John the Baptist Beheaded
King Herod heard of it, for Jesus’ name had become known. Some said, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead. That is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.” But others said, “He is Elijah.” And others said, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” But when Herod heard of it, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.” (6:14-16)
This painful story, how this fox Herod beheaded my cousin John, is important. You can learn key lessons for your faith. After Herod killed John, he became interested in me just because of the miracles. Herod was a man of power, and men of power are often attracted to get more power. He heard that I had a power that he did not have. He wanted that power. Yet, it reminded him of the power of conviction that was at work in John, and his guilt made him think that I was John resurrected.
For it was Herod who had sent and seized John and bound him in prison for the sake of Hernias, his brother Philip’s wife, because he had married her. For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” And Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to put him to death. But she could not, for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly. (6:17-20)
Herod put John in prison, in order to hide his sin. He married his brother’s wife, and he knew that this was not right before God. Yet, he preferred to silence John rather than making things right. So many people do the same thing as Herod did. They prefer to silence their conscience rather than correcting what is wrong in their lives. This is the temptation to flee from the coming wrath, to escape judgment by escaping parts of reality. Yet, even in the midst of sin, like Herod, many people struggle because they don’t want to fully dismiss what is right. Herod knew that John was a righteous and holy man. He knew that John was right and had respect for him because of that. Although Herodias wanted to kill him, he kept John alive, because with John the hope of a pure life was still alive in him.
Many want the purity of holiness, but not all are ready do get rid of the impurity in their hearts. So many persons hope that they can keep the pleasures of sin and yet reach purity and peace with God. They think that purity can wait, that they can get as much pleasure from sin as they want, and that they will then be able to get the future pleasures of heaven. This is nonsense. A bad tree cannot produce good fruits, as well as a good tree cannot produce bad fruits. If you choose to live in sin today, you will most probably be in sin tomorrow.
There will be a battle in the heart of the person torn between sin and holiness. The question is: which one will win? Herodias knew that as long as John was alive and as long as Herod listened to him, there was the risk that Herod would decide to follow John’s exhortation and divorce her. That is why she wanted to kill John.
In the heart of many believers, there is a similar battle. They keep sinning, and they have imprisoned in their conscience the desire of a pure and holy life. They keep the appearance of purity, yet they know very well that they have specific sins that they don’t want to deal with. Many struggle with sins of pornography, unfaithfulness and other forms of impurity. Yet, they try to keep that hidden, as Herod did keep John imprisoned so that his sin would not be mentioned publicly. When people live this double life, they are like a battleground and there is no peace for them. Either they will let my way become their way, and repent of sin, or they will follow Herod’s way and destroy the good in them.
But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his nobles and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee. For when Herodias’s daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. And the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you.” And he vowed to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.” (6:21-23)
Herod, like many in the world still today, like the sinful pleasures of covetousness. Herod not only took Herodias, but also began to desire and covet her daughter. Learn a lesson from that: sin is never satisfied with a status quo, it always wants more. Sin does not bring balance in a life but chaos and destruction. Like the demons harming the man and then killing the pigs, sin always wants to destroy the one who welcomes it. Herod was ready to give half of his kingdom because of the sinful passion that this girl was able to arouse in him. He not only sinned with Herodias, but he was letting the sin of sexual covetousness become his master and lead him toward destruction.
And she went out and said to her mother, “For what should I ask?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist.” And she came in immediately with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” (6:24-25)
In this path toward Herod’s sinful downfall, Herodias could voice clearly through her daughter the request to kill John. Her daughter, in her pride, did not limit herself to repeat her mother’s request, but brought even more wickedness with the request of a platter.
And the king was exceedingly sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her. And immediately the king sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded him in the prison and brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard of it, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb. (6:26-29)
Here you see the result of the battle in the heart of Herod. Since he gave the control of his life to sin, to his sinful desire for Herodias’s daughter, he had to kill John. He was under the influence not only of impure desires, but also of appearances. He had promised and did not want to deny his oath in front of his guests. He decided to remain faithful to his impurity.
That is the choice that each human faces: will you be faithful to your desire of good and of God in you, or will you be faithful to your desire of selfish pleasures? You cannot be faithful to both. You cannot have two master, either you will love the one and hate the other, or you will despise the one and honor the other. You cannot serve God and money, you cannot serve God and power, you cannot serve God and covetousness. Herod chose power and covetousness, he made the decision to kill John and thus to silence the voice of truth in his life.
In your life, you have to learn this lesson: if you give into sin, sin will lead you to the end of destruction. Sin does not bring balance in a life, it brings chaos and destruction. Here, covetousness brought Herod to destroy the righteous voice of John. Once he committed this murder, he lost completely the peace of mind and was pursued by guilt. When he heard of me he had the impression that it was John who came back to haunt him.
The other road, the less frequented road, is to repent and to ask for God’s help in order to get rid of sin in all its forms. My name is Jesus, which means ‘God delivers’, and I came to deliver humanity from sin. You need help in order to be fully delivered from sin, and I came to provide this needed help. My disciples are not called to struggle with sin, but to welcome my victory over sin in their lives. My disciples are not invited to live in the struggle of Herod, but to be released from this struggle through faithful obedience to me. Listen to me, learn from me, take the yoke of my voice and continual guidance. Through the teachings of the Gospels and the Bible, through listening to my voice daily, you will be able to walk on the narrow path of love and purity.
Remember that each Herodias has a daughter. Each sin that you let live in your heart will produce children, and these children will push you always more toward your own destruction. Sin is not a friend but a murderer, it does not accept to serve but prepares to rule and destroy. Don’t let sin take always more control of you. Invite me and my pure love to release you, to rule in you and bring the peace of the kingdom.
To bring this victory over sin and death, I needed to give my life on the cross. I did not commit suicide, but accepted death out of love for humanity. My death was not an end, it was a beginning, it led to the resurrected life. To receive fully my victory, you have to repent, to die to sin and to live with me. Learn from me and discover always more the joyful life of the redeemed, the glorious freedom from sin of the children of God.
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