“And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.” (1 John 2:28–29, ESV)
In the days when Jesus was crucified, the disciples were left with a great dilemma. The Jewish authorities had captured, tried unlawfully, and executed Jesus. The disciples, as followers of Jesus, were now left to worry if they were to die next. The disciples locked themselves in a room, praying in fear. Then, the Holy Spirit came to them like a rush of a mighty wind, and they were filled with confidence (Acts 1-2). They went out and spoke boldly about Jesus, despite the threats of death. Now, what would make disciples speak boldly in front of people who might hurt or kill them for their belief in Christ? What would make them so confident that they would overcome obstacles and witness to Christ? The Holy Spirit made the difference. The Spirit gave them confidence to leave the locked room and venture into the streets with the message that Jesus saves.
It is amazing when you look at the changes in these disciples who at one time were bickering and afraid to venture out. With a confidence in God confirmed by the Holy Spirit in their hearts, the book of Acts tells us that the disciples spoke boldly many times in public. Even though they faced persecution and death, they spoke confidently of what Jesus had done for them. What a transformation!
A young girl was chosen to be the lead actress in the school play. She had great talent. She was intelligent, gifted, and imaginative. She had great skills and could project her voice with the best. But she had one big problem. She had stage fright. At rehearsals, she would be perfectly calm. However, when the auditorium was filled with people, she often forgot her lines, became sick to her stomach, and couldn’t project her voice with strength. The first night on stage, her part was very weak. Afterward, the director, who knew her from his church, came to speak to her. He asked her what was wrong, figuring she had stage fright. Through teary eyes, the young girl explained how she was afraid to make a mistake. He told her, “Stephanie, why do you lack confidence? You have all the gifts. Go out there and quit thinking about yourself. Do this play for God. Make believe Jesus is the only one in the audience.” The next night, the young girl performed beautifully. She never missed a line. She was confident and convinced of her role, just as she should have been.
From the disciples to young girls in plays, God wants faithful people to have confidence. Despite evidence to the contrary, you might doubt your own God-given skills. When challenges arise, you might be afraid to take the next steps. But God is strong enough to work through you. You need to have confidence in Him. Moses thought he lacked the ability to lead the people out of Egypt. God exposed Moses’ thinking as false and doubtful (Exodus 4). Trusting God, Moses spoke with confidence, and the rest is history.
There will be moments when you may doubt your faith or God-given abilities. You may doubt that God is hearing your prayers. Your fears might become paralyzing. This lack of faith will erode your confidence in the grace or power of God. Soon, your spiritual strength will become wishy-washy, with obstacles looming large. Confidence is a sign of the strength of faith and spiritual fortitude within you.
1 John 2:26 explains that when God’s Spirit comes to the faithful, they are anointed. They are touched. They are given special powers that others in this world do not have. John then added that because of this special anointing, God’s children should “have confidence and not shrink back” from their responsibility and trust in Jesus (1 John 2:28). You should be confident in God before others. You should not fear or doubt or falter in your strength of character driven by faith in Christ.
When God is a true part of your character, when God’s Spirit is a part of your soul, when you do what God expects, you need not fear that God will take care of the rest. By remaining faithful, God will guard you and be with you as promised in scripture. God’s Spirit will fill you with confidence and hope. You are part of God’s plan for the redemption of this world.
If a basketball player gets up to a free-throw line at a game where there are thousands of fans watching and he loses confidence, do you think he will make the shot? It is known by all coaches that when you lose confidence, your game will suffer. My grandmother used to say, “If you begin a project thinking you’ll fail, you probably will.” Confidence is required to do your best. Are you confident in faith? Do you have confidence in the Holy Spirit within you? Are you confident that God will carry you through? Confidence and trust in Christ are required to do your best.
So often, we as Christians lack confidence. We pray with little confidence saying, “Oh Lord, I hope you help my friend.” A teacher says to her class, “I think we will see Jesus in heaven when we die.” A man tells his friend, “I think you might make a good Council member.” Where’s the confidence in Christ? Where is the person to say, “I know that you have God’s faith and heaven will be a part of your future!”? Where is the mother to say, “When we are short of money, God will take care of us.”? Where is the encourager to boldly proclaim, “If you take these faithful steps, God will make it work.”?
In a famous book written years ago, entitled “Your God is Too Small”, the author argues that modern Christians have relegated God to smaller and smaller tasks and given God smaller and smaller powers. Nowadays, if someone has a psychological problem, many believe a psychologist can help, but God can’t. If you have a financial crisis in your family, you might seek a money-manager’s help, but what about God’s help? When all else fails, people try God. Why? Is God that small and insignificant? Not if you look at the scriptures, not if you look at what the disciples accomplished, and not if you read this scripture reading for today!
