Confidence

DEFINING CONFIDENCE

God wants us to approach him in confidence. We are going to show you throughout the Word that God is attracted to confidence. He wants us to know how to walk in confidence. He wants us to know who we are and whose we are, and He wants us to know that He is for us, with us, and He can do all things through us! Our God is attracted to confidence and He wants all of us to have great confidence.  It’s time to hear the power Gospel, the faith Gospel, and the Good News Gospel! 

How is confidence defined by Strong’s Concordance? It comes from the Greek word, “pepoithesis”. It actually means to be fully persuaded. Confidence is being fully persuaded about something or somebody. 

Now if you research a little further you’ll find that  pepoithesis comes from the Greek word, “peitho”, and peitho comes from pistis, which means, “Faith”. This means that faith is actually rooted in confidence and confidence is rooted in faith. Ultimately, if you want more confidence then build your faith because confidence is rooted in faith. Confidence means to be fully persuaded and fully persuaded means to have faith. 

If you will grow in your faith, then you will grow in your confidence. You see, some people ask me why I am so confident and where I get that air about me. It’s because I know who my God is and I know who I am in Him.  This is what I walk in and I have a confidence with which I am not going to apologize for because I know what God has given me. I refuse to apologize for the blessings of God and the favor He has bestowed upon me, AND NEITHER SHOULD YOU! There is a reason and purpose for your confidence and we will discuss this later. 

FAITH IS CONFIDENCE

Scripture says that faith IS CONFIDENCE. Not that it builds your confidence, but it’s confidence itself! Let’s look at scripture: 

Hebrews 11

11 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for.

Now take a minute, straighten up, roll your shoulders a little bit, and say with me, “Faith is confidence and I got it!  And I am getting more!”.  We should be confident about our lives and what God is doing in our lives! God is building our confidence!  

So from this moment on, we are going to switch the words faith and confidence. When you see what we see, we believe that it is going to change your perspective forever. Let’s dive a little deeper and look at Hebrews 11:6, which states…

Hebrews 11:6 

And without faith it is impossible to please God

So let’s switch this up, so that it says…

6. And without confidence it’s impossible to please God. 

Now if this doesn’t blow your mind, I don’t know what will! Yes, the bible says it, “Without confidence it’s impossible to please God”. Can you believe this? If Father God is anything like me with my children, He doesn’t want us walking around with our head down around Him afraid of Him. He wants us to be CONFIDENT!  He wants us to be strong and not afraid of ANYBODY or ANYTHING.  Let’s say this again, “Without confidence, it’s impossible to please God!”. 

God desires confidence and He wants us to come to Him in confidence, knowing that He is our provider. We then can be assured of how much He loves us and cares for us! Let’s go on. Scripture says in Romans 4:16: 

Romans 4:16 

Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed…

Let’s switch this scripture out to saying,

Therefore, the promise comes by confidence, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed…

The promises of God come by CONFIDENCE! That means you have to just know IT’S MINE! You have to know that if it’s written, “IT’S MINE! Therefore I name it, claim it, bag it, tag it, and whatever else you want to do by confession. BELIEVE THAT IT’S YOURS! If the Word of God says it’s yours, THEN IT’S YOURS!!! This is the confidence that we need. We were not designed to live life as BROKE, BUSTED, AND DISGUSTED, like we are nobody. However, we need to say, “I AM SOMEBODY” and I am somebody in Him because I know who I am and Whose I am. So if God is for me, AND HE IS, then who can be against me? NOBODY!

Nobody can come against you and the plans that God has for you! Nobody is bigger than God and He is bigger than all your problems. He will surely perform and bring to pass that for which He promised He would bring to pass in YOUR LIFE! Amen!

From now on, make a decision to be confident! No more of not being able to look people in their eyes. No more lowering your head in false humility. No more being afraid of anything!  No more worrying about whether they will accept you! You are simply confident about the Goodness of God towards you!  You can do all things through Christ Jesus! 

The Lord wants to see us confident. He does not want to see us worried, fearful, afraid or talking about the devil! He wants us to be confident in Him, His Presence and His Provision! 

MORE CONFIDENCE

Well you might be asking, “How can you get more confidence?” Well, let’s look to scripture…

Romans 10:17 

Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.

Ok, let’s switch out the word faith and confidence and read it again.

Consequently, confidence comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.

Confidence comes from hearing the word of God. Yet the Word of God spoken in this context is the Rhema Word, which is the utterance of God in your spirit. It’s the spoken word that we hear from God. When you begin hearing God in your spirit, it takes you to a whole new level! 

When you get a Word from Heaven, in your spirit, and you know that you know that you know that God is speaking to you, it takes you to a completely new level of CONFIDENCE.  Therefore, we should be seeking the voice of God through alone time, listening to His Word, and meditating on His Word. Sharpening our listening skills until we tap into the Rhema Word of God. 

PERSUADED IN THE PROMISES

Everything we know about faith has come through Abraham of the bible. Scripture even says that we are sons of Abraham under the new covenant. It says that we are his seed and that Christ is the seed spoken of. As we are in Christ, therefore, we are in that seed as well.  All the promises that were given to Abraham, were also given to us. We are heirs with Christ in Him, and all promises have been given to us, in Him. 

