Resolving Doubts: What to Do When Your Faith Wavers

Introduction

Have you ever made a statement that you were very confident about, and then, after a while, you started to doubt yourself? The confidence that you had was just not the same as it had been the day before when you stated that, or maybe even an hour ago?

Today we are going to look at someone who confidently claimed some things back when we started to look at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, but after some hard times, he began to lose confidence.

Last week, we left off with Jesus healing a centurion’s servant in Capernaum and then travelling south to Nain, Jesus raised a young man from the dead, blessing his mother who was already a widow. We saw that Jesus was demonstrating His authority when he healed the servant boy, but demonstrating His compassion when he resurrected the young man from Nain.

Those two instances are part of Jesus travelling to the disciples’ home towns and preaching and teaching there. Matthew 11:1

Matthew 11:1 KJV 1900

1 And it came to pass, when Jesus had made an end of commanding his twelve disciples, he departed thence to teach and to preach in their cities.

As he is going and preaching and teaching, he is also performing miracles. Some of John the Baptist’s disciples are following Jesus as He’s doing all this, and they report these things back to John the Baptist. Luke 7:18-19

Luke 7:18–19 KJV 1900

18 And the disciples of John shewed him of all these things. 19 And John calling unto him two of his disciples sent them to Jesus, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?

As you can see, we will be once again be in the books of Matthew and Luke as we study their accounts today.

But anyway, notice what John the Baptist says. He asks an important question, and yet, a question that may be puzzling to us as we sit here today reading it and remembering all that John the Baptist had preached before.

John sends messengers to Jesus to ask the question: “Are you the one that should come, or are we looking for another one?” The phrase, “the one that is to come” is a reference to the Messiah, the Redeemer that was prophesied in the Old Testament. They often referred to the Son of God that would come as “the coming one” or “he that is to come.”

One thing we need to remember because it has been a while since we covered this is that John is sending messengers to Jesus to ask this question because he cannot go himself. Does anyone remember where John the Baptist is at this point in time? Right! He is in prison. We have not covered John the Baptist’s arrest in detail yet, we will actually do that when we get to the time when John is executed (I apologize for the spoiler). But at this time, John the Baptist is arrested by Herod Antipas, the tetrarch of Galilee. We find why he is arrested in Luke 3:18-20

Luke 3:18–20 KJV 1900

18 And many other things in his [John the Baptist] exhortation preached he unto the people. 19 But Herod the tetrarch, being reproved by him for Herodias his brother Philip’s wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done, 20 Added yet this above all, that he shut up John in prison.

So John the Baptist is locked up in prison because Herod had gone to see John the Baptist preach, and John turned to him and started listing out the public sins Herod was guilty of. One of the things that John repeatedly had called Herod out on was how he had divorced his wife in order to marry Herodias. Herodias was the divorced wife of Philip, Herod’s brother, and also niece to both Herod and Philip. Talk about a messed up family dynamic there!

Herod was intrigued by John the Baptist’s preaching, but Herodias hated him. She wanted him dead, but the book of Mark tells us that though he does end up arresting John the Baptist, he protects him from Herodias because he know that John is a righteous and holy man.

At this point in the ministry of Jesus, John has been in prison for about 5 or 6 months when he sends his messengers to Jesus.

And what we find in John’s message can be a little disappointing to us as we first read it. But there are some important lessons to be learned from all of this.

Lost Confidence

The reason that this message from John the Baptist might be a little disappointing is because we have discussed at length what his original message was. See, John the Baptist is considered the last of the Old Testament prophets. Not because he is part of the Old Testament collection of books, but because he is the last prophet of the Old Testament covenant before Jesus established the New Covenant with His death and resurrection.

John the Baptist is the last of the prophets to prophesy of the Messiah, but he is the only one of the prophets to point out the Messiah.

So let’s look at the message that John had been preaching before his arrest and imprisonment. We know that it was John the Baptist who baptized Jesus, and that marked the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, but in addition to that, John had some things to say about Jesus that he preached very confidently.

