CONFIDENCE FOR LIFE
II Cor. 3:1-6
INTRO.- ILL.- A lady went to a minister one time and said, “Preacher, I must confess a great sin in my life.” He said, “What is it?” She said, “It’s the sin of pride. I often stand before my mirror and admire my beauty for hours on end.”
The preacher replied, “Lady, your sin is not the sin of pride. IT’S THE SIN OF THE IMAGINATION.”
Some people do imagine themselves as better than they really are or perhaps better looking than they really are. They don’t have a confidence problem, they have a pride problem.
ILL.- In basic training, a sergeant made things very clear. He said, “Don’t worry, I hardly ever make mistakes. Matter of fact, I’ve made only one mistake in my life. I once thought I was wrong about something. It turned out I wasn’t.”
DID YOU EVER KNOW ANYONE LIKE EITHER OF THESE TWO PEOPLE? I hope not. I hope it’s not you nor anyone you live with! If so, you’ve got a real problem.
WHO SAID THESE WORDS?
ILL.- “There’s not a man alive who can whup me. I’m too smart. I’m too pretty. I am the greatest. I am the king!” - Muhammed Ali just before his famous fight with Smokin Joe Frazer.
- “Nobody will ever beat me again!” - Ex-heavyweight boxing champ Mike Tyson after he was knocked out for the first time by James Buster Douglas.
- “I’m 62 years in the theater. Nobody teaches me anything about acting.” Actor Mickey Rooney.
- “I’m ready to meet my Maker, but whether my Maker is ready to meet me is another matter entirely.” - Sir Winston Churchill.
- “Even if all fall away....I never will.” - The apostle Peter just before Gethsemane when they came to arrest Jesus. Peter said those words to Jesus.
Pride can get to anyone. Pride can swell the head and dwarf the soul.
Prov. 16:18 “Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.”
Pride can bring us down just as quickly as it takes us up.
ILL.- Actor Tom Selleck of Magnum P.I. fame said, “Whenever I get full of myself, I remember the nice, elderly couple who approached me with a camera on a street in Honolulu one day. When I struck a pose for them, the man said, ‘NO, NO, WE WANT YOU TO TAKE A PICTURE OF US.’”
It’s better to be humbled that way than to let God humble you. He has much stronger ways of humbling a person. And whenever God humbles a person, they know they’ve been humbled.
Rom. 12:3 “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.”
Christians are not supposed to have an inflated view of themselves, but neither are they to be insecure and plagued with feelings of self-doubt.
ILL.- A good athlete who does not believe in his ability will sit on the sidelines. A public speaker who does not believe in his message will not be very effective. An overly cautious driver who lacks confidence will be a highway hazard.
A certain amount of confidence is needed in life. If we are ever going to accomplish anything good, we must believe in what we are doing and have some confidence in ourselves.
ILL.- Do you remember the former Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca? Some years ago he advertised his cars on TV. Could you imagine him saying, “We hope our cars are ok. Maybe you ought to buy one.” But that’s not what he said. He said, “IF YOU CAN FIND A BETTER CAR, BUY IT.”
Lee Iacocca believed in his product and made believers out of a lot of people. His Chrysler minivan, introduced in 1984, became one of the best-selling vehicles in North America.
When we Christians are hesitant and apologetic about our faith in Christ, we’re not going to convince anyone to believe in Christ and give their lives to Him. But when we say with confidence, “I believe in Jesus Christ. I believe that he is the Savior of the world and that He alone can forgive us, give us purpose in life and give us a home in heaven,” then our testimony is believable and convincing.
II Cor. 3:4 Paul said, “Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God.”
PROP.- In our text, Paul speaks of the confidence that he had in Christ and how our confidence can grow in Christ.
1- Resist the temptation to impress people
2- Rejoice in the endorsement of others
3- Rely on God’s provision
I. RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO IMPRESS PEOPLE
V. 1 “Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you?”
ILL.- A little boy who had often heard his father speak of his part in the Civil War finally asked him, “Father, did anyone help you put down the rebellion?” As if he had done it all by himself.
