*****The DANGER OF NOT GIVING GOD THE GLORY

Understanding Acts—Volume 3 (Failing to Give God the Glory! (Acts 12:20–24))

Failing to Give God the Glory!

(Acts 12:20–24)

Glory (Webster’s) great honor or fame, or its source; adoration; great splendor, heavenly bliss. It is the responsibility of the child of God to give glory to God. We are to magnify His name, worship Him, exalt Him, praise Him, and point others to Him. The Lord Jesus is worthy of our worship and praise! He is worthy of all glory. Ephesians 3:21 says, “to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

In his great Hymn “Worthy of Worship” Terry York wrote these words:

▪ Worthy of worship, worthy of praise, worthy of honor and glory; worthy of all the glad songs we can sing, worthy of all of the offerings we bring.

▪ Worthy of rev’rence, worthy of fear, worthy of love and devotion; worthy of bowing and bending the knees, worthy of all this and added to these …

▪ Almighty Father, Master and Lord, King of all kings and Redeemer, Wonderful Counselor, Comforter, Friend, Savior and Source of our life without end.

▪ You are worthy, Father, Creator. You are worthy, Savior, Sustainer. You are worthy, worthy and wonderful; Worthy of worship and praise.

Throughout the Bible we learn of those who did not give God the glory and the consequences that followed. Luke declared the flawed praise of king Herod and the fatal punishment on king Herod. Christians are to give God the glory in everything we do and teach others about God who deserves all the glory, honor, and praise through Jesus Christ our Lord. Are we giving God the glory? Do we glorify His name in our worship, work, and witness? Do we love the praise of men or do we love to praise the Master? Are we a church that gives God the glory? This passage gives us some warnings about failing to give God the glory.

I. The dismay of King Herod (20)

A. The people he was angry with (20a)

“Now Herod had been very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon”

We learned in the last study that after Peter had supernatural deliverance from prison and Herod had a diligent search made for Peter, when he could not find Peter he had the guards executed. We learned that Herod left Judea and came north to the sea coast city of Caesarea. Luke tells us that Herod was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. We do not know the reason for the anger, but Herod didn’t need a good reason to be angry with anyone. He was a godless man and an evil man. Herod became dismayed with the people and the people knew that the king was not pleased with them.

The regions of Tyre and Sidon were up the coast from Caesarea another 50 to 65 miles. The Bible does tell us of the people that he was angry with and the Bible tells us of:

B. The peace they asked for (20b)

“but they came to him with one accord, and having made Blastus the king’s personal aid their friend, they asked for peace, because their country was supplied with food by the king’s country.”

Luke tells us that the people of Tyre and Sidon came to Herod in one accord. Before they did that though they sought to get in with the King’s personal aid! The people of Tyre and Sidon were very concerned for their well being because King Herod was made at them. They were afraid that their strained relationship with the King would cause him to remove their support from their people. Luke reminds us that the regions of Tyre and Sidon were supplied with food by King Herod’s country. The King could have should down their source of food supply. Whatever they did to anger the king they were seeking diligently to make things right. The people of Tyre and Sidon are no different from people today.

When people’s livelihood is at stake they will go to great links to benefit themselves.

▪ During the great tribulation nations will make a pact with the Anti-christ to be supplied by him,

▪ they will take the mark of the Beast to be able to buy, sell, and trade.

▪ Their earthly livelihood is the most important thing to them.

▪ They will sell their souls for comfort, food, prosperity.

▪ Like Esau who sold his birthright for a bowl of pottage.

Because of the mess they were in they befriended the King’s personal aide who was named Blastus. The King’s personal aid was close to the king. He was a trusted servant and respected servant. Blastus knew the king’s temperament, his moods, and he could put a good word in for the people of Tyre and Sidon. They were shrewd in their dealings! They were desperate to make things right with King Herod. When people are desperate they will take desperate measures. The people of Tyre and Sidon asked Blastus to beseech the king on their behalf to ask for peace.

Why did Israel provide food for Tyre and Sidon? Hiram King of Tyre helped King Solomon in the building of the Temple. He provided Israel with workers and wood. 1 Kings 5:11 says, “And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand kors of wheat as food for his household, and twenty kors of pressed oil. Thus Solomon gave to Hiram year by year.” Ezra 3:7 says, “They also gave money to the masons and the carpenters, and food, drink, and oil to the people of Sidon and Tyre to bring cedar logs from Lebanon to the sea, to Joppa, according to the permission which they had from Cyrus king of Persia.” So we learn why the people diligently sought to get back in the graces of king Herod. We also learned of the way they got back. They befriended the king’s personal assistant. When rulers are upset and unfriendly they can make it rough on not only their people, but on other people as well. We’ve learned about the dismay of King Herod. We also note:

II. The day of King Herod (21)

A. His appeasement (21a)

“So on a set day Herod … sat on his throne”

The people came together to honor King Herod. They appointed a day that they would appease the king. Set: taktos, tak-tos’; arranged, i.e. appointed or stated, set. They arranged a day to put Herod up and appease him. It was a set day for Herod and they were going to appease him.

