April 25, 2019

BIBLE READING; MATTHEW 14

1 At that time Herod the tetrarch heard of the fame of Jesus,
2 And said unto his servants, This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead; and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him.
3 For Herod had laid hold on John, and bound him, and put him in prison for Herodias’ sake, his brother Philip’s wife.
4 For John said unto him, It is not lawful for thee to have her.

Some things never change. The first 12 verses of this chapter are a horrible story. John is in jail because he spoke the truth. Herod wanted to kill him but knew that the people saw John as a prophet, so he didn’t. Then Herod is seduced by his own niece as she danced provocatively for him and promises her she can have anything she wants. And she said she wanted the head of John. So, he had him killed him over something like that. It’s a sad story.

It all started because John was put in jail by Herod for telling him something he did not want to hear, the truth. Some things never change. People still do not like the man of God to tell them what they do not want to hear. No one likes to be told that they’re wrong. I’ll let you in on a little secret. Preachers don’t enjoy telling people that they’re wrong. Preachers like me know that we are wrong ourselves on things, so it is never enjoyable to do that. What John told Herod was the truth, but Herod did not like it and threw him in jail. Any preacher worth his salt always tells the truth, but that does not mean that people enjoy it.

Each of us need to make sure that we are always open to being told the truth. Even if it hurts, we must obey God’s Word. We should always be thankful for someone that is willing to tell the truth. I imagine that Herod is burning in hell right now. If only he had listened to the man of God. Some things never change!