So speaking in the context of whom Abraham was, scripture says this about Abraham;

Romans 4:21

being FULLY PERSUADED that God had power to do what he had promised.

This is where our confidence needs to be. Our confidence needs to be in Him who has the Power to do what He promised in our lives. Not only is He Able, but He’s Willing! God has the Power and Abraham believed God. But Abraham didn’t just believe God, however, he believed that God was able, willing, and his confidence was in the FACT, that God loved him. God was his friend and he knew that God cared about him! So therefore his confidence wasn’t just rooted in what God could do, but in his relationship with God. He never let go of the character and attributes of God. Abraham knew His God. We all should share this same confidence. 

So where should our confidence be directed? Our confidence should be directed in and focused on His PROMISES! You see, we should be meditating on His promises because that’s where the power is produced. The Prize of the Power is found in the Promises. Let’s repeat that another way, every Principle of God comes with a Promise. And that Promise is a Prophetic Promise of a Prize. The reception of that Promise, produces the Power to receive the Prize of the Promise, by believing CONFIDENTLY the promise of the principle. 

For example, let’s look at 1 John 1:9;

1 John 1:9 

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

So the promise is that God is Faithful to forgive and purify us. Therefore if we apply the principle of confession in humility, then we can CONFIDENTLY expect that GOD WILL do His part. In the same way, He will PERFORM what He Promised He would, by His Power, which is motivated by who He is. Who He is, is FAITHFUL! And He is also FAITHFUL to do what He said He is going to do! Hallelujah! 

Every principle of God comes with a Promise. So what we have to do in order to walk in confidence is to be like Abraham. We also have to be fully persuaded that God is able and that He will fulfill His Promises in our lives. 

God is able to cleanse you! He is able and willing to heal you! He is able and willing to prosper you! He is able and willing to bring you into the Promised Land of your life! He is able! Our confidence is in Him, who He is, and that His character and power will not fail us! Do you believe? Let’s begin believing God for His best which includes the abundant and blessed life! Our God is able and willing and He will do what He has promised! You and I just have to be fully persuaded and confident. 

Let’s look at another scripture; 

2 Peter 1:3-4

3 His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. 

4 Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.

So it’s through the Promises that God has given us Power! All God has to do is speak a promise in your life and that’s the internal Power you need to receive that for which you believe. Just mix that promise with Faith and you will find yourself coming into the divine promises and power of God.  However, the key is to focus on the Promise and be motivated by the Promise. Don’t let go of focusing on the Promise. This will produce excitement, internal joy, love, and the fruit of the Spirit. Ultimately, will in turn, make you undefeatable in life.  Faith produces the fruit! That will be discussed in detail later on, so let’s move on to  another scripture;

Ephesians 1:3 

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.

Every promise of God in the bible and in the spiritual heavens are ours and can be ours by faith and confidence. This is the confidence you should have, “IT’S MINE, AND THEY ARE ALL MINE!” Say with me, “It’s mine!” Say it with confidence, “It’s MINE!” It is yours! Every spiritual blessing and every spiritual promise is yours In Christ Jesus! If God did it for them, He can and surely will do it for you! The bible says that they are yours! I am not saying it, the bible is saying they are yours!! Now, how are you going to respond to what God says? We will respond in CONFIDENCE for they are all ours in Him. Are you in Him? Then you are included and they are yours! Are you going to believe this? Are you going to begin walking in CONFIDENCE? Good!

CHRIST-CENTERED CONFIDENCE

Ephesians 3:12 

In him and through faith in him we may approach God with freedom and confidence.

Our confidence needs to be In Christ. It’s in Him, and through Him, that we may approach the throne of grace in CONFIDENCE. But we must always remember that it’s through Him and in Him, that all these promises are bestowed. This humility will afford us the opportunity to rest in them with the Grace to keep them. For God gives Grace to the humble. Therefore, if we remember that they all flow through Christ and are by the blood of, and work of, Christ Jesus, then we will flow in all the promises. We must never think they are from us or because of us, but only because of Him. 

If this is our attitude, then we can approach God in FREEDOM and CONFIDENCE based on the work of Christ Jesus. All the blessings flow through Him and are credited to His account. 

For the word says.. 

Romans 12:3 

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.

Now you can see in this scripture,  that each one of us are on different levels of Faith. That faith has been distributed by God. God has chosen to show you things He has not shown others and vice versa. Yet the moral of all this is that God has given you your faith. He is the author of your CONFIDENCE. If you are solid and firm in who you are and your identity in Him, you need not walk around in false humility towards others. You need not apologize for what God has given to you. Yet, simultaneously, you need not think more highly of yourself than what is warranted by your faith, not forgetting that your faith is from God. The CONFIDENCE you walk in is from GOD and is rooted in what only GOD has distributed to you! 

The CONFIDENCE that your brother has, is the CONFIDENCE that God has given to him. Also, the CONFIDENCE that God has given you, has been appointed to you, so you can’t judge others, or be judged by it as it is by FAITH. If another person walks in the PROMISES OF GOD and focuses on the PROMISES until it PRODUCES THE POWER to succeed, first within them, then this cannot be taken from them. For it was given by God, through the Word and Rhema Word of God. 