ILL.- A sign out front of an Atlanta, Georgia, restaurant featuring fried chicken read, “IF THE COLONEL HAD OUR CHICKEN RECIPE HE’D BE A GENERAL.”
Some people call that advertising and some would call it bragging. Either way, I bet they got some business. Their confidence level was certainly high.
The apostle Paul wasn’t interested in trying to impress people even though he could have. He did have impressive credentials. He was a world traveler, a brilliant man, well-educated, but he refused to brag about himself in order to impress people.
I hate to write resumes, don’t you? You have to write about yourself and there is a temptation, at least for some people, to spread it on real thick because they’re trying to get a job.
ILL.- One preacher was very proud of himself because he had written a book. He got in the pulpit the Sunday after the book was published and prayed, “O GOD, THOU WHO HAST ALSO WRITTEN A BOOK....”
Paul said, “I’m not here to try to impress you by boasting about myself, and I don’t need letters of recommendation from other people either.”
In that day when the people traveled to a new community they would establish themselves by bringing letters of recommendation from influential people in other towns. These letters would be similar to letters of recommendation that people write for others to help them get a job.
And back then, just like today, sometimes these written letters of recommendation didn’t mean much because people would often exaggerate.
ILL.- One lazy employee was always changing jobs. He asked his boss for a letter of recommendation. The boss wanted to get rid of the slacker, but he didn’t want to be dishonest by praising him falsely, so he wrote, “TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN: if you can get Bob Johnson to work for you, you will be extremely fortunate!”
ILL.- Another time a preacher was asked to write a letter of recommendation for a church member who was completely obnoxious. The preacher didn’t want to be dishonest, so he wrote: “When you come to know Tim Hawkins the way I know him, I’m confident you will feel about him exactly the way I do.”
Sometimes letters of recommendation don’t mean much. Paul wasn’t concerned about what other people thought of him. People were not his source of confidence! THE LORD WAS!
Another reason why we shouldn’t put much stock in some people’s opinion is that people can be wrong.
ILL.- One newspaper editor ripped Abraham Lincoln apart for his Gettysburg Address, saying that his remarks were inappropriate and not worth mentioning. Oh, is that so?!
ILL.- Thomas Edison’s grade school teacher said he was stupid and would never learn.
ILL.- Walt Disney was fired from a newspaper whose editor said he had no creative ideas.
ILL.- Fred Smith, the head of Federal Express, got the idea of a door-to-door delivery service while he was in college. He wrote his thesis on the idea and his professor gave him a C-minus, disapproving of the idea.
ILL.- Noah preached for 120 years and had no converts except those of his own family. If his confidence had been based on the people’s response, he would have been devastated. EVEN THE MAJORITY OF THE PEOPLE CAN BE WRONG!
If our confidence depends on what other people think of us then life for us is going to be pretty miserable.
Someone said, “If you worry too much about what people think of you, you probably will be disappointed to discover how seldom they think of you at all!”
1- Resist the temptation to impress people
II. REJOICE IN THE ENDORSEMENT OF OTHERS
V. “You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everybody.”
Paul’s endorsements were the changed lives of the people he had led to Christ. His record spoke for itself.
We often evaluate a school by its students. We evaluate a company by its products.
ILL.- Toyota must be doing something right, because the last four years their Camry has been the number one selling car in America.
We also evaluate a church by the people who attend that church and those who come to know the Lord through it.
We Christian people are an open letter to Mattoon, IL! To the people of Mattoon! Many people in our community will not read the Bible or hear a sermon or even watch a Christian program on TV, BUT THEY WILL READ US! THEY WILL READ OUR LIVES!
ILL.- Bob Russell is the Senior Minister of the large Southeast Christian Church in Louisville, KY, where they run 14,000 in attendance in a building that seats 9000. Now you would expect Bob Russell to be a saint among saints, right?
