It Gets Personal at Times - Mark 6:45-56 - Tenth Sunday after Pentecost

 

Tenth Sunday after Pentecost

 

Mark 6:45-56 NIV

⁴⁵ Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. ⁴⁶ After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray.

⁴⁷ Later that night, the boat was in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land. ⁴⁸ He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. Shortly before dawn he went out to them, walking on the lake. He was about to pass by them, ⁴⁹ but when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost. They cried out, ⁵⁰ because they all saw him and were terrified.

Immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” ⁵¹ Then he climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. They were completely amazed, ⁵² for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened.

⁵³ When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret and anchored there. ⁵⁴ As soon as they got out of the boat, people recognized Jesus. ⁵⁵ They ran throughout that whole region and carried the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. ⁵⁶ And wherever he went—into villages, towns or countryside—they placed the sick in the marketplaces. They begged him to let them touch even the edge of his cloak, and all who touched it were healed.

It Gets Personal at Times

It’s been leading up to this, the past few weeks. Things that lay heavily on your mind. Things that just crop up, like the wind. Where did that come from? I can figure out the direction and sometimes the storm that brought this wind, but I really don’t know why it came when it did.

So, in the last few weeks of these “Pointing to Jesus” episodes, I find myself, a simple layman, that loves to study the Word and look to Jesus, right in the midst of this message, that is read above. Not only has Jesus come to rescue imperiled disciples, Jesus has come to rescue me as well. I’ll explain as we go along. And guess what? Jesus rescues you as well, just ponder a little bit about it as we go along here, from your own personal perspective. I feel like God plopped me right in the middle of that boat, along with the disciples in my life at this time.

In this passage, Jesus goes off alone to pray. He dismisses the crowd of people that He had just fed, and he sends off his disciples in a boat to Bethsaida. I like how he “makes” them go. It’s like, Jesus really needs this alone time.

Alone time is important for all disciples and people of God. We need to pause in the hustle and bustle of our day to hear God speaking to us. Prayer is not done in a vacuum though. Jesus uses His mountain time prayers to call out to His Father. I remember hiking, alone to a high place in the Smoky Mountains in the morning to pray. It was a place where the atmosphere is a little thinner, a place where I felt closer to God. It was a place of prayer where I could reach up to God and reach out in prayer. I reach up to pray to God and I reach out to pray to God for those God has set in my life. I kind of feel like Jesus was doing this as well. The scripture doesn’t say this, but I think Jesus does this each day for us, even now.

I’m going to weave in and out of this reflection, my personal experience of late. So, bear with me. Perhaps, a couple of months back, when I go to get my infusion that helps me with Crohn’s disease, they took a blood sample. They always do this prior to giving me the medicine. It takes three hours for the drip to go into my blood stream, and after that another three days for my body to change. The first day after an infusion, I’m tired, the second day, I feel a little like I have a slight touch of the flu, and the third day I start to feel the goodness of the drug. I’ve been doing this for decades now and it keeps my Crohn’s disease under control. This is a good thing, since several years ago, I had an operation that removed some key parts of my intestinal tract. The doctors, the nurses and the medicine, have all been a blessing to me. So, don’t get the idea that I’m looking for sympathy. All of this is a gift from God to me.

Anyway, the blood test caused the Gastroenterologist to be concerned with my low platelet counts. He didn’t think any of this was a result of the medication. So, he ordered a fibro scan of my liver and an ultrasound of my liver, to hopefully rule out any liver concerns. The fibro scan came back with concerning results, of F4 and S4. Basically, F5 and S5 are the top of the scale for fibrosis and fatty liver.

Now, back to prayer. I asked for prayer from some key people in my life. It was kind of like the praying up and the praying out that I just told you about above. I prayed out to God for help, and I asked for prayer from others to reach up to God on my behalf.

Then the Gastroenterologist had me go to have a liver biopsy taken at Christ Hospital in Cincinnati. And he wanted me to go to a Christ Hospital Hematologist/Oncologist to have my blood work reviewed.

