WHAT IS YOUR PERCEPTION OF JESUS?

I find it interesting the different ways people perceive things. You take two groups of people with polar opposite biases and show them the same thing and they will perceive it based on their particular bias. For instance one year we had a particularly cold winter and some folks tried to blame it on global warming. Upon hearing this argument I experienced ROTFL — that stands for rolling on the floor laughing, in millennial speak!

The point I am seeking to make is that our perception of things is tainted by various things, including our experiences and our biases. And if you think that you do not have any sort of bias you are mistaken. My strongest bias in life is that the Word of God is alway correct. If God says it then it is so, whether or not I can understand the matter. Therefore I subconsciously interpret things within the framework of my biblical bias.

Last week we began a new series, which I probably forgot to tell you the series title — PERCEPTIONS OF JESUS. This current series is taken from the fourth narrative section of Matthew’s Gospel account — . In this section, which is the longest narrative section that we have encountered thus far in our study of the Gospel of Matthew, I count 10-15 accounts of varied perceptions of Jesus. Last week we saw how the people of Jesus’ hometown, Nazareth, perceived Jesus as a scandalous figure. This week we are going to look at an account in which there are multiple perceptions of Jesus. Please take your Bible and turn to . As we go through this passage we will look at a superstitious perception, and two outcomes of a true perception.

Let’s read our passage together.

A PERCEPTION FOUNDED ON SUPERSTITION —

Matthew 14:1–2 NASB95PARA

At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the news about Jesus, and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist; he has risen from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”

Let’s begin with a

A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE HERODS

In your bulletin you should find an insert with the Herod family tree on it.

Antipater (not pictured in this family tree), was the father of Herod the Great. He was a Jew of Idumaean descent (From the line of Esau) who attained a position of great influence in Judea after the Roman conquest and was appointed procurator of Judea by Julius Caesar in 47 BC.

Herod the Great was appointed military prefect of Galilee by his father. The Roman senate, under the leadership of Antony and Octavian, eventually gave Herod the Great the title ‘king of the Jews.’ He was suspicious by nature which led to the biblical narrative of , and the killing of the males in Bethlehem ages two and younger. Herod the Great died in 4 BC.

Herod the Great’s sons Aristobulus and his brother Alexander (not in the family tree chart) were executed in 7 BC, being found guilty of plotting against their father. Antipater (another son not pictured in this family tree) who had turned his father against his brothers, was also executed — just days before his father’s death.

Herod the Great bequeathed his kingdom to three of his sons — Judea and Samaria to Archelaus, Galilee and Perea to Antipas, and his NE territories to Philip.

a Jew of Idumaean descent (From the line of Esau) who attained a position of great influence in Judea after the Roman conquest and was appointed procurator of Judea by Julius Caesar in 47 BC.

NE territories to Philip.

Archelaus ruled in Judea from 4 BC to AD 6, but without the title of king. He was an oppressive and intolerable ruler. It was knowledge of his rule that caused Joseph to take Mary and Jesus to live in Nazareth after their stay in Egypt, which was out of his jurisdiction.

Herod the tetrarch, also known as Antipas, was the son of Herod the Great by a Samaritan woman named Malthace. He is the Herod that is mentioned in our text for today, as well as in the parallel accounts of , and . He was originally married to the daughter of the Nabatean king, Aretas IV. But he eventually seduced his half-brother Philip’s wife, Herodias, divorced his wife and married Herodias. As our text states, John the Baptist was imprisoned and eventually executed for denouncing Herod’s second marriage as unlawful. A few years after the death of John, Aretas went to war with Herod Antipas over the insult of divorcing his daughter. in AD 36 his forces heavily defeated those of Antipas, and many people regarded this defeat as divine retribution for the killing of John the Baptist.

Herod Philip the tetrarch is thought by some to be the best of Herod the Great’s sons.

GUILT AND SUPERSTITION

For now we will leave the history lesson and return to our text. What I want you to see is that Herod’s perception of Jesus was tainted by two things; guilt, and superstition. Notice verses 1-2 again.

Herod had first hand knowledge that John the Baptist had died; we will see that in verses 3-11. But it would seem that he was plagued by the guilt of his decision to have John murdered. Some have speculated that Herod was so overcome with the superstitious belief that Jesus was the resurrected John that every time he heard a noise in his palace he jumped in fright! (Of course I derived that from a novel, so it is mere speculation, to the best of my knowledge).

I find it interesting that Herod mentions miraculous powers in connection with John the Baptist; that is because the Bible never attributes any miracles to the Baptist. I see two possibilities here:

John may have performed miracles that were not written about in the Gospel accounts since they are the Gospel of Jesus and not of John. The Apostle John wrote that there was a whole lot more stuff that was going on in Israel during the time of Jesus (especially in conjunction with Jesus), but the things that were written were for the purpose that the reader might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing they might have life in His name.

There may have been some sort of superstitious sentiment that a resurrected person had the ability to perform miracles.

We do know that Herod was not the only person in Galilee that speculated that Jesus was in fact John the Baptist.

Matthew 16:13–14 NASB95PARA

Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.”

