The nose is a particular member of the body that has a distinctive job in our lives. It is the gate for air to enter through to reach our lungs as they separate the oxygen from the other gasses allowing us to live. Aside from that major function, the nose is used for smelling. With it we have the ability to distinguish and decipher many different kinds of aromas.
Our nose gives us the power to decide when something is pleasing or not. In some cases, it can be so powerful that it guides us toward pleasing things or away from the non-pleasing. In extreme cases, it can even choose our friends, depending on their “aromas.” Also, the nose is so powerful, it has the ability to unlock certain memories that would have not been accessed if a certain smell did not enter the nose triggering that long lost moment in time.
Everything that has been spoken thus far has been in the physical world. Now comes the question: are there spiritual aromas? If yes, how can we smell them? Saint Paul points our attention to a particular type of Aroma, which he calls the Aroma of Christ. (2 Corinth 2:15-16) I guess we all did not know Jesus had his own brand of cologne. It seems that Saint Paul was trying to sell it to the people of Corinth!!!
Jokes aside, the Aroma of Christ is something very special. It is not something that can be bought; it can only be produced internally. The Aroma of Christ is produced very similarly to natural body odors...only when work is done and sweat is produced. The difference is, this Aroma is so pleasing, that it has the ability to change an environment filled with stench, to a very pleasing one. The work being referred to is not any normal work, it is the Divine work...Divine work such us: Sacrifices of anger emotions for the sake of another, forgiveness of family members that have caused pain, purifying the eye from seeing another as an object, purifying the tongue from cursing or gossiping, doing a good deed without expecting anything in return, prayer from the heart and not for the sake of fulfilling an obligation, etc.
There are many of our friends, family members, or people we come across who have never smelled the Aroma of Christ. Some might think that they are hopeless or so dead inside that the only aroma that comes out of them is what Martha said to Jesus when her brother Lazarus had been dead: “Lord, by this time there is a bad odor.” (Jn 11:39) We may even think that they are beyond saving. Jesus, however, has great answer that shakes us all: “Did I not tell you if you believe, you will see the Glory of God?” (Jn 11:40)
This question is directed toward us all: “what do I believe?” “Who do I believe in?” “Do I really believe that Jesus can change my life?” “Do I really want Jesus in my life?” “Can Jesus really change me and those around to the point of peace and happiness?”
In this hard season, let us wear the Aroma of Christ. Let all those around us realize, see, and smell Jesus. Let us enter with Jesus into the Tomb, and let Him rid us of all the stenches of death (the sins that keep us away from Him), and let Him raise us with a new Aroma. An Aroma that changes our lives and the lives of those around us, so that the Aroma of Christ can fill our families and our society with Love, Forgiveness, Hope, and Life. In Jesus’ Name! Amen!
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