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Announcer (00:00:00): It's time to think about the Bible like you never have before. This is Christian Questions. Experience more episodes, videos and Bible study resources at ChristianQuestions.com. Today's topic is, "How Can I Doubt My Doubt? (Part I)" When is the last time you had a doubt? Most likely it was today. But why? Face it. We all have doubts all the time. The question is, what are our doubts doing to us? Are they helping us or are they hurting us? How can we tell? What's the formula for having our doubts play a positive role in our lives? Here's Rick, Jonathan and Julie.

Rick (00:00:37): Welcome everyone. I'm Rick. I'm joined by Jonathan, my co-host for over 25 years. Julie, a longtime CQ contributor is also with us. Jonathan, what's our theme scripture for this episode?

Jonathan (00:00:48): Matthew 28:16-17: "Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them. And when they saw him, they worshiped him: but some doubted."

Rick (00:01:03): Everybody doubts. So is this a good thing or a bad thing? The answer is a resounding yes. Doubt can be a godly tool of necessary and righteous caution just as easily as it can be an ungodly tool of imperfect human judgment and destruction. Appropriate doubt, which is in fact integrity-based, is an early warning system that can keep us focused on and engaged in the most important things. This kind of doubt is a welcome addition to our lives and should be counted on. By the same token, highly-charged doubt that's primarily fed by feelings and personal preferences needs to be examined and adjusted according to higher godly standards. So, how can we learn to doubt the doubts we should doubt without doubting the doubts that undoubtedly protect us? Sorry.

Julie (00:01:55): Oh boy.

Rick (00:01:55): I had to do that. I had to do that. Sorry.

Jonathan (00:01:59): The dictionary definitions for doubt include "being uncertain of belief or opinion" and "to deliberately suspend judgment while we seek additional information."

Julie (00:02:10): You've heard the expression to have "nagging doubts." These can be good to stop us when something just doesn't seem right. So, it's important to question why we feel this way.

Jonathan (00:02:19): In any and every case of doubt, there's always something we don't know or something we don't trust that provokes our doubt. Are my doubts helping me to look at my faith so that I can have more trust?

Rick (00:02:32): Alright, so we're talking about doubt and typically we look at doubt as an opposite of faith. Let's look at Hebrews chapter 11:1-2 as an example:

Jonathan (00:02:42): "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. For by it the men of old gained approval."

Julie (00:02:51): We're going to suggest that there are some levels and kinds of doubt that are symptoms of a lack of faith. There's an inverse correlation. The more doubt you have, the less faith you have; the more faith you have, the less doubt you have. However, we're also going to suggest that there are some levels and kinds of doubts that are part of our faith growing into absolute trust. Doubt can be either destructive or constructive and it's important to dig under the surface. We came up with a list of questions to ask ourselves in order to better understand the origin of our doubt and then we can decide what to do with it. We want to ask the first question. It identifies, "What or whom am I doubting?"

Jonathan (00:03:31): Next, we want to ask, "Is this doubt primarily based on my heart being troubled?"

Julie (00:03:37): Or perhaps, "Is this doubt primarily based on my mind not seeing or understanding?"

Jonathan (00:03:43): The next question is, "What brings this doubt to my heart or mind?"

Julie (00:03:47): Finally we want to ask, "Does this doubt help or hinder my Christian experience?" As we said, doubt can be destructive or constructive. Sometimes doubt is good and it leads to solid truth and faith.

Rick (00:04:01): One of the things we need to be aware of is doubt can actually have both things working at the same time. We'll develop that as we go a little further down. This is a two-part series. But these questions are really designed to take a look at ourselves in the mirror and say, "Where am I? What's causing my doubt?" Because if we can isolate that, we can begin to understand how it works. Let's begin by examining doubt, by looking at when doubt was very first time, the very first time it was introduced into human history. We're going to take a look at the very beginning.

Julie (00:04:35): We're going to talk about Eve. Her doubt came as a result of deception. Forget all that you know about Satan. To Eve he would've been just Lucifer, a representative of God. In Ezekiel 28:11-16, he's allegorically described as the "king of Tyre." It says: "You were...full of wisdom, perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God...You were the anointed cherub who covers, and I (God) placed you there." That word "anointed" has the sense of "expansion, outspread, like with outstretched wings." We believe he was placed in Eden to protect Adam and Eve as a covering angel.

Jonathan (00:05:14): We aren't told why he took the form of a serpent. But in Genesis 3:1 it says this: "Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, Indeed, has God said, You shall not eat from any tree of the garden?"

Rick (00:05:33): Satan asked a question. Why? Why is he asking a question? Well, he's testing what Eve knew and what she believed to be true. Why? Why is he doing that? He's doing it so he can subvert the authority of God's command and replace it with his own leading. He had an agenda and that's where the question comes from.

Julie (00:05:59): Yeah, he asked the question knowing full well the answer. Because if you notice, that question was structured in such a way to plant a seed of doubt. "Did God really say this to you? Hmm. Well that's odd, isn't it?"

Rick (00:06:12): Yeah.

Julie (00:06:13): So mean.

Rick (00:06:14): You can see how doubt is going to easily, easily begin to rise here. Let's look at Eve's immediate response according to Genesis 3:2-3:

Jonathan (00:06:27): "The woman said to the serpent, From the fruit of the trees of the garden, we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die."

Rick (00:06:40): Eve has that answer right there. Bang, bang, bang. She knows it. She knows what it is, she knows where it is and she knows not to go near it. That's a very, very, very important answer, a very important part of this. There's no reason to challenge this answer in her own mind until the next piece. Genesis 3:4-5:

Jonathan (00:07:03): "The serpent said to the woman, You surely will not die! For God knows that in the day you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."

Rick (00:07:15): You see, Satan's response was powerful and affirmative. "You surely will not die." He makes a plain, strong statement. Julie, like you said before, Eve would've looked up to Lucifer in this scenario. She's seeing an authority giving her an affirmative statement that says, "Oh no, that's not going to happen." This is where the seeds of doubt are planted. How is it? Well, Satan's response was a partial truth mixed with a serious lie. The truth was expressed in the power of the tree of life in conjunction with the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Let's put those together for a moment here. Let's go to Genesis 3:22 and put these pieces together. Go ahead Jonathan:

Jonathan (00:08:04): "Then the LORD God said, Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now he might stretch out his hand, and take also from the tree of life and eat and live forever."

