A New Beginning presents a new book from Pastor Greg Laurie. We are offering a brand new resource called The House of David Devotional and it's based on the great Psalms of David as well as the life of David. So I'm going to put this brand new devotional in your hand so you can learn from this man of God. Or your gift of any size at harvest.org.
It's the official companion resource for the new Amazon TV series also called The House of David. Sometimes our faith is not as strong as it should be. So it's okay to come with your doubts and say, Lord I don't get this, help me. Like that one guy that said, Lord I believe, help my unbelief. The Lord isn't angry when we're struggling with doubt. No, today Pastor Greg Laurie says he stands ready to help us through that tough time and strengthen our faith. Maybe you're struggling with doubt right now, but God understands that. He'll more than meet you halfway. Many believers have a time of doubt once in a while.
Not a good feeling, is it? We may wish we had the faith of those men and women in the Bible. Steadfast, immovable, faith as solid as a rock. Today on A New Beginning, Pastor Greg Laurie points out even some of our biblical heroes encountered doubt.
In fact, we'll focus on one in particular today. But Pastor Greg draws the distinction between doubt and unbelief. We'll see doubt is temporary and can lead to a stronger faith. The title of my message is Jesus and the Doubter. So if you've ever entertained doubts, you'll connect to the story.
Let's read about it. Matthew 11, starting in verse one. And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples and said to him, are you the coming one or should we look for another? Jesus answered and said, you go tell John the things that you hear and see. The blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them, and blessed is he who is not offended because of me.
Let's stop there. So where is John? He's in a dungeon. And why is he in a dungeon?
He's in a dungeon because he called out King Herod, who was living in a moral lifestyle. So John is effectively saying, Lord, why haven't you helped me? And so he's doubting. He's wondering what is going on here?
Listen to this. Sometimes we need to go through the foyer of doubt to get into the sanctuary of certainty. That's not original to me.
It's a good statement though, isn't it? We have to go through the foyer. We'll say lobby to make it easier because that's French. Foyer.
Foyer. We have to go through the lobby of doubt to get into the sanctuary of certainty. A French proverb says, he who knows nothing doubts nothing. It's also been said, doubt is not the opposite of faith. It's an element of faith. Doubt is not necessarily a sign that a person is wrong.
Rather it's a sign they're thinking. So it's okay to have moments of doubt. Even great men of the Bible had their doubts. Moses was ready to quit on one occasion in complaining to God about the Israelites. He said, if they're going to treat me like this, Lord, I'd appreciate it if you would just take me out. Just kill me now.
Little dramatic, right? Elijah was ready to quit after hearing of the threats of Jezebel. He said, Lord, just take my life.
We all remember doubting Thomas. He wanted to see the risen Lord himself. He said, I'll believe him when I can put my hand in the wound in his side. Then Christ appears and he says, that's okay.
My Lord and my God, right? But he just wanted to know for himself. There's nothing wrong with that.
Nothing wrong with you saying, I want to see it for myself. I want to know it for myself. This is all part of growing. Even the great apostle Paul was discouraged. He writes about it in 2nd Corinthians 1.8. He was burdened beyond measure. And he said, we despaired even of life. So if you're struggling with discouragement and doubt, you are not the first, nor will you be the last. The problem with John is he had a troubled mind and a broken heart.
Hey man, the guy was in a dungeon. Cut him some slack. Things are not going the way he thought they would go because he misunderstood. So he sends two friends. Just ask Jesus this question.
Are you the one or should we look for another? Now notice how Christ responds. He refers to old testament prophecies that he is the Messiah, alluding to Isaiah 35 and Isaiah 61. Jesus says, Matthew 11 verse 4, you go tell John the blind are seen, the lame are walking, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up. So then Jesus goes on to make this statement, and God blesses those who do not turn away because of me. Blessed is the man who is not offended because of me.
Happy are those who hold their course. I was with Chuck Smith a number of years ago. We were having lunch and we had finished it. And I always ask Chuck questions you know.
Probably drove him crazy. But I said, Chuck let me ask you this. If an older Chuck could speak to a younger Chuck what would you say to yourself? And Chuck responded, hold the course. I said, what do you mean hold the course? Like just keep doing what you are doing.
Sometimes Chuck could be a man of few words believe it or not. Privately. Just hold the course.
I think he just left it up for me to figure out. Hold the course. But that is what he did all the way throughout his life. He held the course. The apostle Paul said, I fought the good fight. I have kept the faith.
I finished the course. Henceforth there is a crown of righteousness laid up for me in that final day. And not to me only but to all who love the Lord's appearing. Hold the course.
So Jesus is effectively saying to John, buddy hold the course. Trust me. John I know you cannot understand my method and my ways and my timing. Trust me right now. Even when you are unable to see why I am doing what I am doing or why I am not doing what you think I ought to be doing. Just hold the course. And the same is for all of us. True for all of us.
Hold your course. You might be going through a season of doubt right now. Things are not making sense to you. And really you could really be offended by that question. You know the question is John wants to know if you are really the one or should he look for another. What?
Hello? Can you imagine your wife. You have been married for 30 years. She looks at you and says, I think maybe I made a mistake.
