When a Conscience Dies

When a Conscience Dies

Mark 6:14-29

Open your Bible to Mark 6.

The passage we’ll look at this morning is one of the saddest in the entire Bible. It records the events surrounding the death of John the Baptist. Now, John was a special man, chosen for a special mission.

He was the “forerunner” of the Messiah. He was the fulfillment of several Old Testament prophecies. He was the last of the Old Testament prophets. He was the last martyr of the Old Testament period and the first of the New Testament period. He was a powerful preacher. He was a fearless prophet. He was a true man of God.

Jesus would even say:

Matthew 11:11

11 Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist…

While this passage reveals the details of John’s death, it also records the death of something else, it shows the death of a conscience. In it, we find a wicked man named Herod.

His father was Herod the Great. His dad was the king who was ruling when Jesus was born. It was Herod the Great who ordered the deaths of all the babies in Bethlehem trying to destroy the Messiah.

When Herod died, the Roman emperor divided his kingdom into four parts. One part was given to the man in our text, Herod Antipas. He wasn’t really a king; he was actually a “tetrarch,” which means “the ruler of a fourth part.” But he demanded that his subjects call him “king.”

What we see in these verses is a picture of how a person can sin against their conscience to the point that they’re capable of anything. It’s possible to ignore the warnings of your heart, your soul and your mind until those warnings can’t be heard. It’s possible to get to the point that y our conscience no longer stands as a barrier between doing the right thing and sinning.

That is why some people can do the things they do without any remorse or guilt. They have seared their conscience to the point where it feels nothing and no longer warns them about evil.

Before we go any farther, we need to talk about the conscience. A lot of people are confused about the conscience and what it does. Many people believe that the conscience was given to us to help us make decisions between right and wrong. That’s actually wrong! The conscience will only resist any deviation from the truth, or the right and the wrong, it knows.

For instance, if you have been raised to believe the Bible is absolute truth, your conscience will help you know the difference between what is right and wrong based on the Bible, your standard for truth. If you start to do something the Bible says is a sin, your conscience will tell you to stop. If, on the other hand, you’ve been raised to believe that there are no limits in life and you can do as you please, your conscience won’t give you any problems.

That’s why so many people are in so much trouble today.

They’ve adopted a philosophy that says, “If it’s okay for you, do it!” As a result, they don’t live by the truth of the Word of God, but by the feelings of their flesh. They do as they please and their conscience never bothers them.

The most dangerous thing any person can do is to sin against the truth.

Paul tells us that sinning against a “good conscience” leads to spiritual “shipwreck.” A “good conscience” is one that knows the truth and desires to be obedient to it. When people know the truth and reject it in favor of their own standards of right and wrong, they sin against a “good conscience.

That’s exactly what we see in our text today.

Let’s pray and we’ll look at the lessons in our text for today.

Pray!

Mark 6:14–29 ESV

King Herod heard of it, for Jesus’ name had become known. Some said, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead. That is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.” But others said, “He is Elijah.” And others said, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” But when Herod heard of it, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.” For it was Herod who had sent and seized John and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because he had married her. For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” And Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to put him to death. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly. But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his nobles and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee. For when Herodias’s daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. And the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you.” And he vowed to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.” And she went out and said to her mother, “For what should I ask?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist.” And she came in immediately with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” And the king was exceedingly sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her. And immediately the king sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded him in the prison and brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard of it, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

The first thing we see is:

Herod’s Confusion

When Herod heard about the ministry of Jesus and about all the miracles He performed, Herod thought that Jesus was John the Baptist raised from the dead.

First, we need to consider the background for Herod’s belief that John had somehow come back from the dead.

We’re transported back in time to the events surrounding the death of John the Baptist. Mark lets us to see Herod’s flashback regarding the death of John the Baptist and see a soul in conflict. Herod’s fighting a battle between the flesh and the spirit. He’s confused and conflicted and that is clearly revealed in these verses.

We’re told that Herod arrested John for preaching against Herod’s sins. If things haven’t been confusing enough already, we’re going to spend a minute looking at Herod’s family tree. A better description would be a palm, since it doesn’t really branch.

· Herod Antipas is the son of Herod the Great.

· Among his half-brothers are Aristobolus (who was killed by his father) and Herod Philip.

· Herod the Great had at least five wives and children by them all.

· Herod Antipas, the man in our text, married the daughter of an Arabian king.

