04- 04- 11 MI DAILY DEVOTION (Philippians 1:6)
CHRIST WILL PERFORM IT, UNTIL THAT DAY…
“Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:”
The Apostle Paul’s trust and confidence was in the Lord Jesus Christ. We are going to learn a few things from the experience of Apostle Paul. The great Apostle Paul was in prison when he wrote his epistles and he was in a very uncomfortable place. He was not in a situation where he could sit behind his desk in front of his laptop or his computer trying to answer some emails and questions from his readers or churches that he planted, but he was surrounded by jail guards and empty walls. Here is a man of God who has nothing in his hands, but the promises from the Word of God. Notice here the confidence of Apostle Paul when he said, “Being confident of this very thing,” Henry Ford said, “Whether you think you can or think you can't - you are right.” ~Henry Ford (The Quote Garden)
According to Dictionary.com, confidence means “full trust; belief in the powers, trustworthiness, or reliability of a person or thing: We have every confidence in their ability to succeed. 2. belief in oneself and one's powers or abilities; self-confidence; self-reliance; assurance: His lack of confidence defeated him.” I like this part, “full trust; belief in the powers, trustworthiness,”
For Apostle Paul, when he said, “Being confident of this very thing,” He was talking about what Christ has done and will do. We must remember that first of all; it was Christ who started the good work in you. If you ever started a ministry or something of significant or even less important to others which I believe could be very special and a worthy cause for you, don’t quit and just keep on keeping on because you are still in a process. You are joining the team of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ with the guidance of the Holy Spirit of God. Your responsibility to God as you join the team is to be faithful and confident to God and to be obedient to what He had started in you. You let God do a good work in you and you let Him perform it until the day of the Lord Jesus Christ. However you may interpret the phrase, “…will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:” Other theologians interpret it as the coming rapture. While to some, it’s the second coming of Christ. Some Pastors would interpret the phrase; “…will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:” when Christ will reign for a thousand years. But, no matter what you believe in, it’s about what Christ and God the Father will do if you will remain faithful to Him. It’s about God performing what He has done in you from the Cross of Calvary, to your salvation, in the ministry and even when He put that dream and vision in your heart. I claimed this verse when God gave me the vision about planting a church here in Michigan. I know I have the assurance that God will perform through me and will work through me. It’s His work and it’s not about me, it’s not about you or about us, but about Him, it’s for His glory and the great performance of the Master Conductor of the Universe. The Apostle Paul said in (Ephesians 2:10) “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”
