Turn your copies of God's Word now to Genesis. We'll continue there our study of chapter 8. This morning preaching of the Word will be on verses 21 and 22 of chapter 8. Just after Noah had offered up the animals on the altar, We'll be reading this morning, beginning at verse 20 and going through verse 17 of chapter nine. Let's hear now God's wholly inspired and infallible word. Then Noah built an altar to the Lord, and took of every clean animal and every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. The Lord smelled the soothing aroma, and the Lord said to himself, I will never again curse the ground on account of man, For the intent of man's heart is evil from his youth. And I will never again destroy every living thing as I have done. While the earth remains, seed time and harvest and cold and heat and summer and winter and day and night shall not cease. And God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth. The fear of you and the terror of you will be on every beast of the earth and on every bird of the sky, with everything that creeps on the ground and all the fish of the sea. Into your hand they are given. Every moving thing that is alive shall be food for you. I give all to you as I gave the green plant. Only you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood. Surely I will require your lifeblood. From every beast I will require it, and from every man, from every man's brother, I will require the life of man, whoever sheds man's blood. By man his blood shall be shed. For in the image of God he made man. As for you, be fruitful and multiply, populate the earth abundantly and multiply in it. And God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying, Now behold, I myself will establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, of all that comes out of the ark, and even every beast of the earth. I establish my covenant with you, and all flesh shall never again be cut off by the water of the flood, neither shall there again be a flood to destroy the earth. God said, this is the sign of the covenant which I am making between me and you and every living creature that is with you for all successive generations. I set my bow in the cloud and it shall be a sign of a covenant between me and the earth. It shall come about when I bring a cloud over the earth that the bow will be seen in the cloud and I will remember my covenant which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh. And never again shall the water become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the cloud, then I will look upon it to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth. And God said to Noah, this is the sign of the covenant which I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth. As far as the reading of God's word, amen. Please be seated. Father, we pray now that as we come to the preaching of Your Word, that You would make us attentive. Father, give us ears to hear, hearts ready to receive, having heard Your Word. Father, now we pray that the Spirit would work, the Spirit would take that which we have heard and apply it to our hearts. We pray this in Christ's name. Amen. In Williamsburg, Virginia, there is a recreation, so to speak, of houses that were there, close to that place, during colonial times. The main street is referred to as Duke of Gloucester. And as you walk down Duke of Gloucester, you will see a house, and then next to that house, you will see a garden. And you'll come to another house, and then you'll see a garden. And that's the pattern. Businesses are, in turn, mixed there as well. But a house and a garden, close by. And in those gardens, I'm guessing that they planted not only vegetables, but flowers. And those flowers, most likely, served a practical purpose. They were fragrant. They were brought indoors. They had no air conditioning, no central heat, no air moving about in their homes. And they didn't have indoor plumbing. Bathing, most likely, was not as frequent as it is today. And so people smelled, and houses did as well. And the flowers were brought inside such that their sweet odor would cover over the other odors of the house. It made the homes welcoming, hospitable. It provided a pleasant environment such that people would want to stay and come back. It's that sweet aroma that we come to today in the Word of God. The flood has come and gone, and Noah has come out of the ark, and he has worshiped. He has built an altar. He has sacrificed, burnt offerings upon it, symbolizing his submission to God, his sacrificial attitude, and his spirit-led heart. And now we come to the response of God to Noah's worship. Today, we're going to see that the earth remains so that the children of God can be that sweet aroma of Christ to all of those around them. We'll see that in three points. First, the smelling of the offering, and then secondly, the soothing of the Lord, and then finally, the setting forth of the mercy of God. What I want us to see this morning is the connection, the close connection between the worship of Noah, the response of God to that worship, and then the covenant. We're not going to get into the covenant today. We'll see the beginnings of it here in verses 21 and 22, the foundation of the covenant. But we won't get into the specific details of the covenant. But I want us to see This covenant flows directly, directly out of the worship of Noah and God's response. It's the soothing aroma which moves God to continue with his plan of redemption and then to enter into this covenant with Noah after his people continue to neglect and reject him It's a soothing aroma of Christ. The sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ, His righteousness, His obedience, which