Rick (00:08:16): See, when he says, "The man's become like one of us," that's the truth. Satan repeated that truth. God's response is, "Well, now that he knows, prematurely, we're going to have to do something." The lie was a blatant omission of God's command that death would absolutely come as a result of disobedience. God made it plain, "You shall surely die, dying thou shall die." Yet Satan said, "Oh no. Oh no, no, no, no. That's not going to happen." He repeats part of a truth, and then he goes into his lie. Here's what God does to fulfill what He said would happen. Genesis 3:23:

Jonathan (00:08:58): "Therefore the LORD God sent him out of the Garden of Eden, to cultivate the ground from which he was taken." To be cut off from the tree of life was to be cut off from eternal life, so Adam started the dying process. 2 Peter 3:8 says: "A day to the Lord is as thousand years." Adam lived 930 years within that one day.

Julie (00:09:20): Satan acknowledged part of what God said, but he left out the crucial pieces of it. It's said that an effective lie always has a little bit of truth in it. We know who invented that technique!

Rick (00:09:31): You can see why doubt arises here. You can see why, because it's an authority figure giving authoritative information. You look at that and say, "Okay, there's a reasonability to this doubt," but you have to know what's the most important thing. With this new "knowledge," Eve makes a choice. Genesis 3:6:

Jonathan (00:09:58): "When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate."

Julie (00:10:13): Satan had her eating right out of his hands, so to speak. Her doubt led to sin, misery and death.

Rick (00:10:19): It's a very, very sad thing that you have a doubt that opens the floodgate to sin, misery and death. Let's look at this, let's examine. We had asked those questions before about doubt. What kind of doubt was Eve's doubt? Was it constructive? Was it destructive? How did it work? What was she doubting and so forth? Should she have doubted her doubt?

Jonathan (00:10:43): Well, let's go through our list of doubt questions first. What or whom was Eve doubting?

Julie (00:10:49): Well, she was doubting the Almighty God, and she knew God instructions because she was able to repeat them. But Satan contradicted the consequences and made it seem to Eve like God was either holding back pertinent information, He had changed His mind, or maybe even that He lied. She had no experience with anyone contradicting God.

Jonathan (00:11:10): Was her doubt primarily based on her heart being troubled?

Julie (00:11:14): Well, it seems like Satan maybe manipulated her emotions in order to lead her astray. That makes me think how our feelings generally manifest before we think or reason things out.

Jonathan (00:11:24): Was this doubt primarily based on her mind not seeing or understanding?

Julie (00:11:30): No, because she told Satan exactly what God said. Did you notice she even added that she wasn't supposed to touch the tree? That part wasn't in the original command. Maybe it's what Adam told her just to make sure they doubly sure were not tempted to go near it. But this tells us she did understand the instructions.

Jonathan (00:11:47): What brought this doubt to her heart?

Julie (00:11:50): Ugh, Lucifer. He was the protector of the Garden of Eden, that covering cherub. She likely saw him as someone in authority if she knew he was the serpent. Now, we're not told why she wasn't shocked that a snake could talk, so there's a lot of conjecture. But in any case, she took the word of the created being instead of going back to her Creator to ask for clarification. She accepted new information without asking the source why the information would change.

Jonathan (00:12:19): Did this doubt help or hurt her life experience?

Julie (00:12:22): Okay, well obviously the tragic results affect us all to this day. This was absolutely destructive doubt. She doubted God. She allowed Satan's influence to override the command of God, and God is always our highest authority.

Rick (00:12:37): When we look at these questions, this series, these five little questions, you see how answering them opens up the doubt and makes it plain, makes it simple, makes it straightforward? You say, "Okay, here's what I'm doubting and here's why, and here are the consequences, and here's the internal workings of my own doubt." Folks, it's so important for us to be able to ask questions like this so we can understand when we should be doubting our doubt. Eve's doubt was absolutely a destructive doubt as it was stimulated by an evil deception. This is actually mentioned in the New Testament in 2 Corinthians 11:3:

Jonathan (00:13:15): "But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness (or "trickery" in some translations), your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ." According to Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon, this word for "craftiness" or "trickery" means "cunning; a specious or false wisdom." "Specious" means "superficially plausible, but actually wrong, such as a specious argument." Something that is specious is misleading in appearance, especially misleadingly attractive or beautiful.

Julie (00:13:52): Gee, is anything in this society especially misleadingly attractive? Satan uses this same trap over and over again for thousands of years and mankind keeps falling for it. Eve's doubt was instigated by Satan's superficially plausible and misleadingly attractive lie of a direct contradiction of the word of God.

Jonathan (00:14:14): Satan will try anything to plant doubt no matter how simple or outrageous.

Julie (00:14:20): Think about it - sin is misleadingly attractive. Peer pressure of society and those in our close association reinforce our doubt of what's right and wrong, because the lines get blurred more and more.

Rick (00:14:32): You're looking at this destructive doubt and pinpointing all of the reasons why it's destructive. This gives us reason to have constructive doubt about sin, about Satan, about all of these things that are outside of the lines of righteousness, godly righteousness. We need to really focus in and clearly understand how all of this really works together. Jonathan, as we wrap up this piece, Dismantling Doubt and Fulfilling Our Faith, what do we have?

Jonathan (00:14:59): The example of Eve is a stark and clear message regarding doubt. Simply stated, we are to never doubt God, even when the supposed evidence brought before us seems to be compelling. Any and every time we are being provoked to doubt the word of God, we are being provoked to stand for sin and evil.

Rick (00:15:20): Now, that's an important statement, but it's also almost an oversimplified statement, because how do you know if you're doubting the word of God? You've got all these Christian denominations with all these different understandings of the word of God, so you've got to dig deeply into the word of God and see how it harmonizes with itself. Then we can be far more sure that we're not doubting the word of God, but we are in fact doubting the traditions of men. This is very important here. While doubt is a common part of our lives, we need to be aware that could also be a tricky part of our lives as well.

