When You Doubt

Has someone ever told you it was wrong to have doubts as a Christian?

Maybe no one has told you that but you just feel like you the only one who has doubts?

Have you doubts made you feel less spiritual?

Are your doubts keeping you from having the Christian life you want?

Take a few minutes and look at how Jesus handles someone who came to Him with doubts.

John the Doubter

Luke 7:19-22  (John the Baptist) calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” ²⁰ And when the men had come to him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to you, saying, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’” ²¹ In that hour he healed many people of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many who were blind he bestowed sight.²² And he answered them, “Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them.

When you Doubt

Take a moment and think about this. This man who is having doubts, the same man who not long ago baptized Jesus proclaiming that he was someone who he was not even worthy to untie his sandals. This is the man who witnessed the Holy spirit descending on Jesus and God declaring that Jesus was his son. This same man is having doubts.

Now, why would we think that we are exempt from having doubts? Why would we think that we who have not witnessed what John witnessed not have the same struggles as him?

The reality is that John doubted because as a human he was still influenced and affected by the world he lived in. John was actually in prison when he sent his disciples to ask Jesus this question. Can you imagine the fear, stress, anger, and loneliness he was facing? I’m sure all that  directed him to have these thoughts. And in the same way, our circumstance can and will play a huge part in causing feelings of doubt.

Let me throw a little side note in here: These passages should show us the realness of what is written in the Bible. The bible doesn’t hold back in showing the humanity of the people we read about. The bible doesn’t leave out these bits of information to make John seem holier, even though John was the messenger sent to prepare the way for Jesus. Instead, it shows that he still doubts much like we doubt because of our humanity today.

Jesus is not upset about your doubt

Notice how Jesus responded to John question. He didn’t say go tell John that he is not being very spiritual now because he is doubting. There is nothing in the text that implies that Jesus was upset about John having doubts. Notice what he does do. He points Him to what he can see. He points John to the aftermath of the Kingdom of God: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them.

Are you having doubts? Look to the work of the Kingdom of God. Look at the miracles of healing, but more importantly look at the spiritual healing brought through the preaching of the Good News.

Are you having doubts? Look to the work that the Gospel has done in you. Every time I have doubts, I look at the old me and I am reminded of the powerful work of His Gospel in my life.