"Out With Doubt?!" You Better Check That Attitude

“Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted” (Matthew 28:16-17).

What?! Some of the 11 doubted? I think today we’d toss the doubters out on their ears!

At Corinth (really no surprise there) some did not believe in the resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:12). Paul does not simply ignore this as he spends a lot of time defending the reality of the resurrection, but he doesn’t withdraw from them either. Today preachers would vilify this church on Facebook. (It takes too much time, effort, and love to talk to people face-to-face.)

I mention these things because doubt is normal, and it may be that we sometimes doubt and feel that if we let anyone know about our doubts that we’d be criticized. The truth is we would probably be criticized, but that’s other people’s problem as they struggle with their own insecurities.

The apostle John said this:

Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. (1 John 3:18-20)

 “God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.”

When we doubt — notice that I said WHEN and not IF — we should trust that God is longsuffering and that his longsuffering is our salvation (2 Peter 3:15). And so, with doubt should hopefully come a desire for a greater comfort: not necessarily more knowledge, but more love, mercy, and faith.

The apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith!" And the Lord said, "If you had faith like a grain of mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, 'Be uprooted and planted in the sea,' and it would obey you. "Will any one of you who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep say to him when he has come in from the field, 'Come at once and recline at table'? Will he not rather say to him, 'Prepare supper for me, and dress properly, and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you will eat and drink'? Does he thank the servant because he did what was commanded? So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.'" (Luke 17:5-10)

Two Funerals In Two Days

It's the way it all happened. One passed away on a Thursday morning, the other on the following Monday morning. But their funeral services were scheduled back-to-back. Two funerals in two days.

It's atypical wisdom suggesting that going to a funeral is a good thing—despite the prefix of the word "funeral" is "fun" (and it's really not a prefix at all).

A good name is better than precious ointment, and the day of death than the day of one's birth. It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting; for that is the end of all men; and the living will lay it to his heart. Sorrow is better than laughter; for by the sadness of the face the heart is made better. The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of laughter. It is better to hear the rebuke of the wise than for a man to hear the song of fools (Ecclesiastes 7:1-5 MKJV).

Life is short. The two who recently passed away and whose funerals were so close together were 85 and 92, respectively. If I knew today that I would live to be 85, that would give me 39 years from this point on. I might want more. Isn't it funny that older people often say things like: "Time flies!"

Hardly anyone needs to have this fact of life's brevity pointed out, but sometimes the reminder is very helpful. And so we should strive to remember this and live by being helpful to others, kind, merciful, loving, and compassionate.

It's easy enough to accept that everyone is going to die, but it's a mighty big step in understanding to get to the point that "I" am going to die. It's going to happen—as Bertrand Russell put it, "There's an amazing statistic among men: one out of every one dies." It really doesn't take someone as SMRT (think Homer Simpson) as Russell to inform us of this truth.

Funerals remind me of the general statement: "Live in such a way that, when you die, and the preacher preaches nice things about you, no one's going to wonder if it was really you."

And in this we shall know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before Him, that if our heart accuses us, God is greater than our heart and knows all things. Beloved, if our heart does not accuse us, we have confidence toward God. And whatever we ask, we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do those things that are pleasing in His sight. And this is His commandment, that we should believe on the name of His Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as He gave us commandment. And he who keeps His commandment dwells in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit which He gave to us. (1 John 3:19-24 MKJV)