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.

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觀點

"感謝神！常率領我們在基督裡誇勝。"林後2：14

對於一個為神工作的工人，他的觀點不能是接近他所能達到的最高，而必須是最高。要當心只是費力地維持神的觀點，要每天這樣做，一點點地，不要考慮期限。沒有任何外在的力量可以觸到神的觀點。

我們要維持的觀點乃是，我們在這世上單單是為一個目的，即成為基督得勝的軍隊中的俘虜。我們不是在神的陳列室裡，我們在世是要展示一件事－－我們的生命被耶穌基督絕對的俘虜。其他的觀點是何等渺小－－"我在獨自為耶穌爭戰，我要維持基督的事業，為他堅守崗位"。保羅說，我在勝利者的隊伍裡，無論遇到什麼困難，我總是在得勝中。這個觀念是否實際在我們裡面運行呢？保羅喜樂的秘決是神帶領他，一個雙手沾染了鮮血的反叛耶穌基督的人，成為了耶穌基督的俘虜，現在這就是他在世的全部目的。保羅的喜樂就是成為主的俘虜，對天地裡的一切再沒有其他的興趣。對於一個基督徒來說，談論如何得到勝利是一件羞恥的事。得勝者應當完全的得著我們，以致始終都是他的得勝，我們也藉著他成為了得勝者。

"因為我們在神面前，無論在得救的人身上，或滅亡的人身上，都有基督馨香之氣。"（ 15 節）我們被耶穌的香氣包圍，無論我們走到哪裡，都叫神舒暢，使人奇妙的恢復與神的關係。