There is a tale in Greek mythology of a hydra-headed dragon who emerged from his cave each year, fire-breathing and hungry. A meal-offering of the city’s seven fairest virgins or its seven finest young men was the price of this dragon’s appeasement. Hungrily this monster ate the offering of virgins or men. When satiated, he retired to his lair for another year. Herod was like a fire-breathing dragon that the people of Tyre and Sidon appeased. The Bible speaks of his appeasement. We also learn:

B. His apparel (21b)

“arrayed in royal apparel, sat on his throne”

Herod was arrayed in royal apparel. Arrayed: enduo, en-doo’-o; (in the sense of sinking into a garment); to invest with clothing (literal or figurative)-array, clothe (with), endue, have (put) on. Apparel: esthes, es-thace’; to clothe); dress:—apparel, clothing, raiment, robe. Josephus, Jewish Historian, said that this scene took place during a festival honoring the Roman ruler Claudius Caesar. The king wore a beautiful silver garment in honor of the occasion.

Josephus wrote, “Herod put on a garment made wholly of silver, and of a contexture truly wonderful, and came into the theater early in the morning; at which time the silver of his garment being illuminated by the fresh reflection of the sun’s rays upon it, shone out after a surprising manner and was so resplendent as to spread a horror over those who looked intently upon him; and presently his flatterers cried out … that he was a god; and they added, ‘Be thou merciful to us; for although we have hitherto reverenced thee only as a man, yet shall we henceforth own thee as superior to mortal nature.’ Upon this the king did neither rebuke them nor reject their impious flattery.”

Get the picture: Herod was dressed in his best. A shiny garment made of silver. He sat on his throne in pomp and in praise. This was Herod’s day or so he thought. We’ve learned of his appeasement; his apparel; and we also note:

C. His address (21c)

“and gave an oration to them.”

Oration: demegoreo, day-may-gor-eh’-o; to be a people-gatherer, i.e. to address a public assembly:——make an oration. This word referred to a political speech. He got up and spoke about the authority of the government and the wonderful work that his administration has done. Whatever he said pleased them because they praise him. On this festival day the people gathered together and heard the words of the king. They came together and appeased the king. They saw his wonderful attire and they heard his wonderful address. They were giving the King respect, honor, and love. We’ve learned of the dismay of King Herod, the day of King Herod, we also see:

III. The deifying of King Herod (22)

A. The persistence of the people (22a)

“And the people kept shouting,”

The people saw the king and heard the king and they were whipped up into a frenzy. King Herod was on cloud nine as the people continually shouted. They didn’t shout at the King, but they shouted for the King. They were responding to everything he said. They were almost like some Pentecostals affirming the preacher as he preaches.

￫ Amen, Brother!

￫ Preach on!

￫ Preach the Word!

￫ Come on with it!

￫ Your Preaching Now!

￫ Bless him Lord!

￫ Use him Lord!

￫ He’s telling the Truth!

￫ Hallelujah! That’s Right!

The people persistently shouted to the king! They lifted the king up in adoration. The Bible tells us of their persistence of the people. The Bible also tells us of:

B. The praise of the people (22b)

“The voice of a god and not of a man!”

They praise the king for what he said and how he said it. They honored him as a god and not a man. They went all out to appease the King! The peoples praise was flattering to the King. The people got back on the King’s good side! He was eating up their praise for him.

￫ They were giving glory to the earthly king and not to the Eternal King!

￫ They were praising a man and not the Master!

￫ They lifted up a secular king and not the Sovereign King!

They deified King Herod on that day and it was alright with him. The deifying of King Herod led to:

IV. The demise of King Herod (23–24)

Warren Wiersbe wrote, “While God does not always bring retribution this quickly, we can be sure that the Judge of all the earth will do what is right.”

A. The work of the king ended (23)

How did he go out? What was his legacy! Did he go out in a blaze of glory? No on the contrary he went out in demise and difficulty!

1. The when of Herod’s death (23a)

“Then immediately”

On the day of “Herod” and before the people as he was being worshiped as a god and in that vain of not giving God the glory death came upon Herod! What the people praised as a god was shown as a mortal man! God did not wait around to bring judgment on Herod. God acted swiftly in the case of Herod! The work of the king ended with a sudden death!

▪ His administration came to nothing;

▪ his work ended in futility;

▪ his praise from men ended abruptly!

The Bible tells us of the “when” of Herod’s death. We also note:

2. The “Who” of Herod’s death (23b)

“an angel of the Lord struck him,”

An angel of the Lord was sent on a mission from God to dispose of an earthly king that took heavenly praise! The angel came down to Herod and struck him!

