In this fallen world, fear and doubt can easily overwhelm
us. As Christians, however, we have a powerful resource: confidence in Christ.
Sadly, many do not draw on this resource and instead depend on self-confidence.
Self-confidence looks for the strength to face the
challenges of life from within. We rely on our own wisdom, experiences, or
methods of handling things. And sometimes this strategy works. But often,
it does not. The self-confident person often thinks they are better than others.
They may be full of pride. And this very pride can be their undoing.
Pride
goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before stumbling. (Prov
16:18)
But most self-confident people are secretly very
insecure. They know that their strategies are not sufficient for the
"slings and arrows of outrageous fortune", as Shakespeare famously
said. Simply put, the challenges they face often overwhelm them, and
may even crush them.
The believer takes a diametrically different approach to
life. They transfer their trust from self to God. It
is not that they are weak, it is just that they are wise enough to know that He
can manage their life better than they can. Any serious follower of
Christ will learn to yield themselves to God as a living
sacrifice.
Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of
God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable
to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to
this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may
prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. (Ro
12:1-2)
Confidence in God is an important emphasis throughout the
bible, and especially in the books of Hebrews and 1 John. A quick survey of the
passages on confidence shows the following four themes:
1. Intimate fellowship with God
We learn that the sacrificial
death of Christ opens a door to confident access to the Father. We
have our conscience cleansed and can engage in unhindered interaction with God
through Christ.
Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter
the holy place by the blood
of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the
veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of
God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having
our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with
pure water. (Heb 10:19-22)
Since Adam
and Eve sinned in the Garden, we all are prone to hide from God
because of our shame and guilt. The shed blood of Christ wipes us clean
in a way that allows open and unhindered communication. We are cleansed,
forgiven, and indwelt by the Holy Spirit at the point of salvation. We can walk
with Him and have intimate fellowship.
This is what God created us for.
2. Help in time of need
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who
has passed through the heavens, Jesus
the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high
priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted
in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with
confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and
find grace to help in time of need. (Heb 4:14-16)
What a comfort to know that our savior and great high
priest, the Lord Jesus Christ, can understand us through and through. Though
sinless, yet He has experienced the temptations and trials we face. He knows
our joys and sorrows, relationship struggles, challenges, and every aspect of
our life on this earth. He is no "ivory tower" savior, but a fellow human
being as our representative before the Father. This gives us
confidence to approach the throne of grace when we are needy. It also reminds
us that He accepts us just as we are. We do not have to be perfect in order to
be loved by Him.
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that
while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then,
having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God
through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the
death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His
life. (Ro 5:8-9)
3. Boldness in prayer
It is often hard to know how to pray and what to pray about.
In Christ we have assurance that when we pray according to the will of God, He
always hears us. What a great promise!
This is the confidence which we have before Him,
that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And
if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the
requests which we have asked from Him. (1 Jn 5:14-15)
Of course we may wonder, "How will I know if it is
according to His will?" I suppose we can never be sure about
that one, but we can get close. As we read and study the bible, we will learn
more about the Lord. The better we know Him, the more we will have a sense of
what He wants, and how we should pray. Also, the Spirit will guide our prayer
life as we yield to Him and walk in His ways.
In the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for
we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for
us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows
what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according
to the will of God. (Ro 8:26-27)
We need confidence when asking the question,
"What will happen to me when I die?" Of course, the Lord
gives us great and magnificent promises we can cling to in this regard.
These things I have written to you who believe in
the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal
life. (1 Jn 5:13)
The apostle John was writing to a group of Christians
who although they were believers in Christ, they lacked assurance of salvation.
He clearly says to them that if they have the Son, they have the life- eternal
life. This is a privilege that we possess as Christians. We can know for sure
where we will go when we die! This confidence is a huge theme throughout the
bible.
By this, love is perfected with us, so that we
may have confidence in the day
of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. There is
no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves
punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. We love, because He
first loved us. (1 Jn 4:17-19)
I suppose it is a bit natural to feel intimidated when thinking
about standing before God on the day of judgment, but we need not be
afraid. The love of God casts out all fear. In Christ we can have
assurance of God's love and forgiveness.
Therefore there is now no condemnation for
those who are in Christ Jesus. (Ro 8:1)
If you were to die tonight and God were to ask you,
"Why should I let you into my heaven", what would you say?
Any answer that starts with "I" is not the right
one. Any answer that starts with "Jesus" is always right.
Conclusion
Will you choose self-confidence or Christ-confidence?
Start today trusting Christ with everything.
Such confidence we have through Christ toward God.
Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from
ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, (2 Cor 3:4-5)
All passages used in this post are from The New American
Standard Bible: 1995 Update (La Habra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995)
I abide in Christ.
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