4 In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy 5 because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, 6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:4-6 (NIV)
While visiting my mother in the States this past month, I had to climb high up on a ladder to do some maintenance on the eaves of her two story home. I’m not afraid of heights, however, I’m afraid of falling! Before I mounted the ladder I was careful to secure the base of the ladder on firm ground far enough away from the outside wall in order to provide a good foundation. I also asked someone to hold the ladder while I was up there.
Similarly, the Christian life has to be established on a firm and solid foundation so that the disciple can follow Jesus with confident assurance. If we mistakenly believe that our efforts — like Bible reading, prayer, attending church, NOT sinning — is the basis of our position in Christ, then our relationship with God is determined by our good works or our failures. If, on the other hand, we correctly trust in God’s promised assurance, then our relationship with God is determined by God’s work on our behalf through Jesus Christ and by the presence of God’s Holy Spirit. That’s a solid foundation for assurance, one that gives us confidence to follow hard after Jesus and to resist sin no matter the circumstance or situation.
Tomorrow I’ll start a three-part Scripture Truths series on “Confidence in God”