· Herod Philip married Herodias, the woman in our text, who was the daughter of his half-brother Aristobolus. She was his half-niece. They had a daughter named Salome, the girl who danced for Herod Antipas, her half-uncle and step-father.

· Herod Philip was disinherited by his father Herod the Great.

· Herod Antipas and his wife visited his brother in Rome and Herod Antipas fell in love with his half-niece and sister-in-law Herodias. They had an affair and both left their spouses and married.

And you thought soap operas were complicated!

This is what John repeatedly condemned. I don’t know why…

Every time Herod was around, John preached against incest and adultery and this upset Herod. It seems that Herodias was even more upset and Herod had John thrown into prison.

This isn’t the correct response to biblical preaching! When a preacher takes the Bible and preaches the truth from it, there’ll be times when he’ll get a little too close to where you are living.

When that happens, you have several choices.

· You can ignore the message

That’s dangerous because it can lead to a dead conscience.

· You can attack the messenger.

That’s dangerous because God will judge you for that response. Besides that, if the preaching is preaching the truth, he’s really just delivering the mail. If you have an issue, you should take it up with God.

· You can bring the need to God.

You can let Him work in your life to bring you to a place of repentance and blessing.

We’re quickly approaching a time when preachers in this country are going to be persecuted for the message we preach. Even the Gospel itself is being called “hate speech” by those who reject Christ. The days are coming when those who stand for the truth are going to face hardship and persecution.

While Herod didn’t like the message John preached, Herod protected John from the murderous ambitions of Herodias. She refused to forgive John for what he preached and she held hatred in her heart for the man of God.

Herod’s confusion is clear to see. He hated the fact that John was telling him the truth about his sins, but still he wanted to keep John around.

This same love/hate relationship exists in our world between the preacher and some of those he preaches to. They hate it when he exposes their sins. Yet, they don’t hesitate to call him when they have a need in their life. Some people are as confused as a yo-yo!

Herod didn’t like the fact that John exposed his sin but he still wanted John around.

· Herod knew that John was a genuine man of God and

· Herod knew John was a holy and a righteous man.

· Herod kept John safe and under constant guard. He didn’t want John to expose his sins, but he didn’t want anything bad to happen either.

· When Herod heard John preach, he was perplexed. It caused him conflict of soul. He heard the truth and recognized it as truth. Herod may have even done some of the things John told him to do. Maybe he reformed his life to a certain point, but not the point of giving up Herodias. The truth touched Herod’s heart and he tried to dull the pain of conviction by doing some good things.

· Herod even “heard him gladly.” The idea is that Herod enjoyed hearing John preach. He didn’t plan to change his life and surrender to the Lord, but he liked the preacher and he loved to hear him preach.

King Herod was one confused man!

There are many people just like Herod in our world today. They get caught up in the preaching or someone’s personality but they miss the point of the message. They like to hear their favorite preacher preach, but they have no intentions of doing what the Bible tells them to do. That’s a dangerous way to live your life!

When God speaks to your heart, He’s extending grace to you that you don’t deserve! He’s showing you that He cares about you, that He loves you and that He has a better plan for your life. When He points out your faults, He does it because He loves you and wants you to change.

Don’t be like Herod.

Herod kept John like he was a pet parrot. He treated the message like it didn’t apply to him. Nothing destroys a conscience quicker than saying “no” to the Word of God.

There was Herod’s confusion and next we see:

Herod’s Crime

John was a mighty man of God, but he was sacrificed on the altar of hatred, self-gratification and lust. Let’s look at what led to his death.

Herodias had been biding her time, waiting for an opportunity to see John the Baptist put to death. She saw her chance at Herod’s birthday bash. This supper was nothing more than a drunken party for Herod and his men. And after they had few drinks, Herodias sprung her trap.

She sent in her teenage daughter Salome to dance seductively for Herod and his friends. Her dance had the desired effect, for Herod and those with him were captivated by the beautiful young girl.

This reveals the wickedness in the heart of Herodias. Imagine putting your daughter on display like that. Imagine sending her out to dance for a man who was both her uncle and step-father!

People aren’t any different today! People are still willing to do anything to get what they desire.

Herod is so impressed by the girl’s dance that he promises to give her anything she wants, up to half his kingdom! It was a foolish boast meant to make Herod look good in front of his friends and guests.

So, the girl runs to her mother for advice on what she should ask for. Her mother, without hesitation, tells her to ask for the head of John the Baptist. The girl runs back and tells Herod she wants John’s head. But she adds her own twist by telling him that she wanted it now and she wanted it served up on a plate.

