1

Redeemer Bible Church

Unreserved Accountability to Christ. Undeserved Acceptance from Christ.

The Fragrance of the Tabernacle

Exodus 25:1-31:18

Introduction
At the beginning of this week, I along with my pastoral colleagues Pastor Doug,
David Ward, and Jason Dailey—and it was also nice to see Rich Wilson there—
attended the Desiring God Conference for Pastors in downtown Minneapolis. The
subject for the conference was the holiness of God, and the keynote speaker was R C
Sproul.

Needless to say it was an excellent conference. It was a great time of fellowship

with my brothers around the word of God. And it was quite rejuvenating—not that I was
feeling run down or otherwise weary—it’s just that I find that a conference like that tends
to bring renewed energy and purpose into my life and ministry.

But, as you know, conferences are not every day. In fact, this one is only once a
year. And a once a year of renewal of energy for the work of pastoral ministry just can’t
cut it. In order to persist in the work of the ministry, I need a greater source of energy
than the “fix” I get from a high-powered conference with top-drawer speakers. I need a
source of life and vitality that will give me the energy to fulfill my calling every day.

And this isn’t just the case for pastors; it’s the case for everyone. We cannot live
life without a source of energy—and I’m not talking about the kind of energy we get from
food (though we certainly need that). I’m talking about the kind of energy that gives us
a sense of meaning and purpose and direction to the life we’re living. I’m talking about
energy that allows us to make sense of the difficulties and details of our lives so that we
can live life as it was meant to be lived.

A conference just can’t give you that.

If you’ve ever been to a conference, you have probably at one time or another
gone through what I call conference withdrawal. You come off your conference high
with a renewed sense of purpose and direction, which lasts for about a day. Then, all of
the sudden, you feel incredibly down, like something has gone missing in your life, like
there’s a great, big hole in your heart that only…only…another conference can fulfill.

So you quick get on the internet and pick a new one, and as you plan for it, your
excitement builds and that excitement allows you to get through another day. After all,
another day done is just another day closer to your next conference. And the cycle
goes on…

Exodus 25:1-31:18: The Fragrance of the Tabernacle © 2007

 2

Well, I want to point you today to the resource for the life and vitality for living life
that is life indeed. And it’s found in an unlikely location: the instructions for the
tabernacle.

Turn with me in your Bibles to Exodus 30:22-38.

" 22 Moreover, the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 23 "Take also for yourself the
finest of spices: of flowing myrrh five hundred shekels, and of fragrant cinnamon half as
much, two hundred and fifty, and of fragrant cane two hundred and fifty, 24 and of cassia
five hundred, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, and of olive oil a hin. 25 "You shall
make of these a holy anointing oil, a perfume mixture, the work of a perfumer; it shall be
a holy anointing oil. 26 "With it you shall anoint the tent of meeting and the ark of the
testimony, 27 and the table and all its utensils, and the lampstand and its utensils, and
the altar of incense, 28 and the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils, and the laver
and its stand. 29 "You shall also consecrate them, that they may be most holy; whatever
touches them shall be holy. 30 "You shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate
them, that they may minister as priests to Me. 31 "You shall speak to the sons of Israel,
saying, 'This shall be a holy anointing oil to Me throughout your generations. 32 'It shall
not be poured on anyone's body, nor shall you make any like it in the same proportions;
it is holy, and it shall be holy to you. 33 'Whoever shall mix any like it or whoever puts any
of it on a layman shall be cut off from his people.'" 34 Then the LORD said to Moses,
"Take for yourself spices, stacte and onycha and galbanum, spices with pure
frankincense; there shall be an equal part of each. 35 "With it you shall make incense, a
perfume, the work of a perfumer, salted, pure, and holy. 36 "You shall beat some of it
very fine, and 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. 37 "The incense which you shall make, you shall
not make in the same proportions for yourselves; it shall be holy to you for the LORD.
38
"Whoever shall make any like it, to use as perfume, shall be cut off from his people."

Now you’re probably wondering how I could move from instructions for oil and
incense to what I’m calling our resource for the life and vitality we need to live life as it
was meant to be lived; for this doesn’t seem like anything more than a cookbook. And
on the face of it, it’s not. If you were to randomly open your Bible to Exodus 30 in the
hope that you could glean something helpful for your spiritual life from what you found
there, you would likely be disappointed—greatly disappointed.