Jonathan (00:15:54): Eve's doubt experience was unique because there was only God and Satan. What about other doubt experiences that include our own life issues?

Rick (00:16:03): You're right, Eve's experience definitely establishes a simple and straightforward baseline of any other doubt challenges that come our way. Our next example is another destructive doubt account that features the complex issues of imperfect human beings dealing with their hard life experiences. Now we're going to look at something that's not at the beginning, but we're going to look at something through the eyes of hard life experiences. Now remember all doubt, whether it's constructive or destructive, all doubt has some kind of building blocks that it stands upon. As we examine both kinds of doubt, both constructive and destructive doubt, we want to do so by pointing out what each example of doubt is actually built upon. What kind of building blocks are there? Jonathan, let's get started.

Jonathan (00:17:01): Well, a prime example of this is Israel after their deliverance from slavery in Egypt. As a massive group of people, they develop serious doubts as a result of several hard tests regarding their physical circumstances. These tests revealed underlying discontent and mistrust. We will examine just one instance.

Julie (00:17:21): Remember, these people as they were being led out of Egypt, they were meticulously led every step of the way by a pillar of cloud by day and by fire by night. God literally directed their every step.

Rick (00:17:36): All right, so you've got literally God directing every step of these millions of people and we're going to see some very destructive doubt arise in the midst of this. The question is, "Well, why does that happen?" Well, let's look. In Exodus 15:23 at Marah, the water source was bitter. We remember that account. God gave instructions to Moses to add a piece of wood to the water and he made it sweet. Then they could drink the water and everybody was happy. Well, this next account, two chapters later at Exodus in Exodus 17 is Israel's second murmuring for water. It's not the first time; it's the second time they're murmuring about having enough water to drink. So it's Exodus 17:1-7. We're going to start with verse 1:

Jonathan (00:18:21): "Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed by stages from the wilderness of Sin (this was a place in Eastern Egypt), according to the command of the LORD, and camped at Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink." Now this would not have been an unusual issue. Three million people in the wilderness with no map or rest areas to be found!

Rick (00:18:46): Yeah, that's right. It's like, "Okay, we're thirsty." This is something that you would expect would come up. It's a difficult thing, and it's rightfully a difficult thing, and it's rightfully the kind of thing that can cause insecurity. Let's look at the building block here, the doubt building block, and let's define it. Physical needs; that can be a building block for doubt. Physical needs change our emotional state and therefore alter our capacity to think with our logical minds. This is the destructive building block of deep need. When we have deep need, especially physical needs, we need to be on our guard to say, "Okay, this can be a prime area for doubt to flourish." Remember, we're talking about destructive doubt here.

Julie (00:19:37): There's a word for that, Rick. It's "hangry." When I get so hungry, I get angry, I'm hangry. This does happen.

Rick (00:19:45): It does, it does. Does it really?

Julie (00:19:47): Yeah, yeah, yeah. Absolutely.

Rick (00:19:48): Oh, okay. Alright, just checking. So we've got this physical need and it's a big physical need. Let's look at Exodus 17:2:

Jonathan (00:19:58): "Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said to them, Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?" Moses is saying, "Don't argue with me. We are in God's hands, not mine."

Julie (00:20:13): That's right. But managing thirst is no easy matter and cattle needing water, this is a circumstance of importance. Children being thirsty, this is high level urgency. Moses' response indicates that he assures them of God's care. Like maybe he reminded them that this wasn't their first water emergency. God takes care of them.

Rick (00:20:33): That's the message Moses is saying, "Why do you test the Lord?" In other words, "God's got us. God's got us. Haven't you seen that already?" Now I'm reading a lot of extra into this, but understand that's where Moses stands. But you've got the masses of people that are saying to him, "Give us water," demanding water here. This defines another doubt building block. Physical needs provoke us to a demanding attitude and often press us to reject logical or experiential reasoning. We reject those things. This is the destructive building block of arguments and demands. When we have a physical need, a deep need and the "hangry" situation kind of falls into place, now we are arguing and we're demanding. You start to get blinded when you're in an argumentative or demanding scenario. Doubt easily builds where it actually doesn't need to build.

Julie (00:21:38): Yeah, but we've got to be a little sympathetic because they're thirsty. They're trying to explain to their kids why the water skins aren't full again, and it sounds like a mob mentality is going to start because people are going to start to panic. This is a legitimate need. You know, think of the last time that you were really hungry or thirsty. It's uncomfortable. All you can think of is, "I need this water, and now we're trapped in middle of nowhere with no rescue plan."

Rick (00:22:03): Well you're right. We do want to take a look at this and pause and say, "Wow, they had a real serious challenge," because you've got all of those people, and there you are and there is no evidence around you that there's any water. Think about that. You're looking to the left, to the right, in front of you, behind you, and it's like, "What are we going to do? This is serious."

Julie (00:22:24): It's making me thirsty right now.

Rick (00:22:27): We need to understand and really appreciate the actual reality of this particular doubt. Let's go to Exodus, let's go further. Let's go to Exodus 17:3:

Jonathan (00:22:37): "But the people thirsted there for water; and they grumbled against Moses and said, Why, now, have you brought us up from the land of Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?" I wonder how close Moses was to complete chaos from the people.

Rick (00:22:54): Well, there's a grumbling, and now there's another level of their doubt that has come into play. Now let's define another one of doubt's building blocks. Remember, this is destructive doubt. Now the people resort to absurd conclusions. Why have you brought us out of Egypt to kill us and our children, our livestock with thirst? That's an absurd conclusion after the miracle after miracle after miracle that God brought them out to safety. He's been guiding their every step. It's an absurd conclusion, but they are physically in great need. You've got this really big balancing thing going on. They mix their very real concern - and here's the problem - they mix that real concern with a belittling of God's protective power. That is the destructive building block of irrational accusations. When we in our doubt go down the road of irrational accusations, we have gone down a road that many times you cannot recover from because you are so over-the-top, nothing real actually matters. They're getting more and more angry and demanding. It's become irrational at this point.

Julie (00:24:15): Yeah, this isn't just entry-level grumbling. I looked at some of the Bible commentaries, and they're very sympathetic to the panic of the people. Ellicott's Commentary said, "Nothing but a very lively faith or an utter resignation to the will of God could have made these people patient and submissive in such an extremity." Barnes' Notes said, "The severity of the trial, the faintness and anguish of thirst in the burning desert must not be overlooked in appreciating their conduct."

Jonathan (00:24:44): Their deep need caused the people to become argumentative and irrational.

Julie (00:24:49): With us, it could be either extreme need or I feel something like chronic pain. When we're going through that we can start to doubt God's care for us, even though He has led us this far.

Rick (00:25:00): We can. You can see it's happening right here. Moses feels the frustration of the people and he begins to see his very life could be in danger. That's expressed to us in Exodus 17:4:

Jonathan (00:25:13): "So Moses cried out to the LORD, saying, What shall I do to this people? A little more and they will stone me." Moses asked God for help. Good for him.

Rick (00:25:25): Yeah, it was, and he had no place else to turn. That was his knee-jerk reaction anyway. He always turned upward. Whenever you see Moses getting in trouble, that's what you see. He always turned upward. He takes his concern directly to God. There's no doubt, there's no hesitation, there's just faith and trust. He is worried. You're right, Jonathan. There is chaos developing amongst the people because he feels like they're getting ready to stone him because it's a serious, serious challenge, so he brings it before God. What does God do? God does what God does. His response is precisely what it should be. Exodus 17:5-6:

Jonathan (00:26:06): "Then the LORD said to Moses, Pass before the people and take with you some of the elders of Israel; and take in your hand your staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink..."

Rick (00:26:26): There is absolute faith and trust in God's will, and this absolute faith and trust will destroy any hijacking influence that destructive doubt may be positioned to seize in our hearts or minds. We need to understand that the battle, especially if the doubt is toward God, the battle is, "Where is my faith? Where is my trust in relation to my doubt?" Moses didn't have doubt. It's interesting to me that God says to him, "Take the staff, the staff with which you struck the Nile." Remember what happened when he did that? The waters parted. Now he's instructed to take this staff and strike the rock and the water will come forth. You've got this staff that is the symbol of this power that God has given to Moses to protect and guide and nourish the people. He continually comes through. Absolute faith and trust, that's what we see in Moses. Let's go to Exodus 17:6-7:

Jonathan (00:27:32): "...And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. He named the place Massah and Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the LORD, saying, Is the LORD among us, or not?" A new name was given to this place: "Massah and Meribah." "Massah" meaning "testing" or "temptation" because they tempted the Lord here, and "Meribah" meaning "quarreling" or "strife." After all God had done to get them out of Egypt and safety to this point, giving them a cloud and fire to follow to direct every step, and even making it so that their shoes and clothes miraculously never wore out, they still questioned whether the Lord was with them?

Julie (00:28:15): Yeah, I was talking to our friend Tom, who's been on this podcast several times, about the severity of this trial and those Bible commentaries being so sympathetic to the lack of water. He said this, "The Israelites shouldn't have just been quiet about their need for water, but there's a proper way to reverently approach God with their needs. Disrespectfully attacking Moses was not the right way. Moses even said they were putting God to the test or tempting Him. There is a great contrast between this approach and a humble request. And also notice there was no gratitude expressed after the miracle of striking the rock."

Rick (00:28:52): You have a very clear picture of what destructive doubt brings us to, and it's not pretty. God took care of them in spite of their destructiveness of their doubt. But it wasn't good for them to go through that. Now on the other hand, Moses' actions were exactly in line with his faith. This shows us that he believed, that he had faith enough to act, enough to trust in exact accordance with God's instructions. Moses did exactly what God told him to and they were precisely delivered the way God said they would be. When we look at this, we've got to ask the question, "What kind of doubt was Israel's doubt? Should they have doubted their doubt?" Let's go through those same five questions and customize them to Israel.

Jonathan (00:29:34): What or whom were the people doubting?

Julie (00:29:36): Well, they were doubting Moses, but ultimately they were doubting God. This was absurd based on all the miracles performed on their behalf to bring them to this point.

Jonathan (00:29:45): Was this doubt primarily based on their hearts being troubled?

Julie (00:29:49): Well, they were physically overwhelmed to the point of the evidence they had of God being with them didn't make a difference, because now they're in panic mode, and hearing their children cry and seeing the animals suffer would have contributed to their lashing out.

Jonathan (00:30:04): Desperation can be a danger point for us as well. Was this doubt, primarily based on their mind not seeing or understanding?

Julie (00:30:12): It seems like their logical thinking was shut down from this physical need or else they would've responded like Moses instead of as, Moses put it, tempting God. Again, there's a correct, respectful way to approach God through Moses with their needs. They didn't do that.

Jonathan (00:30:29): What brought this doubt to their heart or mind?

Julie (00:30:32): It was a very real need. They were thirsty, they were hungry. But there always seems to be this little underlying root of bitterness and doubt that sits right below the surface. They're really ready to explode with this. They were very quick to give up and blame God.

Jonathan (00:30:46): Did this doubt help or hurt their life experience?

Julie (00:30:51): This was definitely destructive doubt because of how they demanded, they accused, to the point of wanting to kill Moses. That's an irrational action that would have in no way provided food or water for them.

Jonathan (00:31:02): Killing him wouldn't have solved the problem.

Julie (00:31:05): Exactly.

Rick (00:31:06): You go through this and you see, wow, the destructiveness of this doubt for all of these destructive reasons. This is a great lesson for us to avoid these things. If we look at our Christian lives - very quickly here- if we look at the very last verse in the book of Matthew, it gives us a sense of the reasons we shouldn't doubt God through Christ. Matthew 28:20:

Jonathan (00:31:30): "...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." When we feel overwhelmed, we have this plain promise from Jesus. He is with us, and we don't have to doubt our sonship if we are closely following him.

Rick (00:31:48): We don't. Jesus is our cloud and our pillar. God put him there, just like God put the cloud and pillar there. He's there for us. When we have doubts that go upward, we need to have it meet the guidance that is bringing us forward. Always remember that. Jonathan, Dismantling Doubt and Fulfilling Our Faith. Where are we?

