Listen to Devotion

When John, who was in prison, heard about the deeds of the Messiah, he sent his disciples to ask him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”

Matthew 11:2-3

Without a Doubt

When I was five years old, I remember whispering to my brother, “What if they are making it all up? What if they just want us to behave? How can we be sure this is true?”

It had occurred to me that the adults in my world could be tricking me into believing in Jesus, just to get me to act a certain way. Even as a young child, doubt was creeping in.

Left untreated, doubt can take over a person’s mind and lead to dangerous thoughts. Doubts take us farther from the truth and farther from the safety that God’s promises give. That’s why the devil tried to plant doubt within Eve when he asked, “Did God really say…?” (Genesis 3:1). That small phrase creates big doubts, and those doubts can turn into fears, and can eventually lead to the ultimate sin—unbelief.

Sometimes, the biggest doubt we can have is whether God could love us sinners who so boldly defy him. We wonder if we really are forgiven.

When we do have doubts, the very first thing we should do is run to Jesus. He died and rose for us. Now, he invites us to cast all our cares on him. Jesus wants us to come to him with our doubts and fears!

When we have doubts, we should also find someone who can share the promises of God with us. Your pastor can do that. Your friend can do that. God crushes our doubts with the power of the promises in his word because he assures us of all that he has done for us and all that he will do for us.

And we can be confident in his promises because everything that God said would happen came true. Every promise was kept. When we read the account of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, we can be sure that all of God’s promises will come to be. Without a doubt, Jesus lived, died, and rose for us. Without a doubt, we can believe that Jesus will come again and take us to our home in heaven!

Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father,

I sometimes have doubts and fears about the hardships of this world. I know that worry is a sin. Help me to remember to run to you when I have these feelings of doubt and concern, knowing that you will bring me comfort in your Word. Amen.