If your brother has Great FAITH, then he will have Great Confidence.  Don’t assume it to be  PRIDE. If it’s rooted in Christ and given by God, then don’t assume to “humble” this person, or try to force them into FALSE HUMILITY. If they believe God for the Best in life and they have apprehended the Promises of God, then the best thing you can do is IMITATE THEIR FAITH and do what they did to get such great CONFIDENCE. 

Far too often, I see leaders judging people in the church, trying to get them to submit their perspectives as though only they have the corner of the Rhema Word. Some leaders think just because they are in leadership, that they have it all, forgetting that some are given the gift of FAITH. Their leadership role gives them the assumption that they have the greatest faith, but this is not true. Look at the life of Joshua and Caleb. Caleb was the first to say, “We shall surely do it.” In fact, Caleb was so confident that God said he had a “different spirit and followed God wholeheartedly.” But this was never said about Joshua. Joshua was called to be the leader and even lead Caleb to serve alongside him. However, it was the Faith of Caleb that God used to gird up Joshua. Infact, I might even go as far to say that Joshua may have had a fearful heart to some degree, as God said to him, “Do not fear, only be strong and courageous” many times! 

Let’s look at Paul and Barnabas. Paul was an inclusive, deep thinker. In God’s sovereignty, He sent him with Barnabas who was a great man “Full of Faith”. This was probably needed to gird up Paul in Faith in order to strengthen him. Now imagine, if Paul and Joshua concluded to look down on and were threatened by the Faith and Confidence of those called alongside them. Or if they walked in pride, discrediting the gifts and Faith of their brothers and counterparts. We have to think of ourselves with sober judgment, according to the FAITH GOD HAS GIVEN US. If He is giving us great Faith, then we will have great confidence. Don’t apologize in false humility by pretending not to have what you have! Let’s move on; 

DESTINY CONFIDENCE

Now let’s get to the most powerful part of this chapter! Let’s get into the Promises of God! Praise the Lord. 

There is nothing more CONFIDENT lifting than DESTINY CONFIDENCE. There is nothing more confident lifting than knowing the future.  Through the Word of God, we know the future!  The Word of God is inherently prophetic and as children of God, we know the end! And when you know the end, you are and will be unstoppable. 

When you know that in the end, you win, you are unstoppable! Due to this fact, you never have to fear the outcome! You won’t have to worry about whether you will succeed or not. You have an edge over everyone around you and a confidence that they can’t fathom! When you know the scriptures and what they say about you, there is no losing! Let’s look at scripture; 

Philippians 1:6

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.

We can see there that Paul was CONFIDENT! Confident that Christ would finish that which he started! And he wouldn’t just finish it in the sweet bye and bye, but that he would finish it unto completion until the day of Christ Jesus. This means you WILL BE READY, for the second coming! You don’t have to worry about being ready or hope you will be ready! Scripture says that you will be ready! 

And notice how Paul said, “Being Confident,” of this…THAT CHRIST would FINISH it! This means that Christ is going to “Carry it on” until completion. That means Christ is going to CARRY THAT BURDEN and will take responsibility for your preparation whilst being made Holy. It says, “He who began, will finish it,” it doesn’t say you have to worry about whether you will be good enough. It doesn’t say you have to worry if you will make the rapture. It says, “Christ will prepare you, until the day he returns!”. This is the gospel, not my saying! The Word of God promises you this! Now you can be CONFIDENT!!!

Does this mean you are going to end up losing your salvation? No!  Does this mean you are going to relapse? NO! Does this mean that you are going to end up committing suicide? No! Does this mean you are going to die in your sins! No! Does this mean that you are going to fail? No! When Christ starts the work of salvation in you, HE WILL FINISH IT! Your only job is to BELIEVE IT and walk in CONFIDENCE because without CONFIDENCE, it’s impossible to please God. 

We know the end! We also know how it’s going to end! And when you focus on your destiny, you are going to have a great amount of CONFIDENCE. You will feel unstoppable, undefeatable, and you can finally rest with no FEAR! You can finally rest to KNOW that He who began the work in you IS going to FINISH IT. No difference in how you feel, how dim things look, or what they said about you! Christ is not a failure and neither are you! You are a champion and you will win! How do you know? Because the Word of God says so! So this is our CONFIDENCE. Let’s move on to another scripture; 

1 John 5:4 

For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.

This scripture speaks to your destiny! Since you are born of God, YOU WILL OVERCOME! Plain and simple. There are no conditions here, but FAITH!!! It clearly says, “This is the victory that has overcometh the world – OUR FAITH.” You will overcome! Your destiny is sealed! You have been marked in Him with a seal that guarantees our inheritance! You are His and you will overcome! Hallelujah! 

This should be your CONFIDENCE! You have to meditate on the DESTINY PROMISES of God until you can no longer be swifted otherwise! You ultimately will have an AIR, SOLIDITY, and CONFIDENCE that draws and attracts people to not only the gospel, but the freedom, excitement and passion that goes along with it! 

