Redemption and Atonement before Devotion and Worship

The book of Leviticus opens with a detailed description of how burnt offerings were to be administrated. These were offerings to atone for each man’s sinful nature (as opposed to guilt offerings that covered specific sins). On the heels of these instructions regarding burnt offerings follows a detailed description of how grain offerings were to be administrated. Grain offerings were not offered for redemption or atonement (Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin, Heb. 9.22). Rather, they were offered to demonstrate or represent a heart totally devoted to God in worship. Grain offerings reflected the realization that God provided all of our needs (redemption, food, clothing, shelter, and life itself). Unlike the burnt offerings, grain offerings were the product of hard labor and required the offerer to provide, not only the best of his grain and all the hard work that went into making it “choice flour”, but the addition of oil, and frankincense.
There is the picture: Worship, devotion, hard labor for God follows redemption and atonement. If we get this backwards, it will not be a “sweet smelling aroma” to God.