09-18-05-Who We Are--A Sweet Aroma
2 Corinthians 2:14-16 (NIV) But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. 15 For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. 16 To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?
In Paul’s mind is the picture of a Roman Triumph and of Christ as the universal conqueror. The highest honor which could be given to a victorious Roman general was a Triumph. We might think this was just a parade, but it was much more, it was a celebration of victory.
In a Triumph the procession of the victorious general marched through the streets of Rome to the Capitol in the following order: First came the state officials and the senate. Then came the trumpeters. Then were carried the spoils taken from the conquered land. . . . Then came pictures of the conquered land and models of conquered citadels and ships. There followed the white bull for the sacrifice which would be made. Then there walked the captive princes, leaders and generals in chains, shortly to be flung into prison and in all probability almost immediately to be executed. Then came the lictors bearing their rods, followed by the musicians with their lyres; then the priests swinging their censers with the sweet-smelling incense burning in them. After that came the general himself. . . . After him rode his family; and finally came the army wearing all their decorations and shouting . . . their cry of triumph. As the procession moved through the streets, all decorated and garlanded, amid the cheering crowds, it made a tremendous day which might happen only once in a lifetime. [i]
You may say that was all well and good for Paul, but what does it have to do with me? Last week we saw in 1 Pet 2:9 that we are a holy nation, a royal priesthood, and the special treasure of God. We saw that as His special treasure (diamond) we are to reflect His glory everywhere we go. The same is true of us as priests, that is, that we are to carry His fragrance everywhere we go. Notice in the triumph procession there were the priests swinging the incense-filled censers. We are the priests of God today who carry the sweet aroma of God’s incense (fragrance) to the world around us.
What is this sweet aroma? As a part of these processions fragrant spices, perfumes, and incense were used along the way, so this may be one thing Paul was thinking about. However, there is also another image of a sweet aroma that comes from the Old Testament (where a pleasing aroma is said to be the result from a sacrifice to God of a burnt offering [Ex 29: 18, 25; Lev. 1:9, 13, 17]).
Exodus 29:18, 25 (NIV) Then burn the entire ram on the altar. It is a burnt offering to the LORD, a pleasing aroma, an offering made to the LORD by fire. 25 Then take them from their hands and burn them on the altar along with the burnt offering for a pleasing aroma (NASB “soothing aroma”) to the LORD, an offering made to the LORD by fire.
God was satisfied by their obedience when they made a burnt offering, and this is said to be a pleasing aroma to the Lord. Was it just the smell of burnt flesh that pleased God? No, it was the obedience to His Word (Law)! So from an Old Testament understanding, the sweet aroma to God is our obedience to His Word.
But in the New Testament, I find a slightly different meaning for what God sees as a sweet aroma. There are 2 verses where this same word appears:
Philippians 4:18-19 (NIV) I have received full payment and even more; I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. 19 And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:18-19 (NASB95) But I have received everything in full and have an abundance; I am 1amply supplied, having received from aEpaphroditus 2what you have sent, 3ba fragrant aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God. 19 And amy God will supply 1all your needs according to His briches in glory in Christ Jesus.
2175 εὐωδία [euodia /yoo·o·dee·ah/] n f. From a compound of 2095 and a derivative of 3605; TDNT 2:808; TDNTA 285; GK 2380; Three occurrences; AV translates as “sweet savour” once, “sweet smelling” once, and “sweet smell” once. 1 a sweet smell, fragrance. 2 a fragrant or sweet smelling thing, incense, on odour or something sweet smelling. 2a an odour of acquiescence, satisfaction. 2b a sweet odour, spoken of the smell of sacrifices and obligations, agreeably to the ancient notion that God smells and is pleased with the odour of sacrifices. 3 metaph. a thing well pleasing to God.[ii]
Ephesians 5:1-2 (NIV) Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children 2 and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
What is the emphasis of these two verses? Is it about obedience? There is an element of obedience, but there is more than just obedience to a commandment or Law there is the willingness to give and sacrifice. Paul said he was “amply supplied” or had received “abundance” from them. What is it that pleased the Father? Their willingness to give of themselves and all they had to further the kingdom of God. Now before we go any further, this is not a message to try to get you to give more money. What I (and God) want you to give is your life as a sacrifice!
Jesus gave Himself as a sacrifice to God for us. He gave ALL of Himself because He loved us. When we give all to God He is pleased with our sacrifice—sometimes it is a true sacrifice just to worship God when we don’t feel like it. The sacrifice we make to God is an “acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God” when we give it with our whole heart. In fact, in Romans 12:1, it is called our “spiritual act of worship.”
Romans 12:1 (NIV) Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual a act of worship.
Not only can we be a sweet aroma to God, but we can also be a fragrance to the world around us. Let’s go back to our original text in 2 Cor 2:14-16.
2 Corinthians 2:14-16 (NIV) But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. 15 For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. 16 To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?
