Episode 49: What Do I Do With Doubt?
As believers, we don’t like to admit that we doubt. We try and bury it, assuming it makes us look weak and negates all the things we profess to believe with our mouths. But the truth is doubt can actually strengthen our faith if handled correctly.
There are two kinds of doubt:
1. Paralyzing Doubt - keeps you in a state of fear and mistrust. You focus all your attention on what you don’t know, rather than WHO you DO know. Paralyzing doubt keeps you bound up, never able to move forward towards the call or plans God has for your unique life.
2. Productive Doubt - begins with a question that leads to a reflective pursuit of understanding. Productive doubt will put that question to the test until it has greater understanding of what’s producing the confusion.
There’s a disciple in scripture that struggled with doubt. His name is Thomas. As a matter of fact, for centuries he’s been known as “doubting Thomas.” But defining him as a doubter is far from the scope of his full faith. If we look at Thomas throughout several places of scripture, we see that his faith was fueled by courage. Sometimes asking the right questions or saying the right things is the most powerful gift we leave to others.
In John 11:4-14 we see Jesus getting the news that one of his favorite friends, Lazarus, is very ill. Instead of going to him, they stay for two more days. The disciples are fearful because going to Lazarus means going into Judea, which was dangerous territory for Jesus as the leaders were breathing death threats against Him. In the middle of this Thomas belts out “Let’s go too—and die with him!” Not the words of a timid and doubtful man! Even in the confusion of God’s timing and frightening next steps, we see that he is willing to do whatever it takes to be right with the Lord. As we look at the life of Thomas, we can learn several key principles about doubt:
1. Doubt arises when we don’t understand God’s timing.
God is intentional in using every event in our lives, even the moments we don’t understand. None of the disciples understood Jesus’s action after being told Lazarus was deathly sick but we see that Thomas’ commitment to the Lord overpowered the fear that was gaining traction.
2. The Bible says to “Count” the cost of a relationship with him…doubt makes you QUESTION the cost. Faith says “Consider it, and don’t be afraid.)
In John 14 we see Thomas out front again. After Jesus tackles some deep topics, He assures the disciples that they know the way, to which Thomas responds back, “We DON’T know the way…how do we know the way?” Because he had the guts to verbalize his momentary doubt, we got one of the most powerful verses in the Bible. “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except by me.” Sometimes our deepest doubt can lead to the deepest revelation.
After Jesus’s death and resurrection, He appeared to the disciples many times. (John 20) During one of these times, Thomas wasn’t present, and after the disciples described his scars and his wounds, Thomas blasted out the statement “Unless I see his nail imprinted hands, and put my hands into his side—I won’t believe.”
3. It’s fine to ask God for signs and help along the way, but when we DEMAND and put an ULTIMATUM on understanding, it becomes paralyzing if God doesn’t show Himself like we want Him to.
Gutsy Faith Challenge: How do you deal with doubt? Does it paralyze you or lead to productive faith?
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