… 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.
Confidence
In the opening lines of Paul’s letter to the church at Philippi, he shares an eternal truth: God is not a quitter.
Think about the persistence of God. Before he created the earth and the stars he created the angels. One of them went bad. Then this bad egg, Satan, enticed many of God’s angels to follow him.
When God created the universe and all that is in it, he understood the risk. He had already seen corruption in his creation of the angels. When he created the earth and all that we know, he was not surprised when Satan corrupted his creation again.
In Genesis 3 we hear God’s plan for redeeming his creation. He tells Satan:
And I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
and you will strike his heel.
Satan is not put off. He sees to it that the oldest son of Adam and Eve kills the younger. Corruption grows until the earth is wiped clean in a flood except for Noah’s family. The process starts over. God picks Abraham to carry his message to the world. For two thousand years, he patiently teaches mankind about right and wrong. Then knowing what will happen, he sends his son, Jesus, to earth.
Jesus shares the good news that the Kingdom of God is near. He demonstrates the power of God by feeding and healing thousands. He raises the dead, he cleanses the temple, he speaks the truth. And then he dies the most horrible, shameful, and painful death that man can devise.
Returning from the dead, from being unjustly condemned, Jesus has the power to redeem those entrapped by Satan. His life is worth of any number of souls corrupted by a sinful world and the knowledge of evil.
This is the God we worship. This is the God who has carried on his redemptive work for thousands of years. This is the God who is not about to lose you to eternal damnation. This is the God who “began a good work in you” and “will carry it on to completion…”
Do not worry about when the day of Christ Jesus is. All we need to know is that it is coming, and Jesus has worked since the beginning of time to redeem you.
Application: Whatever increases your confidence in your salvation through Jesus, do it! Whether that is reading the Word, serving the church, sharing the gospel, or kneeling in prayer. Do more!
Food for Thought: What are some ways that Jesus begins the “good work” in people?
Thank you for the good devotion brother. Well done. I think He has begun the good work as soon as we respond to the gospel message. At that point we receive the Holy Spirit and He will have us become more like Jesus on a daily basis. So ultimately, it is truly His work and His power that is at work. (Ephesians 1: 13 – 14 is one of many potential verses, besides Phil 1: 6 here)
Thank you, Rich. Great companion verse!
And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation. When you believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory.
– Ephesians 1: 13-14
👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