israel, but also how they point forward in redemptive history to the person and work of Jesus Christ; point to his work here as prophet and His continual work in the throne room of God as our Great High Priest. There have also been gleanings along the way that point toward the person and work of the Holy Spirit in our lives as well and as we conclude this particular section, the remaining two items, once again point us towards both Christ and the Holy Spirit. John Calvin wrote:

Commentaries on the Four Last Books of Moses Arranged in the Form of a Harmony Exodus, Chapter 30

We now perceive why Aaron was anointed, viz., because Christ was consecrated by the Holy Spirit to be the Mediator between God and man; and why the tabernacle and its vessels were sprinkled with the same oil, viz., because we are only made partakers of the holiness of Christ by the gift and operation of the Spirit.

Last week as we looked at the commands regarding the laver we talked about how this was the purification of the priests, the cleansing of the grime of life from the priests, the removal of which was necessary to enter into the presence of God, and how this pointed us to the truth that even though we as believers, are continually in the presence of God, the neglect of His word in our lives creates a distance in our fellowship; for us to draw near we needed the grime of this removed. Just as the laver was negative in the removal of all that hinders us; the anointing oil that we will talk about this morning is positive, adding to our lives that which makes us acceptable in His presence.

As we study the anointing oil and are reminded of the incense, we will see that both these things are holy and that they are used by God to set apart that which is to be holy to Him. We will also notice that both of these items carries with them the same punishment, excommunication from the people of Israel, if they are used for purposes other than what has been specifically identified by God. I want to mention this here because we have already covered this when we spoke about the golden altar upon which this incense was burned and as a reminder that this is the level of seriousness with which we approach God in worship. So, this morning, as we read this text together and study what it has to teach us, let us approach this with a seriousness that is befitting the of the One who created and sustains all things. We do this by humbly approaching His word, not desiring to conform it to what we wish for it to say, but to allow ourselves to be transformed by the renewing of our minds in accordance with His truth. This brings us now to our text for today which is found in Exodus 30:22–28...

Text

Stand for the reading of God’s Holy, Inerrant, Infallible, Authoritative, Sufficient and Complete Word.

Exodus 30:22–38 LSB

Moreover, Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, “But as for you, take for yourself the finest of spices: of flowing myrrh 500 shekels, and of fragrant cinnamon half as much, 250, and of fragrant cane 250, and of cassia 500, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, and of olive oil a hin. “And you shall make of these a holy anointing oil, a perfume mixture, the work of a perfumer; it shall be a holy anointing oil. “And with it you shall anoint the tent of meeting and the ark of the testimony, and the table and all its utensils, and the lampstand and its utensils, and the altar of incense, and the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the laver and its stand. “You shall also set them apart as holy, that they may be most holy; whatever touches them shall be holy. “And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and you shall set them apart as holy, that they may minister as priests to Me. “And you shall speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘This shall be a holy anointing oil to Me throughout your generations. ‘It shall not be poured on anyone’s body, nor shall you make any like it in the same specifications; it is holy, and it shall be holy to you. ‘Whoever shall mix any like it or whoever puts any of it on a layman shall be cut off from his people.’” Then Yahweh said to Moses, “Take for yourself fragrances, stacte and onycha and galbanum, fragrances with pure frankincense; there shall be an equal part of each. “With it you shall make incense, a perfume, the work of a perfumer, salted, pure, and holy. “You shall beat some of it very fine, and you shall put part of it before the testimony in the tent of meeting where I will meet with you; it shall be most holy to you. “The incense which you shall make, you shall not make in the same specifications for yourselves; it shall be holy to you for Yahweh. “Whoever shall make any like it, to use as perfume, shall be cut off from his people.”

Our prayer this morning is adapted from “The Valley of Vision: To Be Fit For God”

Almighty Maker and Sustainer of all things, Lord, both day and night belong to You, the heavens and the earth declare Your glory; but we, as a creature of your power and goodness, have sinned against You by resisting the dictates of conscience, the demands of Your law and the call of Your gospel, yet we live under the hope that You have given. Our prayer is that You would deliver us from our worldly dispositions as those born again from above and bound for Your eternal glory. May we see your holiness and desire holiness as the beauty and dignity of the soul. Lord, let us never slumber, never lose our assurance, never fail to put on Your armor as we pass through the land of the enemy. Fit us for every scene and circumstance; stay our minds upon You and turn our trials into blessings that they may draw out our praise and gratitude as we see the effects and designs of Your hands. Render our obedience to Your will holy, natural and delightful. Transform our lives by the clear, consistent and life-changing divine truth. Let us never undervalue or neglect any part of Your revealed will. May we duly regard the doctrine and practice of the gospel, treasuring its commands as well as its promises. Sanctify us, Lord, in every relation, office, transaction and condition of life, that if we prosper in this life we are not puffed up with pride, and if trouble befalls us that we not become overly sorrowful. Balance our minds in every circumstance that we encounter and help us to grow into Christlikeness, rendering every duty a spiritual privilege. In this may we be content that we would glorify you and be an example to others. We ask these things in the name of our blessed Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus, Amen.

