Matthew 11:1-19; 14:1-12

We move now to the closing period of John’s life. Like Jesus, John would be killed in the prime of his life – he would die violently at the hands of another, denied a just trial and given a Roman, not a Jewish form of execution – beheading.

John fearlessly proclaimed moral truth – not only to the ordinary people, not only to the Priests and Pharisees but also to Royalty. He boldly denounced Herod for unjustly divorcing his first wife and taking Herodias, his half brother’s wife. This was a breach of Jewish Law (Lev.18:16) and John’s preaching would have greatly embarrassed Herod in the eyes of his Jewish subjects. John had to be silenced therefore he was arrested and put in prison.

Persecution of the church has continued throughout history. True followers of Christ recognise their priorities and are not afraid to proclaim Christ as Lord – even if it means death. Each of us must decide if Jesus is our Lord and if a time comes when we face the choice of denying Christ or facing death we need his grace and strength to do the right thing. Few if any of us in the West know what it is to be persecuted yet in the20th century more people have died for their faith than in any other century. The church has been born and grown most in the crucible of persecution and John’s example here is one that has been followed down through the centuries.  John was a fearless proclaimer of the truth even when it meant imprisonment.

So now we meet John in prison. We are maybe shocked to discover that this man who so boldly and loudly proclaimed Jesus as the messiah is now doubting who Jesus is. John is not only in a physical prison but he is in a prison of doubt. In the long dark, silent days in prison doubts and questions began to form in his mind. Was Jesus really the messiah? Where was this great kingdom that Jesus appearance was meant to usher in? Where was this baptism of the Spirit and fire? Why had Jesus not released him from prison and denounced Herod? All these questions formed in John’s mind.

Now I find this, paradoxically, one of the most reassuring passages in the Bible. John the Baptist, the great John the Baptist doubted who Jesus was. If he can doubt well there’s hope for such as us isn’t there. I sometimes have problems with doubt, I do not know a Christian who at some time has not seriously doubted some aspect of their christian faith. It may be a problem of assurance – am I really a Christian. It may be a problem of evidence – did Jesus really rise from the dead. It may be a problem with the uniqueness of Christianity – is Jesus really the only way to God? All of us are human and we all have had doubts at some point. Faith to be faith leaves room for doubt otherwise it would not be faith.

We seem to forget that John also was human and therefore liable to doubts and fears. The Bible is full of characters who although they were men and women of faith also doubted, disobeyed and fell. Abraham, Moses, Elijah, David, Peter, Thomas and so on. John was no different and neither are we.

What can we learn from this episode of John’s life? There are things to learn for the reasons why John doubted are similar to the reasons why many of us doubt today. Doubt happens, but with the grace of God we can work through doubt to have a firmer faith in God and in Jesus his Son. There are three specific reasons which led to John’s doubting of Jesus.

1 John’s circumstances.

He was in prison. You can imagine what that would have been like and it would not even have matched  the prisons of today. I imagine it was a dark, cold, cell. John who had spent his life outdoors was now confined to a cell, his freedom denied and possibly no sight of the sky. He was isolated, no followers with him and Jesus seemed very distant. It was a time of great testing and trauma for him.

Our circumstances can greatly impact our faith. A death in the family, the loss of a job, failed exams, an illness. All these outer circumstances can impact our inner peace and our faith. These kind of things can shake us to the core of our being and these tests can either strengthen our faith or weaken it, they rarely leave us unchanged.

Physically if we are tired or run down this too can affect us as the physical and the spiritual are linked. God has made us as a seamless whole. If we are feeling run down physically we can get depressed and our faith can suffer. This is a fact of life. John was depressed, he felt deserted and alone. He began to question why he was there and was it worth it. On top of this the devil can start to plant thoughts in our minds which makes things worse. So our outer circumstances can lead us to doubt. Jesus, are you the one who was to come or should we look for another?

2. Secondly, unanswered prayer.  I am sure John had times where he prayed for release. All of us would. John’s desires, his prayers, were not being answered. He wanted to be out of prison. Surely Jesus was the one who could do this. Had Jesus himself not talked about releasing the captives? Of course he had – Jesus would release him. But the days turned into weeks and there was no sign of Jesus coming to release him. We might think was John being selfish here but who would blame him for not wanting out of prison. Many of our prayers are selfish. Help me pass this exam. Help me do well in this interview. Help my sickness to go away. If our prayers are not answered it leads to problems.

Unanswered prayer leads to doubt, or at least if it is not answered in the way we want it to be answered. Is God there? Has he my best interests at heart? This was what John was going through. He doubted. Are you the one who was to come or should we look for another?

3. His expectations of Jesus. John’s idea of the messiah was partially right but also partially wrong. He did not have the full picture. Yes he knew that Jesus would come and preach the good news, heal the sick, restore sight to the blind, make the lame walk – yes but what more was he doing? What about the second part of John’s prophecy – where was the baptism of fire. Where was the winnowing fork, the day of wrath and judgement? Why were the evil still prospering? Why was he still in prison, why were the Pharisees and the teachers of the law not being judged. Why? Why? Why?

