He Will Complete What He Started

“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)

The book of Philippians was written by the apostle Paul while he was imprisoned in Rome. As he nears the close of his imprisonment, he writes this letter to the church in Philippi, the first church that Paul had founded in Europe. In this letter, he models to them and leaves with them the truth about the single passion and purpose of a believer: the pursuit of Christ.

As we look at Paul’s life and ministry, we can see that the pursuit of Christ is not an easy path. For Paul, the pursuit of Christ entailed persecution, imprisonment, and even death. And yet despite the costs of pursuing Christ, Paul endeavored to know Christ and to make Christ known. Paul, with full courage, desired that Christ would be honored in his body, whether by his life or by his death. What drove Paul’s determination to keep pursuing Christ despite the great costs involved?

Paul found his confidence in the promise that God would complete what He had begun. That is, the personal saving relationship that we have with Christ is not of a momentary disposition that may or may not change through time. Rather, it is an ever-deepening relationship that works for our preservation and works toward our glorification at the day of Christ. This shows us that our perseverance in the faith is only enabled by the preserving grace of God. Without His grace, no amount of our own willpower, strength, or effort, could guarantee that we would cross the finish line.

What an assuring truth for the believer! Our faithfulness to God runs on God’s faithfulness to us. It is his enduring love for us that sustains us, secures us, and upholds us until the very end of the race. And so when our pursuit of Christ grows difficult, we can find rest in the truth that it is ultimately God who is in pursuit of us.

God is more than able to finish what He had started. He is not lacking in power, wisdom, or strength, to bring about that which He had purposed. Since we can find our sufficiency in God Himself, what reason do we have to doubt or give up? Knowing that God will be faithful to complete that which He started, let us then fix our eyes on Him and press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ.