First Baptist Church Litchfield
May 25, 2025

      • Isaiah 40:31ESV

  • All My Hope
  • Death Was Arrested

      • Romans 8:24–28ESV

  • In Christ Alone
  • The Stand
  • Softly And Tenderly

  • The Dungeon of Doubt

    John the Baptist, the herald of Christ, found himself in the dungeons of Herod Antipas, imprisoned for his unrelenting proclamation of God's truth. From within the confines of his cell, he pondered deeply about Jesus, the one he had baptized and proclaimed as the Lamb of God. Yet doubts began to creep into his heart. You hear it in the question he sends to Jesus through his disciples,
    Matthew 11:2 ESV
    2 Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples
    Matthew 11:3 ESV
    3 and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?”
    What John is asking is, “Are you truly the Messiah, the promised deliverer of Israel?
    You might ask why John would ask such a question. John was suffering for being the Harold of Jesus. As mahy of you already know, suffering profoundly stifles faith and provokes doubt. In moments of pain, uncertainty, and despair, even the most devout can find their faith shaken. John the Baptist, despite his divine calling and close relationship with Jesus, was not immune to such doubts, and neither are you brothers and sisters. His imprisonment physically manifested the struggle that many face – where the promises of God seem distant and the reality of suffering becomes overwhelming.
    John's experience mirrors that of Elijah, the great prophet of the Old Testament. Elijah, after triumphantly proving God's power before the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel, found himself fleeing for his life from Queen Jezebel. In the wilderness, he despaired, feeling abandoned and questioning his purpose. Yet, God met him not in the mighty wind or earthquake but in a gentle whisper, reaffirming His presence and promises.
    In the modern era, the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer serves as a poignant example. A theologian and pastor, Bonhoeffer stood against the tyranny of Nazi Germany, ultimately facing imprisonment and execution. His letters from prison reveal a deep struggle with faith amidst suffering, yet also a steadfast belief in the promises of God. Bonhoeffer's unwavering conviction that God remains faithful, even in the darkest times when your faith is in the dungeon, is a testament to the enduring power of faith.
    In our passage this morning, John the Baptist, while imprisoned, sends messengers to Jesus to inquire if He is the Messiah. Jesus responds by highlighting His miraculous works and assuring John that the fulfillment of the prophecies is evident in His actions. This exchange illustrates the struggle between faith and doubt, even among God’s chosen. I want to help you understand this morning, Christian, that experiencing doubt is not only a common struggle in your walk with Christ, but it also presents opportunities for deeper faith. By recognizing Jesus’s assurance and works in our lives, believers can cultivate trust despite uncertainty. Doubt does not disqualify you from faith, but it can lead to a more profound understanding of Christ's identity and purpose. In times of doubt, you must seek Jesus to recognize His affirmations of who He is. In other words, brothers and sisters,

    Even in moments of doubt, Jesus invites you to seek Him and find a deeper assurance that He is your Messiah.

    Faith Imprisoned in the Dungeon of Doubt (Matthew 11:2-3)

    Matthew 11:2–3 ESV
    2 Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples 3 and said to him, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?”
    John previously expressed faith in Jesus as the Christ. He said things like,
    John 1:29–37 ESV
    29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.” 32 And John bore witness: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. 33 I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.” 35 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, 36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” 37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus.
    When John’s disciples approached him concerned about his disciples leaving to join Jesus, John says,
    John 3:27–30 ESV
    27 John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’ 29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease.”
    But now, John is having doubts about Jesus being the Messiah. John says, Matthew 11:3 “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” Are you really the promised Messiah? Are you really the promised Lamb of God who would set the captives free? John is expressing doubt in the identity and ministry of Jesus. What has changed?
    Well, John is not the man he was when he first met Jesus. When he first met Jesus, John was a prophet in the wilderness preparing the way for the Lord by preaching a baptism of repentance. By the time you read Matthew 11, John is a prisoner facing death row for being critical of Herod Antipas unlawfully marrying his brother’s wife. John is suffering for being a truth teller, and suffering has skewed John’s understanding of Jesus. It’s as if suffering were a hand that picked up a rock and scratched John’s truth glasses over and over again. The rock is doubt. Suffering is using doubt like a rock to scratch up the lens of John’s eyes, and each scratch that skews a proper misunderstanding or interpretation of God’s promises of the Messiah, specifically the nature and time of fulfillment of God’s promise for the Messiah.

    Doubt skews the nature of God’s promise of the Messiah.

    John knew his Old Testament very well. When he considered Jesus to be the Messiah, it is likely he had the prophet Isaiah in mind, which may have reverberated in his heart when Jesus quoted Isaiah 61:1-3, regarding himself:
    Isaiah 61:1–3 ESV
    1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; 2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; 3 to grant to those who mourn in Zion— to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit; that they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.
    Like many in Jesus’s day, John was expecting the Messiah to come and set the captives free. In John’s eyes, the Messiah would free Israel from the bondage of Roman rule. Faithful Jews who were looking for the Messiah would not be bound in chains facing death, as John was when he sent his disciples to Jesus. John thought the nature of God’s promise of the Messiah would be freedom from a physical bondage. As we know, however, Jesus did not come to set the physical captive free. He came to set the sinner under the spiritual bondage of sin, Satan, and death, free from the wrath of God.

    Doubt skews the time of fulfillment of the Messiah.

    John also struggled to understand the promise of the time of fulfillment of the Messiah. When Jesus arrived, John believed that the Day of Judgement had come, in his present day. John did not see the promise as being in the future. John did not see cross Jesus would die. John did see the grave Jesus was resurrect. John did not see Jesus’ ascension from the mountain, not did he see the outpouring of his Spirit at Pentecost. John did not see the church being made up of Jews and Gentiles over a period of generations past John’s day. John did not see Jesus coming back as a Warrior King to judge the living and the dead. He did not see the new heavens and the new earth filled with God’s redeemed people from every tribe, nation, and tongue. For John, at least at this point, everything seemed like business as usual. The captives are still bound, the the broken are still broken hearted, those who mourn are still mourning, and there is no year of God’s favor. The problem as I see it, is John’s doubt is filled with unmet expectations.
    There lies the danger of doubt. When you don’t understand the nature and fulfillment of God’s promises, your heart is prone to be disappointed by perceived unmet expectations. Perceived unmet expectations feeds doubt’s appetite.
    Think about John’s situation in your own context. John is a faithful brother. Jesus says as much in in Matthew 11:8-15; there was no man greater than John. John was faithfully serving as the Lord as his herald, and now he finds himself in prison. The man whom Jesus defends and commends as great in the kingdom of God is being treated like a criminal. Where is God’s kingdom? Where is the Messiah who proclaims liberty to the captive? Why am I still suffering? You can identify with John to some degree, can’t you?
    I don’t quote max Lucado very often, but I think he is on to something when he says,
    Clouds of doubt are created when the warm, moist air of our expectations meets the cold air of God’s silence. The problem is not as much in God’s silence as it is in your ability to hear.
    Max Lucado
    Have you ever felt doubt from unmet expectations? Has your heart been burdened with doubt when you don’t feel like God is listening to you, or meeting your expectations? Your Christian life is not what you expected it to be. Although you’ve served God faithfully, he has not give you the desires of your heart. I’ve met godly women who’ve remained sexually pure in hopes that God would give them a husband, only to marry a man who struggles with pornography, or to never get married at all. There are others who walk in manner worthy of the gospel, trusting God knows they long for a child, but to remain barren. There have been countless men and women in the history of the faith who’ve served the Lord in hard places, who’ve suffered the loss of freedom and life at the hands of wicked governments and diseases, who’ve walked the same path as John, who at some point wondered, is Jesus the Messiah or should we expect another? Yes, sir, clouds of doubt are created when the warm, moist air of our expectations meets the cold air of God’s silence.
    I have found in my short Christian life, that unmet expectations not only thrive on a skewed understanding of God’s promises, but they lack perspective. I am not omniscient, not omnipotent, nor omnipresent, as God. He knows everything that is, or could be, or will be or won’t be. He’s able to direct time and orchestrate billions of lives toward a trillion directions so that they all live perfectly to His good and perfect plan until the end of days.
    John misunderstood the nature and fulfillment of God’s promise of the Messiah, and he lacked the right perspective of his situation. Just as doubt did to John, so it does to you. Doubt skews the eyes of your heart from clearly “seeing” God’s word, His power, His promises, and His goodness as safe, secure, and sure.
    Imagine you are standing at the Grand Canyon. There is a bridge that connects one side of the vast canyon to another. The bridge extends from the canyon rock where it is lodges thirty feet into the canyon wall. It’s pillars are twenty feet in diameter, filled with cement and rebar, and run two by two every fifty feet across the valley. There are four lanes held up by carbon steel cables attached to the H-shaped towers that coincide with the pillars that anchor the bridge. By all intents and purposes, our bridge is stable, durable, aesthetically pleasing, and able to distribute large amounts of weight. It is safe, secure, and sure to support you across the canyon. Doubt skews the truth and reliability of this bridge, and it keeps you from seeing ad savoring the glory of the canyon. Furthermore, it keeps you from getting to the other side. The bridge appears strong, yet doubts assail us: 'Is it safe enough? What if it collapses?' This is how doubt skews the view of God's promises. Like the bridge, they are built on the rock of His faithfulness. Despite our unmet expectations and perceptions, we must take that first step of faith, trusting that the bridge will hold. What is that step of faith. Jesus says the way your faith is set free from the dungeon of doubt is by seeking a deeper understanding of Jesus. That is, when doubt assils your faith and tempts you to turn away from Jesus, Jesus says freedom will come to your faith when you run hrd and fast toward Jesus, even when you don’t feel like it.

