Message from a Prison Cell

Have you ever prayed and prayed for something to happen, something that you
know is good and right, something that—by all logic—seems like it should
happen… and it doesn’t? What then? Well, John the Baptist was in a
similar situation. He knew that Jesus was the Messiah. In fact, John was
the one who baptized Jesus and saw the Spirit descend on Him like a dove
(Matthew 3:13-17; John 1:29-36). But John still sent messengers to Jesus,
asking if Jesus was truly the Messiah. Why would he do that? Did John, of
all people, have doubts?

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John was in prison at the time he sent the messengers, and he had been
imprisoned by Herod the tetrarch for quite some time at this point (Luke
3:19-20). And Jesus knew that John was in prison. I can see how some doubt
about Jesus’s identity would creep in. I can just imagine John murmuring to
himself in jail, “I know Jesus is Lord, but how could He just leave me
here?”

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So, what’s Jesus’s answer? He quotes parts of the Old Testament, saying He
is there to make the blind see and preach good news to the poor, but He
leaves out one specific part. Freeing the captives. In essence, it’s like
Jesus is saying, “Yes, I am the Messiah, I am who you think I am, but this
isn’t something I am meant to do for you.”

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We don’t get much explanation beyond that except another passage where
Jesus states that He is not going to fulfill all the expectations that
people had for Him (Matthew 11:16-19). Jesus is the perfect Messiah, but He
is going to do things in His own way and His own time.

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John the Baptist was beheaded in the same prison that he sent those
messengers from (Mark 6:17-29). But even though John remained a prisoner,
Jesus was no less of a Savior. And someday, Jesus will free all prisoners
and justice will come. When Jesus returns, He will raise all His people
from the dead—including John the Baptist—and together we will see the glory
of the Messiah on full display. • Naomi Zylstra

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• Can you think of a time your prayers were not answered in the way you
were expecting? Have you ever felt like God wasn’t “doing His job”?

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• Jesus does rescue John, but not from the prison cell. John’s rescue is
from death itself. Because Jesus died on the cross and rose from the grave
for us, everyone who puts their trust in Jesus will be raised from the dead
when Jesus returns! How can remembering Jesus’s promises give us hope in
the midst of hardship and confusion? (Matthew 28:20; John 16:33; Romans
8:31-39)

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Jesus replied to them, “Go and report to John what you hear and see…”
Matthew 11:4 (CSB)

Read Verses:

Isa.35.4-Isa.35.6|Isa.61.1|Luke.7.18-Luke.7.23|Matt.11.4