Your life is going to get better and better and better! You will go from Faith to Faith, NOT faith to failure! Heresy! You go from Glory to Glory! This means that the Glory of God will increase in your life! You will experience more power! You will experience more Peace! Your family will overcome! You are an overcomer and no devil,  situation or even past failure will stop the plans that God has for your life! You are an overcomer and you will overcome the diabolical systems and strategies of the world! This is your destiny and this is your CONFIDENCE! 

I KNOW CONFIDENCE

We have to know, that we know, that we KNOW! This CONFIDENCE about our destiny and who we are in Christ Jesus has to be a part of us, till it comes out of our mouths! We have to know! Let’s look at the bible and what it says about KNOWING! 

1 John 5:14 

This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us.  15 And if we know that he hears us—whatever we ask—we know that we have what we asked of him.

Now, the scripture here begins to define our Confidence. It says, “This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to His will, HE HEARS US. Let’s selah right here. We can have CONFIDENCE that GOD IS LISTENING TO US AND HEARS US. Praise God for this because for a long time, I thought God was mad at me. I thought God didn’t want anything to do with me and that I was going to hell. I thought I was destined to be a drug addict on the streets. I thought I was going to die in my sin, just like my family and my mother. I thought I was destined for homelessness. 

However, now I have CONFIDENCE that God loves me and that He is listening. BUT not only that! I also KNOW that hears me AND that He’ll give whatever I ask! It says above, that If we KNOW that he hears us, whatever we ask, we KNOW that we have that for which we asked and we can be CONFIDENT OF IT!  That’s good news! Praise God! And this builds our CONFIDENCE! 

When God begins to answer your prayers in Christ Jesus and you get what you ask for, IT WILL INCREASE YOUR CONFIDENCE EXPONENTIALLY! There’s nothing like asking God for something and seeing it manifest immediately. Or when you’re praying for somebody and seeing them set free! THIS IS OUR CONFIDENCE! When you start operating on these levels, you can’t apologize for your CONFIDENCE because it’s from God according to your FAITH, that He Has built up! Thank God for our CONFIDENCE. Let’s go on KNOWING some more.

1 John 5:18 

We know that anyone born of God does not continue to sin; the One who was born of God keeps them safe, and the evil one cannot harm them. 

Say it with me as you are reading this book, “I know!”. It says that we KNOW that anyone born of God DOES NOT CONTINUE to sin, BECAUSE the One who was born of God (Jesus), keeps them SAFE, and the evil one CANNOT HARM THEM!  You NEVER have to be afraid again! You never have to worry about dying too early! You never have to worry about what the devil is doing, because YOU KNOW what God is doing! You ultimately KNOW that Christ IS going to KEEP YOU SAFE!!! HALLELUJAH!!! Let’ s KNOW some more.

1 John 5:19 

We know that we are children of God, and that the whole world is under the control of the evil one. 20 We know also that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true.

We KNOW that we are children of God! We KNOW! We don’t WONDER! We KNOW! THIS IS OUR CONFIDENCE! What amazing confidence we can have as children of God! We KNOW ALSO, that the Son of God has come to give us understanding, even now through this book, so that we may KNOW Him who is true! 

Not only do we get to KNOW WHO WE ARE, but we get to KNOW HIM who is true! And this is our CONFIDENCE! We know who we are, who He is and what our destinies are. We know what the future holds for us and that we are going to be safe no matter what. We know this because Christ is looking out for us and he’s going to finish His work that He began in us! My God, My God! What amazing news and CONFIDENT building revelation this is! 

This CONFIDENCE is the internal POWER THAT OVERCOMES! This CONFIDENCE CANNOT be shaken! Now, you have to know, that you know, that you know, what your destiny is. These scriptures are the most liberating and empowering scriptures that could ever be digested by the human spirit and psyche and they are ours!! You know scripture says; 

John 8:32  

Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

You will KNOW the truth, and the TRUTH will set you free! It’s not the TRUTH that will set you free. However, it’s the TRUTH THAT YOU KNOW, that will set you FREE. So, before we move on, say with me again, “I KNOW!” When you KNOW, nobody can tell you any different. You can’t be persuaded of anything different! You KNOW who you are and whose you are and what that will mean for you and your family’s future too. 

GOOD LIFE CONFIDENCE

Psalm 27:13 

I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.

Our CONFIDENCE is that the Lord promises us that we will see His Goodness, not just in heaven, but in the land of the living. That means right now! No matter what happens in your life, you can REMAIN CONFIDENT of one thing. YOU WILL see the GOODNESS  of God and you will experience the GOOD LIFE that goodness produces! Scripture also says, 

Romans 8:28 

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.

Notice here it says that IN ALL THINGS, God works for the GOOD for those who love Him and have been called, according to HIS PURPOSE. It’s HIS PURPOSE, not ours. For this very reason we don’t have to worry. If we called ourselves, then we might worry. However, IF GOD CALLED US, and IF GOD BE FOR US, then what or who could be against us? Nobody, or nothing!  The important point here, is that IN ALL THINGS, GOD WORKS FOR THE GOOD. That means you are going to live the GOOD LIFE, in Him! And you can be CONFIDENT that your life is going to be GOOD. Amen. Let’s move on. Scripture also says,

Philippians 1:6 

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.