Well, the liver biopsy was much more than I expected. During the biopsy, which only takes about 20 minutes, they put you in a sedated state. Ok, that was easy. Afterwards I had to be observed and my pain needed to be managed for four hours in the hospital. Once again, I had wonderful gifted care.

To make it simple, the results of all this is that I have a badly damaged liver and blood that needs to be closely monitored for any adverse changes. OK, I have a life that has been aided by surgery and medicine. I’m in a body of decaying flesh after all. I can deal with this.

Please stay with me. I hate all this talk of myself, but in the end, I will, without a doubt “Point to Jesus.”

Back to the scripture passage. The disciples are in the boat, in the middle of the lake, and Jesus is on land. Jesus sees the disciples straining at the oars and begins to walk to them. On water! Jesus’ compassion and love goes beyond the physical limits that we see in this world in which we live.

God’s love is like that.

Job 9:8 NIV

⁸ He (God) alone stretches out the heavens
    and treads on the waves of the sea.

Psalm 77:19 NIV

¹⁹ Your (God’s) path led through the sea,
    your way through the mighty waters,
    though your footprints were not seen.

Isaiah 43:16 NIV

¹⁶ This is what the Lord says—
    he who made a way through the sea,
    a path through the mighty waters,

Face it. God created the water and rules over all water and creation. And God uses the water with His Word to bring salvation to all people. Think of baptism today, it is water with Word that brings us the gift of salvation. Water that God gives to us along with the Word, that God provides, to save us, without our having to do one tiny little thing. Wow!

So, here Jesus sees the disciples, me and you too, straining at the oars, fighting a storm of wind that comes from who knows where. Kind of like I was straining against the initial blood test. I didn’t know where that blood count came from. I didn’t expect that wind to blow my way. I couldn’t predict the low platelet count. Why? Where did this come from? I’m sure you too, as well, have had some wind in life, blow your way that you didn’t know why it entered into your life. Think about it.

Sometimes the winds of life are too much for us. Sometimes we are caught straining at the oars in the wind.

But Jesus knows us. He sees you and me and the disciples struggling at the oars and comes to us. Jesus comes to us, to me, to you, in power. Jesus comes to us even in power over the physics of water and walks right up to us. Jesus comes in the power of his compassion and care, while we are in the midst of our distress and need. Jesus comes to us at our desperate hour, even if it’s the middle of the night.

Jesus reaches out to us in our struggles, with His prayer and His presence. Jesus is sympathetic to our need.  Sometimes struggles are for the good, in our life.

Think back to the past few weeks of these episodes of “Pointing to Jesus.” I have been going over miracles of Jesus. I came to the realization, with the help of some learned people, that miracles are accompanied by faith. Faith given to us from God. Sometimes, I want a miracle to happen without faith. Sometimes I want an issue to, just go away. But I now realize with this passage of scripture, how personal Jesus can get with me, sometimes there is a miracle accompanied by God given faith that is not what I expected. More of this as we go along here.

At this point in the scripture passage above, and my entry into this scene of the Bible, personally; Jesus gets personal. Jesus walks up on the water to the struggling disciples at the oar, and to my, and our struggles, with whatever issue in life; and declares, “It is I!”

Yea! The Creator of all things, the Giver of all life, walks up to us on the water and tells us, “It is I.” I like to think that Jesus walks up and says I AM. Kind of like when God spoke to Moses about who He was. God is I AM. The One and Only God.

And when we hear this “It is I.” When we hear this in the faith God gives to us; fear is driven out. The wind is no longer a problem to strain against. The blood count becomes smaller, the used-up liver is not such a big deal anymore. Whatever your problem in life may be; when you realize that Jesus is with you and He declares, “It is I.” All your problems, although still present, melt into a puddle of nothing. Fear subsides. Why? Because now, with Jesus, you’re living with an irrational hope. A hope beyond all hope, that doesn’t make a bit of sense in this world, but makes all sense in the world in which we live with Jesus.