John the Baptist’s Message Concerning Jesus

Jesus is the promised Christ (Messiah, anointed one)

Jesus is the Lord

Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit

Jesus is the judge of the unbelievers

Jesus is the light of the world

Jesus is the Lamb of God

Jesus is the Son of God

John the Baptist had confidently declared all of this. He suffered the reproach of many people because of it, but now, as he had been waiting in prison for the last 6 months, John begins to question. In this time of trial, the doubts start to well up inside his mind. “Jesus, are you the one? Are you the Messiah that we have been waiting for, or are you here to announce and prepare the way for another person who actually is the Messiah?”

John’s desire is that Jesus publicly declare himself as the Messiah and therefore quiet the rumors concerning him, but also, it would quiet John the Baptist’s internal struggle that he was having now. John the Baptist is not the only one that wanted that, if we remember, Jesus’ first miracle is done at the prompting of His mother, Mary, who seems to have thought that it was time for Jesus to go public as the Messiah. What was Jesus’ response to her? He said, “It’s not my time yet.” Yes, he performed a miracle, but he did not begin to announce himself as the Messiah.

If there has been anything that we have learned about Jesus, it is that He will not be rushed. He sticks to the timing that God the Father has laid out, and Jesus, God the Son, will not be rushed into anything. So even now, when John the Baptist has this very important question that reveals to us the inner struggle that is going on, Jesus does not give the answer that John was probably expecting.

Jesus’ Answer

What Jesus does is that He answers that question, but not with a with a simple yes or no. He answers in a way that will actually be more definitive than saying to the messengers, “Yes, go tell John that I am the Christ, the Messiah.”

We find that answer in both Matthew and Luke, so let’s see what Luke says in Luke 7:21-23

Luke 7:21–23 KJV 1900

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. 22 Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached. 23 And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.

You might look at these verses and say, well, that does not say yes and it does not say no. It seems like Jesus is trying to skirt around the answer. In fact, this answer seems like one of those political answers. You know the ones. When there is a candidate running for some kind of office, there comes a time when he or she gets asked about what may be a hot button item. Or they are asked a question that they do not want to give the honest truth about because it may cost them some votes, so they speak around it and answer a question that was not really asked at all.

“Mr. Candidate, are you in favor of a bill that would restrict hunting in state parks?”

To which the Candidate answers: “Thank you for that important question.

Let me first say that I deeply respect the traditions and values that so many in our communities hold dear—including those of our sportsmen and women who have passed down the legacy of responsible hunting for generations.

This issue really highlights the importance of balance and understanding. I think we can all agree that our state parks are treasured spaces—places where families make memories, where nature thrives, and where traditions, old and new, come together. It's about finding that shared ground, where everyone feels heard and respected. Because at the end of the day, it’s not just about one policy—it’s about who we are and the values we share.”

What an answer! But it did nothing to inform the person with the question whether that Candidate would support a bill that would restrict hunting in state parks or not.

And it seems that Jesus has done the same thing here. “Go tell John what you see and what you’ve heard.” That’s not a yes and it’s not a no. Is Jesus dodging the question? Absolutely not! In fact, like I said before, this answer that Jesus gives will be more definitive than a simple yes or no.

And the reason that is true is that John the Baptist was a student of the Scriptures when it came to the Messiah. He KNEW what the prophecies were. And Jesus demonstrated and referenced some of the prophecies in a way that were undeniable.

Isaiah 35:4–6 KJV 1900

4 Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: Behold, your God will come with vengeance, Even God with a recompence; He will come and save you. 5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. 6 Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, And the tongue of the dumb sing: For in the wilderness shall waters break out, And streams in the desert.

Isaiah 61:1 KJV 1900

1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; Because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

Once John the Baptist heard Jesus’ answer, he would be confident once again because he knew the Scripture and would be reminded of all that Jesus had done.

What to Do When Your Faith Wavers

There come times in everyone’s walk with God when our faith might waver. When we begin to doubt if God is really there for us, if He really loves us like He says He does, if He truly cares about what is going on in our lives. There will be a day when you may not find yourself in an actual prison cell, but you may find yourself alone, isolated, and perhaps seemingly forgotten. John the Baptist had been in his cell for 6 months. All the while, he knew that Jesus was out there. All the while, John knew that Jesus had been preaching about the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus had been telling others how to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. He knew the prophecies of the Messiah, that the Christ would set up his kingdom.

