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Serving God Regardless Of The Cost
Death Be
Not Proud: Losing John the Baptist
by jennygrace777
It
was at about that time when Herod the Tetrach heard about all the things that
were happening with Jesus.
As
the Lord and His disciples journeyed around the countryside, new stories
emerged about people being freed from illnesses and disabilities and demonic
oppression.
Christ
had become a national phenomenon, and everyone was talking about it. It had
finally reached the halls of Herod’s palace.
He
heard that many were claiming that the Lord was really John the Baptist raised
from the dead. Others said he was the prophet Elijah or one of the prophets of
old.
Herod
heard these rumors and wondered. And he had good reason to. For you see,
something terrible had happened to John the Baptist, and Herod was the one who
had ordered it.
John
the Baptist had been beheaded. Now everyone was saying he had risen from the
dead, and that he could work miraculous powers.
But
let’s go back in the story a bit and learn what happened to John.
Herod
had John arrested and bound him in chains. He put John in prison to to
please Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip.
Herod
had taken Philip’s wife as his own and married her, and John the Baptist had
denounced the union. He said it went against the laws of God… and it did.
Taking
on a king in those days was dangerous business. King Herod had the power to
perpetrate great harm against anyone who displeased him.
Denouncing
him was brave. John could have kept quiet. He could have let it go and
simply whispered about it to his disciples.
But
John was a prophet, and it was his role to speak the message of God with
boldness, regardless of the cost.
Apparently
John was one of the few who did speak up… if his was one voice among many, it
is hard to imagine that he would be targeted for prison… and death.
Because
of pressure from his wife, King Herod considered having John the Baptist
killed, but he was afraid to.
John
was popular with the people, and Herod thought they might rise up against
him if he killed the man they thought was a prophet.
But
even more than that, Herod knew that John was a righteous and holy man. He
enjoyed listening to John’s preaching, though it confused him.
King
Herod was a conflicted man, indeed. He could have stood up to his wife and
refused to imprison a prophet.
He
could have repented of his sin and made things right. He could have sought the
wisdom of John the Baptist about what to do.
But
he didn’t. Instead, Herod put John in prison. And his wife did not forget
that.
Then
her chance came. There came a day of great feasting.
It
was King Herod’s birthday, and the lords and commanders and leading men of
Galilee were all invited to a great banquet.
At
the celebration, the daughter of Herodias came out and did a dance for all of
Herod’s guests. They were greatly pleased with her, so much so that Herod offered
to give her a very lavish gift.
In
front of all his visitors, Herod told the girl that she could ask for anything
she wanted, and he would give up to half his kingdom.
Herodias’ daughter went to her mother to find out what she
should ask for. Her mother replied, “The
head of John the Baptist.”
It
was not enough that John was in prison for speaking the truth about this
woman’s revolting behavior. She wanted him dead.
The
girl went rushing back to Herod to make her request. Imagine this beautiful young
girl running up to the grand king in the middle of his feast asking for such a
gruesome gift.
He
had made his promise in front of the most important men in his realm.
There was no way he could say no. She approached the King
and said, “Give me here on a platter the
head of John the Baptist.”
Can
you imagine the face of Herod when he heard her request? Can you see how wicked
the court of Herod was that she could ask for this wicked thing without feeling
ashamed?
King
Herod was deeply saddened to take John’s life, but he had made his oath in
front of his guests.
Instead
of being ashamed about making foolish promises to a misguided child, Herod was
ashamed to confess his mistake.
Instead
of correcting it, he made it even worse. He sent word to the executioner to
have John beheaded.
John’s
head was cut off in the prison and brought back to the palace. It was put on a
platter and given to the girl. She took the head of the great prophet to her
mother.
John’s
disciples came to get the body and buried it in a tomb. Then they went to tell
Jesus about their terrible loss.
Imagine
the feeling of defeat as they went. From a human perspective, it looked a lot
like the bad guys were winning.
Herod
was sitting in the midst of all the wealth and celebration a person could hope
for, living with the woman he wanted, flaunting his step-daughter, enjoying his
power.
Yet
the man who honored God with utter faithfulness was dead.
From
the place John’s disciples were standing on earth, they must have been tempted
to question the ways of God. Surely it was right to mourn, and surely they were
comforted.
But
what if we had a vision of what happened from the side of Heaven? We
don’t know exactly how it works when we die.
Jesus
told the man on the cross next to him that they would be in paradise that very
day together.
The
Book of Revelation tells us that the martyrs cry out to God for justice in His
Throne Room… and the Lord hears them and is patiently waiting to give it to
them in fullness.
Somehow
there will be a day when we join Christ and we will receive the glorified
bodies of everlasting life, but it seems that there is a special situation in
the era we are in right now… a time of the now and not yet, we are sealed by
the Holy Spirit for salvation when we die… Paul called it going to sleep… but
we will not quite be what we are going to become.
Whatever
state we go to, the amazing thing is that all those who put their faith in
Jesus are done with the burdens of this life.
John
the Baptist was no longer alive to the people of this world, but he was alive
to God… he went home. It was a far better place than prison or anywhere else he
could be.
As the Apostle Paul said, “To live is Christ, to die is gain.”
When
we take on a heavenly perspective, we gain the freedom that we see in Paul and
John the Baptist… the wild freedom to love God radically in this life and to
serve Him regardless of the cost.
JENNYGRACE777
There are many things about Christianity that are so
arrestingly beautiful...a God who came to die for His people, for example, that
I have never been able to move away from a love for Jesus. However, I had a
number of years when many parts of the Bible were terribly confusing, even angering
to me. How could God tell Abraham to sacrifice Isaac? How could God command the
Israelites to commit genocide against the Canaanites? At times I used these
questions as a reason to walk away from the faith entirely. Then I had the
privilege of going to a university with scholars who understood God's story.
They helped me see His goodness and justice as he has worked over thousands of
years to reach a dark, fallen, sinful race of humans with His plan of
salvation. My deep desire is to give others a chance to see God's glory in His
story...the story that is our story...as well.
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