Are You a Flower or a Skunk
“That stinks!” Have you ever said those words?
Maybe something literally had an aroma you didn’t like…such as liver and onions. Or, maybe you used “that stinks” in relation to someone’s bad behavior. The words “stink” and “stench” are not favorable terms. Rather, we like aromas that are fragrant, sweet, fresh, and lovely. Newsflash! Our Heavenly Father also likes fragrant aromas. And, the fragrance He likes is the fragrance of Christ in our lives. Listen to Paul’s explanation in 2 Corinthians 2:14. “But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Him in every place. For we are a fragrance of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.”
Are You A Flower or A Skunk
Each of us is an incense diffuser. We emit a spiritual smell to God. God has placed within believers the Holy Spirit of Christ; which is a precious fragrance to God. But, if our fleshly nature takes over, Christ’s aroma is diminished.
Many of us are like the fawn in the Disney book, “Bambi.” When Thumper, the rabbit, began teaching Bambi to speak, Bambi didn’t distinguish that a flower was different from a skunk. Bambi called the flowers “Flower.” He called the skunk, “Flower.”
An important part of our maturing as Christians is learning to identify the spiritual skunks among the flowers.
Spiritual Flowers Bearing Christ’s Fruit & Aroma (Galatians 5:22-23)
- Love
- Joy
- Peace
- Patience
- Kindness
- Goodness
- Faithfulness
- Gentleness
- Self-Control
Spiritual Skunks (Galatians 5:19-21)
- Sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery
- Idolatry and witchcraft
- Hatred, discord
- Jealousy
- Fits of rage
- Selfish ambition
- Dissensions, factions, envy
- Drunkenness
- Orgies
How to Be a Fragrance, Not a Skunk
- Agree with God about what stinks and tell Him we’re sorry for the stink we’ve made.
- Be careful about what we take in. What we eat affects the aroma our bodies give off. Enjoy that onion on your hamburger or salad and the aroma will linger even after the last bite. In the same way, what we take in through our five senses stays with us… and others. Take in the reality show where everyone screams and interrupts one another, and we may start sounding like them. Read stinkin books, visit stinkin web sites, give in to stinkin habits, and we become a stinkin diffuser, not a fragrance of Christ. But, take in prayer, take in meditating on the Scripture, take in honorable thoughts, and we’ll be a fragrance of Christ to God.
Why Choose to Be A Fragrance of Christ
When we’re the sweet aroma of the knowledge of Christ, the fragrance of Christ goes with us everywhere – at the store, work, and home. When we’re with believers, we enjoy the sweet aroma. When unbelievers get a whiff of Christ in us, it gives them the opportunity to realize that there’s more than “skunks.” God uses the sweet aroma to draw unbelievers to Himself.
What are we taking in physically and spiritually that’s affecting our aroma? Is it garlic, onions, coffee, and smoking? Then, our breath will give off those odors. Is it prayer, meditating on the Word, guarding our minds and actions from our flesh and Satan? Then our lives will be a fragrance of Christ to God.
Heavenly Father, thank You for the gift of Your Holy Spirit by whom we can be the fragrance of Christ.