Connect Ezekiel 20:41 with Romans 12:1 regarding living sacrifices. The Delightful Aroma in Ezekiel 20:41 • “When I bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the countries where you have been scattered, I will accept you as a pleasing aroma. And I will be sanctified through you in the sight of the nations.” (Ezekiel 20:41) • Israel’s restoration is pictured like a sacrifice whose fragrance rises to God. • “Pleasing aroma” echoes earlier sacrificial language (Genesis 8:21; Leviticus 1:9, 13, 17). • God Himself declares, “I will accept you.” Acceptance is entirely on His terms—holiness, obedience, covenant faithfulness. The Living Sacrifice in Romans 12:1 • “Therefore I urge you, brothers, on account of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.” (Romans 12:1) • Paul takes the Old Testament picture and applies it personally: every believer becomes the offering. • Key words link the verses: – Accept / pleasing (Greek euarestos) – Sacrifice (thusia) / aroma (osme) of a sacrifice • God’s mercies (Romans 11:33-36) motivate voluntary surrender. Bridging the Two Passages • Ezekiel looks forward to a gathered, purified people whose collective life smells sweet to God. • Romans announces that day is here: the gathered church, Jew and Gentile alike (Romans 11:17-24), now presents itself in continuous worship. • The aroma in Ezekiel is passive—God accepts. In Romans, believers actively present themselves. What Makes the Sacrifice Acceptable? 1. Redemption accomplished: God brings His people out (Ezekiel 20:41); Christ’s mercy secures us (Romans 12:1). 2. Holiness pursued: God “will be sanctified” through Israel; Paul calls us “holy and pleasing.” 3. Public witness: both texts emphasize “in the sight of the nations.” Our surrendered lives display His glory. Practical Outworking of a Living Sacrifice • Whole-body obedience (Romans 6:13). • Renewed mind over worldly pattern (Romans 12:2). • Shared priesthood—“you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices” (1 Peter 2:5). • Service flavored by love (Ephesians 5:2)—“Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” Takeaway Snapshot • God still delights in the aroma of sacrifice—but now that aroma rises from Spirit-filled lives rather than burnt flesh. • Ezekiel’s prophetic promise and Paul’s practical exhortation converge in one truth: rescued people become pleasing sacrifices by daily presenting themselves to the Lord, thereby making His holiness visible to the world. |
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