“And when the LORD smelled the pleasing aroma, the LORD said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done. While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.” Genesis 8:21,22
Scripture is full of beautiful and rich promises from our God. After the flood had destroyed every living creature on earth, except those whom God saved through the ark, Noah built an altar and sacrificed to the Lord. When God smelled the aroma of the sacrifice, He promised never to destroy the earth with a flood again. And though we live in a broken world that continues to experience great devastation, such as the suffering caused by Hurricane Harvey this past week in Texas, nevertheless God remains faithful to His promises. For over 4000 years since God first made this promise, the earth has continued to experience all the seasons, because our God is 100 % faithful! The hymn writer had it right when he said, “Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest, sun, moon and stars in their courses above, join with all nature in manifold witness to Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.”
And yet the wonder of God’s grace is also seen in these verses. When God smelled the aroma of the sacrifice, He was reminded of what every Old Testament sacrifice pointed forward to – the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary! And it is because of that supreme sacrifice that we can also know “Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth!”
And so, as school begins again this week, and as our lives fall into a more regular routine – may God enable us to grow in our praise of His incredible faithfulness to us through every season of our lives, and may we see with increasing clarity, the wonder of His grace to sinners such as ourselves!
Hallelujah! What a Saviour!