2 Corinthians2v12to17: THE FRAGRANCE OF LIFE

(A) Introduction. (Read the reference)

Paul continues in this passage to express his anxiety over the situation in Corinth and also begins to write about his ministry.

I will deal with this portion of Scripture under three headings: Paul's concern, Paul's consolation and Paul's credibility.

(B) Paul's concern.

On Paul's arrival in Troas he found there were good opportunities for preaching the gospel - the Lord had opened a door for me. Paul's raison d’être was preaching the gospel. So you would have expected the apostle to throw himself into it. What could be more important? But Paul didn't - he was distracted - he had no peace of mind. v13.

Many of us have shared Paul's experience. There have been times when I have been unable to pray because something has been on my mind. It may be a problem that has arisen in the church or a perceived injustice or a great disappointment and I gnaw over it like a dog with a bone. It is salutary to realise that research has shown that 40% of the things we worry about never happen and another 30% can't be changed. Which means that most anxiety is futile!

Paul expected to meet Titus at Troas but he was disappointed. He was so desperate for news of the Corinthian church that he went on to Macedonia hoping to find Titus there.

(1) The reasons for Paul's agitation.

(a) Paul hated being in conflict with the Corinthians. He was like a father facing revolt from his sons or a teacher experiencing open defiance from his pupils. Paul wrote in his first epistle: I am not writing this to shame you, but to warn you, as my dear children. Even though you have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. 1Cor4v14and15.

Paul wanted his relationship with the Corinthians to be warm and harmonious. This would be impossible if the church members continued to oppose him.

I think Paul's abiding concern for the Corinthians is very commendable. Today, when pastors leave a church and move on to pastures new, they tend to sever their relationship with its members. They are little different from an employee who changes firms. I find this very difficult to understand.

No church leader enjoys facing a revolt from the members of his flock. This can often be prevented if people express their concerns politely and early. I can remember suggesting at a church meeting that it would be more conducive to worship if the few of us that attended on Sunday evenings gathered in the schoolroom rather than in the main body of the chapel. There was no dissent. It wasn't long before there was nasty, simmering, resentment at this prospect. I had to convene a special church meeting to allow the members to blow of steam and overturn the earlier decision. Needless to say I did not find the episode conducive to my peace of mind!

(b) Paul did not want his ministry in Corinth to have been in vain. The Lord told Paul: "I have many people in this city." 1Cor18v10. Many were converted through the evangelism of the apostle. But these new converts were under threat. A high proportion remained infants in Christ. See 1Cor3v1and2. See also exposition on 1Cor3v1to9.

The Corinthians needed to accept discipline and be built up in their faith. Paul wrote: By the grace God has given me, I built a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. 1Cor3v10. The apostle was very concerned about those building on the foundation he had laid.

It is not enough to see soul's converted. This is the special ministry of the evangelist. Converts also require educating in the things of God. The work of the Bible teacher is vital for the spiritual health and growth to maturity of Christians.

In a recent issue of Glass Window, a contributor recalls that several years ago, The British Weekly published this provocative letter: It seems ministers feel their sermons are very important and spend a great deal of time preparing them. I have been attending church quite regularly for 30 years and I have probably heard 3,000 of them. To my consternation, I discovered I cannot remember a single sermon. I wonder if a minister's time might be more profitable spent on something else?

For weeks a storm of editorial responses ensued. . . finally ended by this letter: I have been married for 30 years. During that time I have eaten 32,850 meals - mostly my wife's cooking. Suddenly I have discovered I cannot remember the menu of a single meal. And yet . . . I have the distinct impression that without them, I would have starved to death long ago. By John Schletewitz

The Corinthians needed to be formally taught about Jesus and they also needed good role models to emulate. So do all new Christians.

(c) Paul loved the Corinthians. He was like a loving father seeing his children going astray or a teacher watching an able student go off the rails. Jesus taught about a love like this in the Parable of the Prodigal Son. The father in the parable never stopped thinking about his son. Not a day passed without him hoping for the return of his boy.

So it is understandable that Paul was desperate for good news about the Corinthians.

(2) Was Paul justified in leaving Troas for Macedonia.

