Because he said: A Meditation on Mark 6

For Herod himself had sent forth and laid hold upon John, 

and bound him in prison for Herodias' sake, 

his brother Philip's wife: for he had married her.

For John had said unto Herod, 

It is not lawful for thee to have thy brother's wife.

Therefore Herodias had a quarrel against him, 

and would have killed him; but she could not:

For Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just man and an holy, 

and observed him; and when he heard him, 

he did many things, and heard him gladly.

And when a convenient day was come, 

that Herod on his birthday made a supper to his lords, 

high captains, and chief estates of Galilee;

And when the daughter of the said Herodias came in, 

and danced, and pleased Herod and them that sat with him, 

the king said unto the damsel, 

Ask of me whatsoever thou wilt, and I will give it thee.

And he sware unto her, Whatsoever thou shalt ask of me, 

I will give it thee, unto the half of my kingdom.

And she went forth, and said unto her mother, 

What shall I ask? And she said, The head of John the Baptist.

And she came in straightway with haste unto the king, and asked, saying, 

I will that thou give me by and by in a charger the head of John the Baptist.

And the king was exceeding sorry; yet for his oath's sake, 

and for their sakes which sat with him, he would not reject her.

And immediately the king sent an executioner, 

and commanded his head to be brought: 

and he went and beheaded him in the prison,

And brought his head in a charger, and gave it to the damsel: 

and the damsel gave it to her mother.

This Sunday’s Gospel reading from Mark 6 is a good reminder that political persecution for the sake of preaching God’s Word has existed for a very long time.  John the Baptist, whom Jesus said was not only the greatest of the prophets, but that no other person born of women had arisen greater than he, found himself in prison because he dared tell King Herod that his chosen bride was unlawful for him to have.   Of course, John had no ability to change the king’s decision, to influence politics (Israel was never really a democracy, and it certainly wasn’t during the Roman occupation of Jesus’ day), or to wield any earthly power; John simply bore God’s Word.  Herod wanted his brother’s wife, and she seemed eager to improve her rank by ditching her previous husband and becoming the consort of the king.  Abandoning marriage vows is not lawful before God, and Jesus pointed out specifically during His ministry that this kind of divorce and remarriage is just adultery dressed up in socially acceptable clothes.  Because John called Herod and Herodias’ sin what God’s Word said it was, refusing to celebrate and affirm their twisted delusion, John found himself imprisoned and eventually beheaded through the political intrigue of the slighted lovers.

As we walk through the season of Pentecost, it is important to remember that while we have been given by Jesus the authority and duty to abide in God’s Word, to preach it, bear witness to it, and to remain faithful to it, the world around us will not always receive it gladly.  Jesus, as the very Word of God incarnate, was received by some, rejected by others, and some even used their political or social power to plot His murder on a Roman cross.  As we bear the Word of Jesus in our own time and place, we should not think that somehow we will arise above our Master, for if the world hated and persecuted Jesus, they will hate and persecute His faithful followers, as well.  Jesus told us as much before His ascension into heaven, even as He told us not to fear this world, because He had overcome it through His life, death, and resurrection on our behalf.  The people of God have always lived out this truth, from Abel who was murdered by his own brother, to the prophets who were slaughtered for their faithful witness before reprobate kings and queens, to the Apostles and their descendants who suffered under the hands of tyrants, pagans, apostates, and heretics.  

And the same is true of our own age.  In China, only those churches which the government controls are allowed to preach, and to only preach the message which the atheist government permits.  In India, Christians are regularly accosted, raped, and murdered by Hindu mobs while the police look on approvingly, only later to feign their disapproval.  In many Islamic countries,  governments institute Sharia Law to keep Christians politically and socially enslaved below Muslim citizens, and then promote or turn a blind eye to the Muslim mobs which bomb, shoot, and burn their churches, and kidnap their children to be sold into sexual slavery.  In these lands the blood of the martyrs flow daily, and like John the Baptist, they are persecuted and murdered for the sake of their fidelity to God’s Word.

In our own lands, the tides of this persecution continue to rise.  ANTIFA mobs and social justice warriors target anyone who refuses to celebrate and affirm every kind of debauchery, insanity, and deviancy, stigmatizing Christians into unemployment and financial destitution.  We have thought crimes on our books which seek to prosecute the malleable concept of “hate,” oddly and often used to protect the hateful wrath of those who cannot abide anyone who might insinuate their behavior is unhealthy, unhelpful, or unlawful before God.  Professors and teachers, merchants and store owners, artists and executives, clergy and laity, politicians and staff workers, scientists and doctors, and numerous others in every walk of life have felt the seething, manipulative hatred of a world that will not abide the Word of God, and many have tired to find ways to live out their Christian convictions without drawing such violent attention to themselves.  Some even abandon it altogether, bowing to the world’s preference for darkness over light.

Yet the calling of Christ to His people continues through His Word and Spirit, regardless of the hatred of evil people and spirits, or the apostasy of those who reject it to substitute human opinion in its place.  That living Word of Jesus continues to work in the world, revealing the darkness of our hearts and our fallen nature which leads all of us toward death, and yet also offers to all people forgiveness, life, and salvation by grace through faith in Him.  The Law which Jesus sends to reveals our brokenness, is salved by the Gospel He brings to heal us— the faith and repentance He calls us to, leads us to turn from the ways of death and evil, and puts our feet firmly on the path of life, beauty, love, peace, hope, and joy.  Such a Word, though scorned by some, is the power of God unto salvation for all who will trust and receive it, binding to God with unbreakable bonds every reconciled soul which lives and rests in Him.  By the power of this Word every demonic force has been put to flight, every dark corner made bright, and every infestation of evil purged.  It is a Word which has inspired the saints and martyrs, Prophets and Apostles, to stand before an irrational and hate filled world with love, compassion, and courage, bearing witness to the love of God which seeks and saves everyone who will trust in Him.  It is a Word which fears no wrath of man, no executioner, no prison, no calamity, because the eternal life which comes through this Eternal Word transcends every passing darkness.  

Hear the Word of the Lord come to you this day, calling you to live in Jesus by grace through faith, undaunted and unafraid of the petty, transitory persecutions of wicked men.  To you has been given the forgiveness, life, and salvation won for the whole world through the Cross of Jesus, and to you has been given the mission to bear witness to the reconciling love of Christ to everyone around you.  Hear this Word of the Lord which compels and forces no one, but calls, enlightens, and enlivens everyone who will repent and believe, that through you Jesus’ Word of reconciliation might touch every soul around you— even those who hate and persecute you for Jesus’ sake.  Amen.