And next? And next, Jesus gets into the boat with the disciples, with you, and with me. And what happens? The wind calms down. The fear, the worry about tests results and next steps, fades into the background of life. In a wonderful way the prayers of friends and the prayers of my own have been answered. A miracle has just occurred in my very own life that I can hold onto and grasp. Through the faith God gives, along with the mighty powerful presence of Jesus in my boat, a miracle happens.

You see, Jesus uses us weak, fearful beings in his ministry of salvation.

So, what was the result of all this prayer? My prayer and the prayer of those I reach out to? We all spent time alone with God, reaching up and reaching out. I especially spent time alone while I was on my “windy sea of life.” And the result? Jesus comes! Jesus comes on the stormy waters of my life and steps into the boat in which I am in. And…

Think about this for your own storms in your own life as well; Jesus communes with us. This is a communion with God on the stormy seas in the winds of life. The results of our life here on this earth may still be death, but that’s not the end. We are with God.

And then, look at what happens next in the passage.

The boat comes to shore and there is yet another call for the disciples and for Jesus. Ministry continues in love for all the people in the midst of their own life struggles.  Beyond the troubles of our own life, we bring the people to Jesus.  As the people touch the fringe or tassels of Jesus cloak, there is healing, grace, love, compassion, and salvation.

Now, there is some awesome, “Pointing to Jesus!”

God’s steadfast love endures in creation. Yes, in the rainbow, God gives an eternal bond between Him and His creation. For now, we know, as Jesus walked upon the water and stepped into our boat of fear, that the love of Christ surpasses all knowledge and understanding, today…. tomorrow… and forever! Thanks be to God as we “Point to Jesus,” upon the water and in the boat! What a miracle!

Pause and enjoy this YouTube music by Chris Tomlin --- Nobody Loves Me Like You

Nobody Loves Me Like You

But Wait! There's More! - Mark 6:30-44 - Ninth Sunday after Pentecost

Mark 6:30-44 NIV

³⁰ The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. ³¹ Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”

³² So they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place. ³³ But many who saw them leaving recognized them and ran on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. ³⁴ When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.

³⁵ By this time it was late in the day, so his disciples came to him. “This is a remote place,” they said, “and it’s already very late. ³⁶ Send the people away so that they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.”

³⁷ But he answered, “You give them something to eat.”

They said to him, “That would take more than half a year’s wages! Are we to go and spend that much on bread and give it to them to eat?”

³⁸ “How many loaves do you have?” he asked. “Go and see.”

When they found out, they said, “Five—and two fish.”

³⁹ Then Jesus directed them to have all the people sit down in groups on the green grass. ⁴⁰ So they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. ⁴¹ Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to distribute to the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. ⁴² They all ate and were satisfied, ⁴³ and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. ⁴⁴ The number of the men who had eaten was five thousand.

But Wait! There’s More!

Wow! All I can say, which is way too little, is, wow! This passage of scripture and my studies this past week, go way beyond anything I ever expected. This passage gave me a personal message of comfort and relief to continue on in this world. I know now, without a doubt that Jesus is with me through it all. So, here goes. May this message Point To Jesus!

A couple of weeks back, we read in the book of Mark how Jesus sent out His disciples in pairs to teach repentance, to forgive, to heal and to be with the people. And they did just this, coming back tired. Here, Jesus gives his disciples rest.

As you read and hear the Word above; we discover nourishment and teaching. We witness compassion of God in and through Jesus. God is abundant, for sure, as we witness the reading and hearing of this passage of Mark.

God has always been abundant. Look back to Jeremiah 23:1-6. You can read for yourself. In this passage we find the Israelites out of exile. We can look to our own life journey, in the wilderness of life, and ask, “What now, am I to do, as I struggle?” Well, look to the righteous Branch. Look to Jesus. He has always been with you. Follow, listen and serve Jesus in life. As we struggle at the “oars” of life, fighting the stormy seas, Jesus walks to us and gets into the boat with us and calms the storms of illness, death, addiction, poverty, hunger, and on and on. Yes, God feeds His people and loves and cares for them and all of us.

