Matthew 14:1-12
Be Still: Father help me as I read your Word. By your Spirit, I want to become more like Jesus today. Amen.
Read: Matthew 14:1-12
Herod wanted to kill John, but he was afraid of the people, because they considered John a prophet. (v5)
Encounter: One of the things I’ve wrestled with in my own life and particularly as a leader in the Church, is people pleasing. I don’t know if you can relate, but this driver in me can really affect my decisions and actions.
John the Baptist was not a people pleaser, or if he was, we see a greater driver in his life: a desire to please God. We can imagine that people might have thought John was a bit strange and certainly radical, but we know they were drawn to God’s work through him.
In our passage today we read that John, sticking to what he felt was morally right, had been extremely brave in speaking up against the King. As a result, he gets put in prison and it eventually costs him his life. In stark contrast to the way John lived his life, we see Herod making decisions purely because, 'he was afraid of the people' (v5). Herod operated out of fear of the people. John lived and acted out of fear of the Lord, which 'is the beginning of wisdom.' (Proverbs 9: 10).
Apply: Popularity, reputation management and harmony with others at all costs, can’t be our primary driver in the Christian life. Obviously, as far as it depends on us, we live at peace with everyone where we can (Romans 12: 18). But to live out of fear of people as Herod did, is the wrong starting point for life; it’s the wrong type of fear and will only lead us down difficult paths.
Above all else, John wanted to know what God thought and he was driven and lived to please God. In the end, this cost John everything and, in the end, this would cost Jesus everything too.
Devote: Lord help me today to live for you. I want to know what you think so that I will know how to live to please you. Fill me with your Holy Spirit, that I may rest secure in your love, no longer living out of fear of people.