#13 People Pressure I[1]
Mark 6:22 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." 23And
he promised her with an oath, "Whatever you ask I will give you, up to
half my kingdom." 24She
went out and said to her mother, "What shall I ask for?" "The
head of John the Baptist," she answered. 25At 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." 26The
king was greatly distressed, but because
of his oaths and his dinner guests, he did not want to refuse her. 27So he immediately sent an
executioner with orders to bring John's head. The man went, beheaded John in
the prison, 28and brought
back his head on a platter. He presented it to the girl, and she gave it to her
mother.
Herod Antipas was the tetrarch of Judea (ruler of ¼ of the Palestinian
area). He had arrested John the Baptist because John was publically saying that
the king should not have married his brother Phillip’s wife, Herodias, while he
was still alive. Mark 14:5 states “Herod
wanted to kill John, but was afraid of
the people, because they considered him a prophet.” Herod was
fascinated by John’s preaching and would visit with him many times in prison
but his wife still held a grudge. When Herod held a huge dinner party, Herodias
got her daughter Salome to put on a seductive dance, and Herod in his lust made
his rash promise. When he realized the trap he had fallen into, he had to
choose between what is right or bow to the “people pressure” of what others
thought was correct.
Here was Herod’s dilemma. On the one hand he might have rationalized:
·
* A ruler should never back down on a promise,
especially in public;
· * John’s truth telling was certainly a problem for
him and his wife;
·
* His wife obviously wanted John out of the way;
·
* His guests might ridicule him for not being
smart enough to avoid such a situation.
On the other hand, Herod could reason:
·
* He knew John was an innocent, righteous prophet
of God, who did not deserve to die;
· * Herod could have said that such a life was
certainly worth more than half his kingdom and refuse Salome’s specific request;
·
* That as a ruler he was free to determine that the
request was inappropriate and out of bounds.
But Herod chose to save his reputation, rather than stand for what was
right, and he succumbs once again to “people pressure.” At the core of this is
the value of each single soul doing what is right.
So when have we been tempted to “follow the crowd” rather than standing
firm on God’s guidance knowing what is true, good and lovely? The apostle Peter
gave these words of encouragement to all Christians about “people pressure”
versus doing the right thing:
I Peter 3:13”Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? 14But
even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear
their threats; do not be frightened.’[2]
15But in your hearts
revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who
asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect”
So we must respond by standing for what is right; blessing instead of
cursing and trusting that God has us in the palm of His hand. Is God’s arm so
short that He cannot save those who follow Him?
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