Mark 6:14-29

Mark 6:14–29 KJV (WS)

14 And king Herod heard of him; (for his name was spread abroad:) and he said, That John the Baptist was risen from the dead, and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him. 15 Others said, That it is Elias. And others said, That it is a prophet, or as one of the prophets. 16 But when Herod heard thereof, he said, It is John, whom I beheaded: he is risen from the dead. 17 For Herod himself had sent forth and laid hold upon John, and bound him in prison for Herodias' sake, his brother Philip's wife: for he had married her. 18 For John had said unto Herod, It is not lawful for thee to have thy brother's wife. 19 Therefore Herodias had a quarrel against him, and would have killed him; but she could not: 20 For Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just man and an holy, and observed him; and when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly. 21 And when a convenient day was come, that Herod on his birthday made a supper to his lords, high captains, and chief estates of Galilee; 22 And when the daughter of the said Herodias came in, and danced, and pleased Herod and them that sat with him, the king said unto the damsel, Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee. 23 And he sware unto her, Whatsoever thou shalt ask of me, I will give it thee, unto the half of my kingdom. 24 And she went forth, and said unto her mother, What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist. 25 And she came in straightway with haste unto the king, and asked, saying, I will that thou give me by and by in a charger the head of John the Baptist. 26 And the king was exceeding sorry; yet for his oath's sake, and for their sakes which sat with him, he would not reject her. 27 And immediately the king sent an executioner, and commanded his head to be brought: and he went and beheaded him in the prison, 28 And brought his head in a charger, and gave it to the damsel: and the damsel gave it to her mother. 29 And when his disciples heard of it, they came and took up his corpse, and laid it in a tomb.

Introduction

John the Baptist, according to Jesus was the greatest born of women.

We talked about him at the beginning of our study and now we come back to him at the end of his life.

It’s an interesting introduction that we find as John is reintroduced to the narrative.

Through the beginning of this passage we see just how close John’s ministry mirrored Jesus’

Misconceptions of Jesus’ identity. 14-16

When Herod first heard of Jesus, he thought he was John the Baptist risen from the dead.

This seemed to be the superstitious ruler’s attempt at explaining the miracles that Jesus was doing.

John’s ministry had not been associated with miracles.

Herod simply had John on the mind.

He was not the only one who miscalculated Jesus’ identity.

Others thought he was a prophet.

Elias for example.

Elijah had not died, if you recall.

Lots of people had opinions on who Jesus might be.

Herod’s theory is interesting though.

Herod’s guilty conscience convinced him that Jesus must be John.

Herod was guilty because he had had John beheaded.

This act tormented him.

Probably because of how it came to pass.

The death of John the Baptist. 17-29

Herod had arrested John because he had spoken out against Herod’s marriage.

Herod had married Herodias who had been Herod’s brother Philip’s wife.

John rightly pointed out that this was against the law of Moses.

Of course, Herod was offended by this correction, but really it was Herodias who was moved to anger against John.

Mark says that she would hav killed him if she could.

Since she didn’t have the authority, John had ended up in prison.

During his time in prison, it seems that John and Herod spent some time together.

Check what it says in vs 20.

Herod had started off fearing John.

Over time, Herod’s estimation of John as a just and holy man led him to observe John.

John of course took this opportunity to speak to Herod.

The Bible says that Herod heard him gladly.

Given time, it’s possible Herod might have been reached.

Unfortunately, there wasn’t time.

On a convenient day, Herod’s birthday, Herodias hatched a scheme.

She planned a party where they would entertain all of the rich, powerful, and important people of Galilee.

During the party, Herodias’ daughter came out and danced for Herod.

Herod is so moved by the girl’s movements that he foolishly offers her anything as a reward.

I mean, anything up to half of his kingdom.

The girl runs to her mother and asks her what she should ask for.

Herodias instructs her daughter to ask for John’s head in a charger.

The daughter does as her mother instructed.

Herod is exceeding sorry for the girl’s request.

His attitude towards the preacher had dramatically changed during John’s time in prison.

But, he had made an oath…

And, all of the people he was trying to impress were watching him.

It was for their sakes that he would not reject her request.

When it came to it, as much as he may have come to enjoy John’s company, Herod’s reputation was more important.

Immediately, he sent an executioner who went and beheaded John in the prison.

His head was then delivered to Herodias’ daughter, who then gave it to her mother.

When John’s disciples heard what had happened they came and collected his body and laid it in a tomb.

You can see now, how Herod would be haunted by John’s death.

This prophet that was unafraid to speak the truth to a king.

His life had been cut short by Herod’s weakness.

Jesus seemed to be John come back to life.

What a compliment that John’s message and life were so in harmony with Jesus’ that this man could not distinguish between them.

Application

I want my enemies, if I have any, or anybody who observes my life, to struggle to distinguish between what I say and what Jesus said.

Could my ministry always be so united to Jesus that they are indistinguishable?

Let me rephrase this.

My ministry will end, Jesus’ will not.

Could unlearned people look at what truly Jesus is doing and say, it’s like Gary is still with us.

Those who know, would say, it was never Gary it was always Jesus.

John was Jesus cousin, he was his forbearer.

He was sent to prepare the way for Jesus.

He preached repentance and pointed to Jesus as the lamb of God that takes away the sin of the earth.

He knew his role was to decrease as Jesus increased.

These are the attitudes and positions that we must foster if we are going to have the kind impact that John had.

We prepare a path for the advancement of Jesus not ourselves.

We point people to Jesus as their Savior not us.

We recognize our role is to decrease while he increases.

If we want to be successful in our ministry for Jesus, then John is a good example of how we should live, and if need be die for Jesus.

Conclusion

John lived a life dedicated to Jesus.

So much so that people struggled to delineate where Jesus’ ministry started and Johns ministry ended.

This is a great example for us to follow today, especially as we end one year and start another.