is in time and space the foundation of the covenant. It's built upon Christ. It's built upon His character, His nature, His work, which is that truly soothing aroma to His Father. I want us to see that connection. This week, we'll focus on the soothing of God. Next week, Lord willing, we'll see how that works out. And the covenant continued. But this week, our first point is smelling the offering. And so as Noah burns up these animals on the altar, as the smoke wafts up to the heavens, Moses writes, verse 21, the Lord smelled. It's good to remind ourselves that God is a spirit at this point. As He came down upon the mountain, the Israelites did not see any form on the day that He spoke to them. He's a spirit. No one has seen God at any time. They neither heard His voice nor seen His form. He is the invisible God, but yet Moses describes God as smelling, having a sense of smell, partaking of that which is rising up to the heavens, the odor, the smell, the soothing offering of the animals being burned on the altar constructed by Noah. The Lord is pictured as looking down upon Noah as he builds the altar, as he slays the animals, and then ignites the fire, and the God of creation now smells. Why? Why does Moses picture it this way? Why does he give the reader this image of God having body parts and using them? Certainly it helps the reader, it helps us understand, in our finiteness, the infinite. But here specifically, it helps us understand the active nature of God as he watches over his people, and then secondly, it helps us understand that the Lord is engaged in worship. He's active and he's engaged. First, the active nature of God. He's not a mere bystander. He's not pictured here as the one who sits on his throne and merely watches. He's active, he's not just observing. not only watching Noah as he slays the animals, he does not simply observe the smoke as it passes by his royal throne, no, he smells. He places himself in that position where he allows the smoke, the picture is that he allows the smoke to enter into his nostrils, he breathes in the odor. God is pictured as the one, as one who takes that odor into his very being. The Lord actively condescends in such a way that he might and does participate in the worship of Noah. Now by participate, I don't mean that he worships himself, but that he actively condescends, allowing that worship which is offered up in the form of smoke to be received. actively receives that which is being offered up. He breathes in the smoke of the offering, and it shows us that he's active, he's desirously receiving that which has been offered up in worship by his children. And then secondly, that the Lord is engaged in worship. He's engaged and affected by the worship of his children. And I say this in human terms. He's engaged. He condescends to be engaged, to be involved. He's determining, he's seeing, he's testing that which is in the heart of the offerer, isn't he? Was it sincere? Was it heartfelt? Did it arise out of a heart broken over sin? Did the smoke come from a contrite heart? Was it submissive? Was it truly sacrificial? He is engaged. He's involved. Let me ask you, do you think of the Lord's condescension and active involvement in worship today? Do you meditate upon his desirous reception of your sacrificial thank-offerings, your offerings of praise and adoration? Do you approach worship that way? If the Lord is pictured here as actively, willingly receiving the smoke of goats and bulls, How much more does He willingly receive the sweet odor of your heartfelt offerings in His very being today? Do you come to worship knowing that you will truly be meeting with the God of creation? Doesn't all this suggest that? Doesn't this passage tell us that we are truly meeting with the God of creation, coming into His special presence, being led before him by his Spirit in Christ. That's why it should never make any difference to you who's preaching on any particular Lord's Day. How many more people would be coming today if Charles Spurgeon were in the pulpit, if he were alive? How many more would come? But none of that should matter because we come to meet with God every time we come to worship. And so do you now understand why we speak of preparing your heart for worship? Do you see the necessity? For all worship today proceeds from your heart. It's the place from where it's offered. Just as Noah built an offer to the Lord, a platform from which the offerings would be burnt, your heart is the platform from which your offerings flow. It must be right before God in order for your worship to be acceptable to Him. For the Lord to actively, willingly receive it, your worship must flow from a cleansed heart. Cleansed from dead works. Lord willing, we'll hear that tonight as we go back to Hebrews. Must flow from a humble, a contrite, a broken heart which seeks out continual healing by the blood of the Savior. We need to prepare for worship. And then just as we know that God has no body and thus no nose, we also know that our Lord does not change. But yet, as Moses sets forth here, not only the active participation of God in receiving the worship of his children and judging their hearts by it, he also sets forth what we might call the effect. The effect. of this worship upon him. As we read, the Lord smelled the soothing aroma. That brings us to our second point then, soothing the Lord of creation. Worship has an effect upon God. And again, I say that in human terms. We know our God doesn't change. But Moses certainly pictures God here as being effective. What kind of odor? What kind of smell? Or better yet, what kind of effect did the offering have? Was it pictured as having upon God? The Lord smelled the