A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope,
encouragement and exhortation.
Daily
Encouragement on
Monday, March 11,
2019
"A
Lesson From Herod's Birthday"
Message
summary: Today,
regardless of the
price we pay, let us
unashamedly stand up
for Jesus!
Listen to our
message on your audio
player.
"On Herod's birthday the daughter of Herodias danced for them and pleased Herod so much that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. Prompted by her mother, she said, 'Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.' The king was distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he ordered that her request be granted and had John beheaded in the prison. His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl, who carried it to her mother. John's disciples came and took his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus" (Matthew 14:6-12).
Ester's had her 30th birthday on Saturday. Last night we had a gathering with several of her friends at our place. (We'll share more about that in Tuesday's message.) Celebrations of birthdays are a worldwide experience and why not, after all our birth is something we all share of significance!
"On Herod's birthday the daughter of Herodias danced for them and pleased Herod so much that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. Prompted by her mother, she said, 'Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.' The king was distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he ordered that her request be granted and had John beheaded in the prison. His head was brought in on a platter and given to the girl, who carried it to her mother. John's disciples came and took his body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus" (Matthew 14:6-12).
Ester's had her 30th birthday on Saturday. Last night we had a gathering with several of her friends at our place. (We'll share more about that in Tuesday's message.) Celebrations of birthdays are a worldwide experience and why not, after all our birth is something we all share of significance!
The
Bible rarely mentions
birthdays or birthday
parties. In fact only
two are mentioned, both
concerning worldly
leaders. Pharaoh in Genesis
40:20 and Herod in
our daily text.However in both texts the focus is not on the pagan's birthday celebration but rather the faithfulness of God's servants; Joseph in Genesis and John the Baptist in our daily text. Today let us consider John the Baptist.
As a child we had a picture of John the Baptist in our hallway. Since I grew up in the Methodist Church I recall in my earlier years reasoning that John must not have been a Methodist but rather a part of the Baptist church in our community!
Of course no single group or denomination can exclusively lay claim to this faithful servant. He had a relatively short life and a gruesome death as recorded in our daily text. Beheading is a particularly violent form of brutality and was the experience of at least two New Testament believers although there were likely others.* Throughout the Scriptures the consequences of sin and the fall are quite evident. We still see these consequences today.
The daily text records the most prominent beheading in the Bible. It matter-of-factly states that on Herod's birthday he was tricked into beheading John the Baptist. It is surely among the harder passages to read, learn from and present spiritual application for God's people (let alone encourage).
Our
first reaction tends to
be, "Why would God
allow this to happen
to a man who served
Him so faithfully?"
But it did happen and
has happened many, many
times since. It's still
happening today, the
most prominent and
recent example being the
ISIS beheading of
Christian men in Libya
several years ago. We
wrote about a lesser
reported feature in that
event in this message.The following thoughts are derived from the fuller context of John's beheading recorded in Matthew 14:1-12 and Mark 6:17-29.
In these passages we find three responses to God's Word that is demonstrated by all ages, in all places, and by all people. In fact you and I are demonstrating one of the three.
1) John
faithfully proclaimed
God's Word.
2) Herod and Herodias (his unlawful wife) stubbornly rejected God's Word.
3) Herod was interested and liked to listen to John but spinelessly waffled in regard to God's Word, thus defacto rejecting it. When push came to shove he ordered the execution of John, whom he knew to be "a righteous and holy man" (Mark 6:20).
2) Herod and Herodias (his unlawful wife) stubbornly rejected God's Word.
3) Herod was interested and liked to listen to John but spinelessly waffled in regard to God's Word, thus defacto rejecting it. When push came to shove he ordered the execution of John, whom he knew to be "a righteous and holy man" (Mark 6:20).
There is an interesting passage toward the end of Revelation concerning faithful witnesses for the Lord. "And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony for Jesus and because of the Word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or his image and had not received his mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years" (Revelation 20:4).
Where do you fit in today? Apart from someone just dropping in on our site we don't expect to have very many readers that live in rejection of God's Word. However some may be interested and even find our writings compelling, but you're still at a crossroads. It's hard to admit, but are you spinelessly waffling, still undecided about where to place your allegiance?
Join us in faithfully proclaiming God's Word, in unashamedly standing up for Jesus. For some of you this will be literally preaching, but for most it will be that steady day by day proclamation through our lives and words to individuals and small groups. There are millions today who, like John the Baptist, faithfully proclaim God's Word. And frankly some will be beheaded or otherwise die due to their stand for the Lord. Today, regardless of the price we pay, let us unashamedly stand up for Jesus!
Be encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer:
Father, we
confess that we
are weak and
fearful people,
apart from Your
Holy Spirit that
makes us valiant
and strong as we
stand up for
Your
righteousness.
The conflicting
philosophies,
the indulgent
sinful behaviors
of humanity, the
worship of
creatures rather
than our
Creator, and the
false religions
that abound
require us to be
equipped daily
in Your
spiritual armor.
Our struggle is
not physical but
spiritual in
nature as the
powers of this
dark world and
the spiritual
forces in the
heavenly realms
battle for our
souls. This
conflict will
not end until we
unite with You
in heaven, so
keep us vigilant
and trusting as
we do battle
with our enemy.
You are the
captain of our
army and we will
be victorious as
we follow Your
every command.
Help us to do so
we pray in the
blessed name of
Jesus. Amen.* In Acts 12 James is the first of the original twelve disciples whose martyrdom is recorded in Scripture. He was "put to death with the sword" also by Herod. Presumably this means he was beheaded.
Consider how martyrdom is often used in the religion of Islam with those who are identified as "martyrs" if they die in the process of murdering others. The sense of Christian martyrdom is always a death for the witness of Christ. Associating the term with the killing of others is utterly perverse and essentially a blasphemous use of the word "martyr".
Last
week Ester
visited Dr. Mark
Cohen, on of her
first pediatric
cardiologists.
He first saw her
as part of the
team at
Geisinger
medical center.
Than following
our move back to
PA from New
England at
Hershey Medical
Center. He is a
very caring
physician.
Saturday
evening we went
out to dinner at
Fuddruckers and
she shows her
customized
buzzer.
Today's
Suggested
Music and Supplemental Resources
Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne
To receive the "Daily Encouragement" each Monday-Friday through email see this page to subscribe to our email list. You can also subscribe to the Wordpress rss feed or through a Wordpress email subscription. (See the email subscription on the right side after opening this page.)
We realize there are many fine
ministries and causes requesting support
but if the Lord would lead you we surely need
and appreciate the financial support from our
readers and listeners.Our ministry labor is comprised of approximately half our time to Daily Encouragement and the other half to our chaplaincy ministry to companies for which we receive compensation. Each of these ministries essentially is the same as a part-time job (20+ hours weekly) for each of us. Our goal for many years is that each would provide half of our ministry expenses and income.
If you would consider making a donation to our ministry see here for more information.
Please Note:
We also provide this easy option due to the
convenience, for international supporters, and
for those who may not be concerned regarding
receiving an official tax deductible receipt. Click here
to send an offering using PayPal. This
will open to a page that states "Brooksyne
Weber"Permissions: Please feel free to pass on, reproduce and distribute any material on Daily Encouragement Net, in part or in whole, in any format, provided that you do not alter the wording in any way or charge a fee beyond the cost of reproduction. It is our desire to spread this material, not protect or restrict it. We do request that you keep the contact, copyright and subscription information intact.
Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.
Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
© Copyright 2019 Stephen
C. & Brooksyne Weber - All Rights Reserved
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA
Daily Encouragement Net - 495 Kraybill Church Road - Mount Joy, PA 17552 USA