The Nemesis of Confidence

Joshua 8:1

And the LORD said unto Joshua, Fear not, neither be thou dismayed: take all the people of war with thee, and arise, go up to Ai: see, I have given into thy hand the king of Ai, and his people, and his city, and his land:

Confidence is a key element that is necessary in the Christian life to find victory or success as you serve the LORD. Satan knows confidence is necessary to succeed as a believer, and that is why he is always trying to destroy it. Confidence is what gives the believer the boldness to witness for Christ. Confidence is what causes the pastor to lead by authority. Confidence is what keeps the believer from compromising, as they know what they are doing is the right thing. Confidence is what keeps the parent strong as they train their children for the LORD. Confidence is a necessary component to finding success in the Christian life.

One reason God told Joshua to fear not is because Israel’s failure and sin had destroyed their confidence. Joshua lost the confidence to go forward by faith to conquer Ai, and God was trying to rebuild his confidence that Israel could continue to win battles if they did it with the LORD’s help. When I look at the Christian life, I find four nemesis of confidence that you must guard in your life.

The first nemesis of confidence is sin. Sin gives overconfidence in one’s ability, but it takes your confidence when it has been discovered. Many people lost their confidence to serve Christ after they fell in sin. Sin is the great liar in that it promises so much but takes everything from you. Always beware of sin in your life because it will rob you of the confidence needed to serve God successfully.

The second nemesis of confidence is failure. Many people have experienced failure, which caused them to lose the confidence that they were doing the right thing. Everyone has failed in life, but the difference between the failure and the success is that the success had the confidence to try again, but to try it a different way the next time. Satan will be sure to throw your failures at you so he can destroy your confidence and cause you to quit serving God. When you have failed, realize you have discovered a way that does not work, but be confident as you try again at what you are doing for God.

The third nemesis of confidence is fear. Fear has destroyed the confidence of the best. Saul was one of the greatest warriors, but fear caused him to lose confidence that he could defeat Goliath. Elijah was one of the greatest prophets in God’s Word, but fear took his confidence and caused him to flee after standing against the four hundred prophets of Baal. Fear is the greatest enemy that has kept good people from being successful for God. Fear replaces boldness with apprehension, and nobody has succeeded for God when they were apprehensive.

The fourth nemesis of confidence is a lack of success. It is not that you have failed; it is just that you have not succeeded at what you are attempting to do that takes your confidence. Just because you have not reached your goals does not mean that you have not succeeded. You cannot allow your confidence to do right to be squelched because you don't feel like you have succeeded.

My friend, confidence is critical to succeeding for God. The best way to keep your confidence is to keep attempting great things by faith, and put your confidence in God’s ability and not in yours.