Posted on 11/04/2025 11:51:24 PM PST by metmom
“Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Go and report to John what you hear and see: the blind receive sight and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who does not take offense at Me’” (Matthew 11:4–6).
Jesus’ deity and His message of salvation by grace through faith have been great stumbling blocks for many unbelieving sinners, but Christ did not want such doubt and unbelief to affect John. It is likely that the Lord’s response was more than adequate to renew John’s faith and confidence, even though his circumstances, humanly speaking, went from bad to worse and he was beheaded.
After burying John’s body, his disciples reported the news to Jesus (Matt. 14:12), probably because the most important person in John’s life was now their Savior as well. At death, John likely still wondered when Jesus would judge the wicked and establish His righteous kingdom. The forerunner probably also regretted not being able to see the great events he’d faithfully preached about. But his doubts about Jesus’ identity were at an end, and he was content to leave in God’s sovereign hands the things he never fully understood. This last trait is the secret for any saint who would be blessed and not cause offense.
The Baptist would have ultimately affirmed the apostle John's later declaration, "Beloved, now we are children of God . . . we know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure" (1 John 3:2–3). Knowing this, we can always approach Jesus, even while in temporary doubt.
Ask Yourself
Have you ever thought about what your final words will be if the Lord enables you to utter some parting thoughts at your passing?
How do you think you’d want to sum up your experience on earth with the Lord and your perspective on life, looking back?
Studying God’s Word ping
He was, however, quite content in the knowledge that billions of other people would be affected.
Why not, instead, provide everyone on the planet (including all future generations) with equally convincing physical demonstrations as John enjoyed? Then, no one would be affected by "such doubt and unbelief."
Regards,
Others have suggested other reasons for His actions, one being that it was for the benefit of John’s disciples, so that when John was gone, they would follow Jesus, recognizing Him as the Messiah John was preaching about.
FWIW, I personally would also not object in the least to see a little more blatant displays of Jesus power for the bolstering of people’s faith. But I haven’t been able to convince God of that yet.
I pray that I would have the courage of John in my life in a similar situation.
If Faith were dependent upon evidence and proof, then it wouldn’t be FAITH. It would just be stating evident FACT.
The trick is having Faith when you have NO proof.
True.
Although, people who actually met Jesus still had faith.
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