    Faith Freed by Proclaiming the Liberty of Jesus (Matthew 11:4-5)

    Notice how Jesus responds to John’s disciples. He says,
    Matthew 11:4 ESV
    4 And Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see:
    That is, go tell John more about Me! John’s faith has been locked up in a prison. He does not see how I am proclaiming liberty to the captives and ushering in the kingdom. Go, tell John the work I am doing, then his faith will find freedom, even if his body does not. You see, chasing Jesus with your doubt will bring more clarity on the nature and fulfillment of his promise. It will reorient you unmet expectations to make them proper and profitable. By telling John what they see, Jesus will confirm He is the Messiah according to the prophets.
    Isaiah said the Messiah will do wonderful works.
    Isaiah 29:18–19 ESV
    18 In that day the deaf shall hear the words of a book, and out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind shall see. 19 The meek shall obtain fresh joy in the Lord, and the poor among mankind shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.
    Isaiah 35:5–6 ESV
    5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; 6 then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy. For waters break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert;
    Isaiah 61:1 ESV
    1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;
    What are the works that prove Jesus is the Messiah?
    Matthew 11:5 ESV
    5 the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them.
    Jesus is saying, you can trust I am the Messiah by my works. I am restoring the broken and the lame. I am announcing good news to the poor. I am proclaiming liberty to the imprisoned and setting the captives free, far more than you realize, John. Jesus, says, I am setting all of God’s broken image bearers who are held in sins bondage, free. And I am going to do it in a way that settles the sinners account forever, and I am going to do it in a manner that will blow your perceptions of me out of this world; death, resurrection, and ascension. Essentially, Jesus is ushering in His kingdom for the world, not just Israel. John view of the Christ was too small, and Jesu was using John’s doubt to show him Jesus is much greater and more profound than you thought him to be. God, tell John, more about me. Tell him my promises are sure and secure. Doubt no more. Trust me.
    For the brother or sister who struggles with doubt, where are you to turn to gain greater depth of the knowledge of Jesus? Your Bible. When doubt aims its sights on your faith, you must guard your mind and heart with the truth of God’s word. Saturate your heart with God’s divine revelation which is inerrant and fully sufficient for your life and godliness. What did Jesus do when I was tempted by Satan to doubt in the wilderness? Every single rebuttal was the word of God. Three times Jesus refutes doubt with, “It is written, It is written, It is written…”! Jesus uses the word of God to fight doubt, and so should you!

