Matthew 14:1-12

All right, if you have your Bibles, open those

to Matthew 14. I was thinking about Father's

Day, and I'm like, man, what could be a really

encouraging passage for fathers? And I thought,

what better encouragement than the beheading

of John the Baptist? So that's where we are in,

as providence would have it. Matthew 14, verses

Matthew 14:1–12

1 through 12. Matthew writes, he says, at that

time, Herod the Tetrarch heard the report about

Jesus and he said to his servants, this is John

the Baptist. He's risen from the dead and that's

why these powers are at work in him. And then

Matthew explains, for Herod had laid hold of

John and bound him and he put him in prison for

the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife.

Because John had said to him, it's not lawful

for you to have her. You don't get to marry your

brother's wife. And although he wanted to put

him to death, he, that is Herod, feared the multitude

because they counted him, John, as a prophet.

But when Herod's birthday was celebrated, the

daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased

Herod. Therefore he promised with an oath to

give her whatever she might ask. So she, having

been prompted by her mother, said, Give me John

the Baptist's head here on a platter. And the

king was sorry. Nevertheless, because of the

oath and because of those who sat with him, he

commanded it to be given to her. So he sent and

had John beheaded in prison. And his head was

brought on a platter and given to the girl. She

brought it to her mother. Then his disciples

came. And they took away the body and buried

it and went and told Jesus. Would you bow before

me in asking God to help us as we look at this

text? Our gracious God, Lord, would you help

us this morning by means of your spirit to understand,

Lord, not only the meaning of the text, but Lord,

how it might apply to our own lives. Lord God,

would you give illumination. But above all, Lord,

I pray that your spirit would show us Christ.

Lord, worship, if it is to be worship that pleases

you, Father, must be pointing and derived in

your Son, for he is the one in whom you're well

pleased. God, I would ask, Lord, for your help

and favor now for the glory and honor of Christ,

we pray. Amen. There's an old adage that says

if you want to keep peace at dinner parties,

there are two topics that we should always avoid.

And I guess it's not just dinner parties, it's

wherever you go. If you want to keep peace, two

topics you don't ever want to talk about. And

they are politics and religion. Now we're told

to avoid those because they can be so divisive.

Yet interestingly enough, the scriptures don't

shy away from either of those topics. Now, we

need to say this. Of course, the Bible is not

some political handbook, but it does speak into

the political sphere. A couple of examples. The

prophet Nathan, he confronted King David over

his adulterous relationship with Bathsheba. If

you go to the Old Testament as well, you see

the prophet Elijah confronting evil King Ahab

and telling him what he was doing was against

the law of God. In fact, if you look at the prophet's

job, one of their main descriptions would be,

they must speak truth in the political or civic

sphere. And the reason this is true is because

all authority, all authority, is a delegated

authority. Now we know that because in Matthew

28, Jesus said, all authority, all power, it's

the word authority there, exousia, is given to

me in heaven and earth. There is no authority

that Jesus doesn't have. So any authority whatsoever,

civic, political, religious, ecclesiastical,

it doesn't matter. All authority is a delegated

authority, meaning it finds its source in God.

And we see that in John 19. Do you remember Jesus

is standing before Pilate, who was the Roman

prefect. Pilate thought he was a big shot. And

he says, he looked at Jesus and he said, what,

you're not going to answer me? Don't you know

what I could do to you? And Jesus answers in

John 19, 11. He said, you could have no power.

He said, don't get too proud there. He said,

basically, Jesus is telling Pilate that the Roman

Empire was not ultimate. The ultimate authority

is God himself. Pilate only held that position

because God had seen fit to give it to him. God

ordains governing authorities, and they are subject

to him. authorities. Romans chapter 13 verse

Romans 13:1

1. Let every soul, there's no clarification,

let every soul, all people, be subject to the

governing authorities for there is no authority

except from God. And the authorities that be

or the authorities that exist are appointed by

God. Government is God's servant. It does not

exist independently of God as though it were

morally autonomous. Government does not get to

make its own moral code. Now, each sovereign

nation is free to enact its own civic laws. It's

free to do that, but it cannot enact its own

moral law. All rulers are accountable to God,

and the church has grounds to remind those rulers.

of God's standards. We have the moral authority

to make sure that our leaders know the law of

God. So that means even political leaders, even

a pluralistic society like our own, even civic

leaders, they are still under the moral law of

God. Now I do want to note something that's very

important. The church does not create moral truth.

