INTRO.- ILL.- The New York City Transit Company was missing a bus and a driver some years ago. For over a week, authorities searched for the man but couldn’t find him. Finally, ten days later after the man had disappeared, he was found, bus included, in Miami, FL!
The driver said, "I’d had it with the cold weather, the passengers, and my family! One day after I got off work, I thought, ‘I WONDER WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF I JUST TOOK OFF FROM DRIVING!’"
So, that’s what he did! He took off for Florida where he enjoyed the sun and surf for over a week, ALL BY HIMSELF!
HAVE YOU EVER FELT LIKE THAT? We get so frustrated or aggravated about life that we either want to pull our hair out (or someone else’s hair) or else run away from it all!
Maybe your marriage hasn’t gone the way you thought it would.
ILL.- Marriage counselor: When things go wrong, do you blame each other? The couple: Not always. Sometimes we blame the children. Sometimes we blame the President and sometimes we just slam doors.
Marital bliss can sometimes turn into marital hiss! Or maybe it’s your parenting that is getting you down.
ILL.- One mother said, "These children are nuts today. I have a child myself. He is 12 years old. He is going to be 13...IF I LET HIM!" Raising kids is a hard job.
Or it could be your job that’s getting you down.
ILL.- The boss joined a group of his workers at coffee time and told a series of jokes he’d heard recently. Everybody laughed loudly. Everybody, that is, except Mike.
When he noticed that he was getting no reaction from Mike, the boss said, "What’s the matter, Mike? No sense of humor?"
"My sense of humor is fine," he said. "But I don’t have to laugh. I’m quitting tomorrow."
Did you ever have a job that you couldn’t wait to quit?
Every job or occupation has its drawbacks.
Brothers and sisters, life is tough! Bills pile up, health fails, marriages crumble, people hurt you or disappoint you, your job turns out to be a bummer, etc.
And perhaps there have been times when you have even thought about quitting the Christian life. And you began to think after a period of time, "What’s the use in coming to church? Why not just drop out and do what everybody else in the world is doing?" Life is tough and sometimes very disheartening. But we must not lose heart!
PROP.- In our text, we see what happens when we lose heart and how to overcome it.
1- Obvious doubt
2- Clear evidence
3- Great commendation
I. OBVIOUS DOUBT
We all tend to be doubters about certain things in life. Some doubting may be good and some may not be good.
ILL.- What would think if you got an e-mail note from someone in South Africa saying…“I had 30 million left to me as an inheritance but can’t get it for certain reasons. But I am willing to share a portion of it with you but I will need to transfer it to your bank in America. Please send me your bank account number.”
WOULD YOU DOUBT A LETTER LIKE THIS? I certainly hope you would. But then there is the other side of the coin.
ILL.- Many years ago Billy Graham looked over the 200 people who had come to hear him at a University of Minnesota student-faculty meeting, and remarked that many had come just out of curiosity. With a smile he added, “I can always count on the department of psychology showing up in full force.” I’m not sure that all psychologists are doubters of God’s Word, but some are.
Matt. 11:1-3 “After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee. When John heard in prison what Christ was doing, he sent his disciples to ask him, "Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?"
One commentator wrote: John has already recognized Jesus’ identity; now, in prison, he is undoubtedly discouraged and doubting, like many other men and women of God facing trials that seem greater than their power to endure.
As great as John the Baptizer was, he went through a period of doubt and discouragement. Doesn’t this happen to most of us? You try to do everything right and still, something backfires or blows up in your face and you begin to wonder, “God, where are you?” Or “What is going on?”
ILL.- Elaine and I recently saw the new movie, “The World Trade Center.” It’s a very good movie, based on the actual event of 9/11/01. It’s about two police officers who got buried in the rubble but were rescued.
They were two of only 20 people that were rescued from the rubble. Nearly 2,800 people perished in that horrific incident.
On that day, many people in the US doubted. They doubted the country’s ability to protect us. They doubted many things, including God.
Brothers and sisters, when the world around seems to be coming down on you, it’s easy to doubt.
Doubt is not necessarily bad. Abe Lincoln once said, “I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go.” The best place to go in any circumstance is to our knees. If doubt leads us to our knees, then so be it.
II. CLEAR EVIDENCE
Matt. 11:4-6 “Jesus replied, "Go back and report to John what you hear and see: The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me."
ILL.- Some people in days gone by did not have birth certificates. One such person was Will Rogers. One time Will Rogers was applying for a passport and the clerk asked him for his birth certificate. He said that he didn’t have one. She said that she needed one in order to issue a passport. He asked why. She replied, “So I can have proof of your birth.” Rogers answered, “Well, I’m here, ain’t I?” It was clearly evident that Will Rogers had been born!
Some proof in life is necessary and helpful. Does God exist? Well, let’s see if there is any proof.