Some Christians cannot bear Paul to be criticised. However, unlike his Master, the apostle was not perfect and he made mistakes. He probably was at fault in leaving Troas for Macedonia for the following reasons:

    (a) Titus would have eventually reached Troas.

    (b) It didn't make any difference to the outcome if Paul got the news later rather than earlier. Titus' report would be the same whenever Paul received it.

    (c) Paul was over anxious about what the Corinthians thought of him. He was probably the sort of man who needed to be accepted and loved. This made him less confrontational than Jesus!

We should sympathise with Paul. His weaknesses didn't make his task any easier. Our weaknesses never make our lives easier. For 37 years my career as a teacher was blighted by my short temper. My father was handicapped as a Baptist pastor by his inferiority complex. Instead of despising God's servants for their weaknesses we need to uphold them in prayer.

(C) Paul's consolation.

As Paul begins to write to the Corinthians about his ministry he does so by referring to a Roman Triumph. Prof. William Barclay describes what was involved in a Triumph in his commentary on 2 Corinthians. It was the highest honour that could be given to a victorious Roman general. It was only awarded a general who had achieved a spectacularly comprehensive victory in the field. The Triumph consisted of a magnificent procession through the streets of Rome. The spoils of victory were carried near the front of the procession followed by the prisoners of war. Soon after the captives came the priests swinging their censers burning sweet smelling incense in gratitude to the gods. Then came the general himself bedecked in all is finery pulled in a chariot by four horses. After him came his family and his conquering army shouting, "Io Triumphe!"

Paul used his readers knowledge of a Roman Triumph to make four points:

(1) He shared in Christ's triumph. But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphant procession in Christ.

Jesus had won a greater victory than any Roman general. Jesus defeated all the principal enemies of men: Satan, death, despair and destruction. Paul wrote in his first epistle: The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1Cor15v56.

Jesus also conquers the hearts of men. Through the centuries he has vanquished many foes - Jewish legalism, paganism and superstitian, materialism and communism. The day will come when he sees secularism off too.

Paul knew that he was part of Christ's Triumph. Men everywhere were celebrating the great victories Jesus had won. Today an ever increasing number join the glad and glorious procession - marching on, marching on - 'neath the banner of the cross.

(2) His role was like that of the priests burning incense. And through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him(Christ). v14.

As the priests produced the heady fragrance celebrating a mighty general's victory over Rome's enemies Paul spread the good news about Jesus. He preached Christ and him crucified. He gave God thanks for so great salvation. Wherever Paul was he brought the aroma of Christ - the sweet smell of victory.

Anyone who by any means makes Jesus known fulfils the same role as Paul. The gospel is not something we should keep to ourselves as this story illustrates:

Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962), the world-famous violinist, earned a fortune with his concerts and compositions, but he generously gave most of it away. So, when he discovered an exquisite violin on one of his trips, he wasn't able to buy it. Later, having raised enough money to meet the asking price, he returned to the seller, hoping to purchase the beautiful instrument. But to his great dismay it had been sold to a collector. Kreisler made his way to the new owner's home and offered to buy the violin. The collector said it had become his prized possession and he would not sell it. Keenly disappointed, Kreisler was about to leave when he had an idea. "Could I play the instrument once more before it is consigned to silence?" he asked. Permission was granted, and the great virtuoso filled the room with such heart-moving music that the collector's emotions were deeply stirred. "I have no right to keep that to myself," he exclaimed. "It's yours, Mr. Kreisler. Take it into the world, and let people hear it." From Our Daily Bread February 4th, 1994.

(3) He preached the gospel to the glory of God. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. v15.

The priests burned incense as a way of giving the gods thanks for a glorious victory. The fragrance was offered to the gods as something pleasing to them. When Paul preached Christ, whether to the saved or unsaved, that preaching was like a fragrant aroma to God.

God the Father loves to hear men and women proclaim his Son and all he has accomplished. Every tribute to the great Captain of our salvation ascends as a sweet aroma to God. An absolutely sure fire way to please the Father is to proclaim and praise the Son. Sometimes when I introduce a speaker at our chapel with a few kind words I glance at the speaker's wife who may be sitting in the congregation. Invariably she will smile with pleasure as I commend her husband. If you want to put a smile on God's face speak well of his Son.

