The Fragrance Of Christ

by WILLIS, A.G. | Category: N/a | Mar 2008

Most animals have a keen, often specialised, sense of smell. Some use it to track down their prey; elephants, with their poor eyesight, are able to detect water holes quite a distance away; 'sniffer' dogs can be trained to find hidden drugs and other substances at airports.

The sense of smell enables us to be aware of, and appreciate, the world around us. We are enraptured by the sweet scent of honeysuckle, lavender or the garden rose, the blossom on the trees, or the freshness of the countryside after a shower of rain. Fragrance, like the beauty of sight or sound, helps us to appreciate and enjoy the physical world, but also has a deep spiritual significance.

Aromas were associated with oil, incense and sacrifice in the service of the tabernacle.

Moses was commanded by God to take a quantity of fine spices: aromatic liquid myrrh from the balsam bush, pale yellow cinnamon oil, sweet-smelling cane, cassia and pure olive oil, �"Make these into a sacred anointing oil, a fragrant blend, the work of a perfumer. It will be the sacred anointing oil"� (Ex. 30:25 NIV). With this fragrant mix of oils and spices the tabernacle, its furnishings and its priests were consecrated by pouring the oil onto them. The distinctive smell would not be found anywhere else.

The burnt offering pictures for us the Lord Jesus as He brought supreme delight to God through the giving of Himself: �"... 'the priest shall burn all on the altar as a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the LORD' ..."� (Lev. 1:9 NKJV).

The sweet incense which was blended from four spices and salted, is described as pure and holy in Exodus 30:34-38: stacte, probably the gum exuded by the storax tree, onycha, a spice derived from shellfish found in the Red Sea; galbanum, the aromatic resinous gum of a shrub, which enables the incense to retain its fragrance longer; and pale yellow frankincense, obtained by the incision of the Boswellia tree. Aaron was commanded to burn it on the golden altar before the veil of the tabernacle (Ex. 30:8). The quantities of the various ingredients are not given, but they were to be each of the same weight. Christ's excellencies and glories cannot be measured, but were always in perfect balance. Some of the incense was to be beaten very fine, revealing His full fragrance and perfections. These things surely speak to our hearts about Christ, indicating something of the sweetness of His fragrance to God.

As we come to the New Testament, and to a direct reference to the fragrance of Christ, Paul writes: �thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place. For we are to God a fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing� (2 Cor. 2:14-16 NKJV).

Among the Romans, such a 'triumph' or public honour given to a victorious general took the form of a magnificent procession wending its way through the great city of Rome. Musicians and display carts were loaded with the spoils captured from the enemy: horses, chariots, kings, princes or generals taken in the war, now in chains. During this time all the temples were opened, and every altar smoked with offerings and incense. Imagine the atmosphere and smoking smell of victory that pervaded the city on such an occasion. Paul saw himself as a trophy of God's victorious power in Christ. His almighty Conqueror was leading him about, through all the cities of the Greek and Roman world, demonstrating His power to subdue and to save. What distinguishes God's triumph from that of a human general, is that the captive is brought into willing obedience to Christ, and so joins in the triumph (2 Cor. 10:5). As the smoke of the victims and incense offered on such an occasion would fill the whole city with their perfume, so the odour of the name and teaching of Christ filled the whole of Corinth.

The aroma of Christ fills all heaven. May His fragrance fill our hearts and lives in all our witness and service for Him. As we gather to worship, we bring our own thoughts and appreciation of Christ; these are blended together to produce a fragrant and acceptable worship, in the Spirit, to God.

WILLIS, A.G. | Mar 2008
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