It bears witness to the truth. The truth is found

in the Godhead. So the church has always had

a prophetic voice, always. And it's important

that we see this. We have a mandate, a command

from God that you and I as collective church

members, as a collective body, has to be light

in this world and bear witness to the light.

Now, what do I mean by prophetic voice when I

say that the church has this prophetic voice

or arm? This is when the church clearly speaks

the truth of God's law to the contemporary culture,

secular culture. So we speak prophetically when

the church proclaims truth and moral order in

a dark world. Now this is very problematic and

you have to be very careful. The church must

be careful when it claims to be speaking prophetically.

This cannot be some rationale to simply push

our own political agenda. It cannot be rationale

to simply endorse our own political candidate.

That is an abuse of power when that takes place.

But when the church is speaking truth, when we're

speaking prophetically, there must be a clear

biblical mandate behind it. And by clear biblical

mandate, I mean a thus saith the Lord that we're

proclaiming. Let me give you one decision and

I'll explain why I'm taking the time to do this.

In the Obergefell decision that the Supreme Court

handed down, when we codified... as a nation,

so -called gay marriage. The church, prophetically

and rightly, lifted up her voice and opposed

vehemently that decision, saying the government

had no authority to redefine marriage. Marriage

was not instituted by the state. Marriage had

been instituted by God, and God alone determines

what is and is not marriage. So when the state

enshrines into law what violates God's moral

law or even natural law, we must raise our voice.

We cannot be silent. James Cassidy wrote an article

called The Church's Prophetic Voice and he said

this, In the history of God's people, there have

been various and sundry occasions when the church

has been called upon to speak to the civil government.

After all, God alone is the one true king of

all nations who serve at his command. And the

church as the kingdom of God is the place in

which the word God speaks to not only his people,

but to all peoples everywhere, including civil

governments. In ages past, God spoke through

the prophets to civil governments in extraordinary

circumstances. You know, I mentioned Nathan with

King David. But think about Daniel. Daniel would

often speak to pagan Babylonian kings about God

and his rule. You have John the Baptist in our

text today calling out King Herod over his sexual

immorality. So what I'm saying, and I want to

get to my point in a moment, if and when the

state enacts a law or codifies a violation of

God's moral law, the church can't keep silent.

We've got to lift our voice. Now, we're not going

to speak out, or we should not, on what a tax

code might be or an immigration policy or even

foreign policy ought to be. Now, we can all have

varying opinions. We can all think our opinions

are informed by biblical mandate. But there is

nothing that would be clearly biblical to enact

laws like that. We can't do it. So we have to

be careful. One last quote. There's a great Princeton

theologian. His name was Charles Hodge. And he

wrote, But he didn't write a whole lot on politics.

But this I thought was interesting. He said the

church has nothing to do with the state in the

exercise of its discretion within its own sphere.

And therefore has no right to meddle with questions

of policy, whether that policy be foreign or

domestic. And that they profane the pulpit when

they preach politics or turn this sacred desk

into a rostrum for lectures on secular affairs.

Amen. I agree with everything Charles Hodge just

said there. said there. Nevertheless, he did

acknowledge there is a time though when the church

must speak into the civic sphere. If the state

passes any laws contrary to the law of God, then

it is the duty of the church to whom God has

committed the great work of asserting and maintaining

his truth and will to protect and remonstrate.

I don't know that. You all see it, to protest.

