Philippians 1:6 English Standard Version (ESV) And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.

Confidence is defined as a noun in three aspects.

The feeling or belief that one can rely on someone or something; firm trust.

The state of feeling certain about the truth of something.

A feeling of self-assurance arising from one’s appreciation of one’s own abilities or qualities.

Note that all three are described as feelings, emotions and as such are subject to our interpretation. We can put our trust in someone and as soon as we perceive that they have failed us, our emotions turn towards betrayal. Something is true until evidence is brought forth to disprove it and we feel like a fool for believing it in the first place. We are human and as such have to live with the fact that getting older degrades performance. We are the same person but now we cannot perform like we did thirty years ago.

Emotions are subject to change. Is it any different when we put our faith in Christ? I had said in an earlier article that disappointment is the result of unrealistic expectations. What do you expect in this life in Christ? Yesterday I hinted that Christ wants to live His life through us. What is He doing? Do we know with any great certainty?

The confidence Paul shows in Philippians 1:6 is experiential. He lived a life as a Pharisee with pride and confidence. Then Paul got knocked off his high horse and his self-confidence was destroyed. When he turned over his life to Christ his experiences told him that this Christ was God with every good blessing, every obstacle overcome, and every doubt erased.  What Christ did in him came first. What Christ did through him came second and the results being worked out in the lives of the church came third.

Nothing beats results when it comes to gaining confidence.