Very few things in this life that we can be absolutely, one hundred percent sure of. Apparently it was Benjamin Franklin who said “The only sure things in life are death and taxes” . . . way to go, Debbie Downer! Really? That’s it? He probably wasn’t overly familiar with the Scriptures. This morning, as I started in on Paul’s letter to the Philippians, I was reminded of something else that the believer can be sure of . . .

And I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.   (Philippians 1:6 ESV)

What God starts, He will finish . . . we can be sure of this. And our salvation is His work . . . our sanctification is His work . . . a work that He has started . . . a work that He will bring to a “flourishing finish” (MSG) . . . we can be sure of this.

This promise in God’s Word has been on my radar since the very beginning of my Christian walk. In fact, it was a significant anchor during the “toddler phase.” In those first few years, after having believed the gospel and received the Savior, when there were doubts . . . when there were fears . . . when there were failures . . . and more than once, when my faith was being rattled, the Spirit assured me of the reality of this promise . . . that what God had started in my life, He was determined to finish . . . and not just determined to finish, but able to finish.

Today, there are fewer doubts . . . smaller fears . . . still way too many failures . . . and the anchor still holds. My confidence being not in my ability to perform my way to spirituality but in His purposes and power to take that which He has redeemed . . . and regenerated . . . and remake it in the image of His blessed Son . . . for His eternal glory.

It’s when I slip into thinking that somehow it’s up to me to take what God has started, and turn it into what He is expecting, that my legs can get a bit wobbly. To be sure, I have the responsibility to seek to “walk in a manner worthy” of the calling . . . to pursue His kingdom . . . to submit to His lordship . . . to know and obey His Word . . . to be led by His Spirit . . . but even the ability to fulfill that responsibility is His working in and through me. My holy determination . . . but His divine work.

And it’s not so much that being sure of this is a “safety net” . . . or a reason to coast. Instead, it is motivation to the max! It’s the reason every time I trip up, I can get back up . . . being sure of this, God will complete the work. It’s the basis for rejecting the voice of the enemy, the accuser of the brethren, when he whispers, “You’re never gonna get it . . . quit trying” . . . being sure of this, God will have no unfinished projects. It’s the encouragement every time I’m reminded how much a jar of clay I am — a cracked, brittle jar of clay . . . being sure of this, He is the potter and is determined to display me as a trophy of grace to manifest His greatness.

He has begun a work. He has called it a good work . . . not because of who I am and what I can do, but because of who His Son is and what He has accomplished on my behalf. He will bring that work to completion . . . that which He begun by grace through the Spirit, He will finish by grace through the Spirit, for His eternal purposes and glory. And today’s work-in-progress will be fully heaven ready on the day of Jesus Christ . . . when faith gives way to sight . . . when we behold Him . . . and are presented to Him “in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing . . . holy and without blemish” (Eph. 5:27).

I’m sure of this . . .