Should I look for another? No. And so he is really questioning the ministry of our Lord.
Jesus could have said, you know what? Got a little offended. And my cousin has always been a little weird. Okay. Come on. Let's get real. Really? Locust and wild honey.
Is that necessary? He didn't do that at all. In fact Jesus did the very opposite. He saw this as an opportunity to speak of the greatness of John. Look at Matthew 11.
As the disciples were leaving Jesus began talking about him to the crowds. He said, what kind of man did you go into the wilderness to see? Was he a weak reed swayed by every breath of wind?
Hey what were you guys looking for? A reed just blowing in the wind. Someone unstable with no courage.
Some kind of a snowflake. This is John the Baptist people. And I love him. And let me tell you a little something about John. And then he goes on to describe who John really was.
And you know here is what it comes down to. You know it is really not what others think about us. Or even what we think about ourselves. I am interested in what Jesus thinks about me. Jesus has had some good thoughts about John. And Jesus has some good thoughts about you too. I want you to know that. You know I love Jeremiah 29 11.
I think you know that by now. I quote it quite often. But here is what God thinks about you. I know the thoughts that I think toward you says the Lord.
Thoughts of peace and not of evil to give you a future and a hope. See a lot of us think God is mad at us. When in reality God is mad about us.
He loves us. That is what we see so clearly in Scripture. So now Jesus says this about John. Verse 11.
Let me tell you something. Among those born of women there has not been one greater than John the Baptist. John the Baptist was the last of the Old Testament prophets. Not only was he the last but he was the greatest of the Old Testament prophets.
Now that is pretty amazing. How could John be greater than Samuel, Elijah, Isaiah, Ezekiel. John never called fire down from heaven like Elijah did. He never parted the Red Sea as Moses did. He did not write a book of the Bible like Isaiah or Ezekiel or even minor prophets like Micah.
That doesn't mean that he was underage Micah. Being a minor prophet just meant shorter book. He didn't write a book.
He didn't do a miracle. But Jesus says of men born of women there has never been a greater than John the Baptist. Why was John the greatest of the Old Testament prophets?
Answer. Because John and John alone was the direct forerunner of Jesus. His greatness came as a result of his closeness to Christ.
And now Jesus drops this bombshell. Verse 11. And he who was least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. What that means is you as a Christian in the New Covenant now are greater than John. How could I be greater than John? He was the direct forerunner. He was the voice crying in the wilderness.
I know. But you see you have a relationship with God that John did not have. John was a herald of the king. You're a friend of the king. John was a friend of the bridegroom.
You're the bride of the bride groom. Right? So this all happened because of the death and resurrection of Christ. Pastor Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message in just a moment. Well, glad you're along today as Pastor Greg continues his message from Matthew, Chapter 11. I title this message Jesus and the Doubter.
Jesus and You. Now maybe you're struggling with doubt right now. There is a difference between doubt and unbelief. You know doubt asks questions. Unbelief doesn't want answers. Doubt can be overcome and resolved but unbelief is an act of disobedience. So it's okay to come with your doubts and say, Lord I don't get this.
Help me. Like that one guy that said, Lord I believe. Help my unbelief. So when you're praying about something you say, Lord we're praying for this. We're asking this in the name of Jesus. We're praying about this together. But Lord we're also saying we believe but help our unbelief. Because sometimes our faith is not as strong as it should be. But God understands that. He'll more than meet you halfway.
So let's wrap this up now. How did Jesus deal with doubt in life of John? And how does he want to deal with doubt in our life? Number one, he refocused John's priorities. He refocused John's priorities. John misunderstood as I said the mission and purpose of the coming of Christ.
And it was true of the disciples as well. He refocused him. He didn't rebuke him. He refocused him. Because the problem with John was not that he was asking too much.
It's that he was asking too little. Hey John I'm going to do something even bigger than you're expecting. Overthrow the Romans. I'm going to come and establish my kingdom on earth one day. And the righteousness of the Lord will fill the planet.
So it's going to be bigger than anything you ever dreamed. So he refocused his priorities. Secondly he used the scripture or brought John back to the scripture.
He took John back to the Bible. Buddy remember what the Bible says. Remember what the prophets say.
You need to go back. I cannot say enough about how important the Word of God is for everything in life that you are facing. This is why we need to memorize scripture and know scripture when we fall into that little pit of despair. When we're dealing with hardship.
When we're looking for direction. Really whatever you're going through know the Word of God. And as I've said to you you need to think biblically. So Jesus brings him back to the Bible. Coming back to those two disciples on the Emmaus road. They said to Christ who again was incognito. We were hoping Jesus would have been the one to deliver Israel. But it's been three days since these events happened. Jesus must have thought oy vey.
Really. Three days. Don't you remember how many times they said I the son of man will be betrayed. I'll be crucified. And three days later I'll rise again. Read my lips. Three days.
But they may have said it's been three days. And then he took them on a guided tour of the Bible and pointed them to all of the passages that pointed to the Messiah's suffering for our sin. So what did he do. He brought him back to the Word of God. And the Bible says as they came to the end of their journey they said did not our hearts burn within us while he opened the Word on the way.