In Exodus 16:14-35, we witness how God took care of the need of hunger. He fed the Israelites, in the wilderness, manna, or bread from heaven. God gave the people just what they needed in the amounts they needed. Yes, God loved them and fed them all they needed.

In the desert of our own wilderness, God feeds us all that we need.

This same love of God is remembered in the book of Nehemiah…

Nehemiah 9:15 NIV

¹⁵ In their (The Israelites in the wilderness) hunger you gave them bread from heaven and in their thirst you brought them water from the rock; you told them to go in and take possession of the land you had sworn with uplifted hand to give them.

Jesus wants us and His disciples to take time to rest in a desert or lonely place. Jesus, like the 23^rd Psalm teaches us… “He makes me lie down.” See that? Makes me! God doesn’t just request this but makes us. And I think this is at least daily.

Just yesterday, as I visited the Columbus Zoo with my wife Sue and grandchildren Kaiya and Bubs, we saw this rest taking place with the animal kingdom. Lions, tigers, bears and many of the creatures, were taking rest. In the heat of the day, they took rest. God gives His creation rest when needed. I believe this is one of those gifts given to us from God. And if we don’t take that rest, God will make us lie down.

As we rest in this desert place, this lonely place, that God gives us; we come to see ourselves and we see God. So, rest! Take time each day to draw near to God. For you have been brought near to God by a great price. What price? You have been brought near to God by the blood of Jesus. And in and through the blood of Jesus, we need not fear the evils of this world, the sin, the death, the illness, the addiction, and on and on. Why? Because God IS with you. God IS with you in Jesus and the Holy Spirit. No doubt about it. Rest, reflect, open the Word, pray and be near in rest. Not because you have to encounter God, but rather because God MAKES you! God makes you; this isn’t about your efforts or you being a goody goody, this is about God taking care of You!

Let’s move along in this reading. So, a crowd tracks Jesus and the disciples down. A crown invades this quiet time. How does Jesus respond to this break in His schedule?

Jesus is compassionate with the crowd. I would have been irritated that this selfish crowd destroyed MY time alone with Jesus!

But Jesus didn’t have my selfish vision of the people, as I would have had with my eyes and heart of irritation. Rather Jesus was concerned with the needs of the crowd. Beyond Jesus’ own need for rest; Jesus sees into the heart of the people. WOW! Think of that! Jesus, our Lord, our Savior, our King… yes, THE King, looks beyond His own need to the needs of others.

God in Jesus IS compassionate.

But the response of myself and the disciples is something far different.

The disciples, and my guilty self, say, as I paraphrase, “Send them away!” “Let them take care of themselves.”

But NO! Jesus tells us to meet the needs of the crowd. How? Through Faith the need is met. Through this same Faith that Jesus gives to all people.

But, come on, Jesus! I don’t want these people to take my stuff? Let them feed themselves! Let them earn what I had to earn on my own! Send them away!

But Jesus tells us NO! This crowd, these needy people, are YOUR responsibility!

YOU give them something to eat!

What are your resources?

Forget about what is impossible, and move along with what you have.

Seek what IS possible with 5 loaves and 2 fish.

And then, give all of your resources to Jesus!

You see, the need of hunger is met when we let God take care of the resources. And that goes beyond hunger, to the many needs we encounter in our walk in this wilderness of life… perhaps illness, addiction, death, temptations, greed, selfishness…

And here we go back again. Not only with Jesus and His disciples, but also with this hungry crowd. The crowd is to lay down in green pastures. Kind of like Psalm 23 again. Be fed by Jesus.

Let’s view this “green” in a new and different way than we think of “green” today. In this “green” we think of Passover, the spring of new life. Yes! Think of Easter!

This very thing was predicted years earlier and continues on today.

Ezekiel 34:15-16 NIV

¹⁵ I  myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign Lord. ¹⁶ I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.

That’s Jesus! In this passage and today and forever!

And then it happens once again, just like we have witnessed in the last few weeks of Jesus actions with the people.