Let's use that word, okay? It's a remonstrance,

I know that. If the state does anything directly

contrary to the law of God, the church is bound

to make that law known and set it home upon the

conscience of all concerned. Okay, great. Now

you're saying, why, pastor, are you taking the

time to say all that? Why explain all that? Because

of our text. Here in our text this morning, John

the Baptist, that great prophet, he's going to

lose his life. Yea, he will lose his head for

simply speaking the truth of God into the political

sphere. John, as a courageous man, refused to

be silenced and he would not stop speaking the

truth. And here we are in this Father's Day and

it is providential that we're here in this passage.

We do see the courage of a real man. We see the

courage of a true prophet of God who is bold.

and who was also unapologetic, who would lift

up his voice for truth. So there's a showdown

coming, and today it's here. You have King Herod,

and I'll explain in a moment, he's not really

a king, and John the Baptist. Now, who is this

Herod? Because if you're not paying careful attention,

we read the word Herod, and there are many Herods

in the New Testament, and they're not the same.

Herod is the name of a family dynasty. It's not

an individual name. It's kind of like the title

Caesar. There were many Caesars in Rome. There

were many Herods in Israel. So it's a family

who ruled over parts of Israel. Now they ruled

under Roman authority. That's technically why

they weren't kings. And their reign was primarily

during the time of Jesus and the early church.

The very first Herod that is mentioned is found

in Matthew chapter 2. This is Herod the Great.

Matthew 2 · chapter mention

He is the one known as King Herod, and he was

the one that was ruling at the time of Jesus'

birth. He was also the one who gave that evil

law that all the male children in Bethlehem and

the surrounding area who were two years and under

should be murdered. That's him. Now, he wanted

to destroy the Christ child. Because remember,

when the Magi came and said, where is the king

of the Jews who had been born? He thought himself

as the king of the Jews, so he wanted to wipe

out any rival power. Well, eventually he dies.

Herod the Great dies, and his rule is divided

into a Tetrarchy. Tetrarchy is ruled by four,

but it's actually divided between three of his

sons. Two Tetrarchs, one Ethnarch. Doesn't matter

the terms. So you have Herod Antipas. Now this

is one we're going to see in our text today.

He's the ruler of Galilee, the Tetrarch of Galilee.

He's the most prominent in the New Testament.

He's the one who executed John the Baptist. He's

also the one who interrogated the Lord Jesus

Christ. So when you read about Herod, it's not

Herod the Great there. This is Herod Antipas.

He had a brother, Philip. He was Tetrarch there

of Eteria and Trachonitis. So these are the territories

northeast of the Sea of Galilee. And then you

have another Herod, Herod Archelaus. He's an

ethnarch, so he ruled over an ethnic community,

Judea, Samaria, and Edomia. Now he was an awful

ruler. He was so awful that Rome exiled him,

and in his place they put in Pontius Pilate,

who would rule over that area. Now later in the

book of Acts, there's two more Herods mentioned.

You have Herod Agrippa, known as Herod Agrippa

I. He is the one who beheaded James. James would

have been the grandson of Herod the Great. All

these Herods. Then you had Herod Agrippa II.

He was the one who actually wanted to hear Paul

when he gave his defense. I don't know if you

remember that later in the book of Acts. That's

Herod Agrippa II. He would have been the great

-grandson of Herod the Great. So that's the context.

Now remember in chapter 13, Jesus had gone back

to his hometown of Nazareth. He was rejected

by those who had known him since childhood. So

as we continue in chapter 14, Matthew... The

writer is continuing the scene of the misunderstanding

of who Jesus really is. There is widespread confusion

over Jesus' identity. And in this opening section,

you meet Herod. He thinks that Jesus is John

the Baptist who had risen from the dead. A little

paranoia, don't you think? I mean, Herod had

John beheaded in prison. Now he hears about this

miracle worker in Galilee and he's like, oh man,

I'm in trouble. I know who that is. That's John.