That’s because this passage wasn’t meant to stand alone—it’s part of a whole
series of instructions that the Lord gives to Moses for the construction of what most of
us now know is called the tabernacle, a portable shrine for Israel’s worship. The word
moreover at the beginning of verse 22 should clue you in that it is part of something
larger—at least a continuation of something that the Lord said to Moses.

The passage we just read comes near the end of the directives the Lord gave to
Moses, recorded for us in chapters 25-31. So if we’re going to understand this part, we
need some sense of the whole.

Exodus 25:1-31:18: The Fragrance of the Tabernacle © 2007

 3

I said just a moment ago that the tabernacle was a portable shrine for Israel’s
worship. But it wasn’t designed for worship generally—like an interfaith chapel. This
shrine was designed for the worship of a particular God: the true and living God, the
God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Holy God of all creation.

And since the tabernacle was meant for the worship of the true and living God
and no other god, the Lord designed everything about it to display and reflect and
symbolize who he is. Therefore even though every element of this shrine has a
particular function, function is not primary—form is. The form of the tabernacle in its
dimensions and colors and textures and furnishings and tastes and sounds and
services and smells was intended as a three dimensional, poem, appealing to all five
senses.

As a whole and above all, the presence of the tabernacle in the center of the
Israelite camp was meant to demonstrate with uniform clarity that God was among his
people, that he had delivered them from the Egyptians to bring them up from that land
to the Promised Land, “a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey”
(Exodus 3:8).

There are two central texts, one at the beginning of the instructions and the other
near the end that make this point very straightforwardly. See Exodus 25:8; 29:45-46.

8
"Let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them
(Exodus 25:8).
45
"I will dwell among the sons of Israel and will be their God. 46 "They shall
know that I am the LORD their God who brought them out of the land of Egypt, that I
might dwell among them; I am the LORD their God (Exodus 29:45-46).

The tabernacle was meant by God to bombard his people’s senses with one
overarching message, “I am here.”

Each element that’s described provided a different facet of that message. So this
is how we need to read the instructions for the oil and incense. We need to ask the
question, “What does this teach us about the God who has come down among his
people?” Well, allow me to suggest three things that this passage teaches us about
God.

The Holy God Is Present with His People

First, it teaches us that God is present with his people. In other words, it
reinforces and reiterates the overarching message of the tabernacle—that God is here.
How does it do that? Well, think about it with me for a moment.

The instructions for the oil and the incense are basically a recipe for fragrances.
Now then, how do fragrances function? Well, in the Ancient Near East (and today) your
scent makes your presence known and makes others recognize you. This is especially

Exodus 25:1-31:18: The Fragrance of the Tabernacle © 2007

 4

the case if the scent is unique to you…which precisely God’s intention. Turn to Exodus
30:32-33 & 37-38.
32
'It shall not be poured on anyone's body, nor shall you make any like it in the
same proportions; it is holy, and it shall be holy to you. 33 'Whoever shall mix any like it or
whoever puts any of it on a layman shall be cut off from his people' (30:32-33).
37
"The incense which you shall make, you shall not make in the same
proportions for yourselves; it shall be holy to you for the LORD. 38 "Whoever shall make
any like it, to use as perfume, shall be cut off from his people" (30:37-38).

Now if you lived during the time of the tabernacle, this unique scent would alert
you in a palpable way that God was in your midst. And there was nothing in that
sanctuary that was untouched by the fragrance of his presence. Turn to Exodus 30:25-
28, 30, 35-36.
25
"You shall make of these a holy anointing oil, a perfume mixture, the work of
a perfumer; it shall be a holy anointing oil. 26 "With it you shall anoint the tent of
meeting and the ark of the testimony, 27 and the table and all its utensils, and the
lampstand and its utensils, and the altar of incense, 28 and the altar of burnt
offering and all its utensils, and the laver and its stand
30
"You shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may
minister as priests to Me….
35
With it you shall make incense, a perfume, the work of a perfumer, salted,
pure, and holy. 36 "You shall beat some of it very fine, and 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.

Every object and every person (priest) that served in the sanctuary had the same
unique smell. Even the air they breathed was dominated by a unique scent as well. It’s
the sanctuary smell, the aroma of the Lord.

And since this is the scent that God wants associated with himself, it cannot be
used for common purposes. It is holy as we read in verses 32 and 37.
32
'It shall not be poured on anyone's body, nor shall you make any like it in the
same proportions; it is holy, and it shall be holy to you….37 "The incense which you
shall make, you shall not make in the same proportions for yourselves; it shall be holy
to you for the LORD.

