"Jesus' Response" (Matt. 14:12-13)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/7/2022 9:33 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                                 Focus:  “Jesus’s Response”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                     Reference:  Matt 14:12-13

 

            Message of the verses:  “12 And his disciples came and took away the body and buried it; and they went and reported to Jesus.

    13 Now when Jesus heard it, He withdrew from there in a boat, to a lonely place by Himself; and when the multitudes heard of this, they followed Him on foot from the cities.”

 

            Over the last six SD’s we have been looking at some very gruesome scenes from some very horrible people.  The story has come to a beautiful ending from this ugly scene as John’s disciples came and took away the body and buried it.  Gruesome things are very hard for me to take, as it had to take a great deal of courage for John’s disciples to take his decapitated body away and bury him, but this also showed how much love that they had for their fallen leader.  John was a godly and a great man, who had been their friend and their teacher, the one under whose fiery preaching they had confessed and forsaken their own sins, and under whose inspiration and under his direction, they had perhaps led others to repentance, and so now he is gone and they did the best they could for his broken body.

 

            I have to believe that John knew that this would happen to him some day after he was taken to prison under the evil king and his even more evil wife, and so perhaps he told his disciples to tell Jesus whenever he would be killed which is exactly what they did as they went and reported to Jesus what happened.  John was deeply loved by Jesus and when Jesus heard it, He withdrew from there in a boat, to a lonely place by Himself.  MacArthur writes “As Mark explains in more detail, Jesus was by Himself with His disciples, whom He asked to go with Him ‘to a lonely place and rest a while’ (For there were many people coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat)’ (Mark 6:31).”

 

            Some have suggested that Jesus left the area because He was afraid of getting arrested by Herod.  That is nonsense to me as Jesus was not afraid of anything as seen what would happen to Him in a few months from then.  I have to believe that Jesus was very sad for by what happened to John and needed to go and find a secret place to morn over losing a close friend and relative (in the flesh) as John was His cousin and also His forerunner, and so the loss was probably very difficult for Him.  Jesus Christ had feelings, and sometimes we tend to forget that.  He probably had greater feelings over the loss of John than even John’s disciples as what happened to John showed the sinfulness of the world, sinfulness that Jesus would eventually die for in order to one day end all sinfulness forever.  I for one can’t wait for that day to come, as Jesus will take down all the evil that is in this world and all those who are following the demon world controlled by Satan, following them in most cases not realizing they are doing it.  (Check out my SD’s from the 6^th chapter of Ephesians on this blog and on my other blog as I am repeating them with come corrections in them.)

 

            MacArthur writes “John the Baptist was the first martyr to die for Christ, and it seems certain that Jesus took this opportunity to further prepare His disciples for what lay ahead for them.  Christ Himself would be the next to die, and all the other twelve (including Matthias, Judas’s replacement) apparently suffered martyrdom, except for John, who died in exile.”

 

            The following quotation from MacArthur’s commentary was written perhaps 40 or so years ago.  “Although Christians in most parts of the world today have relative freedom to practice and propagate their faith, many believers are suffering a fate like John’s.  When they convert to Christianity, their families disown them, declare them to be dead, and sometimes even murder them.  Countless thousands forfeit their jobs, their freedom to worship, and even the right to teach their faith to their own children.  Many are imprisoned, tortured, exiled, and publicly maligned.  But like John the Baptist, they will not deny their Lord to save their rights, their freedom or their lives.”  We know now that things are even worse than they were years ago, and will continue to get worse.

 

            Lord willing we will begin to look at John 14:14-21 which is the story of “The Miraculous Feeding,” something seen in all four gospels.

 

6/7/2022 10:01 AM

PT-6 "Herod's Reason" (Matt. 14:3-11)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/6/2022 9:13 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                          Focus:  PT-6 “Herod’s Reason”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference: Matthew 14:3-11

 

            Message of the verses:  “3 For when Herod had John arrested, he bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. 4 For John had been saying to him, "It is not lawful for you to have her." 5 And although he wanted to put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they regarded him as a prophet. 6 But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod. 7 Thereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. 8 And having been prompted by her mother, she said, "Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist." 9 And although he was grieved, the king commanded it to be given because of his oaths, and because of his dinner guests. 10 And he sent and had John beheaded in the prison. 11 And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl; and she brought it to her mother.”

