Download this sermon as an mp3 file

Summary

John the Baptist was the greatest man of his day ,and the greatest of all men up until that point. He likely played with his cousin Jesus as a child. He was reared with a Nazarite vow, which was very strict. He was the forerunner for Jesus Christ; his job was to get the Hebrews ready for Jesus. He prepared the way with a message of repentance.

John's sermon in Mark 6:18 was the indirect cause of his death. Herod was listening, but it was Herod's wife who couldn't take the message. Herod Antipas was one of the children of Herod the Great, ruling over a quarter of his father's kingdom as a tetrarch. He refers to himself as king and governor, but God refers to him as "that fox." Herod Philip had fallen on hard times; and his wife left him, taking their daughter Solome, and married Herod Antipas. Herod Antipas had to divorce his old wife first, who was a princess of Persia.

Salome danced the dance of death for Herod, a dance likely similar to Elvis Presley or Madonna or Michael Jackson. Herod formerly had believed John was just and holy, but he was now concerned with how others were feeling, and changed to being merely "sorry." In this day, the fates of Herod, his wife, and Solome were sealed as well as John the Baptist. Solome herself was beheaded by a slab of ice. Herod and his wife were captured by his ex-father-in-law and exiled penniless, dying in poverty.

Ensure your conscience is clear and right. Live earnestly and honestly, and have a good testimony. Ground what you believe in the Word of God, and don't base your actions on how others are feeling.

Return to sermon list