He's come back to life. Now Matthew is writing

about this event. Not so much about John the

Baptist and a history lesson concerning him,

but rather this is a foreshadowing. What happened

to John, his execution, will soon happen to Jesus.

Just as John lost his life, Jesus will lose his.

John was rumored to have risen from the dead.

The Lord Jesus Christ will actually rise from

the dead in victory. So we see the theme of death

and resurrection being introduced into the text.

Now look at verses 1 and 2 as we work our way

through this. At that time, Herod the Tetrarch,

he heard the report about Jesus. He said, this

is John. He's risen. I know it. That's why these

miracles are being done. So you have Herod Antipas.

Where was he ruling? In Galilee. Where was Jesus'

base of operations? In Galilee. Where did Jesus

do most of his miracles? In Galilee. So it makes

sense that Herod heard about this man because

keep in mind, as we had seen, massive crowds

are following Jesus. They're hanging on his every

word. And certainly that would have caught the

gaze of any political leader. Political leaders

were very paranoid because people were always

trying to depose them. Now some at that time

were saying Jesus was Elijah reincarnate. This

is Elijah, come back. Others said, no, he's the

great prophet. Others said, no, he's just one

of the prophets. And then Herod weighed in. He's

like, no, you guys, you're all wrong. That's

John the Baptist risen from the dead. And we

see that in Mark 6, the parallel passage. Now

King Herod heard of Jesus, for his name had become

well known. Of course it had. And he said, John

the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore

these powers, these miracles, that's why they're

at work in him. Now, Herod is part Jewish, but

only in name. He's very superstitious, and he

lives like a pagan, technically under the law.

His conscience was bothering him, and we'll see

why in a minute. This is how he arrived at that

bizarre conclusion that somehow Jesus must be

John. Raised or resurrected. First of all, that

doesn't even make sense. What's the age difference

between Jesus and John the Baptist? Six months.

Just six months is all that's between them. And

besides, John had been executed not that long

ago. There's no way, because Jesus would have

been doing miracles before John had even been

executed. So it doesn't make sense. Secondly,

do you remember, John tells us in John 10 .41

that John the Baptist did no miracles. None.

No recorded miracles of him. So why would Herod

assume that a miracle worker must be John the

Baptist resurrected? Because he's paranoid. Why?

Look at verse 3 through 5. What did he do? For

Herod had laid hold of John and bound him and

put him in prison. Why? For the sake of his wife,

Herodias, another Herod. We'll get to that. But

that's his brother Philip's wife. And that, by

the way, was known as Herod Philip. Herod II.

I know all that gets confusing, but because John

said to him, you can't have her. You can't get

her to do that. Now it says in Luke verse 5,

he wanted to kill him. He wanted to put him to

death, but he feared the multitude because they

thought John was a prophet. So now the plot thickens

just a little bit here, doesn't it? So Herod

Antipas had fallen in love with his sister -in

-law, his brother Philip, or Herod Philip's wife.

And this happened on a trip to Rome. So he came

home. He divorced his own wife and he married

Philip's wife, whose name was Herodias, because

she's the granddaughter of Herod the Great, the

niece of Herod, by the way. So now you've got

a really bizarre thing going on, right? Herodias

was Herod and Philip's niece and Philip's wife

and now Herod's wife. Are you following me here?

I know, it's very messed up. So their union was

not only adulterous, It was incestuous and a

gross violation of God's moral law. And John

the Baptist would not sit idly by and take it.

He's going to lift up his voice and say, that

is evil and you don't get away with it. So John,

using the prophetic arm, he rightly lifted up

his voice. He spoke the truth to Herod and that

ticked him off. That made him and his wife very

angry. But it didn't matter to John. God's law

equally applies to kings as it does to peasants.

No one stands above the authority of God. But

this royal couple was being publicly embarrassed.

Their name was being besmirched because you have

this prophet who is ruining their standing among

the people. Because John was out there saying

to everyone, listen, their marriage is unlawful

and that's going to invite the judgment of God.

is going to lose status in the community and

people aren't going to respect him. So the next

thing they know, Rome's going to depose him.

