Scentless Roses

     The yellow roses that were placed on the communion table at church looked so beautiful.  The long stems and perfect yellow color truly was attractive.  Since they were so beautiful I got up close and tried to take a sniff.  I could smell nothing.  I know that my sense of smell is diminishing so I asked my wife to take a sniff.  She has an excellent sense of smell, but she couldn’t smell that distinctive rose scent either.

I discovered what is happening.  In order to improve the rose, selective breeding focuses on hardiness, color and shelf-life.  That same selective breeding over the years inadvertently removed the gene that produces fragrance.  Hence what we have left is scentless roses.  Beautiful on the outside but no smell.

We as followers of Jesus are instructed to spread the fragrance of Christ everywhere.  2 Cor. 2:14 says: “Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place”.  This fragrance has to do with the character of Jesus.  His love, His grace, His humility and His joy should emanate from us.  This fragrance also is contained in the truth about Jesus.  We should spread everywhere the knowledge of His deity, His sacrificial atonement, His crucifixion, His glorious resurrection, and His second coming. 

I am afraid we are more interested in what we look like to the world than what we smell like.  We want to appear righteous, good, and attractive on the outside when the Savior is interested in a pleasing aroma from the inside.  We can quickly become just like those yellow scentless roses.  So pretty to look at, but there is no sweet fragrance of Christ.

       My granddaughter loves to dress up and have my wife give her a gentle spray of her cologne.  After she came out of the bedroom, she came up to me and said: “now I smell like mee-maw”.  Does our life give off that wonderful fragrance.  Do we smell like Jesus or are we like those scentless roses?