soothing aroma. That's our translation in the NASB. If you have the ESV, you're going to be reading that the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma. If you have the King James Version, you're going to be reading that the Lord smelled a sweet savor. This word has a range of meanings in the The translators pick up on that. Yes, it has that placation effect. God was placated. He's pictured as being soothed. But the one who was pictured as full of wrath and fury, and we saw that as we read it afloat, has his wrath and fury was poured out. He's now quiet. He's pictured as being appeased by the smell, by the smoke as it wafts up to his throne. But this word has more. God is pleased. The aroma is not only soothing, but it's fragrant, it's pleasant. Think of sin, it's odious. Think of its odor. As the King James translates that exchange between Martha and Jesus, as he says, roll the stone away. King James has Martha saying to Jesus, Lord, by this time he stinketh. He has been dead four days. To the odor of death. The odor of death is the odor of sin. It's the odor of men in their sin. But here, the odor of Noah's worship is fragrant. Do you see the contrast? There are two ideas here in this soothing or fragrant smell. First, that the wrath of God has been placated, and secondly, that the Lord is pleased. You see, God's wrath has been placated. Now there's an interesting aspect here as we think of the soothing of God as he smells in the worship, the odor of the burned animals. Remember that the flood was already over at this point. His wrath had already been poured out. His righteous anger had now subsided. He had shut the floodgates. He had restrained the heavens. So the soothing nature of the smell, the burnt offering, is not that which truly restrained God. He had already done that on his own accord. So what then? How does this smoke soothe the wrath of God? For we know that Noah remained a sinner. and was nonetheless subject to the eternal wrath of God. But here Noah offers up that which pictures, it's a sign of that which truly does soothe his wrath. It signifies the sacrifice which was needed for Noah and his family. It points to that which temporarily restrains God's wrath from being poured out daily, hourly. It's the sacrifice of Christ, isn't it? And then the The odor is not only soothing, but it is also pleasing. See, in smelling the smoke offered up by Noah, God is observing the fruits of an obedient, a changed, a God-loving heart. See, God was pleased with Noah's obedience, which is caught up in his heartfelt, his submissive, his sacrificial, his spirit-led worship. This is in contrast to observing the fruits of fallen hearts as Adam listened to the voice of his wife as Cain negated and ignored or discounted the words of God as Lamech listened to his own corrupt voice and mocked the words of God. It's in contrast to the wickedness of the sons of God who went disobediently into the daughters of men. Up to this point, Noah has been an example of an obedient servant of God, building, loading, serving in the ark, waiting upon and trusting the voice of God. And so the aroma of the sacrifices was pleasing to God as it represented a heart of submissive, obedient, loving service. All of this should point us to think upon Jesus Christ, shouldn't it? One who ultimately not merely soothed but fully satisfied the eternal wrath of God and truly pleased the Lord of the universe. Let's think about that for just a moment. First, the soothing of the Lord points to the fulfillment or the satisfaction of the justice of God by Jesus Christ. Well, sin moves God to act. He's a just God. That's his nature. And sin moves him to act against the sinner. He hates robbery. The evil man will not go unpunished. That's a picture of our Lord. He loves righteousness and justice and hates sin. It's like a judge who's just heard the case and is indignant. indignation rises up with him as the facts of the case are so horrendous and the judge knows that the justice calls for action. There must be punishment for the crime committed against the state and against the people. The law which the judge was sworn to uphold demands action, it demands justice. But here the crime has been committed against God. And because he's a just God, the crime cannot be ignored. Just the opposite. The sinner must receive his just deserts. God must see his justice is fulfilled. And thus God is moved by the sinner. The satisfaction of the justice of God requires the executing of punishment, death, the shedding of blood. But it's impossible for the blood of goats and bulls to take away sin. The justice of God is satisfied, it's fulfilled in Christ. The precious shed blood of a God-man completely satisfies the justice of God. He took up the cup of God's wrath, he drinks it to its dregs. That's the ultimate placation of God's wrath, the final soothing, the true atonement Much more than having now been justified by his blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through him. Romans 5, 9. For this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. Matthew 26, 28. Jesus Christ himself said, truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and does not come into judgment. but has passed out of life into death. You see the soothing aroma here, going up from the heartfelt burnt offerings of Noah points to the ultimate sacrificial offering of our Lord, that He laid down His very life to fulfill the will of His Father and save His people. It's truly that sweet savor, which fully satisfies the justice of God. the ultimate placation. But not only did the sacrifice of Jesus Christ soothe, truly soothe God, but it also was that which was the pleasure. Jesus Christ, his