Mark (13)

Introduction: Today we have the joy and privileged to study God’s Word together. Turn your Bibles to mark 6:14-29 and read along with me the text that we’ll be focusing on today.

Transition: Why is the passage sandwiched in the gospel of Mark? What is it emphasizing and instructing?

Main Point: The main point of this text is to clarify the identity of Jesus as the true King, and further encourage Jesus’ followers to consider the cost of what it means to be His disciple. The way we see this truth emerge out of the text is first through …

Main Point

Jesus is the true King. His followers should count the cost of discipleship.

Great Confusion

Major purposes of Mark’s gospel is to bring clarity to who Jesus really is. The imediate context of Jesus’ ministry reveals why that is so important; because there was a great cloud of confusion surrounding Jesus’ identity.

Jesus fame had spread even to the palace of Herod. His disciples proclamation of repentance was having a keen effect on the whole region of Galilee.

Some were saying Jesus was a resurrected John the Baptist. According to verse 14 they contended that was why he could do the powerful miracles he was doing. I suppose that's a step up from the scribes accusation in 3:22 that he was casting out demons by the power of Beelzebub. However, they were still wrong. Some were saying he was Elijah. Others were saying he was a new prophet like one of the old prophets. All of these were wrong.

Application: It is essential to have a right understanding of Jesus, according to the Scriptures. A correct identity of Jesus helps us follow Him correctly.

Transition: At this point the focus and attention of people’s perspective of Jesus narrows to the life of Herod. And his answer reveals a…

Guilty Conscience

In verse 16 Herod admits to being responsible for killing John the Baptist. It is his guilty conscience for killing John that he now assumes that Jesus is John coming back to haunt him.

Herod is an example to avoid on many levels. Consider these few...

Fear of man is not fear of God.

Glad listening is not fruitful regeneration. (Herod is an example of the rocky soil in Mark 4:16-17)

Mark 4:16–17 ESV

And these are the ones sown on rocky ground: the ones who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy. And they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away.

Awareness and knowledge is not awakening and agreeing (Confession of the truth) with truth.

We would be wise to heed the warning from Herod’s example.

His pride. As seen in his ancestors the Edomites. Herod was brought low just like the were. The Jewish historian Josephus tells us that his lovely wife talked him into going to the Roman emperor to request the title of King, and not only was it denied but he was banished and exiled from Galilee.

His power. Jesus had some clear words for Herod in Luke 13:31-33 This is where I took the title for the message today. Because Herod had a false identity of Jesus, but also of himself. His arrogance. had led him to think he could function according to his own justice. Jesus makes it very clear, that Herod is not the king… rather He is.

Luke 13:31–33 ESV

At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” And he said to them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course. Nevertheless, I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.’

Question: What is it that keeps us from rightly surrendering to Jesus?

Transition:

Gruesome Commemoration

Horrific scene of John’s execution.

How to make sense of this injustice?

To view it the way the early church did. See Acts 4:27-28

To the Roman Christians reading Mark’s gospel for the first time, and to the early Christians, to followers of Christ throughout the ages, and certainly for us today… there is a call to count the cost of following Jesus. There is a great message of persevering hope in this passage. The record of John’s seeming tragic murder, is a means for us to glory in the cross of Christ and how God has sovereignly planned to make triumph out of tragedy. In the same way we may be frustrated over the injustice of John beheading, so to owe would have been like the 12 who were bewildered by Jesus telling them ahead of time that he would suffer and die.

And so too we are stricken with grief when we hear of the hard struggles of saints today. When we face things like; unexpected deaths of friends and family, long term illness, cancer, hurricanes, political upheaval, wars and rumors of wars, famine, poverty, senseless murders and mass shootings. All of these things should cause us grief, however we do not loose hope! … it is needless to try to humanly rationalize those sufferings. Rather, the Word of God is our rational truth. His word encourages us to remember the great cost of following Jesus. For example Romans 8:18-39

Illustration: John and Betty Stam. Read 1935 publication from CIM from their biography. Pg 200.

Conclusion:

Jesus is the true King, and if we are to follow Him truly, we should count the cost.