weekly sermon

                        7-13-08

                Is There Ever Any Doubt?

I was reading an email recently about a ritual that takes place for a young boy to become a man. As the story goes, when a young boy is at the point in his life that he thinks he is ready to become a man, his father will blindfold him and take him to the woods. The instructions given to him prior to his journey is that he is to wear the blindfold all night long, only to be removed when he feels the first rays of the sun warm his face, and sit on a stump in the forest the entire night without moving from the stump or removing the blindfold. The young boy can not tell family, friends, or anyone about what is going to happen to him with the exception of his father of course, who is performing the ritual with the young lad. Telling others would spoil their own adventure and their true will to want to become a man. Once the boy is blindfolded he is led by his father deep into the forest to the stump to begin his journey into manhood. The father tells the young boy to remain seated on the stump and never for any reason remove the blindfold or the ritual is over and he will have to try to become a man some other time. The young boy has never felt more alone. He can not see, but his ears can hear and his imagination really takes control. He can hear all the sounds of the forest, the strange noises he is not familiar with, the sounds of the limbs of the trees and the leaves rustling, and the sounds of all types of animals roaming about. It is possible that any one of the animals could be ferocious or even deadly. No one could really imagine the fear going through his mind, except those in that position.

At the first sign of daylight, the boy is grateful that he has made it through the night and, with the new joy in his mind that he has become a man, he removes his blindfold. Once the boy removed the blindfold, he noticed that his father had been sitting there protecting him all night long. The young boy never had anything to worry about, as his father was always there to protect him from any harm or dangers.

Of course the email goes on to say that just like the young boys father, who was always there for the lad, even though he could not see him, our Heavenly Father is always with us, even when we can not see Him.

Turn with me if you will to Matthew 28:16-20, "Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them. (17)And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted. (18)And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. (19)Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: (20)Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen."

First thing I want us to think about is the young lad being led into the forest by his father. This young boy is walking into what he would consider, in his mind, something very dangerous, but he puts his complete trust in his father. He knows in his mind and heart that his father would never allow any harm to come to him, because this is a person he has known and loved his entire life, someone of total trust and faith. We all have family that we rely and lean on from time to time in times of trouble, sadness, and joy, just as this young boy had with his father.

Now as we read in Matthew, we see that the disciples went to a mountain where Jesus had told them to go. The one good thing here was that the disciples did not have a blindfold on, so they were able to see what they were walking into. Remember the boy had total trust and faith in his father to allow no harm to come to him, yet here we see that some of the disciples, who had followed Jesus from the beginning of His ministry, still had doubts. These are men that had been traveling all over the nations watching Jesus minister, healing the sick, raising the dead, making the deaf hear, making the sea do His bidding, walking on water, turning water into wine, and many other miracles. Even after all the signs and wonders they had witnessed while on their travels with Jesus, some still doubted, as it says in verse 17.

Jesus, in this story, was wanting the disciples to go into all the nations and teach all nations about God, and baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. The disciples were afraid of what the nations would do to them if they went out to do what Jesus had requested of them. They had blindfolds on, not knowing what type of dangers lay ahead of them. Jesus was trying to make these disciples become men and trust Him enough to wear the blindfolds and look with their hearts and not their eyes.

Lastly, look at the young boy's situation. He was given instructions, led into the forest, sat on a stump, and blindfolded for the entire night. After this frightening experience and upon removing his blindfold he found the comfort of knowing his father was always there. Once more time read the last part of verses 20, "...and, lo, I am with you alway, [even] unto the end of the world. Amen."

Jesus is sitting there next to us, to be with us through anything that we go through, whether it be fear, harm, disease, misfortune, and even joy. Our Father has always been here for us, whether we could see Him or not, and according to Matthew, He will be with us always, to the end of time.

Are you ready to take that first step at becoming a man? Put on your blindfold and allow Jesus to lead you where He wants you to go, with total trust in Him to protect your path. Once you see that nothing is coming against you, remove your blindfold, knowing that YOUR Father is sitting there with you. Its a leap of faith, one step at a time, a journey that will lead you to the condition of the faith that has always been inside you. All you need to do is listen to your heart and let it show you your path, as that is where Jesus resides.

There is no need for any doubt, as the disciples had, that our Father is always besides us, to guide us in our walks through life, here and after. All you need to do is take that first step, and walk by faith, just as it says in Corinthians; 2 Corinthians 5:7 "(For we walk by faith, not by sight:)" Just as I said earlier, the boy could not tell this to anyone because it would spoil their adventure and their own will. Of course we, just as Jesus, would want you tell everyone of your adventure, but it would still need to be your own will, just as it will need to be the will of anyone that wants to find this incredible faith. If you really want to become a man or woman, for Christ, and obey the trust, then remove the blindfold to see your Father sitting beside you, then all you need to do is say a simple little prayer with me.

Say this simple prayer with me, Dear Lord, take over my life and forgive me of my sins, and give me the gift of everlasting life. Amen.

If you have said this simple prayer, then we believe that you have received salvation. We would love to rejoice with you, so please drop us a note, in our link, to let us know and confess Jesus before man, so that we may send you a few things that we hope will help you in your new Christian walk.
 

With Love in Christ,

Pastor Stone