I've got to get rid of this prophet. So you have

John the Baptist, a thorn in Herod's side. Just

shut up, John. But he wouldn't. John was widely

popular though. And he was viewed as a prophet

and he was. And by the way, that's the first

prophet in over 400 years. So this is a big deal.

That's why Herod was afraid to kill him. He's

going to have a revolt or mutiny on his hands.

So he said, I'm going to put him in prison. Now,

what was John's crying? He simply told him, your

marriage is in violation to God's law. Go back

and look at the history of English kings and

see when clerics and pastors would tell the king,

look at King Henry VIII. You didn't want to tell

him anything, right? I mean, like, we know this

is what happens. They don't want to hear the

truth. But we don't have a choice, friends. We

must stand for righteousness. J .C. Ryle, I love

his writing. He said, kings find it easier to

imprison and behead the preacher than to bind

his sermon and silence the voice of his reproof

in their own hearts. God's witnesses may be put

out of the way, you can kill them, but their

testimony often lives and works on long after

they are dead. God's prophets don't live forever,

but their words often survive them. That's the

case with here. It took a lot of courage. It

took a lot of metal, if you will, for John the

Baptist to speak like he did to Herod. Because

the truth is, Herod had been given quite a bit

of authority from the Roman government. And John

would not be deterred. Why? He feared God more

than he feared the king. He feared God more than

he feared Rome. See, but the problem was, it

wasn't just Herod that wanted him dead. Now,

I'm telling you ladies, you get you guys mad.

Herod's, I mean, Herod's bad. He put him in prison.

Herodias, she's in... In a total different category

of herself. She's going to take care of what

Herod's afraid to take care of. She's going to

come up and back cleaner. And she's going to

take care of it. She hated John even more. She

doesn't want him just in prison. She wants to

see him in the grave. So she develops. And I'll

get to this. There's many that think she developed

this plot. And I agree with them. In verses 6

through 8. So Herod had a big birthday celebration.

Birthdays were not widely celebrated in the ancient

culture. Unless you had political leaders. So

now the daughter of Herodias. We know from another

passage her name is Salome. She danced before

Herod and his friends. Therefore, and he liked

it. He liked the way she was dancing for him.

So he promised to give her whatever you want

to ask, I'll give it to you. So she's like, oh

mom, what should I ask? And her mother, knowing

her husband, knew that Herod would probably do

that and says, go ask for John the Baptist's

head on a charger, on a platter, right now. So

now Herod is an important public... political

figure, right? So his birthday would be a large

celebration, a large bash. Many important dignitaries

attending, probably Roman dignitaries. Now his

stepdaughter, who is also his great niece, is

the one dancing. This is Herodias' daughter,

Salome. This is his brother Philip's daughter,

by the way. She's dancing before him and his

guests. Now this party would have been likely

wine -filled lusts field and the dance more than

likely was an exotic dance being performed. The

whole scenario is grossly wicked. That's what's

taking place here. Some suggest, and I think

they're right here, Herodias knew that her husband

had been lusting after her daughter and she arranged

this whole thing in order to get her away and

get rid of John the Baptist once and for all.

So the young girl goes to dance. She pleases

Herod. So he makes this big promise. He's the

big man. He's got to look big in front of everyone.

He makes this grandiose promise, and he swears

with an oath. Now, he was assuming, I think,

she's a young girl. She's going to ask for gold,

silver, maybe some clothes, maybe some property.

But instead, she leaves the room, and she goes

and asks her mom. We know that from Mark 6, 24.

So she went out. Herodias is not in there, mostly

just men. And she says, why should I ask mom?

Cold, calculated. John the Baptist had. There

you have it. Herodias wants John out of her way.