And in the case of the oil, even whatever it touches becomes holy. And more
than that, whatever touches whatever it touches becomes holy. As soon as the holy
anointing oil touches an object that object becomes unfit for ordinary, common activity
and becomes the property of the sanctuary. God’s holiness is dangerous; it’s
contagious.1

1
See Lev 6:18, 27; Num 16:38; Ezek 44:15-19; 46:20

Exodus 25:1-31:18: The Fragrance of the Tabernacle © 2007

 5

Either you must be appointed by God for contact with the holy, like the high
priests were,2 or you were dealt with accordingly. Notice verses 33 and 38.

. 33 'Whoever shall mix any like it or whoever puts any of it on a layman shall be
cut off from his people.'"
38
"Whoever shall make any like it, to use as perfume, shall be cut off from his
people."

Just in case you’re thinking that being cut off from his people means ostracism,
look over to 31:14.
14
'Therefore you are to observe the sabbath, for it is holy to you. Everyone who
profanes it shall surely be put to death; for whoever does any work on it, that person
shall be cut off from among his people.

Now that God has associated himself in his supreme holiness with this particular
scent, any other use becomes sacrilege, a sin worthy of death.

Twelve times in this passage the noun for “holy” is used and three times it’s used
as a verb. Do you think that God’s trying to say something?

Well, it’s not that there is something magical in the mixture. That’s the
temptation. And it’s why both in verses 32-33 and 37-38 the Lord forbids the people
from making it for personal use. I mean, you might erroneously conclude (especially in
the superstitious atmosphere of the ancient world) that this is a magical potion, an elixir
that brings a little bit of God with all of his blessings near to you.

This is certainly not what God means to do by highlighting the holiness of the oil
and incense. There is nothing inherently holy about the oil or incense. What makes
them holy is that they symbolize the presence of the holy God. As soon as he chose
this mixture to represent his presence among his people, the mixture became holy. It
becomes holy only by God’s decree, by his ordination, having set it apart according to
his good pleasure.

So, the reason why God is careful to say that the oil and incense are holy is so
that the scent will remain unique to him, so that no other associations will be made
between the smell of these mixtures and any other person or thing. This is a sacred
smell.

God is holy, and God will be treated as holy. As the Lord says elsewhere, “I am
God and not man, the Holy One in your midst” (Hosea 11:9).

2
See Num 4:15-20

Exodus 25:1-31:18: The Fragrance of the Tabernacle © 2007

 6

So then, the first thing that the instructions for the oil and incense teach us
about God is that he is present in the sanctuary. The holy God is in their midst.

The Holy God Is Supremely Valuable

The second feature of the instructions for the oil and incense is that they teach us
that the holy God is supremely valuable. Why do I say that? Well, look at the
ingredients in verses 23-25 and 34-35.
23
"Take also for yourself the finest of spices: of flowing myrrh five hundred
shekels, and of fragrant cinnamon half as much, two hundred and fifty, and of fragrant
cane two hundred and fifty, 24 and of cassia five hundred, according to the shekel of the
sanctuary, and of olive oil a hin. 25 "You shall make of these a holy anointing oil, a
perfume mixture, the work of a perfumer; it shall be a holy anointing oil.
34
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Take for yourself spices, stacte and onycha
and galbanum, spices with pure frankincense; there shall be an equal part of each. 35
"With it you shall make incense, a perfume, the work of a perfumer, salted, pure, and
holy.

I’ll not take time to explain what each and every item is—in fact, there are some
items in the lists whose identities elude us. The translators for the NASB have done a
fine job in their choices.

But we do know something generally about spices and perfumes; namely, that
they were rare and highly prized commodities in the ancient world. You will remember
that when the Queen of Sheba came to visit Solomon, along with a very large retinue
and gold and precious stones, she also brought spices.3 Not only that, we read in 2
Kings 20:13 and Isaiah 39:2 that Hezekiah kept spices and precious oil in the royal
treasury.

Now the reason why they were so expensive is that (a) you needed huge
amounts of raw materials to make them; (b) they had to be transported over long
distances by land caravan and/or by sea—India, Arabia, and even China were sources
of spices for the ancient world; and (c) the art of what’s called perfumery was a highly
specialized craft, which explains why a perfumer is mentioned in verses 25 & 35.4 It
would have cost an arm and a leg for the skilled labor to create your oil and incense.

The point here is that the oil and incense for the tabernacle is extravagant—it’s
over-the-top extravagant.

Now then, what does this extravagance say about the holy God of the
tabernacle? It says, “He’s worth it!”