Faith accompanies the miracle of God in and through Jesus.

And this and this alone, is all we need. It’s way more that we need to give life to the crowd and to all those God gives to us each and every day.

Jesus takes what we give to Him and makes a miracle out of it, feeding all the people. It was never about our doing, or our generosity. It was always about what Jesus does for us, the crowd and the world.

Look at it!

We handed Jesus a cross. What did Jesus give back? Jesus handed back to us, from the cross, forgiveness, salvation and everlasting life.

When we give to Jesus all of our resources, Jesus makes way more! It’s not about our giving that makes this happen. No! It’s about what Jesus gives through faith. And to this, what can we say? Thanks be to God!

And now, Jesus, looking up to heaven, as in a table prayer of thanksgiving, blesses and breaks the bread. Why? This is a feeding of a New People… Forever!

Feeding more than a measly few thousand people, with a little bit of food; Jesus gives life and sustains us all for daily living. Jesus gives us not only food, he gives us all the faith we need to believe in Him and God, now and forever.

And… more was left over than what they began with. This is a Divine bounty.

In the midst of our wildernesses of life; whatever they may be, and in whatever shape you encounter your own hunger, Jesus is with you. Jesus feeds you and gives you all the faith you need to believe in Him.

With all those leftovers of compassion, love, service and giving and faith. Believe and GO! Go out in faith to love and serve and have compassion on all those God gives to you each and every day. And God will take all of this and make a miracle for all the world… today… tomorrow… and forever! You can believe in God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit… always. --- Amen

Please enjoy with me this YouTube song... God bless you this week and always!

I Lift My Hands

Once Again, Who Is Jesus? - Mark 6:14-29

 

Mark 6:14-29 NIV

¹⁴ King Herod heard about this, for Jesus’ name had become well known. Some were saying, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.”

¹⁵ Others said, “He is Elijah.”

And still others claimed, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of long ago.”

¹⁶ But when Herod heard this, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised from the dead!”

¹⁷ For Herod himself had given orders to have John arrested, and he had him bound and put in prison. He did this because of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, whom he had married. ¹⁸ For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” ¹⁹ So Herodias nursed a grudge against John and wanted to kill him. But she was not able to, ²⁰ because Herod feared John and protected him, knowing him to be a righteous and holy man. When Herod heard John, he was greatly puzzled; yet he liked to listen to him.

²¹ Finally the opportune time came. On his birthday Herod gave a banquet for his high officials and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee. ²² When the daughter of Herodias came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his dinner guests.

The king said to the girl, “Ask me for anything you want, and I’ll give it to you.” ²³ And he promised her with an oath, “Whatever you ask I will give you, up to half my kingdom.”

²⁴ She went out and said to her mother, “What shall I ask for?”

“The head of John the Baptist,” she answered.

 

²⁵ At once the girl hurried in to the king with the request: “I want you to give me right now the head of John the Baptist on a platter.”

²⁶ The king was greatly distressed, but because of his oaths and his dinner guests, he did not want to refuse her. ²⁷ So he immediately sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s head. The man went, beheaded John in the prison, ²⁸ and brought back his head on a platter. He presented it to the girl, and she gave it to her mother. ²⁹ On hearing of this, John’s disciples came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

Once Again, Who Is Jesus?

Wow! What a scripture reading! Gross, yet fascinating. Almost like a horror movie, with a little bit of Soap Opera involved. How can there be a message in all of this?

Okay… so here’s this layman’s cut at it. May my message always Point to Jesus.

Once again it seems there are two messages here. And they are out of order if you go by a time line. The second part of this passage, verses 17-29, happens before the first part of this passage, verses 14-16.

The whole thing starts with the question… Who is Jesus? I think, for this message, I’m going to conclude with this question.

Let’s begin with the “Soap Opera” part. And, I must admit, my research left me confused and unsure if what I was reading in the study resources were even correct. So, I’ll spill the beans as I got them spilled to me.

These relatives of Herod are confusing. They remind me of a family with incest!

