In Grasse, a small town in southeastern France with a population of about 50,000, spring brings a breathtaking festival of flowers. Roses, jasmine, lavender, iris, tuberose, and mimosa burst into bloom, filling the entire town with a rich, sweet scent. Thanks to abundant sunshine, gentle breezes, and clean, plentiful water, the flowers of Grasse are so fragrant that they are used as raw materials for perfumes produced by world-famous brands.
Today, more than a million travelers visit Grasse every year, but until the 16th century, the town was anything but fragrant. It was known for producing leather goods such as gloves, vests, and boots. The constant slaughtering of animals and processing of hides filled the air with a pungent stench that hung over the entire town.
One day, a tanner—desperate to eliminate the unpleasant odor—made a breakthrough discovery. He found that soaking leather in animal fat mixed with highly fragrant flower petals infused it with a pleasant scent. These scented leather goods quickly became popular, especially among European royals and nobles who had avoided leather because of its strong, musty smell. Encouraged by this success, the people of Grasse began studying flower cultivation and perfumery in earnest, creating a variety of scents to apply to leather. Eventually, they began producing perfume itself, which became an instant sensation. From then on, Grasse rose to prominence as the world’s most fragrant city and the center of the global perfume industry.
When something smells good, we naturally lean in to breathe it in. Fragrance has the power to draw people close and soften the heart. If we are so deeply moved by the scent of flowers, how much more awe-inspiring must be the fragrance of God, who is the very essence of eternal life and love?
God Himself became a fragrant offering and sacrifice (Eph 5:2). To us—who once reeked of sin and corruption, of greed, pride, hatred, anger, rudeness, complaint, and disobedience—He imparted His holy fragrance and called us the “aroma of Christ” (2 Co 2:15). The fragrance of Christ, which brings us from death into life, is the scent of love and salvation—one that the world cannot overcome. What immeasurable grace this is.
Let us give glory to God who rescued us from the valley of death and decay. Let us exude the fragrance of patience and self-control, godliness and faith, repentance and thanksgiving. And let us spread far and wide the deep love of the new covenant—a fragrance richer and purer than aloeswood, cinnamon, or calamus—so that the brothers and sisters who run into the arms of God the Father and Mother may breathe in the gentle, heavenly aroma to their hearts’ content.