Hey All!
Today’s Oswald Chambers uses words like “captive”, and “captivity”, now before you run away, we need to ask ourselves; what is it that captivates or fascinates us? What is it that we hang on to most in this life? Is it the things of this earth that makes us happy, or that make us rich, or content? Wouldn’t you agree that we are all hanging on to something that makes us a captive to it or that captivates us? For those of us who are children of God, we are to hang on only to Him, for we know that the “things of this earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace”. But is it possible for us to hang on to the “train of His robe” with one hand, while holding on to the things of this world with the other? Sadly the answer is “yes”, and even sadder still is that most of us do!

How about those who are children on this world, those who think they belong to this world, and therefore feel that they deserve happiness from it? They see and know that there are two sides. The one side being the “train of God’s robe”, or the “procession of a conqueror” as Oswald puts it, and the other side being the things of this world and what it has to offer. Some hang on completely, and with both hands to this world. Sadly, these are the ones that say, “I don’t need to believe in God, I don’t want anything to do with that whole Christian thing. Why would I waste my time on something I can’t see, or on something that I can’t touch or hear? I only have so long to live and I’m gonna make the best of it!” These are the ones who hear the words “captives, marching in the procession of Christ’s triumphs”, and run away because of their shallow understanding of what that truly means.

There are also those who maybe hang on to the world with one hand, and with the other, they hang on to nothing, keeping it free for when the time is right. They wait until they’re ready to grab hold of Christ. This hand they call freedom, just kinda flails in the wind, not really grasping for anything, just kinda there, but what they have to realize is that Jesus’ hand is only inches away, waiting for them to grab hold of the truth, so He can show them true freedom in Him.
In the case of us, those who are children of God, we hang on to the world out of disobedience, pride, ego, and selfishness. If we’ve been walking with the Lord for awhile, we know that He provides our every need, and we know He does want us to enjoy the things He has created for us, but it’s too easy to get out of balance. We need to ask Him to keep us on track with Him, we need to make sure our relationship with Him is first, then these other things become clearer, focused, and pleasurable not only to us, but also to Him.

In the other two cases, those that say they don’t need God, and those who say “not right now”, they are men (and women) of fear. Fear? What is there to be afraid of?

They fear surrendering to the captivity of the Lord because of their understanding of what captivity means to them, in this life, in this world, and in this time. They try to compare their finite mind, and finite logic, with an infinite God. They don’t know what captivity means to the creator of this life, this world, and this time. They question the step of surrender, “What will my family think? Will they accept me anymore?” Compare your families acceptance to the love of God who created you, and loves you without bounds! “Will I have to stop the things I’m doing? Will my life have to change? Can I ask you to look at your life; aren’t there some things that need changing? “You say I have to be a captive, a prisoner, what does that mean? Will I ever experience freedom again?” I’m telling you, there is freedom in the captivity!

God’s Words to us say:
“Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:30-32 NKJV

“Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” John 8:36

“…being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,” Romans 3:24

And this verse sums it all up:

“For he who is called in the Lord while a slave is the Lord’s freedman. Likewise he who is called while free is Christ’s slave.” 1 Corinthians 7:22

October 24, 2006 Oswald Chambers (My Utmost For HIS Highest)

The Proper Perspective

Thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ . . . —2 Corinthians 2:14
The proper perspective of a servant of God must not simply be as near to the highest as he can get, but it must be the highest. Be careful that you vigorously maintain God’s perspective, and remember that it must be done every day, little by little. Don’t think on a finite level. No outside power can touch the proper perspective.

The proper perspective to maintain is that we are here for only one purpose— to be captives marching in the procession of Christ’s triumphs. We are not on display in God’s showcase— we are here to exhibit only one thing— the "captivity [of our lives] to the obedience of Christ" (

2 Corinthians 10:5 ).

How small all the other perspectives are! For example, the ones that say, "I am standing all alone, battling for Jesus," or, "I have to maintain the cause of Christ and hold down this fort for Him." But Paul said, in essence, "I am in the procession of a conqueror, and it doesn’t matter what the difficulties are, for I am always led in triumph."

Is this idea being worked out practically in us? Paul’s secret joy was that God took him as a blatant rebel against Jesus Christ, and made him a captive— and that became his purpose. It was Paul’s joy to be a captive of the Lord, and he had no other interest in heaven or on earth. It is a shameful thing for a Christian to talk about getting the victory. We should belong so completely to the Victor that it is always His victory, and "we are more than conquerors through Him . . ." ( Romans 8:37 ).

"We are to God the fragrance of Christ . . ." ( 2 Corinthians 2:15 ). We are encompassed with the sweet aroma of Jesus, and wherever we go we are a wonderful refreshment to God.