Leading
a Rebellion: John the Baptist
Rebel:
-A
rebel is a person who resists any authority, control, or tradition.
The Story So Far: I
could very easily talk for an hour about JBAP and all of the weird things he
had to do as part of his calling, but this is called “Leading a Rebellion,” not
“Fear Factor: Jerusalem.” But it is a good place to start. JBAP was Jesus’ second
cousin, born to a priest named Zacharias and his wife Elizabeth. Both were old
and Elizabeth was barren. While Zacharias was serving in the temple the angel
Gabriel appeared to him and said, “Your prayers have been heard. You will have
a son.” (If he was an elderly man, way past child rearing age, how long ago was
it that he stopped praying to have a child? And yet Gabriel speaks of it as if it
is in the present tense. This is an important reminder to never give up
praying, and even though God hasn’t answered the prayer yet, it doesn’t mean He
won’t answer the prayer.) Zacharias asked Gabriel how he would know this was
true. Gabriel responded by face-palming and saying, “Uh, because I stand in the
presence of God every day.” And then he said that just for asking a stupid
question like that he would be mute until his son was born.
There were some other directives
given to Zacharias from Gabriel concerning the boy. He was to be filled with
the Holy Spirit even from the womb, and he will refrain from wine or strong
drink. This is very similar to the vows surrounding Samuel and Samson, but this
vow was made by God and not by their moms.
Shortly after Elizabeth conceived,
Mary became pregnant too. Mary and Elizabeth were cousins, and Mary was very
excited for Elizabeth. So excited that Mary planned a trip. When Mary showed up
at her door, the baby inside Elizabeth leaped for joy when it came in the
presence of the baby inside of Mary. The baby inside of Mary was of course
Jesus. JBAP was already recognizing and worshiping Jesus as his Lord and Savior
while still in the womb.
We don’t know anything about JBAP’s
childhood or upbringing. The next time we see him is when he came out of the
wilderness and started baptizing people. JBAP was the one Isaiah prophesied
about when he said that there will be a messenger from the wilderness who cries
out, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness ‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
Make His paths straight.’” Mark chapter one tells us that John was clothed in
camel’s hair with a leather belt, and that he ate locusts and wild honey. He
came from the wilderness, so one gets the impression that he made his own
clothes from the things he killed or found dead, and ate whatever he could
find. He was the original survivor man. Bear Grylls watches reruns of JBAP. So
picture a long haired dude, who smelled funny from never bathing and eating
weird things, dressed in camel’s hair and that’s the picture of the leading
preacher/ evangelist of the day. He was a rebel because of his lifestyle, that’s
for sure, but that’s not what we’re going to be talking about today.
The Rebellion: What
we will be discussing tonight sound more like an episode of Jerry Springer than
an episode of the Bible. It is very confusing because practically everyone in
the story is named Herod, except for a woman named Herodias. Herod the Great had
several sons, two of which were Herod Antipas and Herod Philip I, not to be
confused with Herod Philip II, another of his sons. Herod Philip was married to
a woman named Herodias, and Herod Antipas was married to a woman named Aretas,
a King’s daughter. (If you ever marry a King’s daughter—don’t tick her off). Herod
visited Herod and fell in love with Herod’s wife, Herodias. Herod and Herodias
made a deal that the next time he came to Rome, she would leave Herod and marry
Herod, under the condition that Herod divorce his wife Aretas. Herod agreed to
betray Herod. Aretas found out about the shenanigans before Herod could divorce
her and asked to go visit her dad. Herod not suspecting that she knew anything let
her go. She left home and told her daddy. That started a war which decimated
Herod’s army. Herod eventually married Herod’s wife, Herodias, while everyone
involved was still married to their first spouses. Herod and Herodias eventually
had a daughter named Salome who danced, presumably in a seductive manner, for
Herod and his friends. The whole situation was extremely immoral, extremely
illegal, and extremely icky. JBAP felt called to tell him what he, and God,
felt about the whole situation.
Herod was the ruler in charge of the
Palestinian area established by the emperor of Rome. He was a part of the
ruling family that had ruled that region for generations. They even became Jews
to be more politically accepted in the region. JBAP felt that it was not good
to have a political leader and a public figure carrying on in the immoral way
that he was. It is one thing for a person nobody knows to act immorally; it’s
quite a different story for a public figure to do it. Why was it such a big
deal for Bill Clinton to sexually harass an intern? It’s a big deal because he
was the leader of the free world, in a position that is supposed to be highly
respected and looked up to. Ronald Reagan honored the position of President so
much that he never entered the Oval office without a jacket and tie on. Bill
Clinton used the power of the presidency to assault his interns in that same
office. JBAP had the nerve and the guts
to stand up to a guy as crazy and as powerful as Herod and was arrested for it.
Even today, it is a dangerous thing to call out, either publicly or privately,
a public figure on their moral choices. You may not get arrested, but it may
cost you quite a bit. Money, job, friendships, family. Ever wonder why people
like Charlie Sheen don’t have anyone around them saying, “Hey! You’re an idiot.
Get a grip on your life.”? Because people like Charlie Sheen won’t hang out
with people who don’t agree with his lifestyle. And if Charlie Sheen is
supporting your lifestyle, you better not disagree with him or he’ll cut you
off. Politicians fire people who criticize their lifestyle, or even worse they
will release a scandalous story about you, true or made up, to the media. CEO’s
may fire people who catch them in an affair, or suggest that they should be
conducting themselves in a more moral manner. Pastor’s may embarrass you and
kick you out of the church if you call them out for being immoral. While we
were in Haiti we heard of a Pastor who kicked a man out of his church who was
having an affair with the same woman he was having an affair with.
Application: What
would you do if you knew a leader or public figure was doing something wrong?
What if you were at Big Lots doing some shopping, and saw me stumble out of
Ollie’s drunk? Would you say anything? What would you do if we were at the
store buying necessities for camp and the cashier gave me too much money back
and I didn’t correct him? Would you say anything? What if you saw Pastor Brian
holding hands with another woman? Would you say anything? Leaders are held to a
higher and tougher standard than everyone else because they have the ability to
influence so many other people. “To whom much is given, much is required.”
The Results: Let’s see how JBAP’s bravery paid off for him. Mark
6:17-28, “ For it was Herod who had sent and
seized John and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother
Philip's wife, because he had married her. 18 For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not
lawful for you to have your brother's wife.” 19 And Herodias had a grudge
against him and wanted to put him to death. But she could not, 20 for Herod feared John,
knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. When he
heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly.21 But
an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his nobles
and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee. 22 For when Herodias's
daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. And the king
said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you.”
23 And he vowed to her,
“Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.”
24 And she went out and
said to her mother, “For what should I ask?” And she said, “The head of John
the Baptist.” 25 And
she came in immediately with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you
to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” 26 And the king was
exceedingly sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to
break his word to her. 27 And
immediately the king sent an executioner with orders to bring John's head. He
went and beheaded him in the prison 28 and brought his head on a platter and gave it to
the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother.”
Herod feared his wife and his stupid
vows more than he feared God. JBAP feared not doing what God asked him to do
more than he feared death. How about you? Is God asking you to do something?
Perhaps it is standing up to something you know is wrong. Maybe you’re the one
that’s doing something wrong and God is asking you to stop doing it. Maybe you’ve
never had a real relationship with God, but you have that small voice in the
back of your head saying, “Hey, there’s something to what this crazy guy is saying,
and I want you to listen to him. I want to be a part of your life.” If you’ve
never had a relationship with God, but want one, please come see me after we’re
done today.
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