Matthew: Doubt and Disappointment

We continue through Matthew 11:1-19 and see how Jesus interacts with John the Baptist's doubts.

Notes/Quotes:

Matthew 11:1-19

 

“Expectations are resentments waiting to happen.” - Anne Lamott

 

“Jesus is out in the sticks healing sick, “insignificant” little individuals here and there, but not doing much to change the basic structural problems in Israel’s life. The Pharisees still control popular religious life; the Sadducees still control the temple; the whole religio-ideological system seems thoroughly unthreatened by Jesus’ do-goodism in the hills. What is more, John (the propagandist of the New Order) is in prison, and Herod (the embodiment of the oppressive Establishment) is still on the throne and is in fact about to have John’s head. What kind of Messiah is this?” - Dale Bruner

 

Isaiah 29:18-19

Isaiah 35:3-6

Isaiah 61:1-2

 

Luke 1:17

1. Our doubts don’t discredit Jesus.

 

2. Our doubt don’t drive Jesus away

 

3. Our doubts need a greater story. 

 

The answer to doubt is God. The answer to our questions about tithing, membership, gender roles, politics, sin, and any other aspect in life that gives us pause is God. The blight of our generation is that we believe we are god. - Lore Ferguson Wilbert

 

4. Our doubts need patience, and questions and community

 

“Feelings are indicators, not dictators. They can indicate where your heart is in the moment, but that doesn't mean they have the right to dictate your behavior and boss you around. You are more than the sum total of your feelings and perfectly capable of that little gift . . . called self-control.” - Lysa TerKeurst

 

5. Jesus addresses what’s underneath our doubts

 

“A faith without some doubts is like a human body without any antibodies in it.” - Tim Keller

6. There is still a blessing and invitation in our doubts.

 

The way of trust is a movement into obscurity, into the undefined, into ambiguity, not into some predetermined, clearly delineated plan for the future. The reality of naked trust is the life of the pilgrim who leaves what is nailed down, obvious, and secure, and walks into the unknown without any rational explanation to justify the decision or guarantee the future. Why? Because God has signaled the movement and offered it his presence and his promise.  - Brennan Manning