Listen. Bob tells this story on himself. “One morning while driving to the church office I wasn’t alert at a yield sign and I pulled right out in front of a guy coming down another street. He had to slam on his brakes to avoid hitting me, and was he ever angry! He honked his horn at me, yelled and shook his fist.” (I’m surprised he didn’t do something else, aren’t you?)
Bob said, “When I came to a stop sign, I waved back and yelled, ‘I’m sorry, I just didn’t see you.’ BUT HE WOULDN’T LET UP. He kept honking his horn, shaking his fist and screaming at me. And even a preacher can just take so much! So I shook my fist back at him, and then I turned onto Hikes Lane, where the church is. HE TURNED TOO. He was still right behind me and there was very little traffic at that time of the morning.
“I thought, ‘If I pull in here at the church he might come by here every morning and see my car in the parking lot. And then he’s going to draw some conclusions about who I am.’ SO I JUST DROVE RIGHT ON BY THE CHURCH AND AROUND THE BLOCK.”
Are you surprised by Bob Russell’s actions? Some of you might be, thinking he should be better than the rest of us, and some of you may well realize that Bob is just a human being like the rest of us.
Everybody just loves to pick on preachers and that’s okay, because most of us need it! But you need to realize that you, too, are a living letter which is being read by everybody around you!
ILL.- I am my neighbor’s Bible
He reads me when we meet;
Today he reads me in my home-
Tomorrow, in the street.
He may be a relative or friend,
Or slight acquaintance be;
He may not even know my name,
Yet he is reading me.
ILL.- I went around the drive-through at Hardees the other day to buy a $1 hamburger. I know. I’m a big eater and a big spender. The voice over the speaker said it would be a $1.05. “Please drive around.” I handed the lady four quarters and a nickel. And she started to give me back 20 cents. I said, “Oh no, I gave you $1.05.”
She said, “You are honest. You could have made some money. You should have kept your mouth shut. I thought that was a quarter.”
If I had taken that 20 cents and kept my mouth shut, she probably would never have known any difference. Except perhaps when her cash drawer was counted down and she came up short.
Even though she didn’t read me clearly, most of the time, people read us all very clearly! WE DON’T FOOL PEOPLE VERY OFTEN! Our failures or foibles often stick out like sore thumbs!
And what people read about us at Hardees or at Wal-Mart or at work or wherever, will either help or hinder them in their relationship to Christ. It will either draw them to the church or drive them away. We are living letters, read by all.
We need to rejoice in the endorsement of other believers. Paul received his satisfaction in life from his ministry to others.
You Christian parents should be thrilled and receive a real boost in confidence when your children come to Christ and are baptized into Him.
You Sunday School teachers and youth workers should also be delighted and your confidence should be lifted when the children you teach and work with come to Christ or memorize Scripture, etc.
HERE’S A SEARCHING QUESTION: Whom have you influenced for Christ in a positive way? Or have you influenced anyone in the direction of Christ? Pointed anyone to Christ and the Church?
If so, you can rejoice in their endorsement. “Brother so and so helped me to believe in Christ, to get my life on track, to read the Bible, to come to church more,” etc. THIS KIND OF ENDORESEMENT WILL ALWAYS INCREASE YOUR CONFIDENCE LEVEL. When you bless others, you too will be blessed.
1- Resist the temptation to impress people
2- Rejoice in the endorsement of others
III. RELY ON GOD’S PROVISION
V. 4-5 “Such confidence as this is ours through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, BUT OUR COMPETENCE COMES FROM GOD.”
ILL.- A prominent photographer of Milwaukee, WI, says that there are actually few beautiful women or handsome men in the world.
He said, “It is interesting to see the number of persons who do not know that they have a crooked nose, one eye smaller, or a lopsided face or some other fault. When people look into the mirror they usually are combing their hair, shaving or otherwise in motion. MOTION IS THE GREAT DECEIVER, and when in motion, the faults are minimized. It is when the face is stationary, as in a picture, that the faults become apparent.”
