Lesson 2: Joy makes faith certain
Philippians 1:1-30 – www.bible.com/bible/59/php.1
6 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.
As we learned in the last lesson, joy is not the same as happiness. This is one of the most important things any of us can learn about joy because joy is a gift to us from God – see Galatians 5:22-23. It is produced in our heart as we follow Jesus with our whole heart.
Joy also has an amazing effect on our faith in Him. In our verse today, we read words of hope and certainty regarding our relationship with Jesus, words with an amazing impact on our life if we only accept and understand.
Please note, the Apostle Paul is SURE of his words, sure that his faith in Jesus is not misplaced. Are you certain of God’s work in your life? He wants you to be! Just like a river begins with a tiny spring high in the mountains, so joy in our hearts begins with faith. But as joy takes hold of our life, faith also grows because through joy comes the ability to step out with Him in ever greater faith. Joy and faith become alternating steps in your “stairway.”
One of the greatest weapons the evil one wants to use against us is uncertainty – uncertainty whether we are really saved, fear that we have committed a sin which cannot be forgiven, shame from our knowledge that we are far from being as holy as God, guilt from things others tell us we should be or do to be acceptable before God. Please memorize today’s verse so you can use it as a shield for these attacks from the evil one.
This certainty can never come from anything we have done for ourselves – and this is the key to such certainty. As long as I trust in myself, I am trusting in something that is fragile and easily broken. I can never be certain my strength is great enough to get me through the next trial or temptation. But if I have placed my trust in God alone, have given myself wholly to Him, have believed Him for ALL He says is truth which can never be broken, then I am trusting in One who can never, NEVER, fail. My eternal life is in His hands, being held by Him, and is never subject to disaster through my own failure (John 10:28-29).
Then, with Paul, we too can say, “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.”
*Are you certain you will enjoy life with God forever? What makes you certain?