Yahweh Spoke

For the third time in this chapter we see Moses opening up a section of the text with language that reminds the reader that these are God’s words. As we have discussed previously anytime that we see things repeated for us in scripture, it serves as a reminder for us that the information that is contained within is something to which we should be paying close attention. Here, it is again a reminder that these are the words of God and are to be obeyed explicitly by the priests of the priesthood and the people of Israel as they conduct their worship of God. For us, here today, although it is not a command that we obey in the same way it is a reminder to us that these are the words of God and as such have purpose and meaning in our lives as they speak to us of the aspects of the Lord Jesus’ earthly work and heavenly ministry as well as the person and work of the Holy Spirit.

The Recipe

One of the fascinating things about this text is the level of detail we get regarding the spice mixture that is to be used to make the anointing oil. Moses is first commanded with the responsibility to carefully measure out the ingredients that are to be used to formulate this special blend of spices. The words in verse 23 that are translated in the English as “take for yourself” do not mean what we would initially assume in our use of modern English. God was not commanding Moses to literally take this mixture as his own, but rather that he was directly responsible for the careful measurement and precise obedience that this anointing oil required. For the Israelites this mixture and the care in which it was to be brought together would have again spoken to them of the care and precision in which they were to obey His commands regarding everything in their lives. As we see in verse 25 this mixture was called holy and in verses 26-29 it’s specific purpose was to anoint all that God had commanded regarding the tabernacle that as verse 29 states “they may be most holy”.

For us, the care in which these instructions are given and are to be carried out should again remind us that in our worship of God, especially our worship as a body of Christ, there is to be care and caution that we are precisely obeying God’s commands as He has given them. We have previously discussed that chaos is not of God, He is careful in His word to give us the means and plans for our worship of Him and as we study His word our worship should conform to that which He reveals to us, not to that which appeals to us based on our feelings or preferences.

The mixture itself contains five different elements, four spices and the oil that binds them together. Before we look at the individual elements, note down in verse 25 that the blending of this ingredients is to be done according tot he work of a skilled and experienced perfumer. This suggests that the ingredients were mixed and the oil pervaded each of the four spices, drawing out their essence and mingling them into one fragrant mixture, which was then drained off of the spice mixture so that the oil could be sprinkled or poured onto the objects that were to be anointed.

Of the four spices that are identified within the text we can be sure today of only two of them. The final two spices, fragrant cane and cassia, are not spices that we can definitively identify, but based on what their names mean in Hebrew we can at least ascertain something of what they represented for the people of Israel and us here today. The final of the four spices is listed as cassia, in the Hebrew language the name for this particular ingredient comes from a root that signifies bowing or stooping as in worship. It is only found mentioned in one other place in all of scripture and its presence there helps us to somewhat ascertain its importance.

In Ezekiel 27:19 ““Also Vedan and Javan paid for your wares from Uzal; wrought iron, cassia, and sweet cane were among your merchandise.” This chapter in Ezekiel is a lament over Tyre, which is representative of the world, and cassia is identified as one of the things that they were trading in. In Chapter 28 of Ezekiel, verses 12-19 the king of Tyre is presented as Satan, that serpent that tempted and stands as The Enemy seeking to rob God of His worship. As we consider this and the meaning of the word in Hebrew we should see that this is a reminder that our worship belongs to God alone. Again, as we look at the commands of God regarding His worship, the precision with which he delivers these instructions, we should be reminded of the care that we are to take, worship, even worship that appears to be God honoring and glorifying, that is not in accordance with the word of God is wrong.