person, his work, is the pleasure God receives. We can think of Jesus Christ's obedience in terms simply of His righteousness. We do. God the Father was pleased with His Son even prior to His crucifixion. Indeed, the Father is eternally pleased with His Son. My chosen one in whom my soul delights. This is how He speaks of His Son, Isaiah 42, verse 1. My beloved Son in whom I'm well pleased, Matthew 3, 17. See, this is why we can think of the soothing aroma in verse 21 in Genesis as being connected to Jesus Christ, because the Father is eternally pleased with the Son, even prior in time, from our perspective, to the crucifixion. And then, if it were possible, at least from a human perspective, there seems to be an increase in the pleasure of God as Jesus does go to his death and is risen again. As Jesus speaks to his disciples after he has risen from the dead, he says, all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. He's been seated at the right hand in the heavenly places. He has sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high. See, God is so pleased with his son that he highly exalts him and bestows upon his son the name which is above every name. See, God is so pleased. with his son and his work. John Owen notes that the cherubim who were stationed before the tree of life, they're called back, the flaming swords are taken down. And now Christ is welcomed in, he's received by his father in a more glorious way than the prodigal son was received by his father. God was so pleased. that all heaven welcomes Jesus Christ, and then the children of God are welcomed and exalted in Him. See, Owens writes here, it's called the making us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light, a judicial exalting us into membership in that family where God is the father, Christ the elder brother, all the saints and angels, brethren and fellow children, and the inheritance, a crown of immortality and incorruptibility does not fade away. The soothing and the pleasing, the fragrant aroma of Noah's sacrificial offerings points to the way in which the God of creation is so very pleased with his son with his work, with his obedience. And then finally, we can think that the soothing of the Lord includes that savor of rest. That's how the Geneva Bible translates this section, this portion of Scripture, a savor of rest. Remember that the Lord God of creation rests on the seventh day, after he has completed all of his work, after it's all been declared to be very good, he rests on the seventh day. But then as a result of men's sin, there is unrest, even in heaven. But the person in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ is so full, so complete, so good, And God is so pleased, so placated, that He now enters back into that rest as a result of the work of His Son. That's the ultimate picture, the soothing nature of that which the Lord breathes in as Noah obediently, submissively, and joyfully worships. You know, as Lamech, Noah's father, said, this one will give us rest from our work and from the toil of our hands arising from the ground which the Lord cursed. Here's the rest. Here's the rest which Noah provides as he points to Christ as he worships his God. Did you know that if you trust in the Lord Jesus Christ this morning, the Savior and Lord, that you have been made a soothing aroma to God? Think of that. At one time you were an enemy. You were foolish, disobedient, deceived, spending your life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. In this former estate, if you had offered up sacrifices, the Lord your God would have detested them. He would have hated your sacrifice. The aroma would have been as tensioned as nostrils. But now, through Christ, you have become a soothing aroma to God the Father. because Christ himself is that aroma. And now, if you are in Christ, you have become that yourself. Where do I get that from? Well, the prophet Ezekiel, for one, as he wrote to those in exile, that when they were brought out of exile and remade, that they would be accepted by their Heavenly Father as a soothing aroma. I will accept you. when I bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands where you are scattered, and I will prove myself holy among you in the sight of the nations. You're brought out as a soothing aroma, accepted. You see, if you trust in Christ today, you have been made that soothing, that pleasing aroma. such that God would be proven holy among you in the sight of the nations. You see, that's the idea. In the sight of the nations, as you become a pleasing aroma to God, now you are proving to the nations that God is holy. Isn't that exactly what Paul was writing to the Corinthians that we read this morning in 2 Corinthians? But thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. To your aroma is not so much to God. As you become that sweet aroma, that fragrance of Christ to God. It's among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. It's so that you can be a sweet aroma to your friends, your families, your neighbors, all of those around you. What a glorious thing. In Christ, you become that which is a sweet aroma. As Christ is a sweet aroma to God, you become a sweet aroma to all those around you. That brings us then to our third point, setting forth the mercy of God. Here in verse 21, Moses pictures the Lord once again speaking to himself. He smelled the soothing aroma and the Lord said to himself, Just as He did when He was making man, let us make man in our image according to our likeness. Here again, the Lord, in the recreation, so to speak, speaks amongst Himself. He takes counsel, so to speak. He speaks out of His heart. And Moses then reveals to us, then, these two