“What do I do when I doubt?”
6-23-01
New Community Church
OPENING ILLUSTRATION: As a kid I always looked forward to celebrating my birthday. I mean for that one day you were like a Hollywood superstar and you wanted everyone to know about it. I remember one birthday though in high school that wasn’t at all what I thought it would be. I woke up that morning wondering what this day would hold for me. I was so excited. I went to school, received some gifts from my school friends. I returned home from school that day and it seemed like no one was home. I opened the front door and didn’t see anyone around. I was thinking maybe they are hiding and are about to jump out of the hallway and shout “Happy Birthday”. But as I investigated the rest of the house there was no one around. Maybe they are getting my birthday party ready. Maybe they are out getting me a cake. So, I patiently waited for everyone to come home. Minutes turned into an hour. Still no one. I finally got a call from my mom and she said that her and my dad were not going to be home for awhile. I thought “ah huh”. She is setting me up. So I continued to wait patiently for my birthday party. Again, minutes turned into hours and before I knew it the clock said 9:00 p.m. I realized that there was no birthday party for me. I went into the kitchen and found a t.v. dinner and cooked it.
God has called all of us to a joy-filled life. That’s what he designed us for. That’s what the Christian life is all about. But you know as well as I do that there are things that come in our life that knock the joy right out of us. For the next several weeks we are going to look at some of the things that rob our joy and see how we can rise against them. Today we are going to look at what we do when we doubt. Doubting God and his activity can rob the joy from our lives.
Let’s read Matthew 14:22-33
Doubt in a spiritual sense means to be unsure or skeptical about the promises and presence of God in our lives. Doubt comes from two sources. First of all, it comes from ourselves. We many times think wrong about God because of lack of knowledge or because of wrong thinking. We allow it to distort our thinking about God.
Doubt also comes from the Accuser—Satan. He wants to keep us from living a joy filled life worse than anyone else. When you become a Christian He is not able to keep you from going to heaven but he can keep you from thinking about it and allowing it to permeate everything you do.
In the story we just read Jesus had just miraculously fed 5,000 people. He tells his disciples to get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side. He stayed behind to spend time with the Father. While on the disciples journey the wind began to get pretty wild. It began to batter the boat. About 4 a.m. Jesus walks out to meet them. The disciples are so frantic and so scared because of the storm that they think they see a ghost. Jesus speaks to them and says, “guys, don’t be afraid, it’s me!” Peter then asks to come out on the water. Jesus, says come! He makes his journey out there. But he gets his focus off of Jesus and onto his circumstances. He begins to sink. Jesus immediately saves Peter.
What are some important things to see in this passage regarding doubt.
· Doubt keeps us from trusting in Jesus.
Jesus had already sent them to the other side. Jesus knew the windstorm was coming. As a matter of fact a windstorm on the Sea of Galilee was almost a daily occurrence. The disciples freaked out. Jesus came walking up. They thought they were seeing a ghost. Jesus says, “Take courage guys! It’s me!” “Remember, the one who just fed over 5,000 people? The one who performed all those miracles? The one who gave you authority to drive out evil diseases and heal every sickness? The disciples at that moment struggled with the presence of Jesus. They got their eyes off of him which resulted in a lack of faith.
Remember that doubt in a spiritual sense is to be unsure or skeptical about the presence and promises of God in our lives. You have been there haven’t you? You have been unsure about whether or not you are actually a follower of Christ. You have been unsure about God’s calling on your life or the direction he wants you to go.
Here’s what happens when we doubt the promises and presence of God. We begin to make deals. We begin to treat God like he is a gameshow host or something. We do the “Lord, if it’s you game…” You have played it before. Lord, if it’s you in this show me a sign! Lord if you want me to take this job then when I finish washing my clothes all of my socks will be pink. I remember a time when I was a kid that I challenged God that if he was real he would make me touch the car I was standing next to. After about a minute I couldn’t stand it anymore. I had to touch the car!
I remember another time several years ago while I was in college. I liked this girl and I thought she liked me. (I’m not bitter). I remember one night as I went to bed I asked God that if I was supposed to marry this girl then He would make her call me that night. Well, about 11:30 p.m. what do you know. The phone rang. I waited until after the second ring and picked up the phone. It was her! I hung up the phone pretty excited. But time has only shown that it didn’t come true. That means that God either lied to me or I was supposed to force someone to spend the rest of my life with me. It left me so confused and upset at God that it didn’t work out like I thought he told me it would.
As I have grown I have learned that many times when I ask God the question “Lord if it is you” I am probably not willing to accept his answer. The danger with this kind of prayer is that we will do all we can humanly to shape the results in our favor. This kind of prayer shows we don’t fully trust in the promises and presence of God in our lives.
So what helps us fight the doubt? Keep in mind Jesus used the word unbelief to define doubt. We need to feed our faith. We do that through his word.
Many of us as Christians will doubt what God has done in our lives. We doubt whether or not we are actually Christians. So, what should we do? Go to God’s word and read scripture on what it means to be a Christian and how to receive it.
You doubt whether or not you can fight temptation. What do you do? God to verses on how to deal with temptation.
You are unsure where God wants you to do next. What do you do? God to God’s word and see how he guides us.
IIUSTRATION: God really showed me in a profound way just how much I can trust him. About 3 years ago I graduated college and was seeking God’s direction for my life. I was selected to be interviewed to be a 2 year missionary with the North American Mission Board. I was given two choices. Start a new church in Stephens Pointe, Wisconsin or help start a church in Lawrenceville, Ga. It was a tough decision for me. I thought man, if I go to Wisconsin I won’t see my family. It’s way too cold there. I made every excuse in the book. But, I finally resolved with the Lord that I was willing to wherever he wanted me. I was laying across the bed of the hotel room I was staying in and I was just reading and praying. I came across a verse in Joshua. Joshua 1:9 says, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” This promise hit me like a brick. It has really helped me to trust God in my life. I really believe that had I not been willing to accept God’s direction for my life—whether Wisconsin or Georgia, I would have not gotten this word of comfort.
What we should be praying is not, “Lord if you will then…or Lord give me a sign across the sky but.” “Lord I trust you. I trust your promises. I trust what your word says. Whatever you want from me I want you to know I am willing to obey. Even if it is different from what I want.
You know what God will do with a prayer like this? 100 out of 100 times he will honor the socks off of it! He will give you what is best.
Doubt is a lack of trust in the promises and presence of Christ. The more we read his word the more it will help strengthen our lack of faith. It will speak to the certain issues of our lives. As we see in this passage, Jesus doesn’t want you to sink! He tells us in this passage that you can have full confidence in him.
What happens when you continually trust in the promises and presence of God?
· It revolutionizes your worship! Verse 32-33 says, “And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshipped him, saying, “Truly, you are the Son of God.” We can’t effectively worship a God we can’t trust!”
You can trust what he says about security of your commitment to him. You can trust what he says about your future. You can trust that he knows what is best for you. So, let me ask you tonight. What are you doubting in your life? I hope you have been encouraged to trust Jesus with all the details of your life. Search out the scriptures. Lay hold of what he says in the Bible about your situation.
