The Full Flavoured Christian
But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. 2 Corinthians 2:14-16 ESV
I’m not a coffee nerd but I love the smell of coffee. Some people know all the different flavours and types of coffee- I just know that I love its smell. When I open a new bag of coffee beans the first thing I do is take a long deep sniff and savour its rich amorous aroma. There’s something about the smell of good strong coffee that speaks of comfort, warmth and good company. In the Old Testament, incense was used to represent a holy, prayerful life that was pleasing to God. In the Book of Revelation, our communion with God through prayer is represented by incense.
The ‘fragrance from life to life', spoken of in 2 Cor 2, refers to the blessing that mature, victorious living Christians have out those around them. When a joyful victorious Christian walks into a room they bring joy and victory with them- those around them are blessed. On the other hand, those who are living a fleshly life have the smell of death on them. If you’ve ever smelt a dead animal, you’ll know what it smells like. How often have you driven by an animal that has been killed on a roadside and it’s stench gets sucked into your car. The car stays putrid well after you’ve past driven past. The ‘smell of death’ spoken of in 2 Corinthians 6, represents fleshly works that, not only reap death in the person who’s doing them, but the odour impacts those around them with a stench of death.
As Christians, we are called to grow into that full-flavoured aromatic, victorious living Christians. When we walk into a room, or when we open our mouths, the sweet smell of victory in Jesus Christ overwhelms the stench of death!
‘And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ,’ Ephesians 4:11-15
Growing up in Christ is a process; a process of sanctification through obedience to God’s Word, empowered by God’s grace, through the Holy Spirit. This is a longwinded way of saying; when we walk in obedience, God works in our lives- bringing us to full-flavoured maturity in Christ.
At Redeemer Coast, we believe in and aim to build mature Christian disciples. We have distilled the essence of Christian discipleship into three main elements. Firstly, growing in faith. Secondly, growing in fellowship with other Christians and thirdly, growing in purpose through service.
We could say it this way:
1. Faith is Foundational- we get life through our knowledge of God.
2. Fellowship is Relational- we get stronger through our Christian fellowship
3. Service is Inspirational- we find our life purpose through serving others.
As a Christian grows in Christ the application of faith, fellowship and service changes and matures. For example, a young Christian grows in faith by enthusiastically listening to God’s Word; a maturing Christian learns to study God’s Word, and a full-flavoured, mature Christian has grown to the stage they teach God’s Word to others.
A young Christian gains strength by fellowship with other Christians. A maturing Christian establishes mutual supportive relationships. A full-flavoured Christian lays down their life for others.
A young Christian finds purpose in helping out at Church. A maturing Christian can take responsibility for areas of ministry. A full-flavoured Christian leads others as a servant.
If a Christian neglects any of these three areas they are thwarted in their growth. For example, the Christian who focusses on service to the neglect of faith and fellowship will soon run out of the grace needed to sustain them. They quickly become ‘worksy’ and burn-out. In a similar way, the Christian who neglects fellowship will, in due time, fall.
Each of these three areas, faith, fellowship and service, provide a cycle of ever-increasing grace the causes Christians to grow.
You may have noticed that as Christians go through stages of growth they become mature enough so that their life is a ‘fragrant aroma’, bringing life to others. They build faith in others, they lay down their life for others and they lead in God’s vision as servant leaders. A full-flavoured Christian has learned to stand, to be unchanged by circumstances- so they can be a blessing to others. The mature Christian is modelled after Christ- ‘the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ’.