decrees, these promises that he makes within the Godhead. First, I will never again curse the ground on account of man, and then secondly, that the earth remains as it remains, sea time harvest, cold heat, summer and winter, day and night shall not cease. Two decrees. Two promises of God. But notice, sandwiched between the two, is this statement. For the intent of man's heart is evil from his youth. It doesn't seem to fit quite, does it? It seems to be out of place. It seems to be in a conflict. It's not logical. It seems that just the opposite should be the case. If the intent of man's heart is evil from his youth, why is it that God is going to spare the earth? Why is it he will never again curse the ground on account of man? Let's hold that thought for a minute and think about what it means that he will never again curse the ground. The ground was already cursed, wasn't it? Noah had not removed it. It was not wiped away. The idea here seems to be that he will add to the curse, to do more, to continue to do. He will not increase it. Remember, he had increased it by bringing the flood, and here he is saying, I'm not going to increase it, I'm not going to add to it again, never again curse the ground on account of man. It seems to be the first promise, a decree revealed as Noah worships, seemingly in response to that which has quieted his continuing wrath. The question is why? Shouldn't it read, I will never again curse the ground on account of man because Noah is worshiping? Because Noah's righteous. That would make sense to us. But the intent of man's heart is evil. Doesn't this show us that the Lord is implementing His plan to save a people? That God is about His plan of salvation. That's the only way that these verses fit together. For if God were seeking only the satisfaction of his justice, then the right, the only course, would have been to continue the flood, as Calvin writes, daily. Because of the wickedness of men, because the only objective of satisfying his justice would then call, it would necessarily call for him to add to the curse, again and again, until man was eradicated forever. But justice is not God's only objective. His justice will be satisfied along with His mercy and grace. So because the intent of man's heart is evil from his youth, justice alone will not result in the salvation of men. You see that? Matthew Henry writes, that outward judgments, though they may terrify and restrain men, yet cannot of themselves sanctify and renew them. The grace of God must work with those judgments. Isn't that what James was writing? He wrote, mercy triumphs over judgment. We should be able now to be able to see the connection between the first promise and the decree of the second. Nothing added to the curse gives men time to repent, doesn't it? While earth remains, sea time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night shall not cease. You see, sustaining all things gives man a place, a dwelling place, on which he can come to repentance. where he can see the mercy of God that's being shed upon him, and he can come to repentance. The earth itself, this temporary vineyard, this place of worship, a place of trial, of testing, of proving, a training ground, a Christian training camp for his children, isn't that the picture? Isn't that what Peter writes of? In his second epistle, the Lord is not slow about his promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish, but for all to come to repentance. Regard the patience of our Lord as salvation. That seems to be the idea that's caught up here. That God is not adding to the curse, and he is upholding his creation, he is sustaining it day by day, so that all of His children will come to repentance. Do you thank God for giving you time and a place to repent? To come to repentance? For not striking you down in your sin, for being long-suffering with you? You think that was possibly one of the things that Noah was meditating upon as he offered up the burnt offerings as he worshiped? And then do you practice this with others? Isn't this part of loving your neighbor as you see how patient the Lord has been with you, not overlooking sin, but in delaying judgment upon you such that you were given time to repent? Do you allow this for others? Or are you quick to point out sin? This passage should come to mind as we are tempted to crush the spirit of one another as sin breaks the surface. Remember the kind patience of your God as he continues to uphold creation. And then do you see this as an evangelistic tool or an evangelistic opportunity? The Lord of creation has granted you time, he's had much mercy upon you, first in granting you time to come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, and now, granting you more time to speak to others about it. Unless the Son of God returns tomorrow, the sun will rise. Its light and warmth will beam down upon all of us, allowing us the ability to see our paths and to go out to school, to work, and to the community. Talk about the mercy of God in Christ Jesus. Crops will continue to grow, sprout and be harvested, and you will be given strength to engage your neighbors. The only question, is whether you will understand the time you've been given and the rising of the sun and the strength you've gained to be used to proclaim Christ. Yes, the earth remains so that the children of God can be that sweet aroma of Christ to all of those around them. Brothers and sisters, we are to be those sweet-smelling flowers that the colonials brought into their homes, not covering over our odor, but exposing a sweetness of Christ to invite strangers into our homes, spread the gospel, the Son of God, that they might smell that which is Christ in you. Amen.