Crippling Doubt

Doubt is such a common travesty among the Saints of God, starting with Adam and Eve. Take Abraham and Sarah for instance. They waited so long for their child, that they doubted God’s promise. They hatched an alternate plan to the Lord’s arrangement and Ishmael came as a result. They eventually had their own child, but their doubt produced a thorn in his side. To this day the Arab nations want to crucify the Jews (Genesis 17:15-21; Genesis 18:10-14).

John the Baptist, imprisoned and lacking in faith, doubted that the man Jesus was actually the Messiah. He sent two of his disciples to question Jesus. The Lord pointed to the miracles He performed and that He preached the gospel to the poor as proof that He was certainly the Messiah (Matthew 11:1-7).

Pilate was torn by doubt. He doubted Jesus’ story; yet, he also doubted the Jews accusations against Jesus. He finally made up his mind, declaring that he found no fault in Jesus. However, he was not a man who lived up to his convictions. He turned Jesus over to the Jews, so they could crucify Him (John 19:1-7).

Everyone knows about doubting Thomas. He was gone when Jesus appeared to His disciples after His resurrection. When Thomas heard the babbling excitement of his peers, he refused to believe their account. He wanted the proof of seeing Jesus with his own eyes before he would believe in the accounts of the resurrection. Jesus humored him and appeared in the room without even coming through the door. He calmed their fears and allowed Thomas to touch His wounds as proof that He lived again.

Jesus chastised Thomas for his doubt and told him that those who believe without seeing are more blessed than those who believe only because they see proof with their own eyes (John 20:24-29). Unbelievers have this same problem. They refuse to believe because we cannot prove God to their human senses. How can anyone explain a spiritual concept with human terms? The two are in different leagues and the spiritual is much more profound than the earthly (Isaiah 55:8-9).

Jesus actually proved His resurrection by presenting Himself alive by many infallible proofs. Over 500 people saw him at one time and many heard Him during the forty days between His resurrection from the grave and ascension into heaven. He also hung out with His apostles, cooked for them, spoke about the kingdom of God and promised to send them the Holy Spirit to comfort and direct them after He returned to Heaven (1 Corinthians 15:5-8; Acts 1:3-4). However, people today even doubt the reality of their testimony.

Double minded people are unstable in all of their ways. They are like a wave driven by the sea and tossed by the wind. They live unbalanced lives and are plagued with doubts (James 1:5-8). God said that if anyone lacks wisdom, He would provide it liberally without reproach (James 1:5-7). We do not have to live in crippling doubt, when we can ask in faith and receive anything from the Lord that is in accorance with His will (John 14:13-14). He will help us with our unbelief, if we make the commitment to believe (Mark 9:24).

Prayer:

Lord God, you gave us the heavens, the earth, the sea and everything in them. You give us rain and fruitful seasons and the beauty of nature. You fill our hearts with gladness. You do all of this to prove Your existence (Romans 1:20; Acts 14:15-18). Yet, people persist in rejecting You and denying Your reality. Father, forgive them, because they are blinded by the god of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4). Please remove Satan’s deception from their lives and set them free to believe in Your majesty and power.

Thought for the Day:

God have mercy on those who doubt. – Jude 1:22

The Power of Our Choices

Humanity often resents God for requiring that we allow His involvement in our life; yet, when tragedy strikes, we resent Him for not getting involved enough to prevent it. We want the freedom to live in sin; but when the sinful behavior of others inconveniences our life, we rail against God for not stopping others from living in sin. We scream at God to prove Himself, yet we ignore the proof of His existence all around us in the earth, the sky and the sea (Romans 1:20).

Most God-haters live under the weight of some immense pain that they blame on God. They rage over the hurt they feel, but they excuse the pain they inflict upon others. They consider themselves morally superior to God and speak disparagingly of Him with no respect for His holiness. Many people live outside of the boundaries of their own seared conscience and contrary to the ways of God; yet, then they blame God when they reap the destructive consequences of their own behavior.

We hesitate to give God the benefit of our doubt, but we readily accuse Him falsely without a moment’s hesitation. We blame injustice on God, but we fail to live within the realm of His justice, and we even rail against Him for maintaining His justice. God’s judgment is His loving attempt to draw us away from sin and back to Himself. God never sends judgment without a warning. He always gives people every opportunity to repent and to turn to Him before He brings His justice to bear.

At this time in God’s economy, He chooses not to rule with His power and authority. He allows mankind the freedom of choice. God gives us the power to love, but also the freedom to hate. We can take the high road and gain honor and blessing for our choices, or we can prefer to live the low life and reap the negative consequences. Many heartaches experienced on this earth can be traced to rebellion against God’s will on someone’s part. However, God is full of tender mercy. He gathers our tears in His bottle and writes the cause of them in His book. He will exact revenge for each one of them, if we leave it in His hands (Romans 12:19).

The power of our choices is infinite in either bringing good or abuse to our life and to the world around us. Some people choose to trust God through their grief and to forgive those who hurt them, just as Christ did while hanging on the cross. Others hang onto grudges for years, and end up hurting no one but their self. God’s desire is for no one to perish in darkness, but that everyone will live for eternity in His Light (2 Peter 3:9; John 3:19). All of our transgressions nailed Jesus to the cross. He paid the penalty of our sin, which His righteousness demanded. He did this because God longs to bring us blessings and not suffering all the days of our life.

Prayer:

Father God, in Your economy even the emotion of hate is as heinous to You as murder, and lust is equivalent to the crime of adultery (1 John 3:15; Matthew 5:27-28). You lived the perfect life in Christ’s bodily form, which was necessary to atone for mankind’s rebellion against You throughout centuries of time (John 8:56-59; 17:5). You practiced what You preached by feeding the multitudes, living a life of poverty, turning the other cheek when struck, experiencing the mangling of Your physical body without retribution, and ultimately forgiving Your persecutors. We thank You for suffering in our place, and for ultimately ending all suffering in Your Kingdom to come.

Thought for the Day:

God put His laws into place in order to protect us, not to restrict us.