ILL.- I have read that there are about 1,200,000 different kinds or species of animals that have been discovered and named by man. According to the National Geographic Society, each year an average of 50 mammals, 100 fish, 15 birds, and 5,000 insects are newly discovered. It is estimated there are several million distinct animal forms. HOW COULD THIS BE? God!
Rom. 1:18-20 “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.”
God has made it plain to us that He exists. All we have to do is look at His creation. It’s clear proof that He exists!
John the Baptizer as well as others needed evidence that Jesus was who He claimed to be. Jesus essentially said, “Look, open your eyes, and you’ll understand that I am He. I have healed the sick, raised the dead and preached the good news. Do you still doubt?”
What is our evidence for today? People. The changed lives of people. And the people who have faithfully followed Christ and never wavered.
ILL.- Chuck Colson was the Watergate conspirator whose life was dramatically changed after going to prison. And now he has what is called “Prison Fellowship,” which is a ministry that is focused on changing the lives of people in prison by pointing them to Christ. I’ve personally heard Chuck Colson speak and I must say that I believe Him and by believing him I believe even more in who Jesus is and what He said.
ILL.- Newsweek recently ran an article on the aging, 87 year old, Billy Graham. And he has always preached that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior of the world and that there is forgiveness and the promise of eternal life in Him. He said, "I can’t say that I like the fact that I can’t do everything I once did, but more than ever, as I read my Bible and pray and spend time with my wife, I see each day as a gift from God, and we can’t take that gift for granted."
He also said, “I think about heaven a great deal, I think about the failures in my life in the past, but know that they have been covered by the blood of Christ, and that gives me a great sense of confidence. I have a certainty about eternity that is a wonderful thing, and I thank God for giving me that certainty. I do not fear death. I may fear a little bit about the process, but not death itself, because I think the moment that my spirit leaves this body, I will be in the presence of the Lord."
Brothers and sisters, it’s when we hear words like these from a man like Graham, that we begin to trust more and believe. Both his life and his preaching are clear evidences that Jesus is who He claimed to be.
III. GREAT COMMENDATION
Matt. 11:7-11 “7As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: "What did you go out into the desert to see? A reed swayed by the wind? 8If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’ palaces. 9Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. 10This is the one about whom it is written: "’I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’ 11I tell you the truth: Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”
ILL.- Many years ago while attending the Ozark Christian College Preaching and Teaching Convention a former fellow student came up to me and some other preachers and announced that he had discovered the way to greater success in the ministry. He had a book entitled something like, “Dress for Success.” And he was a decked out in a rich looking three-piece suit. And he claimed his superb style of dress made a difference in his ministry.
While I am not against being clean and dressed nicely and/or stylishly for the occasion I certainly don’t believe that clothes make the person. This certainly wasn’t true in the case of John the Baptizer. He was God’s man who wore clothing of camel’s hair and a leather belt around his waist.
Jesus said in regard to John, “What did you expect from my prophet who is even more than a prophet? Did you expect him to be a man dressed in fine or fancy clothes?” What was the Lord trying to tell us about John? It’s what is on the inside that counts! That’s the real stuff that a person is made of.
I Sam. 16:1 “The LORD said to Samuel, "How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? “Fill your horn with oil and be on your way; I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king."
I Sam. 16:6-7 “When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, "Surely the LORD’s anointed stands here before the LORD." But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. “The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."
The heart of a person is more important to God than how we dress. Clothing may impress some people, some of the time, but they do nothing for God.
The Lord knew John’s heart and said, “Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist…” What a commendation! I doubt that anyone would say these words about you and me!
Even though John was highly commended, Jesus also said, “yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” How could someone who is least in the kingdom of heaven be greater than John the Baptizer who did so much good?
Matt. 20:26-28 “Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 28just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
Apparently, greatness doesn’t deal with the things that we would normally think of: wealth, fame, possessions, etc.
It may well be that the least in the kingdom of God, the most humble and the servant of all may well be the greatest in the kingdom. That’s backward thinking to the way we Americans think, however.
ILL.- I suspect that our brother Leon Burris will have a greater place in heaven than anyone who has ever preached for the Jonesboro Christian Church, including me.
What’s the lesson for us? The way to honor in God’s eyes is not up. It’s not wealth and possessions. It’s service and humility. The greatest commendation that any of us will ever receive is this: “Well done, thou good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of thy Lord.”
CONCLUSION------------------------
Job 14:1 “"Man born of woman is of few days and full of trouble.” Life is tough. It’s hard for us and hard on us. It’s easy to get discouraged and disheartened. We will question things. We will doubt at times, but there is evidence that God is still God and Jesus is still the Savior of the world!
ILL.- During an especially trying time in the work of the China Inland Mission, Hudson Taylor wrote to his wife, "We have twenty-five cents--and all the promises of God!”
ILL.- And Corrie Ten Boom said, ““When a train goes through a tunnel and it gets dark, you don’t throw away the ticket and jump off. You sit still and trust the engineer.”
Please don’t lose heart! We have the greatest engineer of all who knows exactly what He is doing. Just sit still and trust Him.