 

            I want to quote from John MacArthur’s commentary as he quotes from what he calls “one writer comments “When the dish was brought in with the bleeding head on it, no doubt [Salome] took it daintily in her hands lest a drop of it should stain her, and she tripped away to her mother as if bearing her some choice dish of food from the king’s table.  It was not un common to bring the head of one who had been slain to the person who ordered it, as a sure proof that the command had been obeyed.”  “It is reported that when the head of Cicero was brought to Fulvia, the wife of Antony, that she spat on it, pulled its tongue out, and drove her hairpin through it.  The early church father Jerome believed that is what Herodias did with the head of John.  That particular barbarism cannot be verified, but it would not have been the least out of character for Herodias to have done such a ghastly thing.”

 

            It is believed that Herod’s morbid fascination with John and with the miraculous and supernatural really had nothing to do with genuine seeking after the truth, and it certainly had nothing to do with seeking salvation.  It was just probably the religious curiosity of unbelief that is impregnable to God’s truth, love, or grace.  Herod is not the only one who dabbled in Christian truth as there is a story in Acts chapter eight of Simon the magician who seemed to be dabbling in the truths of Christianity and then he tried to buy the power of the Holy Spirit with money showing his true colors.

 

            We see in the 9^th chapter of Luke that after Herod had John beheaded that he inquired about Jesus and “kept trying to see Him.”  We know from Scripture that Jesus made no effort to see Herod and would not allow Herod to see Him until it was His Father’s time.  There was a time when Jesus once sent a message to Herod when it was reported that Herod wanted to kill Him saying “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow and the third day I reach My goal” (Luke 13:32).  Jesus just went about the mission that His Father had for Him to do and left the king to his unresolved fear, to his unrelenting sin, and to his doom of damnation.  We can read about how Jesus had to go and see Herod as Pilate forced it but Jesus did not say one word to him.  We read “Now Herod was very glad when he saw Jesus; for he had wanted to see Him for a long time, because he had been hearing about Him and was hoping to see some sign performed by Him.  And he questioned Him at some length; but He answered him nothing…And Herod with his soldiers, after treating Him with contempt and mocking Him, dressed Him in a gorgeous robe and sent Him back to Pilate” (Luke 23:8-9,11).

 

            We see in great irony that “Herod and Pilate became friends with one another that very day; for before they had been at enmity with each other” (Luke 23:12).  We see these two ruthless men and former enemies now built a friendship around the common bond of crucifying the Son of God.

 

            MacArthur concludes “Herod rejected Christ, and Christ rejected Herod.  For fear of a woman, for fear of his reputation, for fear of his peers, for fear of his throne—and for lack of fear for God—he damned his soul forever.”

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Herod like so many others feared the wrong things, for only the fear of God is the right kind of fear and if you fear Him you need not fear anything else.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  To fear the Lord, and I am not talking about trembling fear but reverence kind of fear and the reason is that I am His child and He is my God and Father.

 

6/6/2022 9:46 AM   

 

 

PT-5 "Herod's Reason" (Matt. 14:3-11)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/5/2022 7:42 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                          Focus:  PT-5 “Herod’s Reason”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference: Matthew 14:3-11

 

            Message of the verses:  “3 For previously Herod had arrested John and had him bound and put in prison, all on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. 4 For John had said to him, "It is not right for you to have this woman." 5 Herod wanted to kill him for this, but he was afraid of the people, since they all thought John was a prophet. 6 But during Herod’s birthday celebrations Herodias’ daughter delighted him by dancing before his guests, 7 so much so that he swore to give her anything she liked to ask. 8 And she, prompted by her mother, said, "I want you to give me, here and now, on a dish, the head of John the Baptist!" 9 Herod was appalled at this, but because he had sworn in front of his guests, he gave orders that she should be given what she had asked. 10 So he sent men and had John beheaded in the prison. 11 Then his head was carried in on a dish and presented to the young girl who handed it to her mother” (Philips).