We are the fragrance of God to the world. Notice that there are two sides to our sweet aroma. They both show the power of the gospel, and how it has different effects upon different people with whom it is preached or shared.
1. Unto some it is a smell of death. To the victors (of the Roman Triumph) the perfume from the censers would be the perfume of joy and triumph and life; but to the captives who walked so short a distance ahead it was the perfume of death, standing for the past defeat and their coming execution.[iii]
2. Unto others the gospel is a fragrance of life. Those who are being saved find the knowledge of Christ to be an aroma of life leading to life, for it signifies life now and leads to life eternal. For Christians to have such significance for the eternal destinies of others is a serious matter, prompting Paul’s question in v. 16 (answered in 3:5).[iv]
In the triumphal processions to which Paul refers, the fragrance of the incense meant glorious victory to the conquerors, but it spoke of doom for the captives. Thus the apostle notes that the preaching of the gospel has a twofold effect. It signifies one thing among those who are being saved, and something altogether different among those who are perishing. To those who accept it, it is a pledge of a glorious future; to others it is an omen of doom. But God is glorified in either case, for to Him it is the fragrance of grace in the one case and of justice in the other.
This twofold effect is beautifully illustrated in an incident in the Old Testament. When the ark of God was captured by the Philistines, it caused death and destruction as long as it was among them (1 Sam. 5). But when it was brought back to the house of Obed-Edom, it brought blessing and prosperity for him and for his household (2 Sam. 6:11).
Another example of something that can be both sweet and disgusting is an onion. I thoroughly hate onions, and to me the smell is awful. Yet, others love them and the smell is a sweet aroma to them.
The Roman triumph was a victory parade for a conquering army and its leader. Both victors and captives were part of the procession, and both groups could smell the fragrance of burning spices which accompanied the parade. The aroma, however, meant something different to the two groups. Likewise, the fragrance of Christ (the gospel) is to those who are perishing an aroma of death leading to death, for it signifies and leads to their ultimate judgment.
Believers witnessing for Christ are a sweet aroma to God and to those who are saved through that witness; Christians are the sweet smell of life giving rise to life. On the other hand, the gospel witness contains announcement of judgment to the lost and is, therefore, an aroma of death giving rise to death. [v]
Hebrews 9:27 (KJV) And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
We may be uncomfortable with the thoughts that we could be an aroma of death to someone. What we must understand is it is not something we are doing to harm anyone. We are what we are—the aroma of Christ (2 Cor 2:15). When we walk into a place, we are God’s fragrance in that place. We don’t have to try to be His fragrance, we just are. However, to some that aroma is not so sweet, because it makes them feel the judgment of God.
If you have felt today the aroma of death rather than the sweet aroma of life, then that means the Holy Spirit is convicting you of your sins and wants you to repent. He wants you to know that Jesus has already paid the price for your sins and will forgive you. Then you will smell the sweet aroma of life in Christ Jesus.
who is sufficient for these things?—namely, for diffusing aright everywhere the savor of Christ, so diverse in its effects on believers and unbelievers. . . . “For these things, who is sufficient?” He answers his own question (2Co 3:5, 6), “Not that we are sufficient of ourselves, but our sufficiency is of God, who hath made us able (Greek, ‘sufficient’) ministers,” &c.[vi]
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[i]The letters to the Corinthians. 2000, c1975 (W. Barclay, lecturer in the University of Glasgow, Ed.). The Daily study Bible series, Rev. ed. Philadelphia: The Westminster Press.
1 Lit made full
a Phil 2:25
2 Lit the things from you
3 Lit an odor of fragrance
b Ex 29:18; 2 Cor 2:14; Eph 5:2
a 2 Cor 9:8
1 Or every need of yours
b Rom 2:4
n n: noun or neuter
f f: feminine
TDNT Theological Dictionary of the New Testament
TDNTA Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Abridged in One Volume
GK Goodrick-Kohlenberger
AV Authorized Version
[ii]Strong, J. (1996). The exhaustive concordance of the Bible: Showing every word of the test of the common English version of the canonical books, and every occurrence of each word in regular order. (electronic ed.) (G2174). Ontario: Woodside Bible Fellowship.
a Or reasonable
[iii]The letters to the Corinthians. 2000, c1975 (W. Barclay, lecturer in the University of Glasgow, Ed.). The Daily study Bible series, Rev. ed. Philadelphia: The Westminster Press.
[iv]Spirit filled life study Bible. 1997, c1991 (electronic ed.) (2 Co 2:17). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
[v]New Geneva study Bible. 1997, c1995. C1995 by Foundation for Reformation. (electronic ed.) (2 Co 3:3). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.
[vi]Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., Fausset, A. R., Brown, D., & Brown, D. (1997). A commentary, critical and explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments. On spine: Critical and explanatory commentary. (2 Co 2:14). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.