Matthew 14:1-5

Matthew 14:1-5

In that time Herod the tetrarch heard the report of Jesus and he said to his personal slaves, “This is John the Baptizer.  He was being raised up from the dead and because of this the powerful deeds are at work in Him.  For after Herod seized John he bound him and he put him in prison because of Herodias the wife of Philip his brother.  For John was saying to him, “It is not permitted for you to have her.”  And while desiring to kill him, he was being afraid of the crowd because they regarded him as a prophet.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

I think it is really interesting to read Herod’s reaction to Jesus.  Herod assumes that Jesus in John the Baptizer come back from the dead to haunt him.  I find this to be a highly superstitious reaction.  I realize that Jesus’ ministry and John’s ministry were linked.  But if Herod had actually been listening to the stories that he was hearing, he should have realized that Jesus and John were both alive at the same time.  So what does this tell us?  I think it absolutely tells us that a guilty conscience can convince us that reality is not reality while what we think makes sense actually is reality.  Guilt is a powerful motivator, and when people believe delusions instead of reality it can actually be a symptom of guilt and conscience at work.

Have you ever believed something that wasn’t true because of a guilty conscience?  If so, how did you resolve the situation?

Second Thought:

Another interesting point to observe is that John is arrested and bound for telling the truth.  It was not right for Herod to have his brother’s wife.  John stuck up for the truth and was hated because of it.  People who do not live according to the ways of God often don’t really want to hear about it.  If we stand up for God’s ways and speak into the lives of those who do not care about God’s ways, we should expect persecution.

Why does persecution follow truth?  What does this tell us about the world around us?  When have you been persecuted because of truth?

Third Thought:

Finally, let’s take a look at the fact that John was afraid of the crowd.  People in the public eye only have power when the people like and support them.  Therefore, people in the public eye naturally care about the opinion of the public.  This is important to realize, because it implies that the general populace actually has more power than assumed.  If the public wants something to happen, often all that needs to happen is that disapproval of the opposite needs to be expressed loudly enough.

Can you think of a time when the popular opinion changed the culture around it?  Can you think of a time when the leadership did not get its way because popular opinion was against it?  Why do we tend to underestimate the power of the populace?

Passage for Tomorrow: Matthew 14:6-12