3
See 1 Kings 10:2
4
See Nahum M Sarna, Exodus (JPS, 1991), 197

Exodus 25:1-31:18: The Fragrance of the Tabernacle © 2007

 7

Only the best can and must be used in the worship of him. He is supremely
valuable such that there’s no such thing as going overboard. How can you go
overboard with the one who is infinitely worthy of all adoration, honor, and praise? You
can’t say enough or do enough or conjure enough images to express it. Even the
extravagant oil and incense barely scratch the surface.

So then, the second teaching point of the instructions for the oil and incense is
that they demonstrate that the Lord is supremely valuable, infinitely worthy of all our
honor and worship and praise.

The Holy God Is the Source of Life

Finally, these instructions teach us that the holy God is the source of all life. In
the ANE (Ancient Near East), smells were not just pleasant or unpleasant, but they were
carriers of life and death.5 Good smells indicated health and vitality. Therefore the
wonderful smell of the sweet spices of the holy oil and incense communicated the
Lord’s vitality.

More than that, the anointing of priests (and kings for that matter) in the ANE
symbolized a “permanent vital energy” that the “life-giving” oil produced.6

So the third element of the nature of God in the symbolism of the oil and incense
is that of the life and vitality that is found uniquely in the Lord. He is the one who brings
blessing and life, vitality, and permanent invigoration to his people.

Now then, what have we seen so far?

First, that the fragrance of the oil and incense demonstrate the presence of the
holy God. Your scent makes your presence known.

Second, we’ve seen that the fragrance of the oil and the incense demonstrate the
supreme value of the holy God. The scent would have communicated extravagance to
the Israelites.

And third, the fragrance of the oil and the incense demonstrate that the holy God
is the source of life. For the Ancient Near Easterner, bad smells meant death and
cursing, while good smells (like the oil and incense) meant life and blessing.

Christ, the Holy, Exalted Life-Giver, Worthy of All Our Praise

With all that said, we’re ready to ask what this teaches us about Jesus Christ?
Not only do we need to uncover the theology of the passage, but once we uncover the
theology of the Old Testament passage, we need to see how that specific theology
leads us to Christ.

5
See Exodus 7:18, 21; 8:14
6
Quoted in John I Durham, Exodus (Word, 1987), 407

Exodus 25:1-31:18: The Fragrance of the Tabernacle © 2007

 8

If I were to end with the Old Testament, and were to be living in the first century,
the Scribes and Pharisees would have certainly agreed with my message. God is the
holy, supremely valuable, life-giver. There is none like him. Like the Song of Moses
says, “Who is like You among the gods, O LORD? Who is like You, majestic in holiness,
Awesome in praises, working wonders?” (Exodus 15:11).

What would get me kicked out of my synagogue is what I’m about to say next.

Like everything else in the tabernacle, the oil and incense prefigure God’s
presence through Jesus of Nazareth!

All of these instructions were meant to prepare God’s people for the ultimate
manifestation of his presence among them in the incarnation. Let’s read John 1:14.
14
And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory
as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.

The Holy God has made his presence known uniquely in the person of Christ, the
Holy One of Israel. Let’s read John 6:69.7
69
"We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of
God."

What Exodus 30 (and the rest of the instructions) teach us is that the holy God
has made himself known in the person of Jesus of Nazareth. The Lord no longer
accepts the worship of the physical tabernacle, the oil and incense of that by-gone era
of salvation history has now become obsolete.

But that doesn’t mean that there’s no aroma of God any more. To the contrary,
that fragrance was meant to get us ready for the release of a scent that would
overwhelm us with an odor that would dominate it all. The aroma of the Lord Jesus
Christ, our source of life and the one supremely admirable, worth all of all the value we
can possibly ascribe to him.

Now I think this is exciting.

Through the gospel, through faith in Christ, we have access to the true source of
vitality, life, and abundance. As Jesus says in John 10:10, “I came that they may have
life, and have it abundantly.” You don’t need another conference (neither do I). What
we need is a deeper relationship with the one who gives us what Paul calls “life indeed”
(1 Timothy 6:19).

The Vitality of Christ through the Worship of Christ

7
See also Acts 3:14

Exodus 25:1-31:18: The Fragrance of the Tabernacle © 2007

 9

But how do we experience this life indeed, how do we taste it in the here and
now? Well, the answer is found in the truth that Christ is supremely valuable, worthy of
all our praise.

You see, we were made for the worship of Christ. You find life when you
exchange all you are for the awesome value of Christ. You find life in worship.

