“But
thanks be to God, who made us his captives and leads us along in Christ’s
triumphal procession. Now wherever we go
he uses us to tell others about the Lord and to spread the Good News like a
sweet perfume.”
2 Corinthians 2:14 NLT
What are you doing to spread the Good News like a sweet perfume?
Today’s reading makes me think of another scripture about perfume.
In Matthew 26:6-12 and John
12:1-8, we read how Mary took a jar of
expensive perfume and anointed Jesus with it and the fragrance filled the house. The
disciples thought the act was wasteful, but Jesus praised the act as a
preparation for his burial.
If you read on in 2 Corinthians 2, you find that Paul says our lives are a fragrance presented by Christ to God, and this fragrance is perceived differently by believers and unbelievers.
To unbelievers the scent is putrid because it portends doom. But to those being saved the scent is a life-giving perfume.
If I
relate that to the anointing story: the
scent was repulsive to the disciples because they didn’t yet believe Jesus
meant what he said, that he would die and be raised on the third day. However, to Mary and Jesus, the scent evidenced
faith that Jesus was who he said he was—the Messiah.
One of my friends once said if scientists are correct that our sense of smell is the most powerful connection to memories, the disciples must have recalled that powerful moment every time they smelled essence of nard again.
As soon as they got a whiff, immediately
their thoughts returned to Mary’s beautiful act of faith contrasted by their
lack of faith. More than anything, the
scent would remind them that Jesus kept his promises.
If our lives are a fragrance to others and to God, what kind of fragrance is your life sending out? It may be stale if you’ve become too casual in your faith. It could even be rotten if you’re living in sin.
But your fragrance for the Lord will be sweet if you are bearing spiritual fruit and you’re a living example of Christ. What scent-memory do you want others to have of you when you’re gone?
Want more Lenten posts? Check out my resources for Lent HERE.
Finding Peace in God's Word
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