The fragrant cane is thought by many to be what is termed elsewhere in scripture as spikenard. This was a cane that grew in swampy areas that when crushed emitted a fragrance. AW Pink records the words of Samuel Ridout:

Gleanings in Exodus 1. Its Ingredients

“Its growth in the mire may remind us of One who in the mire of this world grew up erect and fragrant for God. Man grows in the mire and gravitates toward it—like the man with the much-rack, who was bowed to earth and saw not the crown of glory offered to him. But our Lord had His eyes and heart only on the heaven above. The mire of earth was but the place where He has come for a special work. Men might grovel in that mire, as, alas, we have! A Job finds that his self-righteousness was covered with the mire of the ditch (

This brings our discussion to the second element identified, cinnamon. A brief survey of scripture regarding this particular spice will provide you with exactly four references. The first, here in Exodus 30 points to Christ and the second in Song of Solomon 4:14 used by the bridegroom to describe the grace imputed to the bride. The other two times we see cinnamon referred to are found in Proverbs 7 and Revelation 18:13. In both of these it is connected with the harlot, which is ultimately the worldly system that opposes God. In both of these places it is used as a lure by the enemy to attract the ungodly. There is that to suggest in the original language that the root of this word is derived from two Hebrew words. the first of which actually speaks of jealousy or zeal and the second of appearance, which suggests that the Hebrew meaning of the word cinnamon is “the appearance of jealousy or zeal”. Again, Pink quoting Ridout is helpful:

Gleanings in Exodus 1. Its Ingredients

“We need not say, what burning zeal marked our Lord’s entire life—‘the zeal of Thy house hath eaten Me up’ (

Thus far we have seen that the contained within the ingredients of the anointing oil we have proper worship, Christ’s perfections, and His zealousness towards God alone, which brings us up to the first spice listed, myrrh. Of the four, this one should be the most familiar, at least in Scripture, to us as we are all very aware that this was one of the three gifts laid before King Jesus as He was visited by the wisemen. It is mentioned 14 times in scripture and out of those 8 of those times it is used in such a way as to represent love. The final time that we see myrrh mentioned in scripture is in John 19:39 “And Nicodemus, who had first come to Him by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about one hundred litras.” and as you may have recognized from the words and placement in Scripture has to do with the death of Christ. Once again Ridout beautifully captures this image for us in these words:

Gleanings in Exodus 1. Its Ingredients

“Flowing spontaneously from the tree, as well as through incisions, would suggest on the one hand how willingly He offered all that He was, even unto death, to God, and on the other the ‘piercing’ to which He was subjected by man, but which only brought out the same fragrance. The bitterness of the myrrh suggests the reality of the sufferings through which He went. It was not physical discomfort and pain, nor even death, which gave intensity to His suffering, but the ‘contradiction of sinners against Himself’ (

The Binding Oil

This brings us to the olive oil. Typically speaking, the oil, in scripture is representative of the Holy Spirit. We see the same action language of anointing in conjunction with Christ in Acts 10:38 ““You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.” It should not be missed by us how important the oil is in its work binding and pervading each of the four spices, uniting them into one holy anointing oil. Just as each of these four elements helps us to see different aspects and truths regarding Christ, without the oil, like the Holy Spirit, these four ingredients are just a blend of spices. John Calvin, brings to light the importance of this as he writes:

Commentaries on the Four Last Books of Moses Arranged in the Form of a Harmony Exodus, Chapter 30

as the Apostle testifies, the sacrifice of Christ’s death would not otherwise have been efficacious to appease God, if He had not suffered by the Spirit, (

The power of the Holy Spirit has been the subject of much debate in the Christian world and one of the things that we are often accused of as Reformed Baptist, is that we do not believe in the active work of the Spirit, which could not be further from the truth. It is by the Spirit of God that we gain understanding of the Word of God. It is this good and gracious gift that allows us to live and breathe in the ways of the Lord, it is the application of the Word of God, by the Spirit of God, that testifies with our spirit, convicting and directing us regarding our obedience to the commands of God. As the oil is applied to the vessels of the tabernacle, to the clothing of the priests, to the high priest himself, these items are deemed to be set apart as holy and seen that they are most holy in the eyes of God.

The last clause in verse 29, much like in the other places this wording is found, has caused some disagreement in that there are those who say it simply means that whatever touches the oil or that which it anoints has to be holy and those who believe that anything that touches it becomes holy. As I have studied I have become convinced that this is a yes/and situation. If we study scripture we see that the person that is doing the work of anointing is in all cases already called and set apart by God, so yes, what touches it should already be holy, at the same time, the one who is using it according to the way in which God outlines in His word, is using it for the purpose of setting something apart as holy. So it is yes, whatever touches it is holy and whatever it touches what it has anointed should be holy, because it has been made holy. Take Uzzah for example. Uzzah did not become holy because he touched the ark, in fact because he was unclean he was struck. The ark itself was holy, set apart by God, anointed to become most holy.

The understanding that we as believers should get from this has to do with the effect of the Holy Spirit in our lives. You and I as believers have been set apart, chosen by God, indwelt by the Holy Spirit and in one sense made holy. In another sense, however, apart from the continued work of the Spirit in our lives, revealing to us the truths contained within the word of God, continues to make us holy and increase our holiness. As this happens in one believer so it should be happening in all and just as the oil brought the ingredients together into one substance, the holy anointing oil, so the Spirit brings all believers together, uniting them in Christ.