Being confident that HE who began a GOOD WORK, in YOU! Who? YOU! Yes, I said You! The Bible says that Christ, who began a GOOD WORK in you, will BE GOOD! Not bad, but GOOD. Christ started a GOOD WORK in you. Which means that the GOOD LIFE will start IN YOU and in your inner life. Then it will manifest in the OUTER LIFE! What you have on the inside of you will PRODUCE what’s on the outside! So we see here that Christ has covered both the INNER LIFE and the OUTER LIFE. Don’t believe me yet? Want more? Ok, next scripture;

John 10:10  

I have come that they may have life, and have it more abundantly. 

The very reason Christ has come, IS THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE LIFE AND LIFE MORE ABUNDANTLY! In other words, THE GOOD LIFE. Christ has called us to ABUNDANCE in THIS LIFE and you can have CONFIDENCE THAT HE WILL bring it to pass. HE has PURPOSE for this ABUNDANCE. This was the very purpose and reason for HIS coming! He didn’t come so that you would just get by! He came so that you might have LIFE AND LIFE MORE ABUNDANTLY! Also, that you might DRAW people to the GOOD NEWS GOSPEL. Do you believe it? I do! This is our CONFIDENCE! 

We have to have the confidence and KNOW the PROMISES of God. Because if we don’t, we will live depressed, anxious, worried, fearful, and ultimately wishy-washy in our faith. In our lack of faith, one day we will be saved and the next we will be condemned, then the next our salvation is up to us, then the next healing is only for some people, then the next God has ordained us to be poor and pitiful and this gives God glory. Hogwash! Christ has come that we would have ABUNDANCE, so that we can BLESS others and we MUST have CONFIDENCE IN THIS. That’s why scripture says; 

Hebrews 10:35  

So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.

Do not throw away your CONFIDENCE! For if you stand firm, hold onto and believe the PROMISES of God, and continue believing, then your CONFIDENCE will be RICHLY REWARDED! WHAT? Yes, I didn’t say it, the BIBLE said it! It says, RICHLY REWARDED, not POORLY REWARDED. God says, in fact HE PROMISES, that if you will take hold of these PROMISES, that you WILL BE RICHLY REWARDED! Let’s believe HIM at His word and EXPECT THESE RICHES! Don’t apologize for what God has PROMISED YOU and those around you! 

We have to begin believing in the God in us! That He who is in us, is GREATER than the one who is in the world. We have to make a decision that from this moment on, “I am going to walk in CONFIDENCE!” I am going to take my eyes off of what I am doing for the Lord, and I am going to focus on what the LORD IS DOING FOR ME. I am going to focus on HIS GOODNESS AND THE PROMISES OF GOD, until CONFIDENCE EXPLODES WITHIN ME! Will you make this decision? Your reward and the reward of others depends on it! There are people waiting on you, RIGHT NOW, to begin walking in CONFIDENCE. 

His PROMISES COME WITH PURPOSE AND HIS PURPOSE IS TO FULFILL HIS PROMISES, in our lives! Amen! 

THE COMMANDED BLESSING for CONFIDENCE

Jeremiah 17:7 

“But blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him.

If you walk in CONFIDENCE, you will receive the blessing and this qualifies you for the BLESSING. You can see that the blessing is rightly related to CONFIDENCE. Do you see the connection? For the Lord said, that your CONFIDENCE would be RICHLY REWARDED and the BLESSING of God is that REWARD. The real question is what does the BLESSING LOOK LIKE? Well, let’s look at scripture;

Deuteronomy 28 

1 the Lord your God will set you high above all the nations on earth.

3 You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country.

4 The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock—the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks.

5 Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed.

6 You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out.

7 The Lord will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven.

8 The Lord will send a blessing on your barns and on everything you put your hand to. The Lord your God will bless you in the land he is giving you.

9 The Lord will establish you as his holy people, as he promised you on oath. 

11 The Lord will grant you abundant prosperity—in the fruit of your womb, the young of your livestock and the crops of your ground—in the land he swore to your ancestors to give you.

12 The Lord will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. 

You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none!

There is nothing more to be said here. The BLESSING that CONFIDENCE receives, COVERS every area of our lives! 

MISPLACED CONFIDENCE

Now that you have a covenant with God, you qualify for the blessings. Your CONFIDENCE does not lie in what you have done, but what He has done for you, and will do through you. CHRIST is our CONFIDENCE. It’s because of what Christ has accomplished on the CROSS, that we have access. It’s always through Christ that we CAN COME boldly to the throne. So, our confidence is not in what we have done, but in what He has done and is going to do. Let’s look at some scripture to better understand our CHRIST CONFIDENCE. 

Philippians 3:3

For it is we who are the circumcision, we who serve God by his Spirit, who boast in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh—

Our boasting is in Christ and what He has done. Our boasting is in what the Cross has accomplished. We put no confidence in ourselves but in the God who lives in us. The God who is WITH US. The God who has called us. We live out His plans and not our own. It IS HIM who works out EVERYTHING into conformity with HIS WILL, not ours.  

