Thursday, March 15, 2018

Confidence Of Ali


Clearly, you are a letter from Christ showing the result of our ministry among you. This “letter” is written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is carved not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts.

We are confident of all this because of our great trust in God through Christ.  It is not that we think we are qualified to do anything on our own. Our qualification comes from God.  2 Corinthians 3:3-5

Confidence can at times be a fragile thing.  For example, an undefeated fighter will have supreme confidence.  However after numerous successes, they finally taste defeat, and then there comes a lack of confidence.  Thoughts like, “Can this happen again,” or “How do I recover,” become questions that float around in their head.  Now I was never a fighter, but I have been a fan of boxing since I was a small child watching Muhammad Ali.  There was no one who was more confident than him.  Yet when I became a fan, Ali had not only lost once but also been knocked down.  The latter is usually detrimental to a fighter’s career because that is when they really lose that aura of confidence.  Nonetheless, Ali always remained supremely confident, and thus would be considered arguably the greatest fighter in the world.

This aura of confidence is a reminder of how we should view our faith.  We should be supremely confident in Jesus Christ because He not only died for our sins but also overcame death.  This is not something we think of.  It is something we know deep in our hearts with a high degree of confidence.  Furthermore, it is through this level of confidence that we are empowered to be lights for Christ here on earth.  This was what Paul spoke of in 2 Corinthians.  When Jesus left, He said that we will receive the power from the Holy Spirit (see Acts 1:7-9).  With this power, we can endure any challenge or trial knowing that through Christ anything is possible.  This is a source of endless strength that is available to us.  The trick is to remind ourselves of its existence.  We are often blinded by worldly distractions that may inhibit us from tapping into this, and life will at times knock you down.  However if we are prayerful and deliberate in our outreach humbling ourselves to realize we can not make it without Him, we are assured of our connection to this power, and thus can remain confident in Him.  We can get up off the canvas, and weather the storm knowing in the end we will raise our arms in victory.

We are indeed made perfect through Jesus Christ.  As such, we should be confident in every step we make.  It’s not that we will be perfect with each step.  Instead no matter what step we make, Jesus is with us, and through Him, all wrong steps will be made right.  So let us move forward knowing that if we have love for Him, the Spirit of God will dwell within our hearts for all to see.  What doubts do you have today that Jesus Christ can bring surety to?  How can maintain greater boldness through this heightened level of confidence? My prayer is that when we have doubts in this world, we look to Jesus with the confidence of Ali.  Amen.


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