We have been looking at how Herod Antipas’s perception of Jesus was tainted by guilt and superstition. Let’s turn our attention now to the

TWO OUTCOMES OF A TRUE PERCEPTION

Before we delve into the true perspective of who Jesus is we need to address the oddity of the text. What I mean by oddity is that verses 3-12 are a shift in scene to something that had happened at some point in the past. Commentators refer to this as an excursus. The Gospel account had not yet referenced the death of John the Baptist and so the writer had to pause for a moment and give some background details. The last we heard of John, he was in prison.

Matthew 11:2–3 NASB95PARA

Now when John, while imprisoned, heard of the works of Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to Him, “Are You the Expected One, or shall we look for someone else?”

I want to focus for a minute as to why John was in prison. Look at verse 3-4. Herod had John arrested, he bound him and put him in prison because of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. For John had been saying to him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.”

We know John the Baptist to be the forerunner of Jesus Christ who was prophesied about both by Isaiah and Malachi. But he was also a prophet — in fact he was the last of the Old Testament prophets. And like Elijah he willingly confronted “the king” for his sin. One commentator noted that Herod’s sin was so repugnant to God that the Holy Spirit would not allow Matthew to refer to Herodias as Herod’s wife, but rather as the wife of his brother!

Herodias is seen as being one of the most evil women in all of Scripture. She ranks right there with Jezebel for having a wicked influence, or better yet - power, over her husband.

THE FIRST OUTCOME OF A TRUE PERCEPTION

What I want you to see is that John had a proper perception of who Jesus was. He was the Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world. And I believe that this proper perception was the basis of his strong stand against sin in confronting both the Scribes and Pharisees, as well as Herod.

I am convinced that John knew that his stand against Herod’s unlawful marriage would be very costly. One commentator referred to it as an act of civil disobedience. Civil disobedience has a heavy price. It may cost a person financially or it may even bring about imprisonment, which may lead to death.

In 1989 Pastor Randy Alcorn, from the State of Oregon, led a peaceful protest in which the entrance to an abortion clinic was blocked. The abortion clinic filed and won a suite against him. There was a heavy fine charged to him, and since his income was derived from a church it went against his conscious to pay the fine. Therefore the judge ordered half of his wages to be garnished for the next ten years and given to the abortion clinic. Since he did not think it was wise stewardship of the Lord’s money to give it to an abortion clinic he resigned his position and took a minimum wage job. The court countered by extending the period of garnishment to twenty years.

Whether or not I agree with Alcorn, I do admire his willingness to risk all for the sake of Christ. It was a very John the Baptist type of risk.

Our text tells us that Herod had a birthday party in which a lot of dignitaries were in attendance. This party was most likely some sort of drunken orgy. Most believe that Herodias took advantage of the situation and manipulated things to her advantage. She convinced her daughter, Salome, to dance for Herod and his guests. Most believe this was a provocative, alluring type of dance. Herodias probably had instructed her daughter ahead of time as to what to request if the offer where to be made. And of course we know she requested that John’s head be brought to her on a platter.

D.A. Carson wrote:

The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 8: Matthew, Mark, Luke b. Background: Herod’s Execution of John the Baptist (14:3–12)

When Cicero’s head was brought to Fulvia, the wife of Antony, she spat on it and pierced its tongue with a pin in spite against the man who had opposed Antony. Jerome says Herodias did the same thing to the head of John. We do not know where Jerome got his information, and it may not be historical; but it would not have been out of character for a cruel and ruthless woman intent on aping the imperial court.

Let’s turn our attention now to

THE SECOND OUTCOME OF TRUE PERCEPTION

Notice verse 12 for a moment: His disciples came and took away the body and buried it; and they went and reported to Jesus.

After lovingly caring for the remains of their beloved leader they went to Jesus. Ever since the introduction of Jesus to the public in John had been pointing his follower to Christ. I can’t help but to wonder if the question that John had his followers ask of Jesus in were for the benefit of his disciples, and not out of his own state of curiosity.

At the risk of spiritualizing things I want to impress on you the importance of coming to Jesus with your various problems. Songwriter Chris Rice wrote:

Cry to Jesus

Weak and wounded sinner Lost and left to die O, raise your head, for love is passing by Come to Jesus Come to Jesus Come to Jesus and live!

Now your burden's lifted And carried far away And precious blood has washed away the stain, so Sing to Jesus Sing to Jesus Sing to Jesus and live!

And like a newborn baby Don't be afraid to crawl And remember when you walk Sometimes we fall, so Fall on Jesus Fall on Jesus Fall on Jesus and live!

Sometimes the way is lonely And steep and filled with pain So if your sky is dark and pours the rain, then Cry to Jesus Cry to Jesus Cry to Jesus and live!

O, and when the love spills over And music fills the night And when you can't contain your joy inside, then Dance for Jesus Dance for Jesus Dance for Jesus and live!

And with your final heartbeat Kiss the world goodbye Then go in peace, and laugh on Glory's side, and Fly to Jesus Fly to Jesus Fly to Jesus and live! Fly to Jesus Fly to Jesus Fly to Jesus and live!

Songwriters: Chris Rice / Christopher M. Rice Untitled Hymn lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc

How do you perceive Jesus? Do you perceive Him as a scandalizing person who was empowered by the forces of darkness? Do you perceive Him through the eyes of superstition? Do you perceive Him as the Lamb of God who came to be the sin-bearer for your sins, as well as for the sins of all who received His grace and mercy?

Let’s pray.

Closing Song: No. 633 — Open Our Eyes, Lord