(4) His ministry was divisive. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. v16.

The smell of burning incense from the priest's censers was sweet to all who shared in the general's victory - the soldiers of his army. They would benefit from the victory being veterans of the conflict. They would acquire riches and status. On the other hand the incense had a stench of death to the defeated enemies of the triumphant general. They faced a bleak future. Some would be sold into slavery and others would be gored to death by wild animals in the arena.

The gospel has the fragrance of life to the believer. It holds out the promise of riches untold and status as a son of God and joint heir with Jesus. The very same gospel condemns the man who rejects it, who spurns the gift of salvation. Such a man is ungrateful for the sacrifice Jesus made, contemptuous of God's love and unwilling to go God's way.

Paul writing to the Philippians sums up the essential difference between humans: For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction ..... . But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body. Phil4v18to21.

(D) Paul's credibility.

Paul asserts his reliability and credibility as a gospel preacher in three ways:

(1) He was in Christ.

Jesus told his disciples: "Remain in me and I will remain in you." Jn15v4. "If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit, apart from me you can do nothing." Jn15v5.

There can be no doubt that Paul was in an intimate, trusting and loving relationship with Jesus. He could say: For to me, to live is Christ. Phil1v21. Such was Paul's relationship that he could urge the Corinthians to follow his example: Therefore I urge you to imitate me. 1Cor4v16. Nothing gives a preacher more credibility than a Christ like life.

W.H. Griffith Thomas wrote: As water never rises above its level so what we do never rises above what we are .... . We shall never take people one hair's breadth beyond our own spiritual attainment. We may point to higher things, but we shall only take them as far as we ourselves have gone.

(2) He was a man of integrity. We speak before God with sincerity. v17.

Paul claimed that his motives for preaching the gospel were pure. He wasn't like some of the "super apostles" whom he accused of peddling the word of God for profit. Paul was not like the cheap wine hucksters who watered down their wine to increase their profits. The "super apostles", to be mentioned again later in his epistle, preached for gain - monetary gifts and personal adulation. Paul could say: My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power. 1Cor2v1to5.

Charles Haddon Spurgeon, known as "the prince of preachers," felt he delivered his sermon so poorly one Sunday that he was ashamed of himself. As he walked away from his church, the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London, he wondered how any good could come from that message. When he arrived home, he dropped to his knees and prayed, "Lord God, You can do something with nothing. Bless that poor sermon."

In the months that followed, 41 people said that they had decided to trust Christ as Saviour because of that "weak" message. The following Sunday, to make up for his previous "failure," Spurgeon had prepared a "great" sermon - but no one responded.

Spurgeon's experience underscores two important lessons for all who serve the Lord. First, we need the blessing of God on our efforts. Solomon said in Psalm 127:1, "Unless the Lord builds the house, they labour in vain who build it." And second, our weakness is an occasion for the working of God's power. The apostle Paul said, "I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Cor. 12:10). Our Daily Bread, May 18, 1992.

(3) He was an ambassador of God. We speak .... like men sent from God.

God appointed Paul to be his ambassador to the Gentiles. No head of state appoints just anybody to be an ambassador for his country. Ambassadors are usually the crème de la crème of the civil service. So when Jesus chose Paul to represent him - he chose the best.

When an ambassador speaks in his country's interests he will do so with conviction. He knows that this is the task he has been especially selected to do. So it was that Paul always preached Christ with the utmost conviction.

There is a tale told of that great English actor Macready. An eminent preacher once said to him: "I wish you would explain to me something." "Well, what is it? I don't know that I can explain anything to a preacher." "What is the reason for the difference between you and me? You are appearing before crowds night after night with fiction, and the crowds come wherever you go. I am preaching the essential and unchangeable truth, and I am not getting any crowd at all." Macready's answer was this: "This is quite simple. I can tell you the difference between us. I present my fiction as though it were truth; you present your truth as though it were fiction." Taken from G. Campbell Morgan on Preaching.

Sadly many struggle in Christian work because God has not appointed them to it. In such circumstances it is not surprising that their ministry lacks conviction.

ANY COMMENTS FOR JOHN REED: E-mail jfmreed@talktalk.net

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