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Discussion Forum : Devotional Thoughts : A Fragrance of Christ

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DRS
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Joined: 2009/1/13
Posts: 123


 A Fragrance of Christ

A Fragrance of Christ

"Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.
For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:
To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?
For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ.(2Corinthians 2:14-17)

To me this is a very interesting group of verses and gives light on a question that was of some concern to me.If someone is never going to accept Jesus as His Savior (and of course our God being all knowing and has never had to learn anything would know that person will never believe) would it be right for that person to continually be told the gospel thus having more to answer for when they stand before God for judgement?But another question would be is just how much are they hearing?In chapter 4 a couple of interesting verses seem to shed light on this question.

"But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing,whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them."(2Corinthians 4:3-4)

They are hearing enough to reject the gospel of their salvation and that is what they will answer for.It seems they are blinded as a result of rejecting or not believing.So they need to have the gospel of salvation through the death and resurrection of Christ presented to them so they can choose even though God would already know how they will respond.We just have to let God be sovereign and share the gospel wherever He might lead.

It's in subjects like this we have to be very careful and not let worldly wisdom influence us in our understanding.In studying the journeys of Paul we can see several instances where Paul in his being sensitive to the guidance of the Holy Spirit saw and understood when God was opening doors and also closing them to Paul bringing the gospel.Then later God might open the door He had closed sometime before.I suppose we could say being at the right place at the right time.Missionaries would certainly need to be sensitive in this area of guidance.

Well all through this letter the apostle Paul is having to defend the ministry and the message and himself and in so doing he pours out his heart to them in this letter.For us,we can see the heart of the man like no where else in any of his writings.His concern for getting the gospel to the lost and also continually teaching,consoling,correcting and admonishing the believers to continue growing in the knowledge and grace of our Savior.

I believe God can manifest through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him anywhere we might be.We are a fragrance of Christ to God among the ones that are saved or that will be saved and also among the ones that won't be saved.To the ones that believe it is a sweet savor of life and to the unbeliever it is a savor of death,but unto God it is a precious fragrance of Christ whether it is believed or not.So we are to share the gospel and leave it with God.We aren't responsible whether a person accepts God's plan of salvation or not but I do believe we are responsible in presenting it to them.

Then Paul presents a question."And who is sufficient for these things?"Or who is adequate or qualified to present this?"I believe he answers that question a few verses later in the next chapter,but first(to me anyway) he makes a very interesting and alarming statement that was going on in that day and for sure in our time.

"For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God"
Some versions have "peddling the word of God" here.If they were "peddling" for their own personal gain,they were for sure corrupting the Word and the message.I fear we have so much of that today.Peddling the word of God.Is that not such a sad description of presenting God's Word,especially after Paul just describes what the message of salvation manifests from God's point of view."For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ."

Paul goes on to state that in the sight of God what he spoke was out of sincerity and of God.Then I believe he answers his question of who is sufficient in chapter 3 verse 5.

"Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God"(2 Corinthians 3:5)

Yes our sufficiency is of God and not of ourselves so we are to share the Word as He enables us because we are a fragrance of Christ to God and to allow God to manifest through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him.

 2017/2/21 9:07Profile
TMK
Member



Joined: 2012/2/8
Posts: 6650
NC, USA

 Re: A Fragrance of Christ

Quote: "So they need to have the gospel of salvation through the death and resurrection of Christ presented to them so they can choose even though God would already know how they will respond."

The logic of statements like this has always bothered me- I am trying to learn to get over it but something about that statement does not sit right with me, despite the fact that the vast majority of evangelicals would agree with it without question.


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Todd

 2017/2/21 12:53Profile
dohzman
Member



Joined: 2004/10/13
Posts: 2132


 Re:

I believe you are right Todd. It is a difficult thing to understand the fore knowledge of the one who said "I know the end from the beginning". Personally I have often wondered exactly how Jesus did it while here on earth in His earthly body, He could see the eternal state of all those around Him, maybe that is why He was called a man of sorrows. I have read as most everyone on here the account of the man in hell and his plea with God to send someone to his brethren all the while he was in eternal torment, I know some scholars believed that this story was a real person Jesus made reference to. There is so much that is so difficult to wrap your head around, the more I read and consider the less I realize I actually know.


_________________
D.Miller

 2017/2/22 3:43Profile





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