There are many in the body of Christ who want you to focus on what you have done or are doing for the Lord. However, this focus PRODUCES PRIDE. Conversely, a focus that is on what HE HAS DONE and WHAT HE HAS PROMISED, produces POWER that will overflow into the lives of everybody around you! Our CONFIDENCE is in what HE HAS DONE and what HE SAID HE WILL DO. 

The Lord told me one day, “FOCUS FOSTERS FAITH.” If you want to increase your Faith, you must Focus on the Promises of God, until they well up inside of you and become a part of your thinking, a part of your behavior, and a part of your speech and every decision you will make or not make. The more you focus on what He has done for you, you become SELFLESS. Yet, the more you focus on what you have done, you become SELFISH.  Paul said;

2 Corinthians 11:17

In this self-confident boasting I am not talking as the Lord would, but as a fool.

The Lord always gave glory to the Father and always gave recognition to who He was In Him. We must take this same attitude, knowing that we CAN BOAST in Him, but not in ourselves. Our CONFIDENCE is in Him and from Him. Anything that is beyond this, we would be speaking as a fool. 

This reminds me of my best friend Todd. Todd has an older brother named Ryan. In High School, Ryan was one of the best fighters and wrestlers around. Nobody could defeat Ryan and Todd knew this. Ultimately, Todd had the boldness and would say things that others were afraid to say because he always knew that Ryan had his back. Well, it’s the same scenario here, Jesus has your back! Jesus is like the Spiritual UFC Undefeated Champ and he NEVER TAPPED OUT! 

You can have that same CONFIDENCE Todd had because of His older brother! In fact, in a sense, the bible speaks of Jesus as our older brother. It says; 

Romans 8:29 

29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.

Christ is our CONFIDENCE. He is the firstborn among many brothers and HE IS ABLE TO SAVE YOU COMPLETELY. Christ is able to keep you safe from the evil one! What Christ starts, He will surely finish! That’s why He said, “It is finished!”. He could not be beat. He could not be defeated. He defeated all principalities and all dominion. This is why He was given the name that is above every name! His name is Jesus! And He is my older brother. HE IS THE CHAMPION! Like my best friend Todd responded, HE IS MY CONFIDENCE and in HIM I WILL BOAST!

CONFIDENCE THAT CONTENDS

Psalm 71:4-6  

4 Deliver me, my God, from the hand of the wicked,  from the grasp of those who are evil and cruel.

5 For you have been my hope, Sovereign Lord, my confidence since my youth.

6 From birth I have relied on you;  you brought me forth from my mother’s womb.  I will ever praise you.

David had CONFIDENCE! He had CONFIDENCE from his youth. In fact, David was undefeatable. Considering that he went through many wars and battles, not once was he killed or defeated. The wars he went through were not like the ones we fight today. They were hand to hand and sword to sword battle. But he knew who his God was and his CONFIDENCE was in the Lord. Because of that, HE WAS UNSTOPPABLE AND UNDEFEATABLE! So will you be! Just believe God that HE WILL PERFORM HIS PROMISES and you too will be undefeated! 

CONFIDENCE IN THE END?

As we realized before that without CONFIDENCE, it’s impossible to please the Lord. In fact, the Lord is not only looking for it now, but He will be looking for it in the end! 

Luke 18:8 

8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

NEHEMIAH’S CONFIDENCE 

To lay a foundation, the Israelites were in captivity and the Lord had put it on Nehemiah’s spirit to go back to Jerusalem and rebuild the walls there. Nehemiah, being grieved and saddened in his heart, approached the Persian King Artaxerxes, as a cupbearer and the king gave him everything he wanted and needed. So it took CONFIDENCE to approach and ask the King for what he needed, considering he was only a cup-bearer. Can you believe the audacity of this guy! But this is nothing compared to what comes next. Let’s begin looking at scripture. 

Nehemiah 1: 

5 “Lord, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments,

Now look at how Nehemiah prayed! He started out by praying, “The Lord God of Heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love…”. Look how he approached God. He said, “Awesome God, Big God, Mighty God, Magnificent God, More than enough God, Abundant God.” He KNEW who His God was and when he prayed to Him, he came to him with the approach for who He was and is. He said in his heart, Lord I KNOW that you are bigger than them all! I KNOW you are bigger than the universe. I KNOW that you are bigger than all my problems. I know you are bigger than my poverty. I KNOW you are bigger than my addiction, my lusts, and whatever I am dealing with! 

Nehemiah didn’t even ask God for anything until he finished MAGNIFYING GOD AND EXALTING HIS HOLY NAME! We need to learn from Nehemiah. In addition to this, he recognized that God loved him. He said, “who keeps his covenant of love..”. In other words, Nehemiah expressed three things: 1. God you are the Baddest and the Biggest and the Greatest and 2. I KNOW you love me! and 3. I KNOW that I can come to you with CONFIDENCE, KNOWING that by FAITH, that I will have that for which I ask. 

We have to come to God like this! We have to KNOW that He loves us, that He hears us, and that He is able. We need to KNOW that if he hears us, that we can have whatever we ask of Him. Prayer is going to get a lot easier for some of us. My God! So what was Nehemiah doing? He was building his own Faith and reminding himself, along with God, of how great He is. He entered his prayer in Faith and Confidence while declaring what he KNEW to be true. 

