Daily Reflections with Oswald Chambers [Oct. 24, 2004]

My Utmost for His Highest (The Golden Book of Oswald Chambers; 1992) | 1935/1992 | Oswald Chambers

[Religion Moderator]

"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 of 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.

Oswald Chambers (1874-1917) was born July 24, 1874, in Aberdeen, Scotland. Converted in his teen years under the ministry of Charles Haddon Spurgeon, he studied art and archaeology at the University of Edinburgh before answering a call from God to the Christian ministry. He then studied theology at Dunoon College. From 1906-10 he conducted an itinerant Bible-teaching ministry in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Japan.

In 1910 Chambers married Gertrude Hobbs. They had one daughter, Kathleen, who still resides in London (as of 1992).

In 1911 he founded and became principal of the Bible Training College in Clapham, London, where he lectured until the school was closed in 1915 because of World War I. In October 1915 he sailed for Zeitoun, Egypt (near Cairo), where he ministered to Australian and New Zealand troops as a YMCA chaplain. He died there November 15, 1917, following surgery for a ruptured appendix.

My Utmost for His Highest, his best-known book, has been continuously in print in the United States since 1935 and in this, the last decade of the century, remains in the top ten titles of the religious book bestseller list with millions of copies in print. It has become a Christian classic. [from the flyleaf of the book]

[Religion Moderator]

Come to these threads as you are; leave with what you have discovered.

Absolutely no flaming! These daily threads are intended to be devotional in nature. If a particular day's offering says nothing to you, please just go on and wait for the next day. Consider these threads a DMZ of sorts, a place where a perpetual truce is in effect and a place where all other arguments and disagreements from other times and places are left behind.

I can attest from personal experience that reading from Chambers daily will almost certainly change - not one's faith - but one's perspective of his/her own faith, and open up new vistas in your spiritual life. If - when - this happens to a reader of these threads, and they choose to share what has happened within them - we are treading on hallowed ground. Be respectful.

[Religion Moderator]

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[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you for the beautiful devotion!

[droflube]

Chambers' genius, in complete submission to the Holy Spirit, is hitting us in the place that's incomprehensible to most of us. Or as Paul said, what is nonsense to the world is what is precious and life changing to those who hear and obey His word:

1 Corinthians 1:18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written:
"I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate."[3]

Our mission as captives of Christ is to be good captives; in fact, we are to sell out to the army we once followed and fought hard for and were captured from and instead become defectors under the flag of Who was once our enemy. But Chambers argues we are not just captives resigned to endure our Captors side and provide His slave labor. We are not to long for, as the children of Israel did in the desert, the "meat pots of the Egyptians", but we are to surrender completely to the Provider of every good gift and realize and despise the enslavement we endured while on the other side.

We, in our human wills, cannot do that. Furthermore, if we could, and to the degree we will it in our own mortal effort, it is nothing but vanity and self-promotion. As Chambers observes, it is in total surrender to the Holy Spirit, denying ourselves and surrendering to His perfect will, leadership and guidance that we can live the full life in fellowship and productive service to Him.

It is not a natural process that gets us there. It is a supernatural process that is first demonstrated when we are regenerated, as Paul describes in that most remarkable passage from Ephesians 2:

8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

This astounding passage is the message so many do not understand. We are a production society; a good works factory. An 'intellect is god' zeitgeist. What can I do to be a good person? The answer is simple: NOTHING. Our salvation is only available as a free gift from the Creator of everything.

Understand that Paul is saying that the faith we have is a gift from God, not something we conjure up in our intellect or in our emotions. This faith is the tangible result of the Holy Spirit indwelling our dead spirits and giving us miraculous spiritual life. And it is our total surrender to this Spirit of Jesus that allows us to 1. know Him in a true and personal friendship and 2. to be of some use to His plan. When we are surrendered to His will, He will get something done through us. When we interject our own will, and ask Him to bless it, we are at crossed purposes with Him. And never forget that He doesn't need us. If the people don't praise Him, then the rocks will get up and do it.

This is a hard thing for us great producers to learn, and harder still to execute. That's because it really is true surrender of self will. And that is why we must understand that He is our Father, not just our Friend. And even more important for us to understand that we are His "little children". Jesus said "let all the (little) children come to Me". Those that come to Him must come as toddlers, seeking the comfort, protection and far greater wisdom of our wonderful,loving Daddy. As He grows us up in His wisdom (by speaking to Him constantly and listening to Him daily through His most perfect, inerrant Word), we learn that His yoke is easy and His burden is light (Matthew 11:30). But nevertheless, it is still a yoke, one we cannot force on and one we cannot rid ourselves of once fitted. Ultimately, our ability to work effectively in our easy yoke is taking all direction from our Driver. The wonderful truth of this matter is that once we learn to be lead by the yoke, next thing you know the Driver will be out of the cart leading us by His hand and and telling us how much He loves us and making our cartpulling productive for eternity.

How do practical believers make this happen? Surrender to the Holy Spirit is a difficult concept for many if not most believers. The best practical advice I've heard lately is the following: RUTHLESSLY ELIMINATE ALL HURRY FROM YOUR LIFE. Then, as you are at ease and peace from the slave master of our secular world, take time to listen to the Maker by reading His word. Want to hear God speaking audibly to you? Read the Bible out loud! Regardless, listen to His guidance, give up what He demands and practice obedience. Remember that it is a process and God is not in a hurry to use someone who is in a hurry following the world. RUTHLESSLY ELIMINATE ALL HURRY FROM YOUR LIFE! For us mere mortals with immortal souls, it is a start.

[.30Carbine]

I enjoyed reading your post this morning. I run a bit behind in my FR pings these days, even to this "daily" reading with Chambers...but that's okay - what's the hurry? (; Welcome to Free Republic and thank you for your thoughtful and thought-provoking first post.

[droflube]

Thanks for your comments, .30. I'm not sure what to do with this website. Probably need to eliminate some more hurry and spend more time exploring it's options. I signed up looking for some specific information and didn't find it. But reading the Oswald Chambers devotional always drives me to response. His writings are as close to Scripture as I've read from a mere mortal.

Again, thanks for the welcome.