I want to shut him up forever. I want him to

stop embarrassing us. And how? She wants immediate,

visible proof that John is dead. Not just in

prison. So her daughter comes back in front of

all the guests and all the dignitaries. And she's

like, I know what I want now. Tell me. Give me

that prophet's head right now on a charger. And

John was executed for the crime of speaking the

truth to a corrupt politician and his adulterous

wife. That's why he was killed. Look at verse

9. And the king was sorry. You bet he was. He's

scared. Nevertheless, because of those and because

of those who sat with him, he can't be publicly

embarrassed. His pride won't let him do that.

He commanded it to be given to her, so he sent

and had John beheaded in prison, and his head

was brought on a platter. What a great birthday

gift, right? And given to the girl. What's she

going to do with it? Here, Mom. There you go.

So we read that Herod's sorry, but he's not repentant.

There's a worldly sorrow that leads to death,

and this is the case. And there's a godly sorrow

that leads to repentance. Herod was sorry in

the sense that he knew that John the Baptist

was a prophet. He knew that. He knew that John

the Baptist was a righteous man. He also knew

that John the Baptist did not deserve death.

This is why he was filled with fear. He is violating

his own conscience here. He, I believe Herod,

was not expecting Herodias to ask for John's

head, but she did. And he does not want to be

embarrassed. He doesn't want to lose face in

front of them. After all, he had sworn with an

oath, tell me what you want, daughter. You can

have it all. And this is a sad commentary on

life. Herod feared man more than he feared God.

And that's a terrible choice in light of eternity.

So many people, they shipwreck their lives, they

shipwreck their faith. They will not follow the

crucified Christ. They fear man. I look foolish.

I'm going to be rejected. I'll lose my standing.

The courage to do right will disappear if you

are motivated by the court of human approval.

If you measure everything you do in life by what

other people are going to think, you will not

do right. And this is really, this is the sin,

the great sin of politics. What do we always

accuse politicians of doing? Speaking out of

both sides of their mouth. They want to please

everyone. God says, if you please everyone, you

will do nothing when you try to please everyone.

You can't do it. So Herod made good on his promise.

He sent the executioner and the sword into prison.

And he brought her head in and gave it to the

young girl who gave it to her mother, the mastermind

behind the plot. Again, J .C. Ryle. He said,

truly there was an event here. Now, I love what

he said. Listen carefully. If there ever was

one in the world which might make ignorant men

say, what prophet is there to serve God? I mean,

if serving God is going to make you lose your

head sitting in prison, why serve God? But these

are the sorts of things which show us that there

will one day be a judgment. God will right all

wrongs. The God. of the spirits of all flesh

shall at last set up a judicial inquest and reward

everyone according to his works. The blood of

John the Baptist and James the Apostle and Stephen,

that's the first Christian martyr, and Polycarp,

disciple of John the Baptist, and Hus, Reformation,

Ridley and Latimer, the Oxford martyrs there,

shall yet be required. No one gets away with

it, friend. It is all written in God's book.

I should say contemporary, and I don't want to

weigh in, but you think if O .J. did it or not,

he's now in eternity. He didn't get away with

it if he did. It is all written in God's book.

The earth will reveal her bloodshed and will

no longer cover her sling. The world shall yet

know that there is a God who judges the earth.

What a horrible choice foolish Herod made. He

had the chance to do right. He could have rectified

it, but he didn't. And John the Baptist's life

ends. But his work was now finished. And his

prayer was now answered. You're like, well, what

prayer? Do you remember in John 3 .30? John the

Baptist said, he, Jesus, must increase, but I

must decrease. Here it is. We read that the disciples

of John came and they took his body away for

burial. And then it says they went and told Jesus.

And that's an important thing. Don't overlook

that. John's disciples would become Jesus' disciples.

And that's fitting because John's ministry was

always supposed to lead people to Jesus and never

to himself. That's what Matthew's writing about

here. So as we end this, you say, okay, so what?

What's the takeaway from all this? I think there

are a few things. As men, as husbands and fathers,

We can learn from men like John the Baptist,

from our spiritual forefathers, to have courage.

