What Is Doubt?
Read: Matthew 26:36-46 My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will. (v. 39 NIV) The root idea of doubt is being divided. To doubt is to have a divided mind, a mind that is torn between belief and unbelief. Thomas was […]
But Some Doubted
Read: Matthew 28:16-20 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. (v. 17 NIV) Whenever I’ve preached on the Great Commission, I’ve skipped over those three words in verse 17, because I haven’t known what to do with them. Jesus is about to ascend back to heaven, so he gathers his disciples for […]
God, Have Mercy
Read: Luke 18:9-14 God, have mercy on me, a sinner. (v. 13 NIV) Is doubt a virtue? I doubt it, if Jesus tells us to stop. Well, then, is doubt a sin? It might be, or it might not be, depending on what kind of doubt it is. I’ll talk about species of doubt in […]
Lord, Save Me
Read: Matthew 21:18-22 If you have faith and do not doubt . . . you can say to this mountain, “Go, throw yourself into the sea,” and it will be done. (v. 21 NIV) Peter had great faith until he looked away from Jesus. “When he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to […]
Great Prayer, Great Faith
Read: John 17:6-21 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. (v. 15 NIV) Our story yesterday from Matthew 14 is a picture of where we live much of the time. We row across a stormy sea, battered by the elements, struggling […]
The Sands of Doubt
Read: Matthew 14:22-31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” (v. 31 NIV) Does Jesus’s question to Peter make you uncomfortable? I was raised in a church that did not prize doubt. The old Heidelberg Catechism taught me that the Apostles’ Creed is […]
Next Steps
Read: 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love. (v. 13) I hope this series on biblical resolutions has encouraged you in living the Christian life. As you strive to engage in a spiritual discipline, live as a steward, rely on the Holy Spirit, […]
Live With an Attitude of Gratitude
Read: Psalm 16:5-11 Therefore my heart is glad, and my whole being rejoices. (v. 9) If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, you are currently experiencing winter. Winter includes colder temperatures and less daylight. Along with the lack of warmth and sunshine, you might also feel discouraged in this season following the conclusion of the […]
Have a Kingdom Agenda
Read: Mark 1:14-15 The kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel. (v. 15) Author Reggie McNeal defines the kingdom of God this way: “Life as God intends it.” Unfortunately, following the rebellion of Satan and the fall of humankind into sin, life often isn’t what it could be. Sin taints […]