Series: Celebrate Christmas (or Christmas Doubt) Week 1: I Doubt He Is King
Intro: When did you realize that Santa wasn’t real?
Many of us get stuck in a child view of Christmas, of Christ and never really grow up through our doubts into an adult view of Christ, an adult view of Christmas.
In fact, if you think Christmas is about a baby in a manger instead of a King on a throne you need to begin to doubt some more. You need to rethink Christmas. You need to engage in some honest doubt and get to the Truth.
Simple Truths on Doubt:
We Doubt Because We Are Not God.
God Is Not Threatened By Our Doubt. Your doubt or your belief only changes you. It does not change God, it changes you.
In fact, we live in a world where we have to settle doubt. Right? TRUTH IS: Maybe We Should Doubt More. I guess what I am really saying is: How come it is okay to doubt God, … but to doubt anything else that is said in the media or in culture is insensitive?
It is a curious thing what we feel like we have permission to doubt and not doubt.
How come the only thing we can doubt these days is God? It’s okay to doubt what God says is good, right, and true, but we can’t doubt what the world says is good, right or true without being insensitive.
How come we can doubt the Bible but not what culture says?
How is it we can question the very definition of life, but not the rights of women who want to end a pregnancy?
How come we can doubt creation but not evolution, … but we can’t talk about that because we shouldn’t doubt science? Why is it that we can doubt a Biblical definition of marriage but not the culture’s views on same sex relationships? How come it’s okay to doubt Jesus, … and you just can’t doubt anything else?
Maybe there is something wrong when we kind of question things only when it comes to God. Shouldn’t we be asking the same questions of everything else going on in the world? When the world says, “Doubt God, but don’t doubt anything we say.” Shouldn’t that cause you to doubt?
Here’s my point: Doubt More. Put the world’s view of good, right and true through the same doubting filter you put God and His Word through. I’m not telling you not to doubt. Honest doubt is good.
The problem is not that we “doubt” Jesus. The problem is that we “dismiss” Him beyond reason. We haven’t even sought the reasons. We haven’t done a rational search because doubt wasn’t a question. We just dismiss Him.
Honest doubt would cause us to engage reason and God has given reasons to remove doubt.
Matthew summarizes for us 4 signs you need to read to remove doubt particularly in regard to the King.
- Bethlehem (Matthew 2:1-6) is a prophecy from Micah 5:2-4.
- Egypt (Matthew 2:13-15) Hosea 11:1 gives the prediction of Jesus in Egypt. Herod wasn’t going to kill a kid. He was going to kill a king. He believed it, so Jesus had to go to Egypt.
- Ramah (Matthew 2:16-18) Herod believed it. He wasn’t threatened by a kid but by a King. Herod believed this to be true and therefore he acted. I would want to ask Herod, “If you believe it’s true, then wouldn’t it be better to bow? Wouldn’t you rather bow to the King than be an enemy of the King?
By trying to remove Jesus from the earth, Herod actually fulfilled the prophecy which confirmed He is King. Which might make sense as to why we doubt God and want to remove the manger today in our nation-not because He isn’t King but because He is.
Why would you be threatened by a baby in a manger? Why would you even care? Why is it such a big deal to get the Christ out of Christmas unless, of course, there is something to it. Because Herod wanted to be king.
I just wonder how many of us, we don’t really doubt, we just prefer to be king. And that’s what’s really going on. It’s that we want to be king and we would rather remove Him. It’s not because there is a lack of evidence, we’d just rather be king.
- Nazareth (Matthew 2:19-23) God gave us signs, prophecies from hundreds of years prior, 4 different locations from different times, so that once these signs came together they would all point to Jesus the Christ and that you and I would know. All you have to do is read the signs. This should really remove doubt by basis of reason alone, if you know how to read the signs. But sometimes we stumble at reading the signs.
Illustration: Donna the Deer Lady on Youtube: Donna didn’t understand the purpose of the signs.
That’s the difficulty many are having spiritually. We read Matthew 2 and we’re like, “That’s so great to hear about that little baby!” and we just don’t get it. And God is saying, “Whoa, I just changed the world if you know how to read the signs! This is not a kid in a manger. This is the King of the Universe coming to you!”
In 1 Peter 1:10-12, Peter talks about the purpose of prophecy and that the prophets back in their time were wrestling with what does this mean? And we are now blessed to have an understanding because the signs come together. Some 300 plus prophecies fulfilled by Christ alone. It’s mind boggling.
So basically, there are 2 types of people-believers and doubters. If you are a believer, great. You were once a doubter who discovered that God gives good reason to dissolve doubt. So we have every reason to celebrate Christmas, don’t we? Who has a better reason to celebrate Christmas than those who already understand the Christ of Christmas?
But, I want to throw out a caution to you, because some of you are sitting here saying, “I don’t need this because I don’t doubt.” When you say you don’t doubt be aware that some of us don’t confirm that by our behavior. In fact, some of us are communicating that we don’t doubt with our lips, but we do doubt because of our behavior. When your life and behavior is inconsistent with the King’s morals-how you handle money, marriage, faith, life, love other people-you are communicating unbelief. It may be the question to us, “What area in your life needs to come under His kingship?” Is there an area that you are king over in your life while you’re saying He’s King? And maybe the whole question for you today is, “What would God say needs to come back under His Kingship?”
The other type of people are the doubters. Good for you! In fact, I would encourage you to doubt-honest doubt, so that it would lead you to trust, that you would jump in to understanding the reasons God has given that help remove doubt. But hang on, I know there are some who don’t even believe the Bible. We dismiss that because we don’t understand the historical veracity, authenticity and reliability of the Bible. We question how the Bible got here and whether or not it’s even from God. So, I want to encourage you to doubt and then let your doubt cause you to reflect, research and check that out. If you are a doubter and you don’t even believe these prophecies even happened, I encourage you to doubt-honest doubt-so much that you check it out. Scrutinize it because there is historical context.
To those who are doubters: What else should you be doubting?
To the believers: Who are the “doubters” you are helping?