Where was the messiah’s kingdom? Why were the Romans still in control? Was the messiah not to be the deliverer from oppression? We have asked questions like these have we not especially after some great tragedy or famine; why if there is a good God does he allows such things to happen. Why does God not simply remove evil tyrants and despotic regimes. I have asked these questions sometimes.

John who once seemed so certain – “look the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” - is now not so certain. “Are you the one or should we look for another”.

Jesus is the most misunderstood person who has ever lived. Often we misunderstand him. We see through a glass darkly. We do not understand fully what God is doing. We, like John, can be in a  prison of doubt. Like John, we want to see Jesus the avenger of sin, Jesus the judge of all the earth putting down injustice, getting rid of oppression and suffering, restoring his kingdom on earth. But we look around and we do not see this and we ask what is God doing?

Of course the point is that Jesus will avenge sin, he will judge the earth, he will bring in his kingdom, but it will be in his time and not ours. This was the lesson John had to learn and it was a painful lesson. He would remain in prison, not only that but he would lose his life. One of the people closest to Jesus, the one who heralded his coming would lose his life and Jesus allowed it to happen. I was struck by Matthew 14:13. It seems to me that when Jesus heard what had happened to John he felt it. He needed time to process it, he withdrew for reflection and prayer. On the one hand Jesus knew John had to die and he did not stop it. On the other hand he felt the pain of these things happening in a fallen world and so I believe it is today. We have a God who feels things, a God who cares, a God who permits things to happen which are sad and tragic and yet he allows them in accordance with his grander purposes. This can be hard to understand especially if we are the ones going through the tragedy and the sadness. Yes we can acknowledge God’s sovereignty in our heads but when we experience the pain our hearts feel it and we can begin to doubt God and his goodness, even his reality.

So what is the solution to doubt if we, like John, are impacted by our trying circumstances, our unanswered prayers and our expectations of Jesus not matching up?

A. Look at the evidence

Jesus says “Take this message back to John …” Jesus’ answer you will note is not direct – he does not say “Tell John I am the one who was to come”. If anything he is calling for even more faith from John but it is faith based on evidence. He pointed John to the scriptures which spoke of the messiah and the implication was that these scriptures are being fulfilled (Is.35:5-6; 61:1-2). The latter passage was the one Jesus read in the synagogue almost as his manifesto. Look at the scriptures and look at the evidence of what Jesus has done and see how they match up. No-one else matches up as well as he does. His teaching , his miracles, his life. Look at these things.

So Jesus’ reply called forth from John another response of faith. The evidence was there, it was for John to believe and exercise faith. We are saved by faith and we are to live by faith but it is faith based on good evidence. No matter what proof Jesus would provide ultimately it has to come down to faith. With some people today there will never be enough proof.

But Jesus had said enough for John. His doubt I am sure turned to stronger faith. Many have and will stumble and fall at Jesus’ words but blessed are those who trust and believe and who do not fall away (11:6), who stand firm, who are patient and hope in an invisible God. See 1 Peter 1:8,9 “Though you have not seen him you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”

B. Recognise that there will always be times of doubt for we are human. Philip Yancey writes of the theologian F Buechner. “Buechner takes for granted that a relationship between an invisible God and visible humans will always involve an element of doubt. Without somehow destroying me in the process, how could God reveal himself in a way that would leave no room for doubt? If there were no room for doubt, there would be no room for me.”

God does not bulldoze us into belief. He calls to us, he asks us to look at the evidence and he wants us to respond voluntarily and willingly. But he knows we are human, he knows we are feeble and frail, he knows we go through bad times and He is so patient with us. To modify a famous phrase - to err is human - to doubt is human. Faith can be difficult but ask for God’s grace and when you do not have the strength or the faith to pray then ask for your friends to pray for you.

When things are hard that response to God is more difficult – but is it not even more special when it does happen. Is not God more pleased when we respond in faith in the midst of the trouble and tears rather than when things are going well.

c. There is mystery here to be embraced not shunned. We worship a mysterious God and sometimes we have to let the mystery be and trust God through it, and trust that some day, some time maybe all will be made clear to us. God is divine, we are human and there will always be mystery.

John’s life was short. Some people’s lives are cut short and we might ask why, but God allows it to happen in his sovereign will. John was beheaded, a terrible end to a great life. Jesus said of John. Although it was a short life it was a great life for he accomplished what he was sent to do. His greatness was determined by his proximity to Jesus and his purpose as it related to Jesus. In a sense we are greater than John for although John heralded the kingdom we are in the kingdom. We know more than he did and our privilege is even greater. But our lives will also be judged in how we related to Jesus.

So as we finish this life of John the Baptist. Let us learn from him. His life ends badly in one way – yet his life ended gloriously. He was obedient, he was used by God to turn people to Jesus. We do not know how our lives will pan out and how they will end. But wouldn’t it be great if Jesus said of us as he said of John in Jn.5:35. “John was a lamp that burned and gave light.” Am I, are you, a light that burns and gives light and by that light people are pointed to Jesus Christ. This is our purpose. This is why we are here.

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