Being Confident Of This
Philippians 1:6 (New International Version)
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.
Before this verse Paul speaks about praying for the believers in Philippi. He is overjoyed because of their partnership in the gospel. Because of this Paul has great joy and confidence in the Lord and what He is doing. Paul says “that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus”. This is not only good news to the believers found in Philippi but it is also very good news for us who are serving Jesus Christ today.
Those who are in Christ are chosen by God. We don’t find our ways to God by chance or based on an emotional response to a sermon. When we truly come to Christ in salvation, it is the Father who has drawn us through the Spirit of God and it is the Lord who has enabled us to respond in repentance. When God calls us, it is the beginning of a daily journey with Him.
The great comfort is knowing that it is God who fulfills His plans and purposes in our lives through His grace and His power. An important lesson for all Christians to learn is to let go of their own strength, power, and wisdom, and instead rely fully upon the Lord for all things. The purposes of God are fulfilled in our lives as we walk with Him on a daily basis. As we seek Him and draw near, we will find Him and He will draw near to us. As we seek Him and walk closely with Him, it is the Spirit of God who lives within us who will work and accomplish the purposes of God through us.
This was the confidence that Paul had. This is why even in the midst of writing this letter from a prison cell, he had so much joy. His focus was upon Christ and what Jesus was doing. It wasn’t upon Paul, it wasn’t upon his circumstances, it was upon Jesus alone. When Jesus is our obsession and the only thing we truly pursue on this earth is when we will walk in the abundant life He spoke of and we will see the purposes that God has designed us for accomplished in our lives.
Prayer
Father help me today to let go of control. Help me to trust you and to simply walk with you intimately. Help me to let go of worrying about things being accomplished and achieving things in my own power and strength. Remove all selfish ambition and may I simply live for you. Father I pray that I would decrease that you might increase. I pray my heart and mind will be given fully over to you. In the name of Jesus, Amen!