￫ Earlier in this chapter an angel of the Lord struck Peter and raised him up.

￫ This angel struck Herod and put him down!

Struck: patasso, pat-as’-so; to knock (gently or with a weapon or fatally):—smite, strike. It was nothing for an angel to strike King Herod and kill him. The angel was on mission from the Lord and he had the power of the Lord.

In the days of the kings Sennacherib, king of Assyria, had surrounded Israel and was ready to destroy the people.

King Hezekiah called on the Lord in prayer. The Lord answered his prayer. 2 Kings 19:35 says, “And it came to pass on a certain night that the angel of the LORD went out, and killed in the camp of the Assyrians one hundred and eighty-five thousand; and when people arose early in the morning, there were the corpses—all dead.” God sent His angel to take care of a wicked king who accepted worship from a wayward people. The Bible tells us of the when of Herod’s death, the Who of Herod’s death, and we also learn:

3. The why of Herod’s death (23c)

“because he did not give glory to God.”

Every person has a responsibility to give glory to God. Herod had a chance to give God the glory! He had a time when he could have pointed the people of Tyre and Sidon to the Lord. Herod thought that he was more important and significant than he really was! Do you know someone like that? Herod was in no way a humble and grateful man. He was full of pride, arrogance, and self-sufficiency.

Eugene was feeling somewhat blue and lonely so he decided to cheer himself up by going to Google and looking at all of the different references about him on the Internet. When he typed in his name into the famous Google box, he didn’t get the usual page that contains multiple potential references. Google simply sent back a one word response, “Why?” Do you ever feel so insignificant that you wonder if Google would ask you “Why?” if you typed in your name?

Herod got a rude awakening! He found out that he was not all that! He had a chance to give God glory, but he blew it! John Phillips wrote, “Herod had gone too far. He had exhausted the patience of God. He had crossed the hidden boundary between God’s mercy and His wrath. Well may we all beware.” The Bible tells us of the when of Herod’s death, the “Who” of Herod’s death, the why of Herod’s death, and then we also note:

4. The way of Herod’s death (23d)

“And he was eaten by worms and died.”

What a vivid illustration of the horrible death of King Herod. He was eaten by worms and died. The Bible doesn’t say he died and was eaten by worms, but he was eaten by worms and died! It’s in that order for a reason! God’s judgment came upon king Herod because he failed to give God the glory! John G. Butler wrote, “In a repulsive disease of the intestines. In short order, Herod went from glory to gore, from acclaim to shame, from splendor to stench, from life to death.” Someone said, “Herod’s body reeked because of decay, so that he was nothing more than a living carcass.”

According to Josephus Herod:

▪ Contracted some affliction in his bowels and died five days later.

▪ He died in the year 44 A.D at the age of 54 in the 7th year of his reign.

God sent the angel to strike Herod and he died a horrible death. It is a serious matter to steal glory from the Lord! The work of the king ended in a horrifying death as he was eaten by worms. The work of the king ended we also note:

B. The word of God endured (24)

“But the word of God grew and multiplied.”

This expression by Luke tells us that the Word of God was respected and revered and accepted. The God of the Word was honored and worship and the church grew as they preached the gospel of Jesus Christ. John Phillips wrote, “Herod might want to destroy the church, but the Word of God, inspired, infallible, inerrant, invincible, marched gloriously on. The armed might of government may be mobilized against it, but the Word of God knows no boundaries to its empire, no barriers to its progress.” The word of God needs to grow and multiply again in America. We need a healthy respect and fear of God and His word. We need a baptism of the fear of God and honor Him and worship Him. May His church find it so that when we worship Him and put His word in the proper place that we see Him work:

▪ in power and truth in our lives,

▪ our homes,

▪ our marriages,

▪ our schools, on our jobs,

▪ in this country, and in the world!

Are we giving glory to God? Have you been smote by the Lord? Has He convicted you, saved you, and placed a song of praise in you for Jesus Christ the Lord? Are we living in such a way that we are bringing glory and honor to the Lord Jesus Christ? Herschel Ford said, “In this chapter we see the Lord’s angel smiting twice, but with vastly different results. When he smote Peter he brought deliverance; when he smote Herod he brought death … In the same manner, the Gospel produces different effects. God smites one man with the truth and that man surrenders. He turns to Christ, is saved and is on the way to heaven. He smites another man and this man hardens his heart against God. This man goes his own way, which proves to be the way of condemnation and death, and finally lands in hell. May God help you to surrender to the Lord when His angel touches you!”

Would you call upon the Lord Jesus!

￫ Are you giving Him the glory in your home?

￫ Are you giving Him the glory with your family?

￫ Are you giving Him the glory among your friends?

￫ Are you giving Him the glory on your job?

￫ Are we giving Him the glory in His church?