"WHY DO WE DOUBT?" (Pastor Tom Henry) ~ 5/26/26

“And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” (Matthew 14:31)

Jesus first rescued Peter from sinking into the water, and then He asked this question: “Wherefore didst thou doubt?” He did not begin His dealings with Peter’s emergency with censure and inquiry. When a brother is in trouble, let us first help him out, then we can reprove him for having gotten himself into it, if it seems necessary to do so. Even though Peter’s faith was small, Jesus’ tender mercy was none the less. His immediate reaction was to stretch out His hand and catch His sinking disciple lest he perish in the sea. This is always the way with our Lord. He giveth liberally and upbraideth not, except when there is a special reason, and a little upbraiding may be for our spiritual good. Peter needed to consider why his faith failed. Therefore, Jesus added, “Wherefore didst thou doubt?”

How many times we’ve been overcome by doubts and fears, and in the midst of the gloom there has been the element of spiritual evil. Gloom and depression need not be sinful, except when attended by the sin of unbelief. When we begin to doubt God, distrust His providence, and question His love, we might do well to hear our Savior’s words, “O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” The question, as it was put to Peter, was not necessarily rhetorical - he needed to search out the reason for his doubt.

Let us consider some hypothetical reasons, that if real, would justify us in our doubts. First, on former occasions, you have found God to be unfaithful to His promise. If, for example, on at least one occasion you found that the promise, “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee,” proved not to be true, then your distrust might be justified. The Prophet asked, “Hath He said, and will He not do it?” If any skeptic were to suggest that our God should ever say and not do, we would all rise up in loving indignation and declare, “God is faithful and true. He has not gone back from His promise in any single instance.” Then, let us ask ourselves, “Why is my faith often so small? Wherefore do I doubt?”

Consider another supposition: your case is such that none have ever been so difficult. It requires something more than omnipotence. It is so perplexing that omniscience cannot see a way out of it. If that is your case, then your unbelief is understandable. However, such a supposition is totally ridiculous. Is anything too hard for the All-Powerful God? Can there be a matter too complicated for Infinite Wisdom? The all-powerful, all-wise God is “our very present help in trouble.”

Perhaps someone doubts for fear that the promise is no longer valid, or that God Himself has changed. Such a fear would certainly explain one’s mistrust. Is it possible that the Bible has run out and that the sons of Jacob can, after all, seek His face in vain? Can we imagine that God has indeed changed, so that His chosen people should be consumed? Every Christian bristles at such a ludicrous suggestion, knowing that in Christ, who is “God with us,” all the promises of God are yea, and in Him amen! Certainly, this and the preceding suppositions can be laid aside. No Christian can seriously entertain such absurdities even for a moment.

It is far more likely that the “wherefore” of our doubts is more personal. Our inability to believe has nothing to do with any mutability or lacking in Him Who is “the same yesterday, today and forever,” and Whose Word lives and abides forever. It has to do with our sense of unworthiness. We carry a deep sense of our sinful nature. Not only so, but we are always dealing with the guilt of sins committed. This too can be a matter of doubt. While we believe that God forgives our sins upon confession, and that the blood of Christ cleanses from all sin, and that sins forgiven are removed and forgotten by the Lord, we still find that, like the penitent publican, we need help with our unbelief.

Let us believe God at all times. Let us stand upon His promises, so that we may trust and never doubt. Since our Lord was clearly disappointed with Peter’s doubting, He must surely be pleased when we trust Him fully. Let us therefore cast all our cares on Him, for He cares for us. (I Peter 5:7)