Herod realizes immediately the mistake he made. He should have said, “I promised you a gift, not a murder!” But because he was afraid to look bad in front of his guests, he sends the executioner to the prison and John is beheaded.

Imagine the scene as his head was brought into the banquet hall on a platter…

And what we see in this passage is the death of Herod’s conscience. He refused to accept the Word of God and change his ways. Then, he listened to John preach repeatedly and said “no” to the Word. Now, he’s crossed the line and done the unthinkable. He has put this man he both feared and admired to death, all because of the anger of his wife.

There are several lessons for us here. We see:

· The devastating power of hatred, bitterness and unforgiveness

It’s so much better to follow the command of God and forgive those who hurt you than it is to be consumed with bitterness and hatred.

· The danger of peer pressure

Just because other people do stupid stuff doesn’t mean that you have to as well. Just because other people do stuff doesn’t mean you have to! You don’t have anything to prove. And not everybody is doing it if you aren’t.

· The danger of not controlling your tongue

The truth is that what you say can hurt you and it can hurt others.

There was Herod’s confusion, his crime and finally we see:

Herod’s Conscience

When Herod heard about Jesus and what He was doing, his conscience made one last attempt to point him toward the truth. But, by this time, his conscience has been so ignored and abused; it’s hardly functioning at all. Let’s look at the last gasps of his dying conscience.

As soon as Herod hears about the miracles, the message and the ministry of Jesus, Herod immediately assumes that Jesus is John resurrected from the dead.

It’s amazing he jumped to this conclusion. Herod was a member of the Sadducees who denied the supernatural and didn’t believe in the resurrection.

The guilt over what he did is eating him alive. He knows he killed an innocent, decent and good man. His conscience is bothering him and he is sure that John the Baptist has come back to haunt him.

That’s the power of guilt!

You can’t run from it. You can’t hide from it. You can’t escape its words. It shows up when you’re alone. Guilt comes calling in the dead of night. It gnaws at the soul and eats away at the mind. It will eat you alive.

The only solution for guilt over past sins is to bring them to Jesus. When they’re brought to Him, Jesus forgives the sin and removes the guilt. He can set you free from all of that!

1 John 1:9 ESV

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

People were saying that Jesus was Elijah or one of the other prophets. Herod is convinced that Jesus is John the Baptist. He says, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.”

Herod’s confessing his guilt, but he isn’t seeking forgiveness. There’s confession, but there’s no repentance! So, there’s no salvation! There is only the death of a conscience.

It’s one thing to know you’re guilty of sin. It’s another thing for you to get honest about that sin. When you get honest about your sins and confess them to the Lord, He’ll forgive your sins. When there is a desire to repent, or turn away from sin, there can be salvation.

But, when He calls and you ignore Him, choosing to remain in your sins, there is nothing left for you but judgment. God can cleanse. God can restore. God can give new life.

But when His call is ignored, the conscience begins to die. If the call is rejected long enough and often enough, the conscience will die altogether. At that point, God may call, but His voice won’t be heard. Eventually God will abandon the sinner to the way they have chosen.

The final mention of Herod Antipas is in Luke 23. Jesus had been arrested and appeared before Pilate. Pilate then sends Jesus to Herod Antipas because Jesus was from Herod’s jurisdiction.

When Jesus appears before Herod, all he wants is to see Jesus perform some miracle. He doesn’t care about the truth; he is just looking for spiritual entertainment.

Jesus refuses to even speak to Herod. God has finished with him and there will be no more calls for him to repent. God has nothing more to say to King Herod! There will be no more opportunities for him to be saved. He has sinned away his day of grace and is doomed.

Herod’s conscience is so scarred that he has no compassion for a condemned man. He and his men mock Jesus. They dress him in a king’s robe and send Him away. So ends the story of Herod Antipas! He has ignored the truth and killed his own conscience. There will be no hope and no salvation for Herod forever.

It’s a dangerous thing to turn God away. When you do, you aren’t guaranteed that He’ll ever speak to you again.

Every time you turn away, it hardens your heart more and more. Eventually, you reach the place where your conscience dies. When that happens, you’ll never hear His voice again. If He’s speaking to your heart, do what He’s calling you to do.

The death of a conscience is a tragedy because the death of a conscience usually leads to the death of a soul. When you refuse the Gospel, there is no hope for your salvation. There is nothing in your future but the horrors of Hell.