The power comes in KNOWING. That’s why the Lord said; 

2 Peter 1:3 

His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our KNOWLEDGE of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.

God’s divine power has given us EVERYTHING we need. Not just some things, but EVERYTHING we need, THROUGH our “KNOW”ledge of HIM. If you KNOW HIM, you will have EVERYTHING you need to overcome! Your overcoming is found in what you KNOW, that you KNOW, that you KNOW! Let’s go on knowing, just like Nehemiah;

Nehemiah 1: 

10 When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this, they were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites.

I can imagine what they were thinking about this. I am sure they were saying, “Who do they think they are?” I am sure Nehemiah KNEW exactly who he was in Him! But Sanballat is the ultimate HATER! Everytime you step out in Faith and CONFIDENCE, you will be HATED on and persecuted by the jealous, the envious and the haters! Just expect it! Some people don’t mind you coming up, but only as far as they can see fit! They think you should be limited by their faith, but the reality is, you are only limited by YOUR FAITH.  So let’s see Nehemiah’s response to the haters;

Nehemiah 1: 

18 I also told them about the gracious hand of my God on me and what the king had said to me. They replied, “Let us start rebuilding.” So they began this good work.

Nehemiah’s response was not to respond at all. He focused on those that were for him and not against him while he reminded everybody around him about the, “gracious hand of my God on me” to build their faith. Then he said, “Let us start rebuilding.” Then it says, “So they began this good work”. Now look at that! They began this what? GOOD WORK! That’s right, every work of God is GOOD and he has promised us ABUNDANCE, unto every GOOD WORK. Not only that, but he has promised to FINISH HIS GOOD WORKS. Remember, 

Philippians 1:6

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.

So what GOOD WORK are you believing God to finish in your life? Well, after reading this, will you need to make a decision to start believing Him to finish it! 

When you start out in this NEW CONFIDENCE, beware and be not surprised when PEOPLE CALL YOU REBELLIOUS! Who does he think he is? What is he doing? God has not called him! I did not approve of him! He is not from our church! He did not come up through me! People can respond as if God can’t do anything in anybody’s life without their approval first, as if you need to be approved by them and not God. Let’s look at the accusations Nehemiah faced; 

Nehemiah 2

19 But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official and Geshem the Arab heard about it, they mocked and ridiculed us. “What is this you are doing?” they asked. “Are you rebelling against the king?”

20 I answered them by saying, “The God of heaven will give us success. 

Nehemiah KNEW that His God wanted to make sure he was successful. In fact, God is not going to stop UNTIL HE SEES YOU SUCCESSFUL. Nehemiah’s response was no response at all, but only of FAITH AND CONFIDENCE. He said, “The God of heaven WILL GIVE US SUCCESS!”. In other words, you can say all you want about me, but GOD IS GOING TO GIVE ME SUCCESS. In fact they even might be right about some of what they say. BUT IF GOD BE FOR YOU, WHO IS GOING TO BE AGAINST YOU? NOBODY!

Satan’s first response was ridicule, mocking and belittling. Now if Nehemiah’s CONFIDENCE was in himself and their opinions of him mattered, he might have failed. HOWEVER, Nehemiah was rooted and grounded in the LOVE OF GOD and He KNEW how CAPABLE his God was. Based on these two things, HE COULD DO THE IMPOSSIBLE AND HE WAS UNSTOPPABLE! So will you be if you will focus on and receive the Love of God and the promises of God! You will be unstoppable. Let’s go on reading;

Nehemiah 4

1 When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was greatly incensed. He ridiculed the Jews, 2 and in the presence of his associates and the army of Samaria, he said, “What are those feeble Jews doing? Will they restore their wall? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a day? Can they bring the stones back to life from those heaps of rubble—burned as they are?”3 Tobiah the Ammonite, who was at his side, said, “What they are building—even a fox climbing up on it would break down their wall of stones!”

Talk about trash talk! If the first wave of ridicule didn’t work, Satan throws a few more shots and begins falsely prophesying their failures. He will try to do this to you as well. You have to ignore that and shift your focus on YOUR SUCCESS, so that the God who is able, will give you GOOD SUCCESS. You must remind yourself and all around you of what God has promised you. You have to hold on to your CONFIDENCE, which is rooted in the Love of God, and the promises that he speaks from that love!  Don’t expect your friends to always share the same CONFIDENCE as they might open their mouths against you, like they did Nehemiah. Let’s see how his friends and some of the other Israelites responded;

Nehemiah 4

11 Also our enemies said, “Before they know it or see us, we will be right there among them and will kill them and put an end to the work.” 12 Then the Jews who lived near them came and told us ten times over, “Wherever you turn, they will attack us.”

Look at this! It says that the Jews, or the people of God, who lived near them had been infected by that same accusational, negative, false spirit! It says the Jews came and told them not once, but TEN TIMES, that attack was imminent. My God! That’s just like the devil to tell you who you should be afraid of and what he is going to do. People are going to tell you all about how careful you should be, how other people have failed, and how the devil WILL ATTACK YOU. This attack here is to SHIFT YOUR FOCUS from what GOD IS DOING to what THE DEVIL IS DOING. 

