The writer of the book of Hebrews says, “Don’t throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.” The word confidence here means “cheerful boldness,” expressed by freedom in speaking. It’s hard for us to hide our real selves from the words we speak. What we say reveals our attitudes!
This encouragement was written to a very persecuted people. They had overwhelming feelings of despair because life was hard. Life may be tough right now for us as well. But we actually do have some confidence; maybe not every time and in every situation- but every functioning person has a little confidence, or we’d be paralyzed.
The real problem of “throwing away our confidence” comes when life gets beyond our control and our little amount of confidence flies out the window. Another year like 2020 could be enough of a challenge to cripple even the most confident person! This pandemic with its sickness, death, fear, economic loss, and uncertainty has shaken even the strong and steady folks.
So that brings me to the Biblical concept of confidence. The writer of Hebrews continued with this encouragement: “If you persist in this “cheerful boldness” and act in faith, GOD WILL DELIVER YOU. You need to persist- to persevere- to hold steady right where you are, and God will deliver you.
The future through human eyes looks very troubling and uncertain. We get anxious and we look for a way out. We look for something we can do improve the future. But this Holy Spirit-inspired writer tells us that it’s not our abilities that will secure our future. Our persistence and commitment to the will of God will release God’s help at the right time.
This perseverance stuff is hard to do. However, I’m preaching to all of us: we need to stop looking for answers from people and look to God. He is faithful. He always shows up. He always has a plan. He always knows the answer – He IS the answer – before we’ve even asked the question.
Hold onto your confidence! Don’t throw it away! Salvation and deliverance are coming to the people of God. Yes, the direction of this world may affect us, but it does not determine the outcome of our lives. Our future is in God, and it is as bright as the promises of God!
