Abide in Confidence (1 John 2:28-29)

“And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.” (1 John 2:28-29)

One of the greatest dangers is distance. A couple was traveling in a foreign country, and the entire family was having a great time. While in the grocery store, the father sent his young child to fetch a drink from the cash register. In the process, the boy got turned around. Everything was fine until he realized how far he was from his father. In his fear, he fell and spilt the beverage all over himself. The boy wailed a mighty wail until his father found him. When he returned to his father’s arms, when he abided in his arms, the boy’s confidence was restored. The child’s greatest danger wasn’t the language barrier nor the task at hand; his greatest danger was distance.

In our Christian life, we face fighting within and fears without. The constant pull on our lives from false teaching of some and the false promises of others can cause us to slowly drift from our dear Savior. Our time with Christ becomes whittled away, and we fill our hours with all sorts of activity contrary to the Christian life. This sort of unrighteousness provides the context in which our assurance is shaken most. Christ cannot be an accessory to us; instead, we must abide in Him. Knowing Christ from a distance will provide no confidence, and we know placing confidence in ourselves will fail. However, a living and active faith in Him will weather any storm. A faith that looks for His coming and lives in light of His coming will be one which stands boldly at that great and climatic day.