Jonathan (00:32:08): This one example of Israel's destructive doubt is a powerful warning about how our own physical needs can subvert our ability to stand firmly upon the solid foundation of Christ. How aware am I of the sometimes subtle influence that my humanity can have on my direction in life?

Rick (00:32:29): Sometimes the influence is subtle and that's when it's really dangerous. Just like Satan's lie, there was a subtlety to it and that's where the danger is. When doubt happens, especially doubt going upward, we've got to be very, very careful. Destructive doubt can be like a contagious virus. Let's be sure to understand what makes it spread and build our immunity against it.

Jonathan (00:32:53): We have just discussed two dramatic examples of destructive doubt. What are the major differences with constructive doubt?

Rick (00:33:02): Constructive doubt almost sounds illogical at this point. Can doubt really be a vital tool in learning how to truly walk with God through Christ? Again, the answer is a resounding "Yes, it can." As we will see, God can and does use our human doubts to help us see the ability for His power and His providence to unfold in our lives. Now we want to turn the tables and look toward doubt that can help us, that can build us up.

Jonathan (00:33:34): Constructive doubt: Gideon was a strong yet humble man chosen by God to lead Israel against the mighty Midianite nation. He had no idea what he would be capable of in God's service. God provided him two important events to reveal his position. These experiences turned Gideon's doubt into trust.

Julie (00:33:55): Okay, so let's look at those two significant doubt events in the life of Gideon. The first is found in Judges 6:1-6. Israel was disobedient as they often were. The scripture says, "they did what was evil in the sight of the LORD." For worshiping fake gods and other evil acts, God allowed the Midianites to overpower the Israelites for seven years, attacking them, raiding their camps, they stole all their food, they left "no sheep, ox, or donkey. They would come in like locusts...and they came into the land to devastate it." The sons of Israel finally cry out to the Lord. Apparently it took them seven years to finally ask for help. He sent a prophet to remind them that it was God who delivered them out of Egypt, out of slavery. Yet even in spite of this prophet, they weren't obedient.

Rick (00:34:43): You have Israel going down this proverbial tube of destruction and they're falling further and further away from God. Then we come to Gideon in the midst of all of this.

Jonathan (00:34:56): We find Gideon threshing wheat in a wine press to try to hide it from the Midianites when an angel of the Lord visited him. We'll read parts of Judges 6:12-38, starting with 12-13: "The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, The LORD is with you, O valiant warrior. Then Gideon said to him, O my Lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? ...But now the LORD has abandoned us and given us into the hand of the Midian."

Rick (00:35:29): You have Gideon just minding his own business, threshing wheat, trying to hide it. This angel of God appears and calls him a valiant warrior and says, "The LORD with you." Gideon's initial response is not to the "valiant warrior" part. It's like, "Wait a minute, the LORD is with us. We're in big trouble here. How could the Lord be with us?" What we're going to see, there's a constructive doubt here because Gideon is looking to figure it out. Instead of complaining, he's going to look to figure it out. When we define Doubt's Building Blocks, let's start here with this simple response that Gideon has to the angel. Gideon immediately asks why. He doesn't shout "why," he doesn't defy with "why." He asks why" He doesn't complain, but simply states the truth of Israel's condition. What this is, is the constructive building block of questioning with the intention of learning. See, we can question to corner somebody, we can question to actually make our point or we can question because we want - hey, here's an idea - because we want an answer, a good answer, a logical answer that can help us and build us up and make us stronger. That's what Gideon displays here. That's a building block of constructive doubt. Let's continue Judges 6:14-15:

Jonathan (00:36:53): "The angel of the LORD looked at him and said, Go in this your strength and deliver Israel from the hand of the Midian. Have I not sent you? He said to Him, O LORD, how shall I deliver Israel? Behold, my family is the least in Manasseh and I am the youngest in my father's house."

Julie (00:37:12): It's as if he's asking, "Are You sure You're talking to me?" But as we're going to see, Gideon doesn't use his insignificance or his insecurities as an excuse for inaction.

Rick (00:37:23): That's an such an important point. Gideon's response is, "Wait, I am not sure you have the right guy," but he's still willing to listen. He's got doubts, but what we're seeing is a very constructive doubt. Again, Defining another Building Block of Doubt: Gideon's response is doubt, but it's built upon truth because he understood the condition of Israel and personal humility. He also understood his position in Israel. He knew that he was least favored. What this is, is, this is the constructive building block of understanding reality. We started out with the constructive building block of questioning with the intention of learning. Now as he's learning, he's understanding the reality. He's putting the pieces in place where they belong so he can actually understand what the message is. This is a kind of reasoning that is simple, but it's so overlooked in so many instances where we have doubt. We abandon such logic and such step-by-step thinking. Gideon is showing us how to doubt constructively. Let's continue with Judges 6:16-17:

Jonathan (00:38:37): "But the angel of the LORD said to him, Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat Midian as one man. So Gideon said to Him, If now I have found favor in Your sight, then show me a sign that it is You who speak with me."

Rick (00:38:52): Now Gideon's saying, "Okay, alright, you're picking me, but this is weird, this is different. Didn't expect this. I just came here to hide and thresh my wheat. Here You are saying I'm going to deliver Israel. I need a confidence booster here because I am not ready for this. This came out of the blue." This is yet another building block. This is a Doubt Building Block, a constructive Doubt Building Block. Gideon now seeks verification, alright? So far he questioned with the intention of learning. He put understanding reality into place. Now he's looking to verify those things. He's humbly questioned and comprehended his proposed task in light of his own physical circumstance. This is the constructive building block of acceptance. He's beginning to accept that "this day is not going to end the way I thought it was. This day is taking a turn that is dramatically different and I need to dramatically respond to this dramatic difference."

Julie (00:39:55): He needed reassurance that he could handle the assignment God was giving him, and it's a legitimate concern. But notice how he did it. He showed great respect and God was patient and didn't chastise him for this additional need, this additional request he made.

Rick (00:40:10): He didn't, and this is why you see Gideon was the guy who was chosen, because his heart and mind were right along with his ability to be able to lead. Jonathan, what happens next?

