A Triumph - Always

Some days, like today, I don’t feel very victorious. Is it lies whispered in my ears or my bad choices? Is it my fleshly, physical blinkers that hide from me the authority I have in the spirit and the resources that have been bestowed on me. I was feeling low and the Lord brought to mind that verse:

…thanks be to God [the Father], who always leads us in triumph in Christ…

1 Corinthians 2:14

Those words could have mocked me, but instead they lifted my spirit. That was because I noticed the words, “in Christ” near the end of the verse. I felt anything but triumphant, but in Christ there is a victory for me…always! In Christ, is Paul’s way of saying that I need to draw near to the Father in his house to experience this. In the Spirit, united with Christ, as I share his throne, there is triumph for me…always. There is never a defeat there.

I had no rest for my spirit…but thanks be to God [the Father], who always leads us in triumph in Christ…

1 Corinthians 2:13-14

Paul was looking for Titus. There were so many things to do…good things, but he had no rest in his spirit. How could he care for these people and serve them when he was so distracted? He was trying to move on, so that he could find Titus, but there was a door opened for him to speak the Gospel. In the presence of the Father he found a victory. He spoke, yes. He spoke…

… in Christ in the sight of God.

1 Corinthians 2:14

And that was a triumph. He was speaking in a physical room, to physical people, but he had turned his soul spiritward. He spoke in the spirit. He was on earth and also in the heavenlies as he opened his mouth. He was speaking, with the authority of a beloved son of the Father. He spoke bathed in the atmosphere of love that permeates his presence. He spoke under the Father’s proud gaze.

As for me…my feet had almost slipped. I found perspective in the sanctuary. Not the physical sanctuary of a church building, but in the real sanctuary of the father’s throneroom. As for me…I had no rest for my spirit. I found a triumph before the Father.

It really is an incredible promise that when we enter the Father's house that the Father always leads us in triumph. Here is the thing. When we enter his gates, it is akin to a great general returning to Rome. The emperor leads that general through the streets to the scream of exultant crowds. Every time we come home we receive a triumphal entry. Every time and always! Always . . .

One side of this is that we are "in the beloved", and we receive the welcome into heaven that Christ deserves. On the other hand, keeping our place in the Father's presence is the ultimate victory for us. I am distracted by the enemy. He feeds me lies saying that I don't want to be there or stay there. I fight to stand . . . there in heavenly places . . . in the presence of the Father. When I come back it is a triumph and I receive a victor's welcome. In the battle and in temptation, I am often confused and disorientated. I don't know what I am doing or where I am going. This is a fantastic insight because it shows me that if I can just keep my eyes on the gates of the Father's house, triumph will be mine! And I will receive a victor's welcome.