sort of stream-of-consciousness style.
Bear with me. I think there's a beautiful truth at the end.
This morning, while singing a song called "Overcome," I was struck by something. Somehow the song reminded me of an old hymn that describes Jesus's resurrection as His bursting forth from the "spice-laden tomb."
Yeah, I thought, that's right. There were about 75 pounds of myrrh, aloes, and spices that He had been wrapped up in when they buried him (John 19:39-40).
That must have smelled really good.
But what about Lazarus? I remember when Jesus was asking for his grave to be opened. Martha protested, "Lord, by this time he stinketh." (Had to use the King James for this verse--it's classic...right up there with Gen. 22:3 and the like.)
Why did Lazarus stink? Because his body was decomposing. (There's a special word in Bulgarian for dead stuff that's rotting--mursha. In English I think it's "carrion," but my dictionaries are already packed for our move. Regardless, it's a horrid smell.)
Jesus's body, however, didn't decompose. Psalm 16:10, a clear prophesy about Jesus (see Acts 2:23-28), says: "You will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let Your Holy One see decay."
Now I'm a smell person. I think it's my strongest sense. Smells transport me back to certain times and places. VW bugs, my daughter's hair, acacias in bloom, barbecue...they all move me in their own way.
Evidently God is a smell person, too. When Noah landed after the flood, he sacrificed animals as a burnt offering to the Lord. Genesis 8:21 says, "The LORD smelled the pleasing aroma..."
If He liked that smell, how must He have rejoiced at the scent of His Son coming forth from the tomb in victory? What fragrance must have met the angels who rolled back the stone of his grave? Not the smell of death or defeat, but the wonderful smell of life and victory. Surely this smell, the scent of the risen Christ, was the greatest smell ever.
I would have loved to have smelled that smell. Talk about an aroma that is pleasing to God...
But wait. Isn't there another verse that talks about the fragrance of Christ?
But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him.
For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.
--2 Corinthians 2:14-15
How cool is that? Imagine the all-time greatest smell in the history of the world--Jesus bursting forth victoriously from the spice-laden tomb.
That's how we smell to God.
Next time you're self-conscious about your breath or your wife tells you that you need a shower...just remember how you smell to Him!!
