John the Baptist was there in the dark, damp prison provided by Herod Antipas. He had time to think. It has been my experience that sometimes the time in the middle of a crisis when all is quiet is when satan starts bringing doubt to mind. John must have known he would not walk out alive. He sits there, thinking. Some of his disciples visit and he requests they ask Jesus a question. He wants to know, “Are you the Messiah we have been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?”
John the Baptist baptized Jesus in the River Jordan. He saw a dove land on Jesus and heard the voice of God from heaven confirming who was standing in the water with him. That was pretty solid proof. I wonder if in his heart he knew the answer and yet he is sitting in a prison.
John may have struggled a bit because he knew the words of Isaiah 13:6-11.
I am paraphrasing because of the length of this passage but it foretells that One is coming who will paralyze every arm with fear. Every heart will melt and people will be terrified. Sinners will be destroyed. The Lord will punish the world for its evil and the wicked for their sin. He will crush the arrogant and humble the prideful. He will shake the heavens and move the earth from its place. A warrior was expected.
Yet Jesus is going from place to place talking about His Father. Speaking about love and visiting the homes of sinners. Healing and feeding. Not what a warrior is accused of for sure. A warrior would break him out of this cold, dark, damp place. He had to get some clarification from Jesus.
The answer returns back to John. (Matt 11:4-6) He must have wondered, if Jesus had made the blind to see, raised the dead, etc., etc. Why am I still in this prison? It was probably not the answer he expected and yet it seems he received it. The scriptures tell us he was beheaded shortly after at the direction of the evil ruler, Herod Antipas.
Thought For Today:
Haven’t we all sat in dark places before. Prisoners of circumstances that seem out of our control. We find ourselves in the valley and wonder, “Is Jesus who we believe Him to be?” Overwhelmed with fear we send our own messages in the form of prayers to God through this same Jesus. Sometimes the answers that come back are not what we expected. Suffering, sorrow and pain visit us. But in time, so does comfort, peace and healing.
Christ knew He was going to suffer and die. Before the prisoners of a world of sin could be set free, Jesus would have to suffer, die and be raised again. He would set up His reign and then John, you and I could be set free from our own prisons. John the Baptist, His forerunner, the one prophesied by Isaiah who would come crying in the wilderness, “prepare ye the way for the coming of the Lord,” (Mark 1:3) would also suffer and die but live again with his beloved Messiah in eternity.
The next time Jesus comes will be different. He will come fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah 13:6-11. He will ride in as a warrior. Pain, sickness, death and evil will finally get its due at the hands of the King of Kings. Our purpose? Continue to read God’s word, pray and tell people about Jesus, the Messiah, the Savior who saves the lost. We are not without hope. Believers are assured that to be absent from this body is to be present with the Lord. No matter what happens in this world, those who believe will live eternally with the Messiah. We will have perfect bodies that will live forever.
Scripture For Today:
Matthew 11:2-3
2 John the Baptist, who was in prison, heard about all the things the Messiah was doing. So he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, 3 “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?” (NLT)
Matthew 11:4-6
4 Jesus told them, “Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen— 5 the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor. 6 And tell him, ‘God blesses those who do not turn away because of me.’ (NTL)
Prayer For Today:
Hello Father! We pray for understanding that nothing happens to us or those we love that You don’t know the details of it all. You know where we sit and the tears that fall. We pray for peace and assurance during those times we sit in dark places, when things are not easy and out of control. Thank You for sending Your Son to die for our sins. Give us the courage of John the Baptist crying out from the wilderness…Time is short, prepare ye the way, for the return of our Lord. Forgive us our sins. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
©2015 Kathy Ledbetter. All rights reserved.