Proud Confidence

-


Do you ever feel your self-confidence is put to the test?  Maybe it's time to examine where we have placed our confidence.

Scripture

For our proud confidence is this: the testimony of our conscience, that in holiness and godly sincerity, not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you.
(2 Corinthians 1:12 NASB)

Observation

Paul's confidence was not in himself, but rather in God. His wholehearted belief was that God was leading him into a life of holiness and sincerity. Interestingly he mentions that he is not led by fleshly wisdom, but rather by the grace of God. For Paul this is significant for he was a highly educated man. He knew multiple languages and had studied under some of the best teachers of his day. This was a man who could have easily boasted in his education and his knowledge and yet, here he acknowledges that he is not being led by human or fleshly wisdom, but rather, trusting in God. The result is that Paul's daily life becomes a testimony to holiness and godly sincerity. It is not necessarily about the words that he speaks, but it is the way that he humbles himself in service to God and others on a daily basis.

Application

There are times in life when we may feel pretty battered by the world and our self-confidence can take a beating. However, it is in the midst of these moments that we hear the gentle voice of the Lord reminding us, just like Paul, that our confidence is not to be in our own human strength, but rather in Him alone. It is my confidence in God which must flow through my life on a daily basis. When we place our trust in Him, then our lives can become a testimony to God's nature which begins to flow through us. God's very nature is holy love and the result is a life of holiness and sincerity. All falsehoods, all the masks, they can drop away because we become real in Him. No longer do I have to be worried or concerned about what the world around me thinks, but rather all of my trust is in God who reaches out to me with His grace, transforming me into His image. My proud confidence is not in myself, but in Him!

Prayer

Lord, as the issues of daily life come my way this day, may my confidence be in You. Amen.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Take Off Your Ornaments

-
Scripture: Ex. 33:4 ¶ When the people heard these harsh words, they mourned, and no one put on ornaments. Ex. 33:5 For the LORD had said to Moses, “Say to the Israelites, ‘You are a stiff-necked people; if for a single moment I should go up among you, I would consume you. So now take off your ornaments, and I will decide what to do to you.’” Ex. 33:6 Therefore the Israelites stripped themselves of their ornaments, from Mount Horeb onward. Observation: The people had sinned before God by making and worshiping the golden calf!  They had taken their golden jewelry — the earrings and other items they had gotten from the Egyptians and used them to create an idol.  Now, in an act of humility and repentance they were to take off all of their jewelry and ornaments.  It was a time of mourning over their sin and it included intentional action on the part of the Israelites.  Application: We don’t do all that well with humility and repentance!  It seems that we live in a ti...
Read more

Does God Value Boys More than Girls?

-
Scripture: Lev. 12:1 ¶ The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: Lev. 12:2 Speak to the people of Israel, saying: ¶ If a woman conceives and bears a male child, she shall be ceremonially unclean seven days; as at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. Lev. 12:3 On the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. Lev. 12:4 Her time of blood purification shall be thirty-three days; she shall not touch any holy thing, or come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purification are completed. Lev. 12:5 If she bears a female child, she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation; her time of blood purification shall be sixty-six days. Lev. 12:6 ¶ When the days of her purification are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb in its first year for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering. Lev. 12:7 He shall offer it before the LORD, and make atonement on her ...
Read more

On Grief and A Flute Player

-
Scripture: Matt. 9:23 When Jesus came to the leader’s house and saw the flute players and the crowd making a commotion, Matt. 9:24 he said, “Go away; for the girl is not dead but sleeping.” And they laughed at him. Matt. 9:25 But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up. Matt. 9:26 And the report of this spread throughout that district. Observation: This is a simple story which we have heard or read numerous times. Jesus heals the little girl and the people rejoice. But at the moment in which he arrives at the home he encounters the professional mourners. These are the flute players, the ones who have come to make a great noise about the child’s death. It is the flute player that testifies to the fact that she is truly dead. Also, flutes were generally employed when it came to the death of a child. The whole community would therefore understand that it is a child who has died in this home. The flute player is doing the job they have ...
Read more