 

            I said in our last SD that I wanted to begin today by talking about Herod’s grief, and in the Philips Paraphrase he uses the word “appalled” which may be a better way to look at this.  Herod’s “grief” “had nothing to do with remorse for sin or with genuine repentance” writes John MacArthur.  He goes on “Like Pilate—who knew Jesus was innocent and would have freed Him except for continued pressure by the Jewish leaders (Luke 23:4, 14-16, 20, 22:25; cf. John 19:12)—Herod cowardly capitulated to what he knew was unjust and vindictive.  Even drunk, he knew he had been tricked, but his pride would not let him do what was right.  Instead of admitting the foolish excess of his promise, the king allowed himself to be used to commit an enormous crime—all to save a reputation he did not have.  With the help of his wicked wife and unprincipled stepdaughter, his cup of iniquity was filled.”

 

            Verse ten in the NASB95 states “10 He sent and had John beheaded in the prison.”  Verse eleven then states “11 And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother.”  How do we describe what just happened to John here?  Well it was Gruesome and ghoulish or chilling may also be away to describe it, but during that time period such things were not uncommon.  Those who were “potentates” actually had life-and-death power over their subjects and prisoners, and that power was frequently exercised and seldom questioned.  MacArthur writes “Herodias had an ancestor crucified before the assembled guests.  While the men were hanging on their crosses, their wives and children were slain in front of their eyes.”  This kind of reminds me of the last King of Judah who had his eyes put out after he saw for the last thing all of his children murdered before him.

 

            I think that I will finish this gruesome tail in our next SD as this is not the best thing for me to think about when I go to teach a Sunday school lesson in a little while.

 

6/5/2022 8:04 AM

PT-4 "Herod's Reason) (Matt. 14:3-11)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/4/2022 9:22 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                          Focus:  PT-4 “Herod’s Reason”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference: Matthew 14:3-11

 

            Message of the verses:  “3 For when Herod had John arrested, he bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. 4 For John had been saying to him, "It is not lawful for you to have her." 5 And although he wanted to put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they regarded him as a prophet. 6 But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod. 7 Thereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. 8 And having been prompted by her mother, she said, "Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist." 9 And although he was grieved, the king commanded it to be given because of his oaths, and because of his dinner guests. 10 And he sent and had John beheaded in the prison. 11 And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl; and she brought it to her mother.”

 

            In our last SD I ended by writing some things about Herodias which were not a series of complements, but she did not deserve complements.  Herodias was biding her time as she waited for the right opportunity to do something about John the Baptist, and it was presented at the birthday of Herod.  We read “But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod” (Verse 6). 

 

            John MacArthur writes “From Josephus we learn that the name of this daughter was Salome, whose father was Philip, her mother’s first husband and Herod’s half brother.  Herodias was so hate-filled, vengeful, and immoral that she had no compunction about involving her daughter both in a lewd dance before her stepfather and his guests and in the ploy to have John murdered.

            “In the ancient the world, birthday celebrations were entirely Gentile and pagan, and the Jews, with good reason, considered them shameful.  Roman nobles frequently held stag birthday parties in which gluttony, excessive drinking, erotic dancing, and sexual indulgence were common.  The phrase Herodes dies (Latin for ‘Herod’s birthday’) became an epithet for such orgiastic festivals.”

 

            We see the word pleased in verse six and this was a euphemism for “sexually aroused,” and so the drunken king was so enamored of his stepdaughter that he impulsively promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked, (v-7).  And in Mark we learn the promise was up to half of his kingdom, (not sure he really had a kingdom to offer her, but this was a common statement as also seen in the book of Esther.)  Now this was the very chance the Herodias had been waiting for, and, it was prompted by her mother, Salome asked Herod “Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist.”  John MacArthur writes “It is obvious that the provocative dance was planned by Herodias for the purpose of evoking just such a promise from her drunken, leering, lecherous husband.  And lest Herod change his mind after sobering up, Herodias told her daughter to ask for John’s head here on a platter ‘right away’ (Mark 6:25).”  I have to say that all of the times that I read this story, and it has been many times that I read it, that I never thought the way that John MacArthur wrote or preached about that this was all planned by Herodias. 