Now worship is not just the thing we do here on Sunday, the Lord’s Day.
Worship is about what we value, what we admire, what we treasure. Worship is about
what you live for. So if you’re living for the wrong things (or people)—for things or
people other than Christ, your life won’t be life at all, but a shadow life, a phantom life, a
life lived at odds with the one God made you for.

You and I were made to enjoy life to its fullest extent, to enjoy what is most
enjoyable with a source of limitless energy to do so. We were made to live for Christ
and not for ourselves. Life is about valuing and treasuring Jesus Christ. If you live for
anything less than him, you will be wholly unsatisfied, truly disappointed, and ultimately
condemned.

Do you see what I’m saying here? I’m saying that you and I have access to living
waters, to an unlimited, renewable resource for life—Jesus Christ. And I’m saying that
we tap into that resource by valuing Christ supremely above all things, by living for
Christ.

We all get out of bed in the morning for a reason. What’s yours? Is it the
promise of a successful career? Is it the approval of exacting parents? Is it acclaim for
your looks, intelligence, wit, athletic prowess, or artistic ability? Is it for the comfort of
your next vacation? Is it for the promise of financial freedom?

Maybe you don’t know what motivates you. Maybe you don’t know what you’re
living for. Sometimes it’s difficult to diagnose…I’m with you. Well, let me ask you this:
What gets you excited? What makes you happy? What do you love? What are your
favorite things?

Now think about this: Have you ever had any of these things taken away?

I think about this with respect to the ministry here at Redeemer. Things are
happening; God is at work. To me, it seems like he’s been on overdrive since I first
arrived.

Just this week, I had a phone conference with Paul David Tripp to discuss our
messages for the pastors’ conference, I was approached by John Piper’s assistant and
told that he’s hearing a lot of good things about Redeemer, Mark Summers was
“mysteriously” invited to a luncheon with some high-powered Reformed evangelicals
who expressed interest in The Institute and our plans for a seminary, and it goes on and
on.

Exodus 25:1-31:18: The Fragrance of the Tabernacle © 2007

 10

These things get me excited. And they should. They’re exciting developments in
the life of our church. But to me the question is, What if none of this were happening?
What if instead I were called to an Isaiah-like ministry:

Go, and tell this people: “Keep on listening, but do not perceive; Keep on
looking, but do not understand.” Render the hearts of this people insensitive,
Their ears dull, And their eyes dim, Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
Hear with their ears, Understand with their hearts, And return and be
healed….Until cities are devastated and without inhabitant (Isaiah 6:9-11).

What if I were called to this? Would I still feel invigorated for my labors as a
pastor, looking to Christ as my only and true source of life, treasuring him above all
things?

Now I have been though some rough times in my 12-year ministry. And although
I’ve never abandoned all hope, I can tell you that it is easier to have energy and to be
enthusiastic when things are going well. What does that tell me about what I’m living for
in those moments? At the very least, it tells me that I need regularly to assess what I’m
living for. Am I living for Christ, or am I living for a “successful” ministry?

Conclusion
The Christian life is a struggle; it’s a battle between living for self (like all the
things I’ve mentioned) and living for Christ. It’s a war between valuing Christ and
valuing anything else. Christians no less than non-Christians know the harsh reality of
living a life that isn’t life. Every human being knows what it’s like to live at the center of
his or her own universe.

But there is a difference—a huge difference. The difference that God’s grace
makes—and it’s this: through the gospel, the Lord rescues us not just once, but every
day from the confining, suffocating existence of a universe with “me” at its center.
Second Corinthians 5:15 says, “He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live
for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.”

We think our problem is that we lack energy, we lack vitality, or that our life has
become a grind. But the reality is that we’ve stopped living for the right thing (or better)
the right person. We’ve stopped valuing Christ supremely, and because we’ve stopped
valuing Christ above everything, we lack vitality. The life that Christ gives us is
experienced in the worship we give him.

Brothers and sisters, we have been given access to God like no other time in
redemption history. The fragrance of the tabernacle that alerts us to the presence of the
holy God, that tells us of his supreme value and life-giving power, is experienced in a
relationship with Jesus of Nazareth. He is the fragrance of the tabernacle. May we
breathe him in. Amen.

Redeemer Bible Church

Exodus 25:1-31:18: The Fragrance of the Tabernacle © 2007

 11

16205 Highway 7
Minnetonka, MN 55345
Office: 952.935.2425
Fax: 952.938.8299
info@redeemerbiblechurch.com
www.redeemerbiblechurch.com
www.solidfoodmedia.com

Exodus 25:1-31:18: The Fragrance of the Tabernacle © 2007