John the Baptist and Faith

John the Baptist served God as the forerunner of Christ. He announced the coming of the King and preached the gospel. Jesus called him the greatest born among women (Mt. 11:11). Despite his ministry role and spiritual strength, John had his breaking point. Early in Christ’s ministry, Herod arrested John (Mt. 4:12); and by Matthew 11, John was struggling.

John heard of Jesus’ works but expected the dominating kingdom to arrive sooner. So, John sent messengers to ask Jesus if He were the Messiah (Mt. 11:3). Jesus’ reply might surprise you, just as John’s question does. Jesus could have answered John's query with a simple "yes." But instead, Jesus answered the question by directing John’s thinking back to Scripture: “The blind receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them” (Mt. 11:4-5; cf. Is. 35:5ff.; 61:1). Jesus directed John to live by faith and trust the Word of God.

We can learn several lessons. (1) Faith is exercised by believing what the Bible says over any kind of circumstance. (2) During trials God's Word gives us confidence in God’s plan. (3) Believers, regardless of the amount of time saved, might struggle with faith. (4) Christ holds the spiritually mature to the same standard as everyone else: faith in His Word.