 

            It was in Herod’s gluttonous, lustful stupor, the king had been easily taken in by Herodias, his scheming wife and her seductive daughter.  He has lost all of what little dignity, all sensibility, and what little desire for the right that he may have had, and I suppose that is what a drinking orgy type birthday party did for him.  Herod wanted to appear the magnanimous benefactor before his guests, as he had boxed himself in and was now completely vulnerable to his manipulative wife.

 

            We read “9 And although he was grieved, the king commanded it to be given because of his oaths, and because of his dinner guests.”   MacArthur adds “It was not that the word of the king was respected and that to break his oaths would tarnish his reputation, because he was noted for his dishonor and duplicity.  But in the ancient Near East, a promise made with an oath was considered sacred and inviolable (cf. Matt 5:33), especially when made by a ruler.  And although Herod had no concern for principle, he had great concern for appearance.  By breaking his word so soon after giving it, he would have been embarrassed in front of dinner guests, who doubtlessly included many political and military dignitaries.” 

 

            Lord willing in our continuing story of Herod, we will talk about what it means for his grieving in our next SD.

 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  The Bible says that we are not to be drunk with wine, and then it goes on to say that we are to filled with the Holy Spirit.  When a person is drunk they are under to control of whatever it was that they drank, and when a believer is filled with the Holy Spirit they are under the control of the Holy Spirit.

 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  As it is commanded I desire to be filled with the Holy Spirit today and every day.

 

6/4/2022 9:55 AM

PT-3 "Herod's Reason" (Matt. 14:3-11)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/3/2022 9:54 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                        Focus:  PT-3 “Herod’s Reasons”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference: Matthew 14:3-11

 

            Message of the verses:  “3 For when Herod had John arrested, he bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. 4 For John had been saying to him, "It is not lawful for you to have her." 5 And although he wanted to put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they regarded him as a prophet. 6 But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod. 7 Thereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. 8 And having been prompted by her mother, she said, "Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist." 9 And although he was grieved, the king commanded it to be given because of his oaths, and because of his dinner guests. 10 And he sent and had John beheaded in the prison. 11 And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl; and she brought it to her mother.”

 

            As you probably can tell this section will take a number of days to get through just because of the number of verses we find in it.    We begin by talking about how Herod and his wife Herodias were continually incensed at John’s presumption, and Herodias was more than Herod wanted to put him to death.  The problem was that Herod feared the multitude, because they regarded him as a prophet.  We see in this case that Herod’s fear was good, as if it were not for this fear John would have been executed right away.

 

            One of the great things we can learn from John’s life was that he was neither a compromiser nor a diplomat, as his only fear was of the Lord, and he no more hesitated confronting Herod and Herodias with their wickedness than he had hesitated confronting the unrepentant Pharisees and Sadducees who were the ones that he, like Jesus would later on call them a brood of vipers (Matt. 3:7).

 

            MacArthur writes “So godly boldness, which does not consider the consequences, is the hallmark of prophetic greatness.  The faithful man of God confronts sin wherever it is and by whomever it is committed, regardless of the power they might have over him—including power over his life.  That holy boldness was a mark of Stephen, or Paul, or Peter, and of innumerable other saints of God who, throughout the nineteenth centuries of the church, have forfeited their lives rather than their message.  The great New Testament scholar A. T. Roberson wrote, ‘It cost him his head; but it is better to have a head like John the Baptist and lose it than to have an ordinary head and keep it.’

            “Josephus said of John:  ‘Now when many others came in crowds about him, for they were greatly moved by hearing his words, Herod, who feared lest the great influence John had over the people might put it into his power and inclination to raise a rebellion, thought it best by putting him to death to prevent and mischief he might cause.’”