As we enter a new year, I pray that you rid your heart of doubts and worry and learn to trust the one who made you. Have confidence in God’s work, no matter what the challenge. Have confidence that God can overcome. He has before… He’ll do it again!
It is amazing when you look at the changes in these disciples who at one time were bickering and afraid to venture out. With a confidence in God confirmed by the Holy Spirit in their hearts, the book of Acts tells us that the disciples spoke boldly many times in public. Even though they faced persecution and death, they spoke confidently of what Jesus had done for them. What a transformation!
A young girl was chosen to be the lead actress in the school play. She had great talent. She was intelligent, gifted, and imaginative. She had great skills and could project her voice with the best. But she had one big problem. She had stage fright. At rehearsals, she would be perfectly calm. However, when the auditorium was filled with people, she often forgot her lines, became sick to her stomach, and couldn’t project her voice with strength. The first night on stage, her part was very weak. Afterward, the director, who knew her from his church, came to speak to her. He asked her what was wrong, figuring she had stage fright. Through teary eyes, the young girl explained how she was afraid to make a mistake. He told her, “Stephanie, why do you lack confidence? You have all the gifts. Go out there and quit thinking about yourself. Do this play for God. Make believe Jesus is the only one in the audience.” The next night, the young girl performed beautifully. She never missed a line. She was confident and convinced of her role, just as she should have been.
From the disciples to young girls in plays, God wants faithful people to have confidence. Despite evidence to the contrary, you might doubt your own God-given skills. When challenges arise, you might be afraid to take the next steps. But God is strong enough to work through you. You need to have confidence in Him. Moses thought he lacked the ability to lead the people out of Egypt. God exposed Moses’ thinking as false and doubtful (Exodus 4). Trusting God, Moses spoke with confidence, and the rest is history.
There will be moments when you may doubt your faith or God-given abilities. You may doubt that God is hearing your prayers. Your fears might become paralyzing. This lack of faith will erode your confidence in the grace or power of God. Soon, your spiritual strength will become wishy-washy, with obstacles looming large. Confidence is a sign of the strength of faith and spiritual fortitude within you.
1 John 2:26 explains that when God’s Spirit comes to the faithful, they are anointed. They are touched. They are given special powers that others in this world do not have. John then added that because of this special anointing, God’s children should “have confidence and not shrink back” from their responsibility and trust in Jesus (1 John 2:28). You should be confident in God before others. You should not fear or doubt or falter in your strength of character driven by faith in Christ.
When God is a true part of your character, when God’s Spirit is a part of your soul, when you do what God expects, you need not fear that God will take care of the rest. By remaining faithful, God will guard you and be with you as promised in scripture. God’s Spirit will fill you with confidence and hope. You are part of God’s plan for the redemption of this world.
If a basketball player gets up to a free-throw line at a game where there are thousands of fans watching and he loses confidence, do you think he will make the shot? It is known by all coaches that when you lose confidence, your game will suffer. My grandmother used to say, “If you begin a project thinking you’ll fail, you probably will.” Confidence is required to do your best. Are you confident in faith? Do you have confidence in the Holy Spirit within you? Are you confident that God will carry you through? Confidence and trust in Christ are required to do your best.
So often, we as Christians lack confidence. We pray with little confidence saying, “Oh Lord, I hope you help my friend.” A teacher says to her class, “I think we will see Jesus in heaven when we die.” A man tells his friend, “I think you might make a good Council member.” Where’s the confidence in Christ? Where is the person to say, “I know that you have God’s faith and heaven will be a part of your future!”? Where is the mother to say, “When we are short of money, God will take care of us.”? Where is the encourager to boldly proclaim, “If you take these faithful steps, God will make it work.”?
In a famous book written years ago, entitled “Your God is Too Small”, the author argues that modern Christians have relegated God to smaller and smaller tasks and given God smaller and smaller powers. Nowadays, if someone has a psychological problem, many believe a psychologist can help, but God can’t. If you have a financial crisis in your family, you might seek a money-manager’s help, but what about God’s help? When all else fails, people try God. Why? Is God that small and insignificant? Not if you look at the scriptures, not if you look at what the disciples accomplished, and not if you read this scripture reading for today!
As we enter a new year, I pray that you rid your heart of doubts and worry and learn to trust the one who made you. Have confidence in God’s work, no matter what the challenge. Have confidence that God can overcome. He has before… He’ll do it again!
The video for today is by Matthew West about asking God to "Do Something!" Click below to have a listen!