One source revealed that Herod married his niece, the former wife of his half-brother, Philip. I don’t even understand this statement myself, so I’m not sure it’s accurate. All I can say is that it seems weird to me.

Another source explained things this way… Herodias, we’ll get to her later, was Herod’s half-brother’s wife. Well, Herod married his brother’s wife. And John the Baptist, told Herod that this act of marriage was unlawful. Sources sent me to Leviticus 18:16 and Leviticus 20:21, as the basis for John the Baptist’s message to Herod.

Leviticus 18:16 NIV

¹⁶ “‘Do not have sexual relations with your brother’s wife; that would dishonor your brother.

Leviticus 20:21 NIV

²¹ “‘If a man marries his brother’s wife, it is an act of impurity; he has dishonored his brother. They will be childless.

So… Herodias didn’t care at all for John the Baptist. After all John the Baptist told Herod that the marriage wasn’t right. And… On top of all this, Herod had some respect for John the Baptist and even feared John the Baptist, and protected him.

For John the Baptist, there is great risk in confronting power with honest truth. The truth that Herod’s marriage to Herodias was not right. This confrontation could possibly ignite anger and violence in Herod or Herodias.

John the Baptist was honest and courageous to speak truth to Herod. John was standing up to Herod to proclaim a wrong that Herod had committed in marrying Herodias. For John the Baptist, if it’s wrong, say so. Saying so, to the ruler of Galilee takes nerve and faith.

It makes me recall how Nathan stood up to King David to tell him that his affair with Bathsheba and the death of Bathsheba’s husband, Uriah, was sinful and wrong. This stuff takes courage and faith, especially when you are confronting a ruler and political power. It most certainly takes nerve and faith. There’s a life lesson in this for all of us. Sometimes there are times when you need, you must, use your God given mouth to declare a truth. It just may be the only loving thing to do for someone else.

You can even go back to the book of Eshter in chapter 5 and see how she stood before the King to right a wrong that had taken place with a decree to persecute the Jews. I encourage you to go there and read a little bit about how Esther was a courageous woman of faith, much like John the Baptist was in this passage of Mark.

Herod was kind of like Pilate was to Jesus. John the Baptist and Jesus, die due to the misuse of political power. In some weird way, I can’t help but think of how John the Baptist was the forerunner of Jesus. Both died while bringing Truth.

Anyway, it’s easy to imagine the very human reaction of Herodias to this accusation that John the Baptist laid on Herod. Don’t be so smug to think that perhaps, you or I would not react in this same way. How’s that? Well Herodias’ reaction was to hold John the Baptist in contempt with a grudge, anger, even violence. Herodias hated John the Baptist for what he told Herod!

Jesus even stands before Herod later on in his life. And Jesus was silent…

Luke 23:7-11 NIV

⁷ When he (Pilate) learned that Jesus was under Herod’s jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem at that time.

⁸ When Herod saw Jesus, he was greatly pleased, because for a long time he had been wanting to see him. From what he had heard about him, he hoped to see him perform a sign of some sort. ⁹ He plied him with many questions, but Jesus gave him no answer. ¹⁰ The chief priests and the teachers of the law were standing there, vehemently accusing him. ¹¹ Then Herod and his soldiers ridiculed and mocked him. Dressing him in an elegant robe, they sent him back to Pilate.

So, it seems to me, that there is a time to speak and a time to shut up. And as disciples we need to discern God’s will for us. When do we speak and when do we remain silent.

We need to confront the ills and evils of this fallen world, along with John the Baptist and with Christ. And know this, you may die in this confrontation. People get mad when they are confronted with truth.

So, let’s go on with this Soap Opera, Horror movie.

Herod holds a birthday party for himself, and he gets drunk. To me this is another one of those weird parts.  Herodias daughter, dances. I guess this is Herod’s niece? I’m not sure about that, but it makes sense to me. If not, it would be his daughter.

Anyway, the dance is pleasing, to Herod and I suppose all the guys there. And Herod offers up to half his kingdom as a reward for such a great dance.

