1. When a Roman general had been out into some distant land to put down an uprising, or to win new lands for the Roman empire, he always returned with much fanfare.
2. The Roman senate would declare the day of his return a public holiday and all the citizens of Rome would line up along the streets to see the general’s triumphal entry.
3. It was somewhat like our modern-day ticker-tape parade, though we usually do it now for athletes, whereas they did it only for the Roman general and his conquering army.
4. These big parades would often last from morning into the night. There would be a long line of captives in chains, marching up in front. These were soldiers captured in battle, that would soon be released.
5. Then comes the general, waving to the multitudes who were wildly cheering him on. His captains would march alongside him, as Marc Antony marched with Julius Caesar. The rest of the soldiers marched in step.
6. Next would be the Roman priests burning incense to their heathen gods. These gods were given credit for the victory. The line between Caesar and the gods was often blurred (cf. Acts 12:21-23).
7. By the way, this is where the RCC gets their priesthood and their incense, not from the NT. You will not find priests burning incense and offering sacrifices in the NT. You will not find the pomp and pageantry that you see today in the RCC and in the Episcopal and other popish churches.
8. Finally, in the back of the line, were those captives condemned to die. Some would be thrown to the wild beasts, some would be executed in some other way. But all those in the back of the procession would soon die.
9. I would like for you to think about this triumphal entry today because the apostle Paul uses this imagery here in II Cor.2. Think of the fragrance of the incense. Paul uses the word "savour" (aroma) four times in vss. 14-16.

1. THE SAVOUR OF HIS KNOWLEDGE

1. Humanly speaking Paul must have been discouraged by all the trouble in the church at Corinth.
2. God had given him an open door to preach in Troas but Paul had to leave town right away because he could not find Titus (2:12,13).
3. So he moved on to Macedonia (2:13). And he says, "Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ…" (2:14).
4. Note that word "always" (2:14). Sometime, try to go through your Bible and mark the word "all" and "always," etc.
5. "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose" (Rom.8:28).
6. Paul says we are just like that Roman general marching triumphantly down the street, but of course we are better off. Those generals were lost; but we’re saved. Those generals were giving the glory to their heathen gods; but we give all our praise and worship to the true God of the Bible (2:14).
7. Those generals never knew when some soothsayer would jump out of the crowd and warn them of impending doom; but we need not fear soothsayers – we have the infallible, inerrant Word of God.
8. God "maketh manifest the savour of His knowledge…" (2:14b). How? "by us." Where? "in every place."
9. This is God’s program; this is His plan – to get the Gospel out everywhere. We are to "make manifest the savour of His knowledge" everywhere – in our homes, on the job, in our neighborhood, house to house, everywhere we can.

2. THE SAVOUR OF DEATH UNTO DEATH (2:15,16)

1. In that triumphal entry were those that were going to be set free and those who were going to be executed. But the sweet savour of the incense burned the same.
2. As the Roman priests burned the incense, that odor affected different people in different ways. To those that were soon to be set free, it meant freedom and life, but to those who would soon die it meant judgment and death.
3. Therefore Paul says, "For we (saved) are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish" (2:15).
4. This is an awesome responsibility. We must get out the Gospel and yet we understand all the while that many will not accept it. To these Christ-rejecters "we are the savour of death unto death" (2:16).
5. Those without Christ are as doomed as those Roman prisoners who would soon be executed. No wonder Paul asks, "And who is sufficient for these things?" (2:16b). Thank God, "our sufficiency is of God" (3:5).
6. It is not easy seeing people reject the Gospel. It is sad seeing them harden their hearts to the only One that can save them. "And who is sufficient for these things?"

3. THE SAVOUR OF LIFE UNTO LIFE (2:16).

1. While it is sad to see people reject the Gospel but it is a wonderful blessing to see people respond to the Gospel. To those who get saved we are "the savour of life unto life" (2:16).
2. The way we live and the way we work can make the difference between life and death to those that are lost. Paul says, "To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life" (2:16).
3. Cicero was a famous Roman statesman who was born 106 BC and died 43 BC. Octavion (Augustus Caesar) had him executed. He wrote these words about the savour of death unto death and the savour of life unto life, "Thus the sweet odors which to the victor – a Marius or a Julius Caesar – and to the spectators were a symbol of glory and success and happiness, were to the wretched victims – a Jugurtha or a Vercingetorix – an odor of death" (cited by Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the NT). {Emphasis added.}

CONCLUSION:

1. Before we conclude, I would like to say a few words about II Cor.2:17. For the word "corrupt," the margin of the Scofield Bible says "make a trade of."
2. Every Greek lexicon and study book I consulted says the same. Vincent’s Word Studies says: "Paul uses the term of those who trade in the word of God, adulterating it for the purpose of gain or popularity."
3. The KJV says they "corrupt the word of God." By adulterating it to make money many unscrupulous people are corrupting it. And they are corrupting those who are being led away by their deceptions.
4. Another way to find out the meaning of a Greek word is to see if it is used elsewhere in the Bible. But this is the only time this particular word is used in the NT.
5. However, the word is used often in classical Greek literature. For example, Plato uses the word to describe philosophers "who carry about the wares of knowledge, and make the round of the cities, and sell or retail them to any customer who is in want of them, praise them all alike; though I should not wonder if many of them were really ignorant of their effect upon the soul."
6. My favorite reference book is Webster’s Dictionary. I firmly believe that the King James Bible, Webster’s Dictionary, and Strong’s Concordance are all one needs for a good Bible study. These are our basic tools.
7. I looked up "corrupt" and Webster’s says this: "to alter a text for the worse; to debase; to mar and spoil." {Emphasis added.}
8. This is exactly what is happening today with all these new Bibles. Dishonest peddlers are "corrupting" the word of God by altering the text. They are like Plato’s philosophical peddlers deceiving the unwary, who apparently are "ignorant of their effect upon the soul."