 

            We have talked about how Herod feared almost everything, but John only feared God, and that is the perfect way to be, although it is at times hard, but something we all need to have is that kind of trust in the Lord, for in fearing God we need not fear anything.  Herod not only feared the multitude but also he was in fear of John the Baptist, and his own wife, and as seen in verse nine his peers.  Herod feared another attack by Aretas, and, according to Josephus reporting he feared a rebellion by his own people—inspired by, and perhaps even led by, John the Baptist, although we know that is not something that John would ever do.  Herod also feared the emperor might replace him with someone more in favor with Rome.  The truth is that that fear was well grounded, because as John MacArthur writes “some years after this, his jealous and scheming nephew Agrippa (the brother of Herodias), convinced the emperor Caligula that Herod was planning a rebellion.  Perhaps because Caligula did not fully trust Agrippa’s word, Herod and Herodias suffered exile to Gaul (modern France) rather than execution, which was the normal penalty for treason.

            “Herod’s feelings about John were ambivalent; (undecided), he was both fearful and fascinated.  Mark reports that ‘Herod was afraid of John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and kept him safe.  And when he heard him, he was very perplexed; but he used to enjoy listening to him’ (Mark 6:20).  The king enjoyed listening to the man he wanted to put to death!  These audiences with Herod no doubt were John’s only respite from the torments of prison; but to John they were not an escape but opportunities to witness for his Lord and to try to bring his persecutor to repentance and salvation.”

 

            What we can see from the passage in Mark’s gospel, and then our passage in Matthew 14:9 is that Herod may have desired to speak to John, but when it came down to it he had more fearfulness for his wife and his friends, than feelings for John.

 

            Lord willing we will write more about Herod’s evil wife in our next SD as she had few equals in immorality, evil cunning, or vindictiveness that most women found in the Word of God with the exception of Jezebel, and we know what happened to her as the dogs ate her body after she was thrown out of a third story window and because of that she was spread over different places in Israel, which I think may have been prophesized about her.

 

6/3/2022 10:43 AM  

PT-2 "Herod's Reason" (Matt. 14:3-11)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/2/2022 8:06 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                          Focus:  PT-2 “Herod’s Reason”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                      Reference:  Matt. 14:3-11

 

            Message of the verses:  “3 For when Herod had John arrested, he bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. 4 For John had been saying to him, "It is not lawful for you to have her." 5 And although he wanted to put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they regarded him as a prophet. 6 But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod. 7 Thereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. 8 And having been prompted by her mother, she said, "Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist." 9 And although he was grieved, the king commanded it to be given because of his oaths, and because of his dinner guests. 10 And he sent and had John beheaded in the prison. 11 And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl; and she brought it to her mother.”

 

            In our last SD we spoke about the goodness of John the Baptist.  Now in extreme contrast, Herod Antipas was evil, along with being debauched, shameless, henpecked, lustful, and given to every kind of sinful excess.  Herod did have more of a conscience than his degrading father, but he did not have the courage to follow it.  As we compare Herod with John the Baptist it could be said that to the extent John was admired and honored, Herod was despised and feared.

 

            We read the following in verse five “And although he wanted to put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they regarded him as a prophet.”  John was probably put into a dungeon at the palace that Herod lived at.  MacArthur writes “The palace was located on a mountain higher even than the city of Jerusalem and offered a beautiful and dramatic view.  But the dungeon was dug deep into the earth beneath, and archaeologists have discovered the many places where prisoners were chained to the walls.  There was no natural light and only dank, foul air to breathe.  Here John the Baptist was incarcerated for about a year until his execution.”

 

            We see in verse tree the reason that Herod had John arrested “For when Herod had John arrested, he bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip.”  Herod had taken Herodias as his own wife after seducing her away from his half brother Philip while on a visit to Rome.  MacArthur adds “In order to marry her, he had to divorce his present wife, the daughter of king Aretas, with whom the marriage of his daughter had sealed a political and military alliance.  Aretas ruled Nabatean Arabia, whose capital was the famed fortress city of Petra, located about fifty miles southeast of the Dead Sea.  Aretas was so angered by the treatment of his daughter that he destroyed most of Herod’s army and would have slain the tetrarch as well, had not the Roman army intervened.”