This reminds me of a time of an ELDER in the church, who began telling me about all the plans the devil had to kill me and how the devil wanted to do this and that. I RESPONDED in faith so passionately, that I almost preached a sermon right there in the meeting. I said, “I don’t KNOW what the devil’s plans are, but I SURE DO KNOW what God’s plans are for me!” For the bible says, 

Jeremiah 29:11 

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Bless this Elder as his intentions were good, but his method was misfocused. I was focused on the GOODNESS of the Lord, the GOOD PLANS, and future he had for me. This Elder was reminding me and wanted me to meditate on the plans of the devil and if I did, I would have GLORIFIED the enemy and given HIM POWER in my mind. Before I knew it, the devil would be bigger, more capable and powerful that of the LORD AND THIS IS NOT THE CASE. For scripture says;

1 John 4:4

You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.

This means you don’t have to worry about the devil or anybody for that matter. You can have FULL CONFIDENCE that the GOD in you will give you EVERYTHING you need to overcome the devil and the world! This is your destiny and THESE ARE THE PLANS OF THE LORD. He has plans to prosper you. Not to harm you. He is able to keep you and I safe! So the bottom line is, don’t expect people in the church, or your family for that matter, to share the same CONFIDENCE. In fact, they might have faith for themselves but lack FAITH FOR YOU. Let’s see what happened next with Nehemiah; 

Nehemiah 4

14 After I looked things over, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your families, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes.”

Nehemiah continues to respond in FAITH AND CONFIDENCE. He says, “Don’t be afraid, BUT REMEMBER the Lord who is GREAT AND BIG.” In other words, when he says “Remember,” he was saying to refocus your minds and make your brain remember and think upon HOW BIG GOD IS and not to forget this is for your families! The fight is not just for you, but it’s for those coming after you. In other words, this thing is BIGGER THAN YOU, and will have a ripple effect for the world to come! This work is BIG, GOD IS BIG, AND IT’S A GOOD WORK. Nehemiah CONTINUED IN CONFIDENCE and it became CONTAGIOUS! So much so, that;

Nehemiah 4

17 Those who carried materials did their work with one hand and held a weapon in the other, 18 and each of the builders wore his sword at his side as he worked. 

Now, this is for you! There may come a season, or you may be in a season now, where the rebuilding is getting tough. The attacks and the threat of the attack might be so severe, that you have to build with one hand and carry your sword in the other. However, keep on fighting and KNOW that God will FINISH what He started! You might have to work and struggle to just make it through the day. You may have to read your bible 3-4 times a day just to not mess up and be exhausted. But KNOW THIS ONE THING, that He who began a GOOD WORK in you, WILL FINISH IT! Just keep fighting the GOOD FIGHT OF FAITH and take notes from Nehemiah; 

Nehemiah 6

2But they were scheming to harm me; 3 so I sent messengers to them with this reply: “I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and go down to you?”

Nehemiah said, why should I come down and stop working for you, for I am carrying on a GREAT PROJECT. He continued in faith and continued to magnify the GOOD WORK OF THE LORD in his Life. Now, you might be thinking that what you are doing is small now, but just KNOW that it’s A GREAT PROJECT. Your life is a GREAT PROJECT! Your family is a GREAT PROJECT! Your kids are a GREAT PROJECT. No matter how small or insignificant you think it is, confess of how GREAT it is and it will get GREATER! Begin thanking Him for where you are now AND KNOW that it’s going to get better!  Let’s continue reading;

Nehemiah 6

10 One day I went to the house of Shemaiah son of Delaiah, the son of Mehetabel, who was shut in at his home. He said, “Let us meet in the house of God, inside the temple, and let us close the temple doors, because men are coming to kill you—by night they are coming to kill you.”

This can resemble those closest to us, as they want us to isolate in fear. They want us to find protection behind the walls of the church. They want us to find our safety in numbers. They want us to hide behind the work of our hands. They want us to depend on religious organizations and even leadership for our safety, rather than depending on and having CONFIDENCE in our God, who God is and what He has PROMISED US! It’s an inside job and no place, people or organization will EVER SAVE YOU! Our covering is not the building, but CHRIST is our COVERING AND HE IS ABLE TO SAVE US! Let’s go on; 

Nehemiah 6

11 But I said, “Should a man like me run away? Or should someone like me go into the temple to save his life? I will not go!” 

Nehemiah’s response to all this fear is, “Should a man like me run away?” ALL I CAN SAY IS CONFIDENCE! What was the reward of Nehemiah’s CONFIDENCE? 

Nehemiah 6

15 So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days.

There it is, so the wall was completed.  If you gained anything from this chapter, it should be this, CONFIDENCE. This CONFIDENCE should be so strong that you can say without a shadow of a doubt, that HE WHO BEGAN A GOOD WORK IN YOU WILL FINISH IT UNTIL THE DAY OF CHRIST JESUS! YES HE WILL, BECAUSE HE IS A GOOD GOD, HE LOVES YOU AND HE IS ABLE TO PERFORM ALL HIS PROMISES IN YOUR LIFE! 

Do you receive this? Amen. I believe you did!