Are You really the Messiah? Dominating Doubts and Discouragement

The Prophecy of John — Luke 1 — (Vs. 1-25, 57-80)

Isaiah 40:3 KJV 1900

3 The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, Make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

Luke 1:78–79 NLT

78 Because of God’s tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us, 79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace.”

The Problem of John — (Vs. 1-3)

John’s Imprisonment — William Barclay — Herod Antipas of Galilee had paid a visit to his brother in Rome. During that visit, he seduced his brother’s wife. He came home again, dismissed his own wife and married the sister-in-law whom he had lured away from her husband. Publicly and sternly, John rebuked Herod. Because of his public rebuke of Herod, John was thrown into the dungeons of the fortress of Machaerus in the mountains near the Dead Sea.

William Barclay — For any human being, that would have been a terrible fate; but for John the Baptist, it was worse than for most. He was a child of the desert; all his life he had lived in the wide-open spaces, with the clean wind on his face and the spacious vault of the sky for his roof. And now he was confined within the four narrow walls of an underground dungeon. For someone like John, who had perhaps never lived in a house, this must have been agony.

Warren Wiersbe — It is not difficult to sympathize with John as he suffered in prison. He was a man of the desert, yet he was confined indoors. He was an active man, with a divine mandate to preach; yet he was silenced. He had announced judgment, and yet that judgment was slow in coming (Matt. 3:7–12). He received only partial reports of Jesus’ ministry and could not see the total picture.

Matthew 11:3 NLT

3 “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?”

The Performance for John — (Vs. 4-6)

Luke 7:20–21 KJV 1900

20 When the men were come unto him, they said, John Baptist hath sent us unto thee, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another? 21 And in that same hour he cured many of their infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits; and unto many that were blind he gave sight.

Matthew 11:6 NLT

6 And he added, “God blesses those who do not fall away because of me.”

Stay the course John! You know deep down inside the call that God placed upon your life. You know that I am He. Stay strong, fight the good fight of faith, keep pressing on, and let the record of these things your disciples have seen give you such a confidence that it will drive all doubt and discouragement from your mind!

Then once the miracles have been performed and John’s disciples began to leave, Jesus begins to do something you might not expect.

Look with me at The Praising of John.

The Praising of John — (Vs. 7-15)

Hebrews 11:40 KJV 1900

40 God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.

Ephesians 2:4–7 KJV 1900

4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

The Practical Application for Us

There was a Restoring of John’s Confidence

There was a Restoring of John’s Calling

There was a Restoring of John’s Conquest

When you find yourself in the dungeon’s of despair and doubt and discouragement begin to seep in and take hold, remember where those doubts are coming from.

Remember that you’re not alone and that you’re in company with other heroes of the faith.

Remember that Jesus said He’d never leave or forsake you, and if you will put your trust in Him, He will also restore your confidence, your calling, your conquest just as He did John’s.

Remember that even those who were closest to Jesus needed a little reminder every now and again.

“Go and show John “again” those things which you hear and see.”

Even John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ needed reassuring again and again.

John G Butler — This shows us the value and importance of review. We breathe again and again in order to stay alive. Spiritually we must ponder, study, and mediate upon the Word of God again and again. We must go to church again and again. We must pray again and again. All this repetitious activity is essential for the health of our faith. The best facts are of no use to us if we forget them. John the Baptist was to go over the same truths again and again. And if that was necessary for John the Baptist, how much more necessary it for you and me!