Jonathan (00:40:21): Well, Gideon prepared meat, unleavened bread and broth and brought them before the angel. The angel then miraculously produces fire to consume the meat and the bread. Continuing in Judges 6:21-23: "...Then the angel of the LORD vanished from his sight. When Gideon saw that he was the angel of the LORD, he said, Alas, O LORD God! For now I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face. The LORD said to him, Peace to you, do not fear; you shall not die." The Lord gave Gideon the assurance of peace that Israel would not continue to be overrun or destroyed by the Midianites. After seeing the angel of Jehovah, Gideon was spared from death. He built an altar to commemorate this event and named it "The Lord is Peace" or "Jehovah Shalom" (Judges 6:24). "Shalom" means "wholeness in all of life. Completeness, welfare, safety." We just talked about this in Episode #1298, Part Two of "Who is God" series where we talked about the different names of God.

Julie (00:41:27): Jehovah was bringing peace and sanctity back to Israel. Gideon - this allowed him to go confidently into battle. His faith is so strong. I love that he builds this altar as a peace tribute before he even goes into battle. He knows now God is here for him and the people have essentially been delivered. It's as good as done. Gideon recognizes this as the first step of his nation being godly again. He is given the privilege to lead this effort.

Rick (00:41:54): You know what we find here, don't you? We find more of Doubt's Building Blocks, the constructive building blocks. Gideon is on board. This is obvious now he's built this altar. He knows that he's called to do God's will. He legitimate doubt has been guided into godly obedience. Let me say that again. His legitimate doubt has been guided into godly obedience. This is the constructive building block of trust in action. You see him starting to take action. He not only accepted the responsibility, he marked his acceptance of this responsibility with praise and honor by building that altar. He's got trust, he's got action, and now he's able to move forward to the next step.

Julie (00:42:39): Well then, let's talk about the second doubt event. We're going to review this. It's probably the more famous of the two. Now the showdown begins and the Midianites and the Amalekites set up camp around the Israelites with 135,000 warriors. Gideon gets the message out to other tribes and he gets 32,000 men assembled to fight for Israel. Gideon's new at this leadership thing and he has a need to be sure though.

Jonathan (00:43:07): Let's pick up on the account in Judges 6:36-38: "Then Gideon said to God, If You will deliver Israel through me, as You have spoken, behold, I will put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I will know that You will deliver Israel through me, as you have spoken. And it was so. When he arose early the next morning and squeezed the fleece, he drained the dew from the fleece, a bowl full of water."

Julie (00:43:40): Now we've got 135,000 to 32,000. I'm not great at math, but I know that these aren't great odds. But Gideon here wasn't doubting God. That's really important. He was doubting his own capacity to lead this victory and he needed reassurance that he was capable of doing what God wanted.

Jonathan (00:43:57): In other words, "Help me rise to the challenge. I've never done this before."

Rick (00:44:02): Right. The fleece was put out to help him have the confidence to follow the directions. Again, this is another Defining Doubt Building Block. This is constructive doubt. Gideon needs assurance and his need for assurance is plainly met. Though as we shall see, he would still need more. But this is important. It's the constructive building block of building personal confidence in God's direction. It's one thing to have theoretical confidence in God's direction, to have book knowledge of God's direction, to have historical history of God's direction. But to have personal confidence in God's direction is what Gideon is working on. He's working on his doubt by building that. Let's go further.

Jonathan (00:44:51): Gideon asked to reverse the test to make sure the result was unmistakably supernatural. Judges 6:39-40: "Then Gideon said to God, Do not let Your anger burn against me that I may speak once more; please let me make a test once more with the fleece, let it now be dry only on the fleece, and let there be dew on all the ground. God did so that night; for it was dry only on the fleece, and dew was on all the ground."

Rick (00:45:19): You're thinking, "Well, it didn't work the first time?" No, it did work. But Gideon is being called to do something magnificently greater than he could have ever, ever imagined In his wildest dreams. He is asked to deliver Israel from an overwhelming foe and he just doesn't have the confidence. He says, "God, please, please let me do it this one other way because I'm still worried. I still have doubt." Let's define this building block of constructive doubt. Gideon was not looking for guidance, for God had already told him what to do. It's not like, "God, let me do this so You can show me what to do." God already told him what to do. He simply needed his confidence in God's direction to be sealed. This is the constructive building block of confirmation and assurance. Sometimes we have to build personal confidence in God's direction and then we have to have confirmation and assurance that "Yes, this is the direction, I am going this way, there's nothing going to stop me, I'm just moving forward."

Julie (00:46:21): But sometimes I think Christians today will "put out the fleece," and they want God to make a decision, a clear decision for them. Wouldn't be wonderful if we had a clear sign for every decision that we had, but should we be testing God and looking for direct answers? On one end, to me, there's this attitude of challenge. Like remember when Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness and he said, "If you are the Son of God (knowing full well that he was) command these stones to become loaves of bread," or we may hear an atheist saying something like, "Well if God's really there, then He should talk to me right now."

Jonathan (00:46:59): Well, if God chose Gideon, that meant he could win the battle. As Christians, we want to follow God's will and not our own. If He called us to follow in his son's footsteps, He knows we can do it. He doesn't call those who don't have the ability to be faithful.

Rick (00:47:15): See, we have to be careful to not misapply the "putting out the fleece." Julie, like you said, it's easily misapplied. It is not to say, "God show me, should I go left or right?" It is to say, "Lord, help me establish the confidence in myself that You have shown to me to do what You have already put before me." It's an entirely different approach. It's not about telling God, "Hey, you do this and I'll do that." That's not it. It was Gideon saying, "This is big, this is bigger than I feel I can handle. Can you help me gain that self-assurance?" Again, it's not self-assurance as in pride, it's self-assurance as in humble reverence for the guiding hand of God for me today, tomorrow, and the next day.

Julie (00:47:59): I think this was a specific circumstance.

Rick (00:48:02): Yes.

Julie (00:48:02): We might misappropriate Gideon's test here and say "We can do this too," but I don't think that we can do this too.

