2 Timothy 1:12 "Confidence In Christ"
The words of the apostle Paul stand in marked contrast to our age of doubt.
Certainty is a rare commodity these days.
Paul said “I know.”
There are things we can know.
There are things we need to know.
A Christ-Centered Confession (v. 12a)
Here we have a statement of faith. It is really a confession of faith.
All we have as Christians comes by faith.
It is faith in a person – Jesus Christ.
Not “I know about Him” but “I know Him.”
The primary reason for the anemic condition of the organized church in these days is that church rolls are filled with people who know about Christ, but do not know Christ.
The church is a living body. It is organized life.
The church is not a corpse.
The church, when reduced to merely an organization, all you have left is a corpse.
Corpse – organization without life.
The church is not a ghost.
A ghost is life without structure.
The church needs life and structure, life and organization.
What the Church desperately needs today is to be thoroughly introduced to Christ.
As I trust Christ by faith, then I will come to know Him by experience. The more I experience Him, the more I will trust Him.
A Confident Confession (v. 12b)
Faith persuades of the truth. It convinces us.
I must be convinced God is able.
As I exercise my faith in Christ, the confident conviction of His power working on my behalf will be there. Heb. 11:1
You are convinced by two things:
- The Word of God.
- You own experience.
We believe God’s Word because we believe God.
Because I know Him, I believe His word.
Because I have experience His care, I trust His power.
A Consuming Commitment (v. 12c)
Commitment undergirds all else in the Christian life.
Christian Commitment is unconditional surrender to Christ.
The call of Christ is always a call to commitment. It is a call to:
- Trust Him.
- Follow Him.
- Surrender our lives to Him.
Christ was not a part of Paul’s life. He was his life. And so He should be to every Christian.
Certainty came as a result of surrender to Christ.
If we are to be certain about our faith, we must be committed to it.
Your disillusionment about the Christian faith may not be because it has failed; it may be because it has never been tried.
A Christ-centered confession: I know Jesus. I have a personal relationship with Him.
A confident conviction: I not only know Him, I am convinced that He is working on my behalf according to His mighty power.
A consuming commitment: I trust my entire life to Him – all I am, all I have.
That is confidence in Christ!
