A Fragrance Amidst Death

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, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things? For we are not, like so many, peddlers of God's word, but as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ. (2 Corinthians 2:14-17)

Here, Paul draws an interesting comparison between our witness for Christ and a fragrant odor. I’m sure some of us have had the experience, at one time or another, where nonbelievers come up and question us about our faith after having just been around us for a while. To some, our lives will be a fragrance of “death unto death,” but to others “from life to life.” Some will be attracted, and others will be repelled.

When I’m sitting at my desk in the late afternoon, I will sometimes catch a faint whiff of dinner downstairs, and, being a guy, this naturally makes me curious about what exactly is for dinner, so I go ask questions until I find out. In the same way, our lives are to give off a pleasant fragrance which testifies to the One who has redeemed us; when this happens, expect people to ask, “What’s for dinner?”

You may have heard the quote, attributed to St. Francis of Assisi, “Preach the Gospel at all times and, when necessary, use words.” It’s not difficult to understand or appreciate his meaning, but is it really that simple? Or should our witness actively extend beyond simply the way we live?

In the previous chapter (2 Cor. 1), Paul states, “For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience, that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you.” As you know, however, Paul did not stop at a life of “simplicity and godly sincerity,” but actively preached the Gospel - the knowledge of Christ - to many.

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. (2 Cor. 2:14)

There can be no fragrance if there is no substance. We must not be “like so many, peddlers of God’s word,” who speak the truth but don’t live it. Instead, “as men of sincerity, as commissioned by God, in the sight of God we speak in Christ.”

This means that actions alone are insufficient for missions work, whether at home or abroad. The church and its members must be a sweet fragrance in the midst of a dying culture, but it is the Gospel alone that saves.

For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent?... So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. (Romans 10:13-15, 17)