Rick (00:48:10): No, no. We should not do this. It's really, really, really simple. Jonathan, let's wrap this up; this portion of Gideon with this constructive doubt, dismantling doubt, and fulfilling our faith:

Jonathan (00:48:24): Sometimes our doubts are a constructive call for better understanding. God understands the doubt, frailty and weaknesses of our imperfect humanity. He will, if we let Him, patiently guide us to grow into tools of His glory. What kind of doubt am I struggling with?

Rick (00:48:44): What kind of doubts am I struggling with? Am I willing to let God build me into a tool of His glory? That's what Gideon was willing to do through his doubt, and that's why it was so incredibly powerful, his doubt. Seeing how Gideon's doubt grew into sound and powerful trust is inspiring. This can help us reframe our own doubts and see that same growth.

Jonathan (00:49:14): Gideon's constructive doubt surfaced when God called him to work. Can we have that same constructive doubt after being in God's service?

Rick (00:49:24): Yes, yes. It's not only possible, but it's likely. We're learning that all doubt is not destructive and that sometimes our doubts simply need to be fed the required nourishment to grow into deeper trust. To begin to illustrate this, we want to look at the experiences of John the Baptist and his own doubts.

Jonathan (00:49:48): Gideon's doubt was at the beginning of his experience. We will see that John the Baptist's was toward the end of his experience.

Rick (00:49:57): John was a great prophet of God, unequivocally a great prophet of God. At the appointed time, he did what God set him out to do; he preached. We're going to look at Luke 3:3-6, selected verses:

Jonathan (00:50:11): "And he came into all the district around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins; as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, make ready the way of the Lord, make His paths straight...and all flesh will see the salvation of God."

Rick (00:50:32): John knew, he knew he was that voice, that prophetic voice that that scripture just quoted. He knew that that voice was to proclaim that Jesus was Messiah. John had a clearly defined purpose and he went after that purpose with everything that he had.

Jonathan (00:50:53): He sure wasn't like Gideon. John had complete confidence in God's will for him. He was afraid of no person or circumstance as he prepared the people to receive Jesus.

Rick (00:51:05): Right, so the beginnings of Gideon were complete doubt. The beginnings of John are complete confidence in God's power. You see there's a dramatic difference, but doubt is going to play a part in John's life a little bit later on. But right now, John takes this clarity, this clarity and this boldness, and he speaks as no one had spoken in the last 400 years as a direct mouthpiece of God.

Julie (00:51:26): You're referring to the time period between the last words of the Old Testament in the book of Malachi and when the New Testament begins. No prophets were sent to Israel during this time, and Greek influence began to corrupt Judaism. John had a lot of work to do in order to get the people ready to receive their Messiah.

Rick (00:51:45): He did. His work, his message was one of brutal honesty with no allowance for excuses. He got right to the point. Luke 3:7-8 is an example of this:

Jonathan (00:51:56): "So he began saying to the crowds who were going out to be baptized by him, You brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, We have Abraham for our father, for I say to you that from these stones God is able to raise up children to Abraham."

Rick (00:52:18): He says several things here and he's talking to the crowds and to specific people in the crowds. But he says, "Bear fruit in keeping with repentance." In other words, "Have your life produce that which is godly in humility to say, I'm a sinner." That's what Israel needed to be able to look back and see. They needed to look at themselves and say, "We're broken. We are very broken. We need God and we need Him here and now."

Julie (00:52:44): Jonathan, you read, "...do not begin to say to yourselves, we have Abraham for our father." John's bold here. The Matthew account indicates that he's talking specifically to the scribes and Pharisees with the people listening, and he calls them a "brood of vipers." Basically he's calling them a family of snakes. In other words, "Don't deceive yourself into thinking that God is compelled to accept you as those who are specially chosen." Because while the gospel message went out to the Jewish people first, the call to follow Jesus would soon be offered to the Gentiles.

Rick (00:53:16): Okay, so you have this development here and this power and this message and this clarity. Now when John's disciples had questions about the rising popularity of Jesus, they're saying like, "Okay, there seems to be a rivalry going on here. You've got this Jesus work going and we're working and what's happening?" Here's how John responds. John responds in a doubt-free way. This is very, very important. John 3:27-30:

Jonathan (00:53:41): Listen to the clarity of John. "John answered and said, A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven. You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, I am not the Christ, but, I have been sent ahead of him. He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. So this joy of mine has been made full. He must increase, but I must decrease."

Rick (00:54:10): John has this humble, beautiful, powerful, clear understanding of his role and he embraces it with his whole heart. He realizes that he is the introduction for Jesus and that's what he's there to do, and he has this joy about it. Again, there is no doubt to be found in this great prophet anywhere.

Julie (00:54:37): He knows his mission is for a limited time, for a limited purpose. He's not number one. He has no desire to be, and he's just showing the people they need to repent for their sins to get their hearts and minds in the right attitude. Jesus can take it from there.

Rick (00:54:50): Exactly.

Jonathan (00:54:51): He was clear, confident, and godly in his thinking and teaching. There are no doubts here. So far, so good.

Rick (00:54:58): So good. So very good. Little bit of time passes now and we fast forward and John is now sitting in prison; very different circumstance. He's alone, it's dark, it's dirty, and suddenly his life looks very, very different. Likely he's there for some time. Let's look at what happens at this point and we're going to look at Matthew 11:2-11. We'll start with 2-3:

Jonathan (00:55:24): "Now when John, while imprisoned, heard of the works of Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, Are you the expected one, or shall we look for someone else?"

Julie (00:55:36): Now, this is shocking and it's sad to me because you've got this beautiful heart who is so clear and confident. He's now questioning. How is this possible? He's questioning everything he thought he knew for his entire life's work. He's questioning his mission, his whole reason for being. Did he make a mistake? Is there some still greater and true Messiah coming?

Jonathan (00:55:56): How could such a dramatic change in thinking happen to the greatest prophet of all? His disappointment was likely from his Jewish expectations as to the manner of Christ's coming, thinking Jesus would publicly announce himself with power and authority and bring honor and dignity to all associated with him.