John the Baptist had known the prophecies, that the righteous believers and the unrighteous unbelievers would be sifted like grain and that the believers would reign with the Lord and the unbelievers would be cast out. But John’s faith was now being tried. John was a wild man. He lived a free life out in the wilderness, and now, he is confined. His expectations of the Messiah had not yet been fulfilled. The unfruitful trees were still standing, the grain had not been winnowed, the chaff remained unburned, and there was no visible tendency toward Jesus actually setting up His kingdom.

John the Baptist, along with the rest of the Jews including Jesus’ own disciples, probably held to the belief that the Christ would set up an earthly kingdom, and after being in prison for a time and seeing Jesus make zero moves to that end, now found his faith and confidence shaking. He questioned whether Jesus would be the end of it all, or just a forerunner to the ultimate Messiah. He had not grasped that Jesus was both the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, and that by serving humanity by His life and sacrificial death, it prepared the way for the Kingdom even more effectively than if Jesus would have immediately set up shop in a palace as a king somewhere.

Things were not as John expected them to be. So he asks the question. There were times when John was asked if he was the Messiah. He didn’t answer in riddles or anything like that; he very clearly said “No” and was done with it. But as we saw a while ago, Jesus’ reason for answering the way that He did was to awaken John’s memory and point him toward thoughtfulness.

So what does that mean for us? How do we learn from this what to do when the times come that our faith gets shaky? Because the times will come.

I thank God that the Bible does not represent the heroes of the faith as perfect. It does not represent the saints as omniscient. Visions and miracles and appearing angels did not necessarily remove all doubt. So many times we would like to think that “If only an angel were to come and tell me clearly what God’s plan is, I would never doubt God again.” And yet, we see people like Gideon, whose narrative can be found in the book of Judges, that encountered, not just any angel, but the angel of the Lord. The angel of the Lord was none other than a pre-birth manifestation of Jesus. But not only did Gideon see the Lord, but he saw three miracles before he was convinced that God wanted to use him to deliver Israel from bondage to the Midianites. You would think that was enough for Gideon, but even then he was very afraid. God had to show him that he had sent nightmares to the Midianites concerning their upcoming battle against Israel for Gideon to finally have solid confidence in the Lord.

Moses distrusted God as well. Even after the Exodus, Moses was guilty of unbelief. Elijah, who saw one of the greatest public manifestations of God’s power and was witness to a whole nation turning back to God, despaired after seeing God’s power. He had successfully seen God show unequivocally that He is the one, true God, discrediting and then executing 850 false prophets who had been leading Israel away from God, and then he ran for his life when the queen threatened him.

Jeremiah, another great prophet, was slow to fully trust God, and there came a day when he was so despondent that he cursed the day of his birth. Simon Peter, the voice of the disciples. Peter, who was passionate about Jesus, sank to even lower depths than John the Baptist. Whereas John the Baptist questioned if Jesus was in fact the Messiah, Peter, who had been a witness to countless miracles from Jesus’ own hand flat out denied Him, not once, but three times, cursing so as to make his point more believable.

Each of these people we have just discussed had a moment of time in which their faith was tried, and they failed. Their faith wavered and gave out for a moment.

There are times in the Christian life when your faith will be tried. You will be tempted to think, “Does God care about me?” You will wonder if He loves you, if He ever really did. You might ask yourself, “Is He still beside me? Is He truly all-powerful? Can He truly get me through this situation?”

When that happens, I encourage you, as I have been encouraged by other faithful Christians in these times, look at two things.

Look to the Bible

There, we find all the characteristics of God. We find that Jesus embodied them perfectly. We find verses like Matthew 11:28 that we will study a little more next week that say things like “28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

You will find verses that tells us 1 Peter 5:7 that say, Casting all your care upon Jesus for He cares for you.

You will find the words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount that say, “Take no thought for tomorrow. The God that clothes the field and feeds the birds, won’t He do much better for you? Seek first God’s kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you. Don’t worry about tomorrow.”

So when your faith begins to waver, look to the Bible. But don’t just look there. The Bible will give you facts, and yes, the Bible will also work out faith in you, but there is something else that can help you get the facts from your head to your heart.