The Salted Incense

It is with interest that we should note that unlike the precision for the oil, the commands regarding the incense contain no specific measurements and are only said to be in equal parts. The ingredients themselves, with the exception of the frankincense are items of which we have no certainty. As we have previously discussed, however, the mixture was known and understood by Moses and the Israelites and they have already received warning that they are not to offer strange fire to God on the altar of incense, which speaks to the fact that this mixture was to be precisely done. In this description, however, there is one thing that stands out as unique and we find it in verse 35.

This verse opens with much the same language as verse 25 regarding the work of the perfumer, but then it contains the word salted. This has been the topic of much conversation regarding the purpose of the salt. Some have suggested that it was merely a preservative, some have suggested that it was there to aid the fire to burn more rapidly and produce more smoke, and some have gone so far as to suggest that the mere presence had to do with providing medicinal purposes. As we study this though, there is one truth that stands out that seems to outweigh all of the others and fit properly in the context. In ancient times the word used here came to be equivalent to the idea of something permanent. In 2 Chronicles 13:5 we read ““Do you not know that Yahweh, the God of Israel, gave the rule over Israel forever to David and his sons by a covenant of salt?”

This points back to the command that God gave that salt was to be used in all of the offerings that were made, Leviticus 2:13 “‘Every grain offering of yours, moreover, you shall season with salt, so that the salt of the covenant of your God shall not be lacking from your grain offering; with all your offerings you shall bring salt near.” and we see it identified in Numbers 18:19 as a covenant of salt, ““All the contributions of the holy gifts, which the sons of Israel raise up to Yahweh, I have given to you and your sons and your daughters with you, as a perpetual statute. It is an everlasting covenant of salt before Yahweh to you and your seed with you.””

We speak of the movement in scripture from a covenant of works to a covenant of grace. You may recall that as we studied through the 1689 LBCF we discussed this movement in scripture. The 1689 LBCF summarizes our understanding of this in chapter 7 “God’s Covenant”. We read there in paragraph 3 these words regarding the covenant of grace:

Confessing the Faith: The 1689 Baptist Confession for the 21st Century VII. God’s Covenant

This covenant is revealed in the gospel. It was revealed first of all to Adam in the promise of salvation through the seed of the woman. After that, it was revealed step by step until the full revelation of it was completed in the New Testament.6 This covenant is based on the eternal covenant transaction between the Father and the Son concerning the redemption of the elect. Only through the grace of this covenant have those saved from among the descendants of fallen Adam obtained life and blessed immortality. Humanity is now utterly incapable of being accepted by God on the same terms on which Adam was accepted in his state of innocence.

It is only by the grace of God, through faith in Christ that we are brought into this covenant of grace.

Conclusion

As we reflect on the holy anointing oil and the salted incense, we are reminded that God Himself determines what is holy and how He is to be worshiped. These were not suggestions for Moses and Israel, but precise commands meant to set apart that which belonged exclusively to Him. The oil bound the spices together into one fragrant whole—just as the Holy Spirit unites believers in Christ, applying the merits of His atoning work and setting us apart as God’s possession. The incense, salted as a sign of permanence, pictured the continual prayers of God’s people rising before His throne—prayers sanctified and made acceptable only through Christ.

Both the oil and the incense carried the same warning: use them for anything else and you would be cut off from the people. This shows us the seriousness with which God views His worship and the holiness of His presence. It confronts us with an unavoidable truth—our worship, our service, even our very lives, are to be wholly consecrated to Him, without mixture of the world’s ideas or our own preferences.

God still calls His people to this same wholehearted devotion today. The question before us is not whether we will worship, for we all worship something—but whether our worship will be shaped and purified by His Word, empowered by His Spirit, and offered to Him alone.

So I ask: If your life were the fragrance rising before God, would it bear the marks of His holiness, His Spirit, and His glory—or would it carry the scent of something else entirely?

Closing Prayer

Gracious Lord, You are holy, and You have called us to be holy as You are holy. We thank You for the perfect work of Christ, our Great High Priest, and for the gift of the Holy Spirit who applies His work to our lives. Father, guard us from treating lightly what You have declared sacred. Cleanse us from the grime of sin, bind us together in unity by Your Spirit, and cause the fragrance of Christ to be evident in all we do. Let our worship be pure, our prayers acceptable, and our obedience joyful. Keep us from offering You what is common or self-made, and instead conform our hearts and minds to Your truth. May every part of our lives be set apart for You, that our words, actions, and affections may rise before You as a pleasing aroma. In Jesus’ name, Amen.