 

            He thing goes on to talk about Herodias:  Herodias is one of the most wicked and perverse women mentioned Scripture, perhaps second only to Jezebel.  Although she was at first beguiled by Herod, it was not long until he was being manipulated by her.  Because both Herod and Herodias were already married, their marriage to each other was doubly not lawful.  The Holy Spirit refused to recognize her as Herod’s wife and directed Matthew to refer to her as the wife of his brother Philip, although she had been divorced from Philip for a number of years.  The new marriage not only was unlawful but incestuous, because Herodias was the daughter of Aristobulus, another half brother of Herod, making her Herod’s niece.”  I want to talk about the word incest for a moment as this is a relatively new word and was not used during this time period. 

 

            The Bible does not tell when it was that John the Baptist confronted Herod about his marriage, but it says that this is what happened and so we really don’t have to speculate as to when it did happen.  We will continue, Lord willing to write more thoughts from these verses we are looking at in our next SD.

 

6/2/2022 8:35 AM

 

           

PT-1 "Herod's Reason" (Matt. 14:3-11)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/1/2022 10:24 AM

 

My Worship Time                                                                          Focus:  PT-1 “Herod’s Reason”

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                       Reference:  Matt 14:3-11

 

            Message of the verses:  “3 For when Herod had John arrested, he bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. 4 For John had been saying to him, "It is not lawful for you to have her." 5 And although he wanted to put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they regarded him as a prophet. 6 But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod. 7 Thereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. 8 And having been prompted by her mother, she *said, "Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist." 9 And although he was grieved, the king commanded it to be given because of his oaths, and because of his dinner guests. 10 And he sent and had John beheaded in the prison. 11 And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl; and she brought it to her mother.”

 

            Matthew writes these verses as a flashback of events that began a year or so later, just before Jesus started His ministry—to the time when Herod had John arrested,…bound him, and put him in prison as seen in Matt. 4:12.  This also reminds me of what John the Baptist said in the 3^rd chapter of John’s gospel.  30 “He must increase, but I must decrease” John 3:30.  I do not believe that John the Baptist knew how it was that he would decrease they way that it worked out, but it was all in the plan of God.

 

            We will go back a bit further as we look at John’s life, a few highlights.  It was even before John’s birth that the angel declared that he would “be great in the sight of the Lord, and…be filed with the Holy Spirit, while yet in his mother’s womb” (Luke 1:15).  In Matthew 11:11 Jesus said the following "Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.”  MacArthur adds The forerunner of the Messiah was a remarkable man, single-mindedly dedicated to fulfilling his divine mission of paving the way for the Lord and Master.  In genuine humility he was happy to have his own fame and influence decrease as that of Jesus increased.”  We look already at the verse that MacArthur is referring to, John 3:30.

 

            Matthew 3:2 gives us what is probably the theme of his preaching “"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’”  There were hundreds of people who came to John for baptism, probably thousands of them and his desire for them was  to get ready for the coming of the Messiah.  John would baptize them as a symbol of their desire for a cleansed heart.  John confronted their sin and called for holiness; yet despite his somber message and sober lifestyle, John was amazingly popular and respected by the people.  We read in Matthew 3:5 that “Jerusalem was going out to him, and all Judea, and all the district around the Jordon.”

 

            That had to be a very wonderful time to be alive as God was preparing the people through the ministry of John to receive the Messiah, but not many did receive Jesus as we look at after Jesus was crucified that there were only 120 people in the upper room that had named the name of Jesus as their Lord and Savior.  I truly believe that we are living in the last days of the church age, and I also believe that the church in our world needs a great revival before our Lord returns to take His bride to heaven.  I pray for revival of our churches most every day, and look forward to the Lord coming to take my family and me to be with Him in the air as we read in the different passages that speak of the Rapture of the church.  John the apostle ended the entire Bible with these words “20 He who testifies to these things says, "Yes, I am coming quickly." Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. 21  The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all. Amen” (Rev. 22:20-21).

 

6/1/2022 11:09 AM