God's Eraser

Corrie ten Boom put it well when she said, "God has taken our sin. He has thrown it into the sea of forgetfulness, and he has posted a sign that says, 'No fishing allowed.' "

We should not choose to remember what God has chosen to forget.


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An Element of Faith

For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came to us in Asia: that we were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life.
— 2 Corinthians 1:8

In my reading today the passage reveals how human the apostles were. The writer felt it was vital that the readers realized this, stating "we do not want you to be ignorant" - there were times when they "despaired even of life"!

Greg Laurie comments that doubt and despair are not necessarily bad or sinful - in fact, it shows a mind which is working, considering, struggling with something - it is an element of faith.

A French proverb says, "He that knows nothing doubts nothing." Sometimes doubt is not the opposite of faith; it is an element of faith. It means we are thinking something through. We are grappling with it. We are trying to process and understand it. And sometimes we have to go through the foyer of doubt to enter into the sanctuary of certainty.

Doubting is not necessarily sinful. Doubt is a matter of the mind, while unbelief is a matter of the will. Doubt says, "I don't get it. Help me understand this. Work with me through this." But unbelief says, "I get it. I don't like it. And I refuse to accept it."


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Struggling with Doubt

And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples and said to Him, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?"
— Matthew 11:2


My daily reading this morning was on the passage where John the baptist heard reports of the works of Jesus and sent his disciples to ask Jesus whether he was the Messiah or whether they should keep looking/waiting.

Greg Laurie points put that even great men of the faith have moments of great doubt. I believe that and think it's very important to recognize this. Often we have an unrealistic, unreasonable and down-right wrong view of what the Christian life is like or should be like.

But what I took away from this reading is the way in which John dealt with the situation.

First, he assessed the information he received. He tested it against his understanding of what the Messiah was to be. The criteria presumably was based on scripture (or his understanding of it).

Next, he sought confirmation. He got his followers to seek out Jesus and to ask if he indeed was the Messiah. He no doubt would've gone to Jesus personally if he could, but this was the next best thing.

This step is significant to me because it's common for Christians to assess a situation or person by their understanding of it and then proceed to a conclusion or judgement without seeking clarification or explanation. Just imagine if John did that!

Jesus responded with grace and told the disciples to report what was going on - one might have expected Jesus to be insulted by the questioning (I know I would've).

Although not recorded, I believe that the messengers did give John the report of the encounter and that John's confidence was restored - call me a sap for a happy ending.




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