“Give Him the time of day to speak to the exact issue that troubles your soul. After all, He was the only man to ever claim God-hood, die a sure death on a cross and prove His divinity by rising three days later from the grave. Trust me; this man; this God-man can handle your unbelief.”
No one believes perfectly.
Whether you’re a non-believer who doubts the deity of Jesus, an atheist who doubts the existence of a Creator or a disciple of Christ who still doubts the capabilities of a sovereign God, we are all skeptics to one degree or another. The great news is that the Bible does not depict a God who denounces skeptics for the sake of their skepticism. Instead, He invites them to Himself. Being the true God that He is, would there be any reason to think He is fearful or nervous to address our doubting nature, whatever side of the faith isle we stand on?
In this brief article I will primarily address the Christian doubter, but because the nature of Christ is the same no matter the vantage point (He is immutable), even a non-believer could read this and at least see that Jesus is approachable. He does not turn away small or unsure faith. In fact, he is more receptive to our doubts that we are to our own at times. What matters is that the faith we do have is placed in Him.
The best thing we as Christians can do is bring our skepticism and doubt to Jesus. Give Him the time of day to speak to the exact issue that troubles your soul. After all, He was the only man to ever claim God-hood, die a sure death on a cross and prove His divinity by rising three days later from the grave. Trust me; this man; this God-man can handle your unbelief.
If You Can, Lord
There was a man in Mark 9:22-24, who came to Jesus with his young boy and said “If you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”
His boy had been possessed by a demon since childhood and was often physically hurt as a result. This is certainly a situation that, if in the midst of it ourselves, we would find much fear and doubt. All this dad knew is that Jesus was in town. The crowds are saying He’s a miracle worker. Men are following after Him because He claims to be the Messiah. He had to get to Him.
When he did get to him he made a simple but urgent request; “If you can…Help!” Jesus addressed this by saying, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.”
Take note of the man’s honesty. He was a man in desperation for his son’s life and had no where else to go. Not even the disciples could handle this one alone. The man simply said, “If you can do all things.” As He stood before the sovereign Lord of the universe he gazed into the eyes of a man who could feel his pain. He had come to earth for that very purpose; to feel pain, to feel the emotion of human loss so that He might become a perfect High Priest who relates with all our infirmities, and yet, is without sin.
Help My Unbelief
“Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!’”
As Jesus looked at this desperate father He did not rebuke him the way you might expect. He could have said, “What is this if business? Be gone from me until you come to trust me in full. Stop wasting my time!” Had He spoke this way we would have a different view of Jesus altogether. But instead, He rebuked the doubt by inviting him closer to the truth of the matter. He reminded the man that the God who does the impossible stood before Him and that all he needed to do was believe. He didn’t say how much or how pure the belief must be; only to believe in the one before Him.
Joel Littlefield is Associate Pastor and Worship Leader at Calvary Chapel Crossville, Tenn. This article appeared on his blog and is used with permission.
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