Confidence You Can Cling To
If a bully, twice your size, is picking on you, you have a reason to fear. But if you have a friend, twice the bully’s size, standing next to you, the bully has a reason to fear.
When you know that someone bigger, greater, and more powerful than your enemy has your back, confidence is the result.
Perhaps this is why the apostle Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, wrote a letter to the believers in Rome—reminding them of the truth:
“So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.”
Romans 8:1-2 NLT
Because the Roman believers belonged to Jesus, they no longer had to live fearfully. God causes all things to work together for the good of those who love Him, and one day, He will make everything—including our dying bodies—brand new.
The truth about their identity emboldened Paul…
“What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?”
Romans 8:31 NLT
If the Creator and Sustainer of everything that exists has put Himself on our side, who can be against us? Who can even touch us? Who would even think about picking a fight that they ultimately could not win?
Someone might hurt our feelings or even our bodies, but they cannot touch our souls. They cannot come against the living God and succeed. They cannot turn against God’s chosen people without answering for their decisions. This means that whatever wrong has been done to us can be left in God’s reliable hands.
We can rely on God as our just Defender and our righteous Judge.
When we become His by trusting in Jesus as our Savior—by grace through faith—the strongest defense in the universe, God in His fullness (the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), is forever on our side.
Let the world know!
The Old Testament recounts many moments where God provided for His people. But one powerful retelling of God’s greatness is found in Psalm 105.
Psalm 105 focuses on events found in the book of Exodus—when worshipers were encouraged to remember God’s faithfulness and show gratitude for what He's done. And while all 45 verses are worth studying, let’s take a closer look at the verse that sets the tone for this Psalm, and the four ways it invites us into worship…
“Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim His greatness. Let the whole world know what He has done.”
Psalm 105:1 ESV
REFLECT ON GOD'S GOODNESS
Gratitude comes from recognizing what God has done for us. So in order to show gratitude, we have to recognize how God was at work in our past circumstances. When we do that, we can acknowledge God’s faithfulness and genuinely worship Him.
THANK GOD
In Psalm 105:1, the term “giving thanks” stems from the Hebrew word "yadah" which means, “to revere or ...