“For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.” 2 Corinthians 2:15
In the Bible days, anointing oil had a very special significance. This oil was made from the best ingredients and with very specific measurements. This oil was used to anoint the tabernacle and all of its furnishings, and the priest was also anointed. (See Exodus 20:22-22.) Later, the kings were anointed with oil. We find this all throughout the Bible, speaking of kings being anointed.
This anointing oil covered them and their garments. This oil had a very strong fragrance. It was not just an anointing done one time, but kings continued to use oils to anoint their bodies and garments. The majesty of a king would be apparent to anyone in his presence, not just because of his robes and crown, but because of the strong fragrance of the anointing oil. The kings would be paraded around the streets, and people standing on the side of the road would smell that fragrant perfume.
“Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness…your robes are all fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia” (Psalm 45:7-8).
“What is that coming up from the wilderness…perfumed with myrrh and frankincense, with all the fragrant powders of a merchant? Behold, it is the litter of Solomon!” (Song of Solomon 3:6-7).
In the New Testament, there is a story of Jesus being anointed with a fragrant oil. One account of this story is found in John 12. Just six days before Passover, Jesus comes to the home of Lazarus in Bethany. Mary took expensive ointment and anointed the feet of Jesus (John 12:3). The verse says that the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
The very next day, Jesus made His triumphant entry into Jerusalem, riding on a donkey. No doubt the fragrance still lingered, as people cried out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” (John 12:13). Perhaps the scent lingered on His clothes when the guards came into the garden to arrest Jesus. Is it possible the scent still filled the air as He hung on the cross?
“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.” 2 Corinthians 2:14-16
As a born-again child of God, a new creature in Christ Jesus, we are the aroma of Christ in this world. Our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). As we live our life, in our daily routines, we are commanded to glorify God in our body. We should be the aroma of Jesus among those who are saved and also those who are perishing.
In Acts of the Apostles, we read about the beginning of the New Testament church. This is our model and our beginning. In the fourth chapter, we read the story of Peter and John before the Council. They had been arrested and then brought before the rulers to defend their actions. The Bible tells us in Acts of the Apostles 4:13, “…and they recognized that they had been with Jesus.” Could it be that there was an aroma of Jesus on them?
When people see you in the market, when they hear you speak at school, when people hear you talking to your friends and family in the restaurant, do they recognize that you have been with Jesus? Can they smell the aroma of Jesus in your life?
In the next chapter of 2 Corinthians, Paul goes farther in his encouragement to the saints. He says in 3:2-3, “You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all. And you show that you are a letter from Christ delivered by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.” You are our letter, to be known and read by all. What story is being read by others in your life?
When you speak, do you sound like Jesus?
Do you go places that Jesus would go?
Do you love like Jesus?
Do you forgive like Jesus?
If you are a part of the body of Christ, you are His hands and feet in your community. You are His voice in your family. You are His ambassador and His disciple. You are His aroma.
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