We all need more confidence in life, but one way not to get it is by looking at your own picture! DON’T YOU JUST LOVE YOUR DRIVER’S LICENSE PICTURE? No, few people do. Most of us look pretty bad, like criminals or something else.
If our photos will not build up our confidence, what will?
ILL.- Douglas MacArthur was preparing to take an exam for an appointment to West Point. The night before the exam he could not sleep. His mother said to him, “Doug, you will win if you don’t lose your nerve. You must believe in yourself, my son, or no one else will believe in you. Be self-confident, self-reliant, and even if you don’t make it, you will know you have done your best. Now, go to it.”
WHEN THE EXAM SCORES WERE ANNOUNCED MACARTHUR WAS NUMBER ONE!
There are many successful people who have been spurred on by mothers and fathers who believed in them. AND THAT’S GREAT! If you had such a mother or father, be thankful! And bless them for their love, support and encouragement.
But many times in life it doesn’t work this way. Some people seem to have little or no encouragement at all in life. SO WHERE CAN THEY GET IT? Where can we get it?
Paul said, “OUR COMPETENCE COMES FROM GOD.” These words should tell us something.
There are all kinds of books on the market today on how to build up your self-confidence, etc. And most of these books will tell you that you have to believe in yourself. And while some of this is needed, this is not the end of the matter nor the whole truth.
If you put your confidence in you alone, you are bound to fail!
ILL.- It’s like that vacuum cleaner salesman who knocked on the door of a remote farmhouse. When the lady of the house opened the door, he walked in and dumped a bag of dirt on the floor. “Now,” boasted the salesman, “I want to make a deal with you. If this super duper vacuum cleaner doesn’t pick up every bit of this dirt, I’ll eat what’s left.”
“Here’s a spoon,” said the farmer’s wife, “WE DON’T HAVE ANY ELECTRICITY.”
No matter how confident you are of yourself, there will always be things beyond your control. Consequently, our confidence must always go beyond ourselves, to a higher and more secure realm.
OUR ULTIMATE CONFIDENCE MUST BE IN THE LORD!
Ps. 18:1 “The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer, my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge...”
Ps. 23 “The Lord is my Shepherd... He restoreth my soul. He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil, for thou art with me...”
Ps. 27:1 “The Lord is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear?”
Phil. 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
ILL.- Someone once prayed, “Lord, help me remember that there’s nothing going to happen to me today that YOU and I can’t handle together.” Of course, we all know that the Lord can handle everything. All things.
ILL.- A lady was on airplane flight. It was her first flight. She was as nervous as anybody could be. She said, “I never did put my whole weight down on the seat.” Most of us go through life all tensed up, all stressed out because we have not learned to put our whole weight on the Lord! We never fully put our trust in the Lord and allow Him to care for us.
CONCLUSION------------------------------------------
ILL.- The Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco was built between 1933 and 1937. During the first half of the construction, over a dozen men fell off the structure, falling as far as 700 feet to their death in the water below.
Construction was halted, and a safety net, costing several hundred thousand dollars, was put under the bridge so that if anybody fell, they would be caught. During the last half of construction six people fell, but their lives were spared. DURING THE LAST HALF OF CONSTRUCTION, THE WORK PROCEEDED AT 25% GREATER EFFICIENCY!
Knowing the net was there didn’t make the workers careless, IT MADE THEM MORE CONFIDENT AND MORE EFFICIENT!
As Christians, we also have a safety net below us! IT’S CALLED GOD’S GRACE! When we stumble and fall that net catches us. It doesn’t make us more careless. It makes us more confident in life! IT MAKES US MORE SAFE AND SECURE AND RELAXED!
Have you put your trust in the Lord? He is the place to get your confidence for life. For all areas of life.
