In this seen, Jesus is in a house with Mary, Martha
and Lazarus, who were brother and sisters. They were Jesus’ closest friends. He
had recently raised Lazarus from the dead, and we know that Mary and Martha
each represented a different kind of gifting and personality. Martha had a gift
of serving, and Mary on the other-hand loved to listen and learn from Jesus at
His feet.
John 12:2-3 (AMP)
2 So they made Him a supper; and Martha served,
but Lazarus was one of those at the table with Him.
3 Mary took a pound of ointment of pure liquid
nard [a rare perfume] that was very expensive, and she poured it on Jesus’ feet
and wiped them with her hair. And the whole house was filled with the fragrance
of the perfume.
I want us to focus on the part in verse 3 that
says:
“...And the whole house was filled with the
fragrance of the perfume.”
• If we look at the word “fragrance” in the Old
Testament, you will find that together it is used 25 times in the books of
Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers. And in every single instance it is used to
describe the fragrance of a sacrifice.
Example:
Numbers 28:27
27 But you shall offer the burnt offering for a
sweet, pleasing, and soothing fragrance to the Lord...
• The word “fragrance” is used another 5 times in
the book “Song of Solomon”. Of course in Song of Solomon, as you could guess,
the word is used to describe the atmosphere in which love can be found as well
as a parallel to the experience of love.
Example:
Song of Solomon 1:12
12 While the king sits at his table [she said],
my spikenard [my absent lover] sends forth [his] fragrance [over me].
Song of Solomon 2:13
13 The fig tree puts forth and ripens her green
figs, and the vines are in blossom and give forth their fragrance. Arise, my
love, my fair one, and come away.
• In the book of Hosea (which is the final time the
word “fragrance” is used in the Old Testament), it is used to describe what the
“spiritual fragrance” of the church should be to God
Hosea 14:6
6 His suckers and shoots shall spread, and his
beauty shall be like the olive tree and his fragrance like [the cedars and
aromatic shrubs of] Lebanon.
In the New Testament the word “fragrance” is
used 3 times.
•
Firstly to refer to the anointing oil that Mary pours out on Jesus’ feet
(as we have already read) as a prophetic embalming of Him, as He awaits His
impending sacrifice through death. It is an illusion to the fact that He is the
“acceptable sacrifice” a “sweet smelling sacrifice”.
John 12:7
7 But Jesus said, Let her alone. It was
[intended] that she should keep it for the time of My preparation for burial.
[She has kept it that she might have it for the time of My embalming.]
• The second time the word “fragrance” is used in the
New Testament, it is in the book of 2 Corinthians.
Firstly it mentions the “fragrance of the
knowledge of God” verse
14 and secondly it speaks of “fragrance of Christ [which exhales] unto
God” verse 15.
(I would advise you to do a more extensive study on
this topic on your own, as I cannot cover all the revelation knowledge stored
up in scripture in such a short study)
2 Corinthians 2:14-16
14 But thanks be to God, Who in Christ always
leads us in triumph [as trophies of Christ’s victory] and through us spreads
and makes evident the fragrance of the knowledge of God everywhere,
15 For we are the sweet fragrance of Christ
[which exhales] unto God, [discernible alike] among those who are being saved and among
those who are perishing:
16 To the latter it is an aroma [wafted] from
death to death [a fatal odor, the smell of doom]; to the former it is an aroma
from life to life [a vital fragrance, living and fresh]. And who is qualified
(fit and sufficient) for these things? [Who is able for such a ministry? We?]
• Lastly the Bible speaks of us loving each other
because of the sweet smelling sacrifice of Jesus.
Ephesians 5:2
2. And walk in love, [esteeming and delighting
in one another] as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us, a slain offering
and sacrifice to God [for you, so that it became] a sweet fragrance.
Let’s look at all of the
references together:
Old Testament
1. The soothing fragrance of sacrifice - in Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers
2. The fragrance of love - in Song of Solomon
3. The prophecy of a fragrant church - in Hosea
New Testament
4. Then there is the prophetic act of embalming
Jesus as a sacrifice in
the fragrance of Mary’s oil - in John
5. Also there is the fragrance of the knowledge
of God and fragrance of
Christ [which exhales] unto God through us - in 2 Corinthians
6. Lastly there is Jesus who became a sweet
fragranced sacrifice.
What do you smell like to your wife, your husband,
your children, your friends or even your congregation? Do you light up a room
with the sweet smell of Joy, Life and Jesus, or are you the one who bears the
smell of death and decay?
Know that:
1. your sacrifices to God and man
2. the Word and knowledge you teach and live
3. the death to self and life through Christ
4. as well as the love you have for others...
...will be the fragrance or the odour that your
family and friends have to live with every day.
If you feel a little smelly...wash yourself in the
Word!
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