Look at God’s Track Record

Jesus not only quoted Scripture to the messengers that He sent back to John the Baptist, He said, “Tell Him what you have seen.” Sometimes, we need to tell ourselves, remind ourselves all that we have seen God do in our lives. It is so easy to focus on the here and now and the difficulties and trials happening now that we forget to remember the goodness of God that He has shown previously in our lives.

Psalm 103:2 KJV 1900

2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all his benefits:

Don’t forget! Don’t forget all that He has done for you!

When you begin to think back and remember the things that He has done for you, the turn your heart and your voice to the expression of thanksgiving praises.

Philippians 4:6–7 KJV 1900

6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

When our faith begins to waver, you and I need to look at Scripture and remember who God is, but we must also remember what God has done and actively praise Him for it. Why? Because it is not until we pray with supplication (telling Him our needs and our situation), and giving thanks to Him that we get to experience the peace of God that passes all understanding. That peace that comes from God, the Bible says, will guard (keep) our hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

When the lies of Satan come, when the hardships of this world and the trials of life rush upon us, we need to look to Scripture and remember God’s track record. But don’t just think about them once or twice. Ser your mind on these things. Meditate upon them. Look at the next two verses. Philippians 4:8-9

Philippians 4:8–9 KJV 1900

8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things. 9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.

When will you experience the God of peace? When your thoughts are on true and honest things. Take those lying thoughts that “God might not care as much as I thought He did” into captivity, lay them at Jesus’ feet, and then focus on the truth. Take the thoughts that say “God may not be able to get me through this” and lay them at Jesus’ feet and think and meditate on Psalm 23. Thing of all the things that God has done for you up until now and actively, vocally, loudly give Him thanks and praise for those things, and watch as the anxiety and the worry and the fear get replaced by a peace that only God can give.

When your faith wavers, Don’t Forget what Bible Says, and Don’t Forget What God Has Already Done for You.

The Importance of the Messenger

One last thing before we conclude. I want you to notice that though the conversation was between Jesus and John the Baptist, there were facilitators to that conversation. There were messengers that delivered the answers to John. You may not find yourself in the storm right now, but you may very well know someone who is going through some doubts and difficulty. Never underestimate the power of lovingly delivering God’s message of truth to someone who is going through rough times.

Be the one who gives the Scripture. Be the one who helps remind someone of all that God is doing and has done in their lives. Deliver that message with love and compassion.

But before those messengers ever got back to John the Baptist with an answer from Jesus, they first helped John ask his question. You might think, “Well, how can I possibly help in that area? Isn’t God just a prayer away? Can He not hear the prayer of someone who is beginning to have doubts? And the answer to those questions is, “Yes, God is a prayer away; and yes, He hears the prayers of His children whether they have strong faith or wavering faith.”

But the thing is, sometimes, the trial of our faith can be so strong that we 1) forget to pray, or 2) don’t know what to pray or how to pray. When you encounter someone that is going through a hard time, who may be struggling with their faith, your first question may be, “Have you prayed about it?” But do not be surprised if the answer is “no.” And when the answer is “no,” and even if the answer is not “no,” our response to that person should NOT be, “Well there you go, you should have prayed a long time ago, and you wouldn’t be feeling this way.”

You know what our response should look like? It should sound something like this: “Well, here, let’s pray right now. And let me pray for you. I’ll ask God your questions as we pray, and we’ll wait together either for His answer or for His peace.” And then, with that person, pray. Don’t make them pray. You pray, and you ask God the questions and verbalize the doubts that the other person is having. We often think of intercessory prayer as simply being praying for someone, but this is also part of intercessory prayer. In this case, you are most literally praying for, in place of, that person, and that is what interceding means.

Be the messenger. Be the one that goes to God on someone else’s behalf, and be the one that communicates God’s faithfulness on His behalf.

And lastly,

The Importance of Talking to Someone

This is for those that may be going through something today. You may be having the doubts. You may be going through the storms right now. To you I say, never underestimate the importance of the messenger. There are those that would love to be in prayer for you. Those that would like to be an encouraging agent in your life, but they may never be able to do so if you do not seek them out first and tell them what is going on.

Notice who John the Baptist got to be his messengers: his disciples. So confidently had he told them repeatedly that Jesus was the Messiah. They had heard it over and over. They themselves had probably repeated the sermons of John. These were people close to John. But John knew that they were the best ones to trust with this information - the information that he was doubting.

