A Certain Vibe

Christians should have a certain vibe, that vibe should be clear, and that vibe will be a watershed.

Vibe isn’t a Bible word, but “aroma” is, and both are metaphors to describe a kind of feeling or atmosphere. Paul told the Corinthians that Christians are “the aroma of Christ to God” (2 Corinthians 2:15), and this is a figure of speech not a scratch-and-sniff. Right before that Paul said that God “spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of Him (that is, Christ) everywhere.” When you walk into a house with bread baking in the oven, something delightful
is happening in that room. Paul drew his illustration from a victory parade full of flowers and incense.

Christians give off an essence, it’s what people today might also call a vibe. We’re to be speaking, and embodying, a Christlike spirit. It would include sincerity, a sense of responsibility, and clarity (see 2 Corinthians 2:17).

The same vibe hits people differently. To those who are being saved, we are “a fragrance from life to life.” But to “those who are perishing” we are a “fragrance from death to death.” Our presence reminds them that they hate what we have and the God who gave it to us.

Simeon told Mary that her Son would be for the fall and rise of many in Israel (Luke 2:34). Many would stumble over Jesus on their way to destruction, and others would have their lives built on Jesus as the cornerstone.

Those who are being saved recognize the vibe, they are living as an aroma, they are growing from life to life. Christian, what is your vibe? Is it anger, or discontent, or gossip more smelly? Or is it drawing others to give thanks to God?