Where does confidence come from? Some people may feel confident because they have a respected position at their job. Others may feel confident because they dress professionally or look a certain way. People do all kinds of things to help themselves feel comfortable and confident in different situations. And these things can contribute to one’s confidence; but for the born-again believer, unconditional confidence in any situation comes from God and what He says about us in His Word. God’s children can have unwavering confidence that comes from understanding who we are in Christ. Knowing these truths from the Word helps us keep our thinking in bounds and live how God would have us live.
In order to understand this godly confidence, let’s look first at what it is not:
Godly confidence is not something that comes from within ourselves.
Proverbs 21:2:
Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the Lord pondereth the hearts.
When we pursue our own thinking and judge ourselves based on our own set of standards, we may tend to rate ourselves too high or too low—our confidence may be false. Only God’s evaluation of the heart is truly accurate. His opinion of an individual is the one that counts.
Luke 16:15:
And he [Jesus Christ] said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.
God’s Word is the true standard when it comes to what we think about ourselves. Godly confidence does not come from within ourselves.
Godly confidence is also not confidence in the flesh.
According to John 6:63, “…the flesh profiteth nothing….” We don’t rely on our five senses, using them to assess ourselves or compare ourselves to others. When we are born again of God’s spirit, we become God’s children and are all equally precious to Him, as well as equally able to stand tall in this world. Godly confidence is not confidence in the flesh.
So, where does godly confidence come from?
Godly confidence comes from knowing and believing what the Word of God says about us as born-again believers with the gift of holy spirit.
This provides confidence that is above circumstances. This confidence doesn’t depend on our works, but on God Who works in us (Philippians 2:13).
God’s Word shows us that our old life has been replaced by a new life in Christ. As we think and do what the Word says, we can manifest this new life daily and walk with godly confidence.
II Corinthians 5:17:
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
We have been made valuable by the spiritual creation of Christ in us. We renew our minds to this truth so that we can confidently do the good works we’ve been called to do as children of God. Our confidence can be unshakable because of God’s ability—not our own—and because of who God made us to be in Christ.
Rather than measuring ourselves by our own standards, we can know without a doubt that our confidence comes from our heavenly Father—from what His Word says about us and from His gift of holy spirit. He gave us this precious gift by way of His Son, Jesus Christ, in part so that we could stand boldly and confidently for Him in this world, not moved by any circumstances. When we don’t let ourselves fall into a false estimation of ourselves, it frees us to live for God the way that He intended for us to live. Without a doubt, nothing can shake our godly confidence as we believe and live God’s Word!