Such confidence we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

                                                                                                         2 Corinthians 3:4-6 

If there is one thing that the Bible is very clear about, it is the reality that Christians are to be a confident people. Consider the privilege that we have in Jesus Christ:

For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

                                                                                                           Hebrews 4:15-16  

This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him.                                                           

                                                                                                         Ephesians 3:11-12 

Therefore having such a hope, we use great boldness in our speech… 

                                                                                           2 Corinthians 3:12 

As Christians, we can access God at any time and with confidence. Even when we fail (especially when we fail), we can approach His throne of grace with confidence. We should have boldness and confidence in the way we think, the way we speak, and in the things that we do. We are to be a spiritually confident people. But why? The answer is found in the next portion of the passage:

Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant…

                                                                                                   2 Corinthians 3:5-6a 

To be “adequate” is to be “fully equipped” and “adequately supplied” to accomplish a task. Our confidence is not in ourselves since we know that our adequacy does not come from within ourselves (a common notion found in worldly advice). In fact, we are to consider nothing as coming from ourselves. This is the problem with some believers. Some people are under the impression that they must perform or accomplish something in order to be accepted by God. The exact opposite is actually the truth. No part of our adequacy comes from ourselves rather our adequacy comes from God.

If we were to demonstrate this using a pie chart or circle graph, we could draw a circle and determine to use two colors: red and blue. The red portion would represent the percentage of our adequacy belonging to Jesus’ finished work on the cross. The blue portion would represent what we bring to the table. It would be quite easy to create this particular pie chart since it would be one, big, red dot. There wouldn’t be even the tiniest sliver of blue since our adequacy comes from God. In fact, it is God alone who has made us adequate as ministers of a new covenant. And what is this new covenant? It is at this point that we can begin to separate Christians into two categories: those who live with confidence and those who do not. Paul gives us, in no uncertain terms, what the new covenant is and what it is not.

If we were to take a multiple choice test with only one question and within that question there were only two options, and out of those two choices we were instructed which one not to choose, how is it that any of us could possibly fail the test? Yet that is exactly what Paul has done for us in this passage. Consider his words:

…but our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit…

                                                                                             2 Corinthians 3:5b-6a

The new covenant is not of the letter (of the Law) rather it is by the Spirit. In other words, the new covenant established at the cross of Jesus is not based on the Law at all. This means that to be participants in the new covenant, we merely receive what has already been done for us. It excludes adding any form of works to the discussion. When we trust Jesus by faith, we receive the Spirit and it is the presence of God in our lives that makes us adequate as ministers of the new covenant. Paul goes on to tell us why we should not choose the letter of the Law as our answer:

…not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. 

                                                                                                     2 Corinthians 3:6b 

This issue is really one of life and death. God desires for us to live and to live abundantly. But so many believers seem to be living short of this reality. I believe it is because they are basing their adequacy on the letter of the Law rather than on the Spirit. When people are not spiritually confident, they have somehow fallen victim to the idea that failure means that they are no longer adequate. But this simply is not true since “we do not consider anything as coming from ourselves.” Our adequacy is from God and it is He who has made us adequate as ministers of the new covenant. When we live in the power of restoration and reconciliation with God, spiritual confidence is merely a by-product. But when we attach our self-worth to our moral performance, we should not be surprised if we see our spiritual confidence waning.

We have a choice. We can choose the letter of the Law as the basis for which we derive our spiritual worth (which actually brings spiritual death) or we can freely receive, by faith, what has already been done for us on the cross. Then as we live each day in the power of the Spirit, we find out what life really looks like…an abundant, confident, powerful, and effective life!