Here’s the thing. Herod really didn’t have a kingdom to divide. Herod wasn’t even the king. Herod was a tetrarch, which is a fancy name for a petty ruler of Galilee. It wasn’t even in Herod’s power to give any of Galilee away in the first place. What a blowhard Herod was!

So… Herodias daughter runs to mommy. What should I do with this offer from Herod?

And…

Herodias destroys another life. She destroys the life of not only John the Baptist, but the life of her daughter as well. Why? Because Herodias was a selfish, violent, grudge holding angry opponent of John the Baptist. Mom didn’t care for her daughter, only for her selfish need for revenge.

So, on the wishes of Herodias, her daughter tells Herod that she wants the head of John the Baptist brought to the party on a platter.  Notice how the daughter asks for John’s head on a platter and brought right now. It’s one of those odd details. Not sure if it means anything.

So, next we see how the pride of Herod gets in the way. Herod doesn’t have the guts to say no. Instead, he saves face in front of the party crowd. Why didn’t Herod look up to God for direction? I think it was that Herod held his pride higher than he held any sense of right or wrong or direction that God may have given him. It’s all disgusting!

There are some lessons to learn here. How many times in my life have I, myself, lacked courage in the face of power? How many times in my life have I been too prideful to back down and look to God for direction? How many times have I let selfishness get in my way and walk with God? All of this destroys lives and life.

There are times to pause and look to God. There are times to speak out in truth. There are times to shut up. And almost all of the time, when I sin, I’m the one that gets in the way of God’s.  So, what are we to do? What am I to do?

Now, let’s go back to the beginning few verses of this whole passage. The question that launched us into this whole Soap Opera Horror movie was…

Who is Jesus?

Look at the answers given.

Is Jesus John the Baptist raised from the dead?

Is Jesus, Elijah?

Is Jesus a prophet from the past?

Each reply seemed to satisfy the question for the person giving an answer of who Jesus really is. No one looked deeper into who Jesus is.

Jesus can’t be boxed in in this way. Jesus can’t be labeled and put away.

How many of us also, don’t understand Jesus for who He is?

Who is Jesus?

Jesus is not any of those answers, yet in some way he is all of those answers.

Jesus is not John the Baptist, yet as John pointed to Jesus, Jesus points to God. And Jesus did work in and through John the Baptist.

Jesus is not a prophet of old, yet he is an eternal prophet that tells us and leads us to salvation in and through Himself. And Jesus worked in and through the prophets of old to lead us to God.

Is Jesus Elijah? No, but Jesus did work in and through Elijah.

I had an opportunity to witness Jesus just this past Friday. I likewise, saw Jesus working in and through some wonderful people at Christ Hospital in Cincinnati. How? Maddy reminded me of Jesus. Maddy was the nurse that spent the most time with me preparing me, explaining to me the details of the test I was going to take. Maddy took care of me after the test as I recovered for four hours. Maddy didn’t display any of the qualities that Herodias or Herod displayed in the Soap Opera-Horror Movie we just reviewed. Maddy was not holding any grudge, acting violent, or selfish. Heck! Maddy wasn’t even drunk! Maddy was kind, caring, giving and compassionate. Yes, I saw Jesus acting in and through Maddy. Was Maddy Jesus? No, but Jesus was in Maddy. And I fail to mention so many of the staff that I got to meet along the way during my test. People who Jesus worked his good in and through.

Who is Jesus?

Jesus is our Savior, Creator, Redeemer, Shepherd and God! That’s Jesus. And we can’t tuck him in some box of ours. Words will always fail us when we attempt to answer.

Who is Jesus?

Thanks be to God, that Jesus is set in our midst to show us what is level, upright and good. God sets Jesus in our lives to announce His gift of salvation for all people.

So, there you have it. A Soap Opera-Horror movie flipped on its head. All to answer the question.

Who is Jesus?

May Jesus work in and through each of us, as we love God and all those God gives to us today… tomorrow… and forever.

I leave you with this YouTube music to listen to...

Jesus Messiah