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. (2 Corinthians 2:14)

Paul dealt with criticism from the Corinthian Christians, who said he was unreliable and fickle because his travel plans had unexpectedly changed. Earlier, Paul carefully explained himself and his reasons for not arriving when he had previously planned. More than anything, he wanted the Corinthian Christians to know he was following Jesus Christ like a soldier in an army follows their general. Like any organized person, Paul made his travel plans, but more importantly he was a follower of Jesus Christ.

To illustrate the point, Paul said that Jesus always leads His people in triumph. The illustration used an image from the Roman world, presenting Jesus as the victorious, conquering general in a triumphal parade. A Roman triumphal parade was given to successful generals when they returned from their conquests.

For a person in the ancient world, a Roman Triumph was probably the greatest pageant, the greatest spectacle, they would ever see. Today we’re used to see amazing sights and spectacular productions on screens or in person. In ancient times, such things were both rare and amazing.

In a Roman Triumph, the focus was on the victorious general who came through the streets of Rome to the Capitol. In the parade, first walked the government officials and the senators through the streets richly decorated. Then came a procession of trumpeters, followed by those carrying spoils taken from the conquered countries. After that were pictures of the defeated lands with models of the vanquished fortresses and ships. Then came a white bull for sacrifice, followed by prisoners in chains: princes, leaders, generals who would soon be executed. After them were more government officials, then musicians, and priests bearing fragrant incense. Then the general himself appeared, followed by the army who shouted “lo triumphe!” – the cry of triumph.

This spectacle was a one in a lifetime event, and for most people in the ancient world it was the biggest production they had ever seen.

This was the scene in Paul’s mind. Jesus Christ marched in triumph through the world, and His church marched with Him. Paul wanted the Corinthian Christians to realize that he followed his general, Jesus Christ. Paul could see Jesus’ triumphal parade winding its way through the whole Roman Empire, throughout the entire world.

Fragrance, in the form of incense, was common at the Roman triumphal parade. In Paul’s mind, this fragrance is like the knowledge of God, which people can smell as the triumphal parade of Jesus comes by.

Dear brother or sister in Christ, you have a place in the greatest spectacle in all creation: the victory parade of Jesus Christ. Through you, God wants people to see and to “smell” the fragrance of the victory of Jesus.

Look to your victorious general. Follow Him. March in the place He sets you. Rejoice in His victory; He shares it with you.

For more on 2 Corinthians 2, click here

Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong. Let all that you do be done with love. (1 Corinthians 16:13–14)

Near the end of this letter to the Corinthian disciples of Jesus, Paul hoped to stir their sense of responsibility and courage for the Christian life. In these two verses, Paul told them to do four things, and then gave an overall principle for how they must do the four things.

Each of the four things were military in nature, describing things a soldier might do.

Christians are to watch. They are to be continually on guard and live in such a way that they are not surprised by difficulties or by great blessings, such as the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus commanded His disciples to watch (Matthew 24:42, 26:41, Mark 13:37).

Christians are to stand fast in the faith. The idea is that there are many things that would shake or move a believer from their secure footing in the Christian faith. This also has the sense of soldiers standing together, ready to face and fight the enemy. A few scattering soldiers can mean defeat. Like a soldier needs a strong standing position in battle, the disciples of Jesus need to stand strong. Paul warned believers to stand fast in their liberty in Jesus (Galatians 5:1), in Christian unity (Philippians 1:27), in the Lord Himself (Philippians 4:1), and in the teaching of the apostles (2 Thessalonians 2:15).

Christians are to be brave. This is the only place in the New Testament where this word is used (andrizomai). Literally it means, “to act like a man.” There is a place for all disciples of Jesus Christ, men and women, to choose the courage a brave soldier must have in his time of battle: unflinching, pressing forward. This quality is especially necessary among Christian men, but it isn’t limited to them.

Christians are to be strong. The believer’s strength comes not from their own resources, but from the Lord and His power. We can be strong in the Lord and the power of His might (Ephesians 6:10, 2 Timothy 2:1). The strength of individual believers helps the church of Jesus Christ as a whole.

Those four things are important to the soldier and, by analogy, to the disciples of Jesus Christ: readiness, steadfastness, bravery, and strength. Yet for the solider, there is a sense in which they are enough–but not for the Christian. For the follower of Jesus Christ, all the watching, all the standing fast, all the bravery, and all the strength appropriate for the solider might mean nothing without love. That’s why God told us, let all that you do be done with love. If the Christian loses love, they lose everything (1 Corinthians 13:1–3).

