The Christian’s Triumph
Man originally belonged to God. He was created that he might serve and glorify his creator. But he shamefully sold himself and became the wretched slave of sin and Satan. Oh, deplorable state of man! Oh, such abject, wretched slavery! Ground down beneath the tyrant’s iron heel; led captive by lust and forced to do many things that the better part of their nature told them was degrading and shameful. The diabolical spirits in the black land of torture and torment were in a glee. They fed in a gluttonous manner upon the pains and sufferings of man. They bound their captives with chains of iron and tortured them upon every side. In their pain men cried unto God, and He in His love and tender mercy promised to send them a Savior, a strong One to deliver them.
Of all the creatures in the entire universe of God, none was able to deliver man from the iron grasp of sin but God’s only Son. He is man’s only hope. If He fails, there remains nothing but weeping and wailing, anguish and torture, in the blackness of darkness forever. Is he able, O lost and ruined race—is that Christ able to deliver us? We hear a voice come ringing down through the dim vista of years, saying, “He is mighty to save and strong to deliver.” Glory to His name!
Son of God, our only hope,
All rest, O Christ, on Thee;
Thou canst break the fettering bars
And set us captives free.
Christ has come to “to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound.” (Isaiah 61:1) And “now thanks be unto God, which always causeth us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place.” (2 Corinthians 2:14) This text is more correctly and consequently much more beautifully rendered by Conybeare and Howson: “But thanks be to God, who leads me on from place to place in the train of his triumph, to celebrate his victory over the enemies of Christ, and by me sends forth the knowledge of him, a stream of fragrant incense throughout the world.”
The meaning of the foregoing scripture is not so much that we triumph by Christ, but that Christ triumphs in us. He came to judge and to make war. He came to do battle with sin, death, and hell. I was a captive to these powers; but Christ made war with them and delivered me, and now I stand forth as a trophy of Christ’s. Glory to His name now and forever! The American Indians, when victorious in battle, would scalp the slain of the enemy and would bear those scalps as a trophy about the streets of their village to celebrate their victory. As a Christian, Christ has rescued me from the hands of the enemy, and He bears me aloft in His triumphal march. The Christian is raised up to a heavenly place and is led on through life as a trophy of Christ’s.
Look what a picture! All the saints of God robed in fine linen, clean and white, having the harps of God and singing the song of Moses and the Lamb, forming one grand and mighty procession to celebrate the victory of Christ over sin, Satan, and the grave. Thank God! I am in the procession “with my shining garments on.” Every one rescued from sin is a trophy which Christ bears to the bosom of the Father. They were Satan’s captivity, but Christ leads “captivity captive.” (Ephesians 4:8) The Christian is the spoil gathered by Christ in the conflict with Satan. Not only does the Christian triumph over the world and over sin, but he is a signal of Christ’s victory over the same. It is a twofold triumph.
Picture to yourself a victorious general with his army and captives. They march in one magnificent, triumphal procession through the city, bearing aloft the captives as a signal of their victory. Such is the mighty host of Christians Christ leads on through life in one grand, triumphal procession. The victorious general, as he marches with his rescued host through the city, burns incense and sends forth a sweet fragrance everywhere. The sweet, verdant graces from the fields of heaven are implanted in the Christian’s heart, where they bud and blossom and send forth a mighty stream of fragrance throughout the world.
In the natural world, however, we do not find anything that forms a perfect analogy for things in the spiritual world. The victorious general with his captives represents only in part Christ’s triumphal march through this world with His captives. They become His willing servants. They engage in the battle against the enemy from whom they were delivered. Christ is with His saints, strengthening them in battle. He gives them power over the enemy. When they triumph, Christ triumphs; and when they cease to triumph, Christ ceases to triumph. It is no small thing for a Christian to ground his arms and surrender to the enemy. It does not end with himself. I pray God to stamp this deeply upon the heart of every Christian’s heart. Every time you suffer defeat, Christ suffers defeat. You are to show to this world that Christ does reign and triumph over sin. Christ makes a display of you; He bears you aloft to show to this world His victory over the enemy. Oh! how does Jesus feel when you suffer defeat either by getting into sin or by letting down the shield of faith?
Beloved, Christ can cause us always to triumph. I pray God to help every saint to fully understand this. Someone asked, “Is it expected that man always have up the shield of faith and always have the victory?” Yes; I know men and women that have held up the shield of faith and kept the victory continuously for years. It is no small thing to lay down the shield of faith and give the battle over. The angels rejoice when a soul is saved, but they weep when a soul is defeated. You who are unstable and so often cast away your confidence, if you could but fully know the effect of such upon Christ and the angels, you surely would put forth a greater effort, you would contend more earnestly. Remember that when you cast away your confidence in God and His word, you are dishonoring Him. Do you not love Jesus? Has He not died for you? Does it not grieve you to dishonor Him? Beloved, keep the victory, not so much for your own sake as for Jesus’ sake.