Number three. Jesus kept right on with this purpose and asked John to not be stumbled or annoyed. He's just saying just trust me. God never promised he would inform us all about his plan ahead of time. He just promised us that he has one. And ultimately it's for our good and it's for his glory. Let me say that again. God never promised he would inform us all about his plan ahead of time. He just promised that he has one and it's ultimately for our good and it's for his glory. I know there are things in life that don't make sense.
I know there are questions that remain unanswered. I know you have times of disappointment as a follower of Jesus. But one day it will all be made clear. And whatever you have lost for the kingdom of God in this life. Whatever you have suffered will be made up to you in the next life. God has promised that in Scripture. So right now the Bible says we see through a glass darkly but then face to face.
You know sort of like someone that has tinted glass on their car and you can't see in. And that's how it is sometimes. We are trying to figure these things out. We squint our eyes. We are trying to see what is taking place and why God is doing it. Another translation of that same verse there in 1 Corinthians 13 says, Paul speaking, I know now in a fragmentary fashion but then I will fully know as I am known. I know you have questions you want to ask God. But in that final day when we stand before God we will realize He never sat on His hands because they were nailed to a cross. God is in control.
God is at work. So if you have a doubt you just bring it to Jesus. And that is really to me the big story here. John had his doubts but he brought his doubts to Jesus.
And that is what we need to do. And Jesus wants to more than meet you halfway. He came to this earth. He walked among us. He lived a perfect life.
He died a perfect death. He died on the cross for our sins and He rose again. And now He stands at the door of our life and He knocks and says, if you will hear my voice and open the door I will come in. Sometimes people say, I have a few questions and if you can answer these questions I will become a Christian. I think many times what we will see is when we become a Christian that is when the questions are answered. Not all of them. But I will say this. Most of them.
Most of the big ones for sure. When you enter into this relationship with God that is available through Jesus Christ. You know I saw an interesting interview the other day between Tucker Carlson and Elon Musk. Tucker asks Elon, who is an engineer, knows a little bit about creating things. Do you believe in a Creator? And Elon had to say he did believe in a Creator. Of course he would because creators or engineers make things for a purpose. And he realizes that all the things he makes have a purpose and the same must be true of God as well.
But then Elon said, but I don't know that we can really know His nature. But we can. And we must. And that is what I started this message with. Talking about how God is a loving heavenly Father that longs for a relationship with us. A friendship with us. That comes through Christ. So if you have never asked Jesus to come into your life you can do it right here right now as we close in prayer.
Let's all pray. Father thank You for sending Jesus to enter our world. God was skin on. You had a face.
And we heard You and we saw You. And now You want to enter each of our lives individually. You want a relationship with each of us. And I pray for anybody here.
Anybody wherever they may be. If they don't have a relationship with You let this be the moment they believe. If You would like Jesus Christ to come into your life. If You would like Him to forgive you of your sin. If You would like to know that when You die You will go to heaven. If You want this friendship and relationship with God. Pray this prayer with me right now.
Just pray Lord Jesus. I know that I am a sinner. But I know that You are the Savior who died on the cross for my sin and rose again from the dead.
Now come into my life. I choose to follow You from this moment forward. In Jesus' name I pray.
Amen. Pastor Greg Laurie with an important prayer for those who are making a decision for the Lord today. And if you've just taken that step, well first of all know that your sins are forgiven.
The Bible tells us the Lord is faithful and just to forgive us of our sin and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. And we want to welcome you into the family of God. Let us send you something to help you get started off right. It's Pastor Greg's New Believer's Bible and we'll send it free of charge. It has hundreds of helps for those who've just begun their walk of faith.
It'll answer some of the questions that may be on your mind right now. Just ask for the New Believer's Bible. You can call us at 1-800-821-3300. That's 1-800-821-3300. Or write A New Beginning, Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514. Or go online to harvest.org and click on Know God. And then let us take a moment to thank you for praying for this ministry and for supporting it through your generous donation. It's an investment in kingdom business. Isn't that right Pastor Greg?
Yeah, it's really true Dave. And I believe it's so important because you know the Gospel saves lives. It saves eternal lives because when a person believes in Jesus according to Scripture they pass from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to the power of God. And then of course that changes the course of their future.
That impacts their children and their children's children's children. The Gospel changes everything and thousands and thousands of people respond every single year. Thanks to the Lord. Also thanks to you for your investment in this ministry enabling us to reach people wherever they are. So if this is something you care about, I encourage you to make a financial investment in A New Beginning and Harvest Ministries. Yeah that's right and we really do appreciate your support. Thanks for partnering with us today.
It can make a real difference not just for today or this week but for eternity. So get in touch with your support today by calling 1-800-821-3300. That's a 24 7 phone number 1-800-821-3300. Or write A New Beginning, Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514.
Or go online to harvest.org. Well next time Pastor Greg takes us along as Jesus has an encounter with a Pharisee named Nicodemus. It's one of the most pivotal conversations in the Bible. Join us here on A New Beginning with pastor and Bible teacher, Greg Laurie.