We need men who have steel in their spine, who

have courage, courage to be bold and proclaim

the truth without apology, regardless of the

cost. We have to set an example for our young

people, for our children, of what following God

looks like. God help us. Let us not fail in that.

But you must understand, this is more important.

Matthew was not primarily writing to tell us

about John the Baptist. Matthew was not primarily

writing to give us a moral example to follow.

Matthew is foreshadowing of what will take place

and happen to Jesus. Now follow me here and then

we're done. In Matthew's gospel, the ministry

of John the Baptist always is foreshadowing Jesus'

ministry. Remember in Matthew 3, John the Baptist

comes on the scene, he's preaching the gospel.

What's he preaching? The kingdom of heaven was

at hand. That's Matthew 3. Go to Matthew 4, Jesus

is introduced publicly, and he comes preaching

the gospel. And what's he preaching? The kingdom

of heaven was at hand. Preaching the same. In

Matthew 11, there was opposition to John's ministry.

In Matthew 12, there was growing opposition to

Jesus' ministry. In the text today, John's violent

death is a prefigure of Jesus' violent death

that is to come. Think about Herod. Herod, ruling

under Roman authority, was responsible for John's

death. Pontius Pilate, ruling under Roman authority,

was responsible for Jesus' death. In Matthew

14, we read that John was seized and bound. In

Matthew 27, we read that Jesus was seized and

bound. In chapter 14, it says Herod feared the

people. Why? They considered John to be a prophet.

And in chapter 21, we read that the religious

leaders, the chief priests and the Pharisees

feared the people. Why? They considered Jesus

to be a prophet. Herod was reluctant to execute

Jesus. Herod was reluctant to execute John. Pilate

was reluctant to execute Jesus. He didn't want

to do it. John subsequently died a violent death.

The Lord Jesus died a violent death. John was

buried by his disciples. Remember Joseph of Arimathea?

Jesus was buried by one of his disciples. And

this is where the differences stop. John was

rumored to have risen from the grave. The Lord

Jesus Christ literally rose again from the grave.

What was rumored of John was the reality of Jesus.

The death of John the Baptist marks the end of

that old covenant prophetic error. John the Baptist

is the last of the Old Testament prophets. What

was his purpose? To prepare the way for the coming

of the new covenant. So we see that John in his

death is pointing forward to the greater suffering

of Christ. Which would institute the new covenant.

John's ministry was great. Did many things. It

exposed darkness. But it was the death and resurrection

of Jesus Christ that gave the answer. To the

darkness. John called people to repent. But it

was Jesus who offered the atoning sacrifice to

which that repentance pointed. And that, my friend,

is what we celebrate on this Lord's Day and every

Lord's Day. Our salvation is through the death,

burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And in that, we find hope. This is why we gather

today. We come to commune with Christ as he meets

with us in his way at the table of the Lord.

Praise be to God. Would you join me in prayer?

Father, we would fail if we would make worship

about anyone or anything other than Christ. Lord,

we thank you for the life and the ministry of

John the Baptist. Lord, I thank you for men who

set examples and who've... Lit paths that we

can walk that have gone before us and blazed

a trail. But Lord, we find hope and solace in

Christ alone. He's your son, the beloved one.

He's the one in whom truly you are well pleased.

He's the one in whom we can hide and find our

source of righteousness. He's the ark that will

shelter us from the impending storm. Lord, we're

so very grateful, Lord, for what you have done.

God, your word is so good, so very beautiful

and sustaining. Lord, it gives us food for our

soul, nourishing. Oh, Lord, we thank you for

the nourishment of the word of God. And now,

Lord, as we prepare to commune with the risen

Christ, the living one, that he's present with

us. Lord, that as we remember the body and the

blood of Christ that has forever procured our

salvation. Lord, what more can we say, Lord,

than thank you, Lord. God, we give you our lives,

Lord. Help us to honor our king and to live for

his glory. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Deacons, if you would come and prepare the table,

Lord.