Triumphal procession

Having explained the circumstances surrounding the changes to his travel plans in the previous passage, Paul defends the legitimacy of his apostleship in today’s passage. (1) The illustration he used is that of a Roman triumphal procession. A victorious general would include captives in the triumphal procession, impressing upon the crowds the greatness of his victory. In the same way, the apostles are captives who have been won by the grace of Christ. The very existence of the apostles embodies before people the greatness of Christ’s grace. At this time, Paul was probably recalling his own experience on the road to Damascus, when he was called from being a persecutor to becoming an apostle. (2) Paul then turns to the illustration of the incense burned during a triumphal procession. Its fragrance is truly sweet, but to some people it seems like a foul odor. The problem is not with the fragrance, but with the olfactory sense of the person who smells it. The Bible calls that problem “sin.” In other words, the apostles who proclaim the gospel are a sweet fragrance before God, a fragrance pleasing to Him, but that fragrance brings life to those who respond to the gospel in faith and death to those who do not believe.

Who is adequate for this responsibility?

Thus, the apostolic ministry is indeed a weighty responsibility. Paul asks who is adequate for this weighty responsibility and begins to list the qualifications required of an apostle. Verse 17 gives the first of these qualifications. (1) If someone adulterates the word of God and presents it for personal gain or fame, that person is disqualified as an apostle. “Peddling” refers to something like mixing water into wine and selling it. (2) Paul writes that they speak with complete sincerity, in accordance with the word of God, as representatives of Christ. We who have become Christians by the grace of Christ spread the fragrance of Christ through our daily lives. To those who receive salvation, it becomes a fragrance leading to life, and to those who reject salvation, a fragrance leading to death. Our responsibility is to spread the fragrance of Christ. Today, let us pray that Christ will dwell within us.