Matthew 11:2 - One Phone Call From Prison

Monday 3/19/12 – One Phone Call From Prison

Matthew 11:2 And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples.

Interpretation:

     You ever see movies where somebody gets arrested and they get one phone call. You ever wonder who you would call if that was you about to go to jail? Would it be a parent, sibling, friend?

     John the Baptist had been preaching repentance and had been preparing the way for Jesus. However, he had told King Herod that he was in sin by taking his own brother’s wife (Matt. 14). Um yeah….coming from an earthly view, telling someone who has the authority to throw you into prison that he’s sinning, might not be the wisest thing. But remember, we’re talking about John the Baptist here. Beating around the bush was not his forte. Remember, this was the guy that called the Pharisees and Sadducees a brood of vipers (Matthew 3:7). But now the tables have turned, he got arrested, and he’s now stuck in prison.

     Where is God? Why’s this happening to me? What did I do to deserve this? Why aren’t I getting any answers? Why is everything so confusing? Do these questions sound familiar? They might have been the ones John was asking himself, or perhaps these very questions are the ones you yourself have asked over and over. Things don’t go the way you expect. You know what the Bible says about God – that He’s loving, gives good gifts, protects His children; and yet, something’s happening in your life that makes you question everything you’ve thought you knew about God. You feel like you’re stuck in some kind of prison like John was; and though you know God’s around, He seems to be somewhere outside your prison so far out of reach. Sometimes, at these moments, what we are tempted to do is sit and sulk. But that’s not what John did. When he was in prison, instead of just sitting there sulking, he talked with Jesus. He couldn’t talk with Jesus himself, but he sent his disciples with a message and Jesus replied.

     The same thing can happen to us who feel as though we are stuck in some sort of prison. Instead of complaining, we can seek Jesus like John did and bring our questions, confusion, and concerns to Him. So if you feel like you’re in a prison, seek God; talk to Him like John did. “It’s hard,” you might argue. “It’s difficult when I can’t see Him. He seems so out of reach.” John couldn’t see Jesus; he was stuck in prison and Jesus was definitely out of reach for him. But even though John couldn’t see Him, he did what he could by sending a couple of his disciples to go for Him.

     Sometimes, though, we can feel like we’re so down in despair within our prison that we don’t have enough faith to go to God in prayer. It’s interesting that this verse says when John heard about the works of Christ that he attempted to talk to Jesus. Likewise, if we don’t have faith, we won’t even bother going to God because “…without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6). This verse makes me wonder if we’re lacking faith, why would we even go to God? If this is the scenario, what we need to do is take a step back and first take advice from Romans 10:17 which says, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” If you lack faith to go to God, first open up God’s Word and hear about the works of Christ like John the Baptist did before he attempted to communicate with Jesus. Meditate on what Jesus did for others before and what He can do for you now. And then, with the faith that God gives you, take all your cares, pick up the phone from your prison cell, and give God a call.

Application:

     If I start to get depressed, anxious, upset, or in any way seem to be in a prison today, I will bring my cares to God through prayer.