Rick (00:56:15): Yeah. You have a picture in your mind of what's to happen, and the picture is not happening and suddenly doubt appears and it's very, very serious. Was John's doubt constructive or destructive? Well, I truly believe that it was constructive. The drama of John's doubt teaches us that none of us, no matter how accomplished we may be in doing God's work, are exempt from questioning circumstances. That's what John was doing. He's questioning the circumstances. "I'm here in this dark prison. Why? If you're the Messiah and you're setting up a kingdom, why am I here? What is happening?"

Jonathan (00:56:56): He wouldn't have expected his work curtailed so suddenly by sitting in prison. His circumstances seemed unreasonable and unexpected.

Rick (00:57:05): They did. This is actually a building block of doubt, another building block to be defined. This is constructive doubt here. John's expectations of Messiah and God's kingdom did not dovetail. They didn't mesh with the reality and patience of God's own timing. He had a vision in his mind of what should be. God's plan was different than that vision. His doubt, John's doubt was the constructive building block of reassessing one's perspective and expectations. This is an enormous lesson for us because we can have a sense in our own hearts and minds of what should be happening and when it doesn't, we start to doubt God. Well, let's think about it. We should be doubting ourselves and reassessing so we can fit back into God's providence.

Julie (00:57:55): Yeah, unfulfilled expectations can create this doubt or even fear. This is doubt in extreme circumstances of life, this is experiential kind of doubt that would not normally happen. It's marked by confusion, by second guessing everything we thought we knew. Some of us go through shocking changes; betrayal, divorce, death, even discovering that what you thought you understood scripturally was incorrect. Extreme doubt sets in that can end up bringing us either closer to God or sadly, farther away.

Jonathan (00:58:26): When this happens, do we blame God and move away from Him or do we instead restructure our personal expectations and accept that what He permits is for our highest spiritual welfare? It's not His fault; it's His plan.

Rick (00:58:41): Yeah. That's a big thing here. I truly, truly, truly believe that John had that in his mind, that this is God's plan. Let me tell you why, because it's not written what ends up happening in John's mind. But let's look at Jesus' answer to the question from John's disciples when they had come to him. "Look, should be we looking for somebody else?" His answer wasn't like, "No, no, yeah, I'm here. No worries. Everything's cool." He doesn't say that. His answer was laden with hope, prophetic fulfillment, and personal blessing. Listen carefully to the message Jesus gives to John's disciples to take back to him in prison. Matthew 11:4-5:

Jonathan (00:59:22): "Jesus answered and said to them, Go and report to John what you hear and see: the blind receive sight and the lame walk, and the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who does not take offense at me."

Rick (00:59:40): Jesus reiterates, "Tell him what you see with your own eyes. You see the work of the kingdom right before you. It's exactly what is supposed to happen, how it's supposed to happen, when it's supposed to happen, and why it's supposed to happen. It's all good." That's Jesus' message to John.

Julie (01:00:00): Verse 6, "And blessed is he who does not take offense at me." In other words, "Tell John not to allow his faith to stumble in respect to me. It's all still the plan. Move forward."

Rick (01:00:11): That's right. After sending this message back to John, Jesus turns to the crowd and he testifies to this crowd of the faith, strength, and greatness of John. Now, Jesus is plain in his explanation of John. He says that John was a prophet appointed specifically by God to send them salvation. Salvation arrived through John and it brought them to Jesus. Matthew 11:7-10; listen to how Jesus just gives John the respect that his work is due:

Jonathan (01:00:45): "As these men were going away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John, What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Those who wear soft clothing are in kings' palaces! But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and one who was more than a prophet, This is the one about whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you."

Rick (01:01:18): Jesus says to the crowds, "You went out to see somebody who was different, a prophet, and he was a mighty prophet of God." John's doubt didn't undermine his message. Jesus responded and said, "This is what he has done. This is the work he's done." His doubt didn't undo the work. It was just a growth experience that he had to go through. This is another building block of constructive doubt. John's doubt was not destructive. I really, really truly believe that. He only needed to hear from Jesus himself that God's plan was at that moment, unfolding exactly as it should. John's doubt was the constructive building block of trusting God's will in unexpected circumstances. Trusting God's will in unexpected circumstances. That's where faith grows the most. I truly believe that John grew through that, was deeply, profoundly encouraged by that. One of the reasons I believe that is that let's look at what happens next. Jesus' next words in describing John, he captures the glory of John the Baptist, his absolute faithfulness and the privilege of his work as he's talking to the crowd. Matthew 11:11:

Jonathan (01:02:40): "Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he."

Julie (01:02:57): What an amazing thing for Jesus to say. "There's no one greater than John the Baptist." He was the last of the faithful under the time of Jewish favor, but yet he wasn't invited to be one of the apostles. He didn't live to see Pentecost, to share in the blessings upon the faithful. He belongs to a class described by Paul in Hebrews 11. He didn't receive a heavenly reward because he died before Jesus. But still, he was great.

Rick (01:03:21): He was very great in the sight of God and I really, truly believe that he grew in that faithfulness in the darkness of that prison cell until the end of his life. Jonathan, finally Dismantling Doubt and Fulfilling Our Faith at this point. Where are we?

Jonathan (01:03:37): Jesus's own words assure us of John's complete faithfulness. This speaks volumes as to God's compassion upon our own doubts. Even if we have been disciples for a long time, the doubts of those who are living faithfully are stepping stones to a faith that is an ever-growing trust in God's directing providences in our lives.

Rick (01:04:00): Our faith must grow into a kind of trust that says doubt is a stepping stone because it's a learning experience. That's what John taught us here. That's what Gideon taught us. Those are the guys that we look at in this episode and say, "Yeah, let's do what they did. Let's not do what the others did. Let's do what they did." As we go forward, we want to understand doubt can be a tool, but can also be destructive. The question is, how am I going to identify my doubt and what am I going to do with it? Think about it. Folks, we love hearing from our listeners. We welcome your feedback and questions on this episode and other episodes at ChristianQuestions.com. Coming up in our next episode, it will be Part II, "How Can I Doubt My Doubts?" We'll be talking about Christian life, Christian walk and Christian doubts. There's a lot to say. We'll see you next week.