Questioning Jesus

I'm currently reading One Year With Jesus for my morning devotions. Today's devotional seems particularly useful and I just wanted to share it with all of you who read this blog:

April 24 – Jesus eases John’s doubt

Luke 7:18-28 (also in Matthew 11:1-15)
The disciples of John the Baptist soon heard of all that Jesus was doing. When they told John about it, he sent two of his disciples to Jesus to ask him,

“Are you really the Messiah? Or shall we keep on looking for him?”

The two disciples found Jesus while he was curing many sick people of their various diseases—healing the lame and the blind and casting out evil spirits. When they asked him John’s question, this was his reply: “Go back to John and tell him all you have seen and heard here today: how those who were blind can see. The lame are walking without a limp. The lepers are completely healed. The deaf can hear again. The dead come back to life. And the poor are hearing the Good News. And tell him, ‘Blessed is the one who does not lose his faith in me.’”

After they left, Jesus talked to the crowd about John. “Who is this man in the wilderness that you went out to see?” he asked. “Did you find him weak as a reed, moved by every breath of wind? Or were you expecting to see a man dressed in expensive clothes? No! people who wear beautiful clothes and live in luxury are found in palaces, not in the wilderness. Were you looking for a prophet? Yes! and he is more than a prophet. John is the man to whom the Scriptures refer when they say, ‘Look! I am sending my messenger before you, and he will prepare the way before you.’ I tell you, of all who have ever lived, none is greater than John. Yet even the most insignificant person in the Kingdom of God is greater than he.”

Of all people, no one fulfilled his God-given purpose better than John. Yet in God’s Kingdom, all who come after John have a greater spiritual heritage because they have clearer knowledge of the purpose of Jesus’ death and resurrection.

Dealing with Doubts
John was confused because the reports he received about Jesus were unexpected and incomplete. John’s doubts were natural, and Jesus didn’t rebuke him for them. Instead, Jesus responded in a way that John would understand: Jesus explained that he had accomplished what the Messiah was supposed to accomplish.

God can handle our doubts, and he welcomes our questions. Do you have questions about Jesus—about who he is or what he expects of you? Admit them to yourself and to God, and begin looking for answers. Only as you face your doubts honestly can you begin to resolve them.

One Year with JesusCopyright © 1994 by The Livingstone Corporation.