    Blessed are the Doubters (Matthew 11:6)

    Matthew 11:6 ESV
    6 And blessed is the one who is not offended by me.”
    Some might read this verse and see it as a rebuke of John’s doubt. I don’t think so. Doubt has its place in faith. It is part of the Christian experience. I am not saying you should remain in doubt. But you should know that doubt reveals you have faith. You have to have faith to wrestle with doubt. In God’s hands, doubt can be a tool He uses to prepare your heart for a deeper and abiding faith, it you turn to Christ with your doubt.
    In verse 6, Jesus says, “blessed is the one who is not offended by me.” The word offended is to be tripped up, or to stumble. In relation to John, Jesus is saying blessed is the one who is not tripped up by their skewed view of the promises of the Messiah. Blessed is the one who does not stumble over their lack of perception or misunderstanding of Jesus. In other words, the positive of this verse is, Jesus telling John, trust me.
    Trust me, John, even though you do not fully understand what is going on right now. Trust me, John, when it feel contrary to your reason. Trust me, John, even though it is scary and very difficult. Put your faith, all of it, in Me, says Jesus. If you do so, the consequence is blessing. As it was with John, so it is with you, brothers and sisters.
    Blessed are the doubters who keep turning to Jesus when their eyes cannot see and their hears cannot hear. Blessed are the doubts who though they stumble, do not fall away. Blessed are the doubters who pray for God to use their doubt like rain to water the dry soil of their faith. Blessed are the doubters who take one step at a time onto that bridge, trusting God will get them safely across. Blessed are the doubters who put their tiny vapor like faith and trust in Jesus.
    If you are here this morning and find your faith in the dungeon of doubt, it is likely because you have a skewed view of Jesus. The lens by which you see Jesus are scratched. Maybe your suffering mental health or physical health problems. Maybe you are spiritually dry from walking in a spiritual desert. Maybe you just have a anxious disposition. Whatever is going on, suffering is using doubt to scratch the lens of your spiritual glasses. Thank God you are here this morning to hear the word of the Lord!
    If you have never accepted God’s gift of salvation, your first step is to confess your sin, repent, and believe Jesus is your Lord and Savior. You need to be forgive of your sins and have the wrath of God removed from your soul. Jesus will take God’s wrath and give you his forgiveness and righteousness as a free gift. You just need to ask for it. All who call upon the name of the Lord will be saved!
    Brothers and sisters, if you are struggling with doubt, ask the Lord to search your heart for any misunderstanding you may have of the nature and fulfillment of his promises. Search your heart for unmet expectations you perceive you have with Christ. Then ask the Lord to reorient your heart to fix your eyes rightly on Jesus as your Lord and Messiah. Get to you Bible as fast as you can and devour the scriptures. Read them with passionate prayer, begging God to use your doubt as a means of grace to draw closer to Christ. Trust Jesus to meet you and reveal more of himself to you, until the eyes of your heart can see and the ears of your heart can truly hear the gospel of Jesus Christ and respond with faith (Matthew 11:15). In short, this morning, brothers and sisters,

    Even in moments of doubt, Jesus invites you to seek Him and find a deeper assurance that He is your Messiah.

      • Matthew 11:2ESV

      • Matthew 11:3ESV

      • Matthew 11:2–3ESV

      • John 1:29–37ESV

      • John 3:27–30ESV

      • Isaiah 61:1–3ESV

      • Matthew 11:4–5ESV

      • Matthew 11:4ESV

      • Isaiah 29:18–19ESV

      • Isaiah 35:5–6ESV

      • Isaiah 61:1ESV

      • Matthew 11:5ESV

      • Matthew 11:6ESV

      • Romans 15:13ESV

  • Grace Alone
First Baptist Church Litchfield
pastorjason.fbcl@gmail.com
217-324-4232
http://www.firstbaptistlitchfield.org/
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