Dear brother or sister in Jesus Christ, take seriously your responsibility as God’s solder. Yet realize you are special kind of soldier, one that needs to do it all with love. God helping us, we will.

How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification. (1 Corinthians 14:26)

This was about the conduct of the Corinthian Christians when they would come together for worship, fellowship, and God’s word. Those gatherings of the church were to be a time when people came to participate and to give to one another, not merely to passively receive.

Out of necessity, the Corinthian Christians met in small groups in different homes. There were many “house churches” scattered over Corinth. In these small groups, there was freedom and responsibility to receive and give. One might give by reading or singing a psalm. Another might offer a word of teaching. Someone might pray in a tongue, along with an interpretation. Someone else might have a revelation, a word from God’s heart and mind to the gathered church. In a small, home-fellowship type setting, this is how the church should work together.

When more people are gathered, this “everybody shares something with everyone else” is more difficult. Among ten people, ten can share something with all the other ten. But among thirty, or sixty, or a hundred people, there isn’t time to allow everyone to share something with everyone else. Plus, in a larger group, the “I want to feel important by talking to everybody” factor is much more present. It may be present among ten people, but how much more among a hundred! This is why some are blessed and find great spiritual growth through a home group; it provides a better context for the “everyone shares something with everyone else” idea.

At the same time, the heart of “everyone shares something with everyone else” can happen in a larger church, but it is more expressed in “everyone shares something with someone else.” It says, “I am coming to church, but not only to receive a blessing. I come to give a blessing to someone, and I will ask God for an opportunity to bless someone today.” This way of thinking can make the fifteen minutes before a church meeting and the thirty minutes after the best and most exciting time of the gathering. It is a big mistake to think, “If I’m not up on the platform, I can’t minister to someone else today.” Instead, believers should be on the lookout for opportunities to pray with people, encourage, help, meet, bless, counsel, admonish, and love one another every time they come to church.

Big church or little church, house church or “regular” church, God calls us to come to the gatherings of His people not only to receive, but to give. We give our attention, our worship, and our listening ear to the Lord. But we also give to one another in just the way Paul described. This can revolutionize your church-going experience – so let that revolution, a very Biblical revolution, begin.

There are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. There are differences of ministries, but the same Lord. And there are diversities of activities, but it is the same God who works all in all. (1 Corinthians 12:4-6)

1 Corinthians 12 is about spiritual gifts, something Paul did not want believers to be ignorant of (1 Corinthians 12:1). Here, Paul explained something relevant to the working of spiritual gifts but applies beyond that topic: the principle of diversity and unity in God’s family.

Paul described three areas of diversity in God’s family: gifts, ministries, and activities. The gifts are diverse, the ministries are different, and the activities are varied. But it is all the same Spirit, the same Lord, the same God doing the work through the gifts, the ministries, and the activities.

First, there are diversities of gifts. Paul will later list some nine spiritual gifts in the following verses, and more in other places, demonstrating this broad diversity. Yet there is only one Giver, who works through the diverse gifts.

The word ministries probably has in mind the different “gifted offices” in the church, such as apostles, prophets, evangelists, and pastor-teachers (Ephesians 4:11-14). Paul’s point is clear: though there are different offices, it is the same Lord granting the offices and directing the service.

The original word for activities is energemata, where we get our words energy, energetic, and energize from. It is a word of active and sometimes miraculous power. Differences of activities means that God displays and pours out His miraculous power in different ways, but it is always the same God doing the work.

What are the differences between gifts, ministries, and activities? The word gifts is used broadly. Some gifts are ministries – standing offices or positions in the church. Some gifts are activities – miraculous events or outpourings at a particular time and place, such as the manifestation of the Spirit mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:7.

Just as in first-century Corinth, it is easy for believers today to focus on their own gifts, ministries, or activities and believe those who are different are not really walking or working with God. Yet the one God has a glorious diversity in the way He does things. We should never expect it to be all according to our own emphasis and taste.

One of the ministries mentioned in the New Testament is evangelist (Ephesians 4:11). If I am an evangelist, it’s easy for me to focus on my gift, my ministry, and think that everyone in God’s family should be an evangelist just as I am. I can try to make others feel guilty that they don’t have my gifts and ministry.

Two things are true and important: the diversity and the unity. By God’s Spirit we are different, but we are all one. Don’t focus so much on the diversity that you miss the unity.

Today, appreciate the powerful diversity and unity God has made among His people, and find a way to thank God for someone else’s gifts and ministry!