John didn’t sit and wonder, “What will they think of me?” No, he called them to himself and gave them the message, and they came back with a good answer from the Lord.

Had John the Baptist never given the message, never expressed his doubt, he would have died with a wavering faith.

Are you going through a rough time? Is it so bad, and has it been so long that your faith is wavering? Please, talk to someone! It is so important that you approach someone that you can trust, that loves you, that loves God. Talk to someone.

To the rest of us - be approachable. There are enough feelings of guilt that accompany a wavering faith that we do not need to castigate or punish anyone further when they come to us and say, “Hey, can you pray for me? I am having some doubts.”

There is no need for a lecture, there is no need for our mouths to drop in disbelief, and there is no need for us to say, “Well I would have never thought that you would have had any doubts. You know the Bible. Shame on you!” No! That is Satan’s message for those that are wavering. Our response to the ones who have the courage to say, “I’m struggling,” is, and should only be, “Well, start praying together. Let’s see what the Bible has to say about who God really is. Let’s remember all the things that God has brought you through and done in you.”

If you are struggling today, find someone to talk to.

If you get approached, take that person to the presence of Jesus.

Invitation

I am going to ask you to bow your heads and close your eyes.

I know that this sermon has been primarily for those that have a personal relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ. This sermon has been primarily for those that are saved. But maybe your here today and you are not saved, or you don’t know if you are or not. Maybe you are sitting here this morning and do not have a personal relationship with God as your Father.

I’m not concerned with how many times you’ve gone to church, or prayed, or read your Bible. That does not save anyone. Salvation comes from repentance and turning to Jesus in faith as our only savior that can forgive our sins and save us from hell.

If you are not sure if you are saved, but would like to be sure, I would love to pray for you. I am not going to call you out or embarrass you, but while everyone else is closing their eyes, would you just lift up your hand and put it right back down? I’d like to be able to pray for you and talk with you after the service.

To those of you that are saved, I have a couple of questions for you. Who in here would say, “Mike, honestly, I am probably not super approachable to those that may need to talk to someone about doubts or problems. I tend to be uncompassionate toward others. I need to seek to be kinder and more full of God’s grace, so that in the event that someone does approach me, I can lovingly take them to Scriptures and to the presence of God in prayer.” Is there anyone like that?

Would you just start praying right now, where you are, that God would develop in you the compassion and grace needed to point others to Jesus?

Maybe your here this morning and you are in the position of John the Baptist - certainly not in an actual prison cell, but in a situation that has your faith wavering or even at the breaking point. I would like to pray for you. Is there anyone like that this morning that would say, “Mike, would you pray for me? My faith needs strengthening. I can’t do this on my own.”

Let me encourage you to do something. In just a moment, we are going to have some music play for invitation. And if you raised your hand stating that you need are going through it right now, and your faith is being tried, I am going to ask you to find someone. Talk to someone.

As the music plays, find someone to talk to and ask them to pray with you. It may be a husband or a wife. It may be a parent or another family member. You may need to go and find a friend, but I am begging you, do not keep that inside of you. Find someone and pray together here at the altar or there in your seat, but find someone.

If you need to talk to someone and don’t know who to talk to, then I’ll encourage you to come here to us. If you are a woman, Tahsha is up front here, ready to speak with you.

If you are a man, I will be happy to pray with you.

Come if you need to.

Life Groups

How has God been working in your life recently? How has He been growing you?

What, if anything stood out to you from the sermon? Questions or concerns?

1. In what ways can you relate to John the Baptist's moment of doubt during your own periods of uncertainty? How did you get through those periods of time?

2. What should we do when we experience doubt in our faith, similar to how John the Baptist did?

3. Strategize: How can we actively remind ourselves of God's faithfulness during difficult times in our lives?

4. What does Jesus' response to John the Baptist suggest about the nature of His mission and timing?

5. What can we learn about the nature of God’s timing and mission in our lives from the way that Jesus responded to John the Baptist?

6. How can we support others who are struggling with their faith, based on the role of the messengers in the sermon?

7. What practical steps can we take to create an environment where others feel safe to express their doubts?

8. How can discussing our doubts with trusted, Christian friends or mentors strengthen our relationship with God?