A Pleasing Aroma

Lovekr07

Lovekr07

'Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and found that the Lord had opened a door for me, I still had no peace of mind, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said goodbye to them and went on to Macedonia. But thanks be to God, who always leads us as captives in Christ’s triumphal procession and uses us to spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are to God the pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are an aroma that brings death; to the other, an aroma that brings life. And who is equal to such a task? Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, as those sent from God.'



2 Corinthians 2:12-17

https://www.bible.com/bible/111/2CO.2.12-17





'Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts. Such confidence we have through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. '



2 Corinthians 3:1-6

https://www.bible.com/bible/111/2CO.3.1-6



At first, I had accidentally skipped 2 Corinthians 2:12-17, but once I read 2 Corinthians 3:1-6, I wanted to go back and see why Paul was asking if they were beginning to commend themselves again and realized that I had not made it to that section, yet. I noticed that the reason Paul said that was because he often had to defend his ministry against false accusations and probably felt embarrassed by that and did not want to give the impression that he was arrogant. However, he was not wrong in what he said because he gave God the Glory as the one who leads us in triumphal procession and causes us to be spread the “pleasing aroma” which is the Gospel everywhere. Paul was not touting himself, but the Lord.

I also realized how similar the end of 2 Corinthians 2 is with the first six verses of 2 Corinthians. In 2 Corinthians 2:12-17, Paul describes the disciples as spreading the pleasant aroma of Christ everywhere and in 2 Corinthians 3, he describes the Corinthians as being letters of recommendation for Paul’s ministry. Not only do we spread the pleasing aroma of Christ by sharing His Truth, but we are letters of recommendation of Jesus to others by how we act and speak when we are walking by the Spirit. Each day, we need to search our hearts before the Lord and keep our hearts clean so that we walk in a manner worthy of His Gospel and so that we are letters of recommendation of Him, bringing Him glory. When we spend time in the Lord’s presence every day, repent of our sins, and obey Him, we will naturally spread His “pleasing aroma” everywhere we go. That is so awesome! That is my goal every day, and whenever I fall short, I confess and repent and am given a fresh start the very next day! Praise the Lord for His grace and mercy!! He is so awesome!!

 
Hello Lovekr07;

An aroma pleasing to the Lord is in the Old and New Testaments. Can there be different interpretations in the two Testaments?

I would be interesting in knowing and learning what others say about A Pleasing Aroma.

God bless you, Lovekr07, for sharing.
 
bobinfaith said:
Hello Lovekr07;

An aroma pleasing to the Lord is in the Old and New Testaments. Can there be different interpretations in the two Testaments?

I would be interesting in knowing and learning what others say about A Pleasing Aroma.

God bless you, Lovekr07, for sharing.
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THank you, Bob. If i misinterpreted the verses, then I definitely would want to be corrected. Can you please explain to me what you mean and what you see as problematic? I was thinking along the lines of us as being living sacrifices for the Lord....like they used to burn incense for the Lord in the Old Testament. I hope that I did not overstep. Thank you for being honest.
 
Good morning, Lovekr07;

Your thread is solid and I agree with your commentary aligned with the Scripture.

I was interested in reading other's interpretation of an aroma pleasing to the Lord.

Are they all the same meaning in the Old and New Testaments, for example, the literal burnt offering, prayer, repentance, loving sacrifice?

I am curious for my own learning and understanding hearing from others.

God bless you, Lovekr07, and thank you.
 
bobinfaith said:
Good morning, Lovekr07;

Your thread is solid and I agree with your commentary aligned with the Scripture.

I was interested in reading other's interpretation of an aroma pleasing to the Lord.

Are they all the same meaning in the Old and New Testaments, for example, the literal burnt offering, prayer, repentance, loving sacrifice?

I am curious for my own learning and understanding hearing from others.

God bless you, Lovekr07, and thank you.
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I would love to hear what others have to say as well :)
 
According to my Merriam Webster app, the 2nd definition of aroma is "a distinctive quality or atmosphere".

Have you ever been in a fellowship where there is 'something in the air'? It is often difficult to pin down or describe exactly but it is a pervasive feeling of worship and fellowship among those gathered.

Aromas inform the senses in ways that affect us in our inner selves. At the same time they may be very subtle and speak to us far below mere sight and sound. We may be unsure of the source or direction of travel, beyond an awareness of the way the air currents move.

In 1 Corinthians, Paul had to teach about brotherly (and Godly) love. But by the time 2nd Corinthians was written, it seems that those lessons had been taken to heart. They, the Corinthians themselves were showing the results and thus they themselves spoke of the effectiveness Paul's ministry by their changed lives. They became Paul's' letter by their changed fellowship. They had taken up the aroma of Christ.
 
Lovekr07 said:
I would love to hear what others have to say as well :)
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Leviticus 16:12-13 KJV
And he (high priest) shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail: [13] And he shall put the incense
upon the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not:

Hebrews 4:14 KJV
Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.

Hebrews 6:19 KJV
Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;

Romans 3:25 KJV
Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation (mercy seat) through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

The Gospel is a sweet aroma (of incense) to those being saved (through the mercy seat provided in Christ); but a stench of trembling and judgment for those refusing His atoning sacrifice for their sins.
 
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Siloam said:
According to my Merriam Webster app, the 2nd definition of aroma is "a distinctive quality or atmosphere".

Have you ever been in a fellowship where there is 'something in the air'? It is often difficult to pin down or describe exactly but it is a pervasive feeling of worship and fellowship among those gathered.

Aromas inform the senses in ways that affect us in our inner selves. At the same time they may be very subtle and speak to us far below mere sight and sound. We may be unsure of the source or direction of travel, beyond an awareness of the way the air currents move.

In 1 Corinthians, Paul had to teach about brotherly (and Godly) love. But by the time 2nd Corinthians was written, it seems that those lessons had been taken to heart. They, the Corinthians themselves were showing the results and thus they themselves spoke of the effectiveness Paul's ministry by their changed lives. They became Paul's' letter by their changed fellowship. They had taken up the aroma of Christ.
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Beautifully written. That is a great perspective and I agree. Yes, there is something special about that feeling in the air that we get when surrounded by believers who are truly worshipping God. It really does shift the atmosphere and just like as how a nice fragrance brings a feeling of pleasure, the shifted atmosphere of spiritual unity and fellowship brings our moods, thoughts, and spirits in alignment with God and then we will "smell" like Him wherever we go. We will take that beautiful "fragrance" with us to others. Even is they are not in unity with the atmosphere or "fragrance" we bring, they will sense it and it may spark their curiosity.

Yes, that is an excellent point to make about how Paul's work had taken effect in the lives os the Corinthians and how they had become letters of recommendation of His ministry because of how his ministry had shaped their lives. This is in unity with the throught process I had when I wrote this devotion, but you explained it much better than I did. Thank you so much for sharing this. Instead of reflecting on the fact that the Corinthians had become as letters of recommendation of Paul's ministry, I decided to instead think about how we can be letters of recommendation for the Gospel of Jesus. Thank you very much! God bless!
 
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