He Who Began a Good Work in You…

Think on These Things: Positive thoughts in a negative world…

Everyone has favorite scriptures. If you don’t, you might not be reading your Bible enough. One of my favorites is Philippians 1:6 which says that we can be confident that “He who began a good work in you will complete it…” (NKJ).

The Message Bible puts it this way: “There has never been the slightest doubt in my mind that the God who started this great work in you would keep at it and bring it to a flourishing finish on the very day Christ Jesus appears.”

Paul sent this letter to the whole church, not just the leadership. It’s addressed to all the saints— all the believers, which includes you and me (Philippians 1:1). Paul tells all of us that we can have confidence in God. Why? Because God is faithful. Faithful means constant, steadfast, loyal, and devoted. We can believe and trust God. He keeps all His promises.   

When we became Christians, God began a good work in us. We didn’t just alter our lifestyle and call ourselves Christians. God actually began a work IN us. We were dead to our sins, then God forgave us and breathed life IN us (Ephesians 2:4). We became a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). We became God’s work in progress.         

Sometimes we forget this. We make mistakes, fall short of our imaginary perfect Christian image, and even doubt that God still loves us—but He does. We think it’s all about what we do, but it’s not. It’s about what God does. It’s about what God can do through us, in us, and in spite of us. God has a lot of time and effort invested in us and He’s not about to let us go.

When we face problems, we are not alone. God is with us. When we fall down, God is ready to pick us up. When we doubt, God can give us reassurance. When we feel weak, God is our strength. When we are weary, God carries us in the sand.

We get discouraged thinking about how far we have to go. God looks at how far we’ve come, and He can even see the finished us. In His eyes, we are a masterpiece—a priceless art form that He is continuously refining (Ephesians 2:10).

When discouragement sets in, I try to remind myself that God began a good work in me and He will be faithful to complete it!

*****

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” ~Philippians 4:8 (KJV)

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