Mother's Day
May 11, 2025


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May 11, 2025
Dalina Stephens


What’s your Smell?

We might not think about It much, but there’s Power in a smell or fragrance.

Scents are powerful, they linger, they bring emotion, and they can even change the atmosphere.

Today were going to look at something Paul says. He paints a picture for us.

2 Corinthians 2:14-15

    “But 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, the (fragrance) aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing”.

We are not just the carriers of the Gospel, we also carry its fragrance.
We are the scent of Jesus to a hurting/broken world.

1. God Always Leads Us in (v. 14)

    “Thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ…”
This is not our victory, it’s Christ’s.

Paul is referencing a Roman triumphal procession, where a victorious general would lead a parade through the city, showcasing his triumph, and the air would be filled with the smell of burning incense.

In Paul’s imagery, Christ is the Conqueror, and we are the people walking in His victory parade. It’s all about Him, not us.
We are not conquering for God, we are celebrating the victory that’s already been won through the cross and the resurrection.

HE conquered sin, HE defeated death, and He broke the power of the grave.

When you remember you’re in Christ’s victory march, you walk differently. You serve differently. You suffer differently. You forgive differently. You smell different!!



2. God His Fragrance Through Us (v. 14)

Paul continues:

    “…and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.”
The Greek word here for “diffuses” literally means to spread or make manifest, like the spreading of a fragrance through a room.

    • Do people catch a whiff of grace when you enter the room?
    • Does your attitude smell like peace in a chaotic world?
    • Does your presence carry the aroma of mercy in a bitter culture?

Every place. You don’t need a platform to release Christ’s fragrance. You need proximity to Him.

There are several different references in scripture to fragrance…

One being…THE FRAGRANCE OF OUR WORSHIP

Fragrance was an intricate part of Old Testament worship.

The Lord gave Moses precise instructions on making perfume for use in the Tabernacle. It was never to be duplicated for personal use; it was holy to God.

    “Prepare expertly blended incense from these; to be seasoned with salt, pure and holy.”
    Exodus 30:35
We also see fragrance in New Testament worship, through the act of love Mary showed toward Jesus.

    “Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair: and the house was filled with the odour of the ointment.”
    John 12:3

There’s also… FRAGRANCE IN OUR TESTIMONY

Your testimony is powerful. The way you smell is important to your testimony.

The sweet smell of Christ cannot be replicated artificially; it is the result of a Spirit-controlled life.
Let every word and action be a sweet scent of godliness to the world and of our worship to God.
When you model faith in your home when it’s needed most, you’re releasing the aroma of JESUS!
Remember…Wherever you go and whatever you’re doing, whether in your workplace, your home, your school, online, at the store…You diffuse the scent of Christ.


3. We Are the Fragrance of

(v. 15)

    “For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.”
    2 Corinthians 2:15

First: To God
We are first and foremost a fragrance to God. Before anyone else smells it, He does. He delights in a life surrendered to HIM. Your worship, obedience, and faithfulness rise to Him like incense.
You’re not just trying to impress people—you’re offering something to God. You’re not just “doing ministry”, you’re releasing worship.

Second: Among the Saved and the Perishing
We carry that fragrance among two groups:
    • Those who are being saved: to them, we smell like life, like hope, like heaven.
    • Those who are perishing: to them, the fragrance may be offensive—it reminds them of judgment, of a need for repentance, of something they’re resisting.
And whether the world receives it or rejects it, God is pleased when your life smells like His Son.

Question:
• Am I allowing His life to diffuse through me? Do people sense Jesus through my words, actions, and attitude?

Here’s the great news…You don’t have to be perfect. You just have to be saturated in His presence. Because when you’ve been with Jesus, you smell like Jesus.

You may never preach a sermon from a pulpit, but you are preaching with your life.