When the Good News Isn't Good Mark 6:14-29

A large, two-engined train was making its way across America. While crossing the Western mountains, one of the engines broke down. “No problem, we can make it to Denver and get a replacement engine there,” the engineer thought, and carried on at half power. Farther on down the line (if you didn’t guess by now), the other engine broke down, and the train came to a standstill in the middle of nowhere.

The engineer needed to inform the passengers about why the train had stopped, and always trying to look on the bright side of things, made the following announcement: “Ladies and Gentlemen, I have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that both engines have failed, and we will be stuck here for some time until the additional engines arrive. The good news is that you didn’t take this trip in a plane!”

-The Gospel is only Good News when you repent and believe it!

We Miss Out on the Good News when...

I. We Greet it with Fear vv. 14-16

The scene shifts slightly and the people are talking about Jesus, trying to figure out who He is:

Some say that He is John the Baptist, resurrected

Some say that He is Elijah, returned from Heaven as a herald of the coming Messiah

Some say that He is the Prophet who was Promised in Deuteronomy

Any of these would be good options, though all of them miss His actual identity

However, Herod is terrified when He hears about Jesus

He clearly believes that Jesus is a resurrected John the Baptist and this is bad news!

Herod has reason to fear, as we will see, because he was responsible for the death of John the Baptist

What a terrifying thought: God has fulfilled His promise, but you are only able to view it as a reason for dread rather than hope

If God has arrived on the scene, nothing is hidden anymore; pretense must fall by the wayside as we are revealed!

Can you imagine if the Good News wasn’t good?

“God will invade. But I wonder whether people who ask God to interfere openly and directly in our world quite realise what it will be like when He does. When that happens, it is the end of the world. When the author walks on to the stage the play is over. God is going to invade, all right: but what is the good of saying you are on His side then, when you see the whole natural universe melting away like a dream and something else - something it never entered your head to conceive - comes crashing in; something so beautiful to some of us and so terrible to others that none of us will have any choice left? For this time it will God without disguise; something so overwhelming that it will strike either irresistible love or irresistible horror into every creature. It will be too late then to choose your side. There is no use saying you choose to lie down when it has become impossible to stand up. That will not be the time for choosing; it will be the time when we discover which side we really have chosen, whether we realised it before or not. Now, today, this moment, is our chance to choose the right side. God is holding back to give us that chance. It will not last for ever. We must take it or leave it.”

II. We Wallow in Indecision vv. 17-20

Mark goes back and gives us the story of Herod and John the Baptist; Herod imprisoned John, but why?

John publicly condemned Herod for his immoral relationship with Herodias, his half-brother’s wife

Herod attempted to reach a compromise point:

John has been public and pointed with his critique of the relationship

Herodias is angry and wants John to be killed

Herod is “perplexed”, feeling and thinking many things

He fears John and recognizes his righteousness

Yet he also wants to please Herodias

Herod attempts to compromise:

He listens to what John has to say

He protects John

He even fears John

He will not, however, listen to John and obey his words

What we call compromise, the Lord often calls unrepentance

The “change of mind” that Jesus calls us to is a radical redirection of ourselves

It does not look back or keep a divided loyalty; it is wholly committed to the supremacy of Christ

The Scriptures give us a couple of pictures of this unrepentant life that I think we need to consider:

1 Kings 18:21

[21] And Elijah came near to all the people and said, “How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word. (ESV)

James 1:5–8

[5] If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. [6] But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. [7] For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; [8] he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. (ESV)

III. We Pursue Foolish Lust vv. 21-25

We see the pattern of Herod’s life a bit later and it gives prime opportunity for destruction:

He’s a pagan partier:

He throws a birthday feast for himself

It is filled with a mixed multitude, of his people from the court, Roman military officials, and local leaders from Galilee

It’s a party and it’s a place in which spiritual foundations have been left behind completely for the sake of revelry

He’s got a dirty dancer:

His step-daughter Salome steps into the scene and she performs a dance for the crowd

Based on Herod’s reaction, we can surmise that this is more than an appreciation for the arts; She has acted in a seductive way.

Further, her actions are more than a little subversive; they represent a kind of condescension. This act is below her station as a member of the royal household

Last, it is wildly inappropriate; she is his step-daughter!

In response, he makes a foolish vow:

In the heat of the moment, he promises to give her anything, up to half of his kingdom

This is not literally true and should be considered a figure of speech, but it is a rash vow

Herod is fueled by a dangerous combination of pride, lust, and drink that is a recipe for disaster

I think we should pause and consider what the driving force in our life is:

Is it the lust of the flesh?

Is it the lust of the eyes?

Is it the pride of life?

If the answer is yes, we are on our own pathway to destruction!

Genesis 3:6

[6] So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. (ESV)

1 John 2:16–17

[16] For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. [17] And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. (ESV)

IV. We Choose Reputation over Repentance vv. 26-29

Herod now finds himself in a predicament:

Herodias has set an elegant trap for him

He is now facing the moment of decision; will he keep his promises to Salome or will he protect John

Herod is an interesting case study here, that we would do well to learn from:

He is genuinely sorry for what has taken place and what is about to happen

He feels terribly and does not want to kill John the Baptist

Yet none of his feeling sorry changes his course of action

Why does this happen? His pride is greater than his sorrow!

He wants to protect his reputation

That he keeps his oaths

That he is a generous king

That people will think highly of him

So, he chooses unrepentance

Herod’s course of action here has profound consequences that we would do well to consider:

John is killed; Herod is the immediate cause of John’s death

Herodias and Salome are now complicit of even deeper wickedness that might have been prevented

Later, when Herod does get to meet Jesus, he is met with silence

Luke 23:6–9

[6] When Pilate heard this, he asked whether the man was a Galilean. [7] And when he learned that he belonged to Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him over to Herod, who was himself in Jerusalem at that time. [8] When Herod saw Jesus, he was very glad, for he had long desired to see him, because he had heard about him, and he was hoping to see some sign done by him. [9] So he questioned him at some length, but he made no answer. (ESV)

You can’t read the article that appeared in the Atlanta Journal, June 5, 1997 without some remorse and sympathy for Clarence Jackson. "The clock struck midnight and Clarence Jackson didn’t turn into a millionaire." Jackson, who is 24, works in a small cleaning business in Hartford, Connecticut to help support his elderly parents. He won the Connecticut Lotto jackpot in October 1995. It was worth 5.8 million dollars. He submitted the ticket three days after the one year deadline.

He had given the ticket to his ailing father and didn’t realize it was a winner until fifteen minutes before the deadline. He didn’t know he could verify the ticket at his local lotto dealer. Instead, he waited until Monday to redeem the ticket at lotto headquarters. It was too late. The Connecticut House of Representatives voted 82-63 to award Jackson the money. Senator Alvin Penn refused to allow the bill to come to the floor of the Senate, and thus the bill died. Representative Michael Lawlor said, "Give the guy the money . . . You say we can’t change the rules. That’s all we do here is change the rules! We’re the Legislature." Jackson left the Connecticut State Capitol a dejected man.