“Now when John had heard in the prison
the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples, And said unto him, Art thou
he that should come, or do we look for another?” – Matthew 11: 2 & 3
Doubt is certainly a human characteristic. We doubt ourselves, our abilities, those
around us; and we doubt God. As hard as
it is to believe in things seen, it would seem we find even greater difficulty
believing in the unseen. God understands
this about us, but he calls us to a higher plain. He draws us to the way of faith and goes to
great lengths to remove all doubt. The
same did Jesus for his faithful prophet John the Baptist. Jesus sent by another a testimony of his own
works. He sent affirmation to a doubting
man locked in prison; affirmation of the power of the Son of God.
When John sent messengers to Christ asking if he was in fact the
Christ or should they look for another.
He was not in a position the twelve disciples were in, nor was not in
the wilderness preaching, or baptizing.
He was not “close to the fire” as you might say; he was in prison. He was locked up for preaching the truth to a
powerful man. It was in this prison,
when he was away from the fire and the happenings of this new ministry, that John
began to doubt. The same is true for us
today. We may never see the inside of a
penitentiary, however sometimes the darkest cells can be found inside the
recesses of our own minds. We create an
exile within ourselves even if we are surround by other people. The catalyst for this can be so many
things. It can be a breakup, loss,
uncertainly, complacency, the list goes on.
Your prison could be your own fault, i.e. you quit reading, praying,
ministering, attending church; and by and by the devil weaves his way in sowing
discord and your relationship with Christ became cold. The exile you find yourself in is the exile
you created. Or not. Your prison could be built on the catalyst of
circumstances beyond your control. The loss
of a loved one, or your health; depending on which country you live in it could
be the loss of you freedom (you may very well be in a literal prison). When we are drawn away from Jesus and we
cease to witness the works of his ministry, whether it be in our own life or
the lives of others. It does nothing to
increase our faith. The Word tells us
that faith cometh by hearing and hearing
by the Word of God. I marvel at
Christians who have the freedom to go to church, but argue that they don’t need
to go to church; stating that they can have their own “solo” church
anywhere. Are you so arrogant to believe
that your definition of what church should be is more profitable than God’s? Did not he himself tell us to forsake not the assembling of ourselves
together? This is no wonder, because
when we unit as one to hear God’s Holy Word, by hearing, faith can come and
combat doubt that would seek to occupy our every thought. Whether you created your exile or not matters
very little; in the end, if we feel exiled from God it is our fault we are remaining
there. For his Word says “draw
nigh.” John found himself in prison, and
in doubt, so he reached out, he drew nigh to find assurance in a time of
weakness. There is no shame in asking
God to affirm himself in your life.
Thankfully, we live on the other side of the cross. We have access to the Holy Spirit. This Spirit does more for us than any man
could write or describe given a hundred lifetimes. It is the accomplishing agent in the Trinity
and it comforters those that are in doubt.
In fact, I believe, it can remove all doubt (feel free to disagree). If you doubt the existence of God, or the
power of God, or the presence of God in your life. This Comforter, when invited, can come into
your heart and abide with you. It can give you the full assurance that you are
a child of the King! The works that were
told to John were passed on second hand.
The Work of the spirit of God in your life can be experienced firsthand. When you abide in the vine, the affirmation
of the power of Christ can be found in your life on a daily basis; so you need
never be in doubt.
