engaging our doubts

doubt [dout] v. - to be uncertain about; consider questionable or unlikely; hesitate to believe; to distrust; to be uncertain about something; be undecided in opinion or belief; a feeling of uncertainty about the truth, reality, or nature of something.

Every Christian has them – sometimes about some very basic things relating to our faith. Haunting questions that we don’t have answers for; doubts that somehow keep us an arm’s length from fully embracing God’s truth.

Where does doubt come from? Read Genesis 3:1-4; John 8:44

What does doubt keep us from? Read Matthew 14:22-31; Mark 11:22-25; James 1:5-8

Is it alright to have doubts in regards to our faith? Why or why not?

Dealing with our doubts:

There were a group of people mentioned in the New Testament who lived in a town called Berea. During one of his missionary journeys, the apostle Paul went to Berea and told them about the forgiveness of sins that Jesus had won for them by dying on the cross. Paul taught the Bereans that Jesus was the Messiah (the Redeeming King) that the Jews had been waiting for all along.

Read Acts 17:10-12

How did the Berean’s respond to Paul’s message?

The Bereans give us an excellent example of how to respond to any form of teaching that we encounter:

1) _________________________________________________________

2) _________________________________________________________

3) _________________________________________________________

If we find that the teaching that we’ve received is false or flawed, it is important to go back to the source of the teaching, ask questions for clarification, examine it again, and if still doesn’t line up with what God’s Word says, reject it.

Read John 20:24-31

How would you describe Thomas?

Look at the way Jesus handled Thomas’ doubt. What does this tell you about Jesus?

If we have doubts, what should we do with them?

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God wants us to be able to trust Him and believe that what He has said is true. Having doubts get in the way of us trusting God. It’s really important for us to do whatever we can to clear up any doubts that we have because doubts trip up our relationship with God. For each of us to have a real relationship with God we need to discover truth for ourselves, we also must wrestle with our doubts and turn them into certainty.

Over the next while we are going to be

examining several “Hot Topics” that we need

to engage as Christians. Some of these

will come out of the doubts survey that we

did tonight, others will come out of a Christian response to our culture. As we study and dialogue with some of these issues and doubts we’ll receive clarity and boldness in our faith.