Written for the Methodist Churches Online Bible study, A Word in Time. The original post appears here
‘He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.’ (v 15)
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Psalm: Psalm 34:1-10
Background
Today we have the story of John the Baptist’s gruesome end. Having challenged the king on his unlawful marriage, John had found himself thrown in prison. Those who walked the halls of power wanted him dead and it was only a matter of time before the opportunity would present itself and they could have their way. This finally occurred in the passage before us today when Herod’s wife seized upon an opportunity to have John killed.
John the Baptist was not the first or the last person called by God to meet such a horrific end. Countless prophets before him had been ridiculed, persecuted or even killed for being God’s spokesperson. Jesus was arrested, tortured and killed for proclaiming the kingdom of God, and his disciples would face persecution and death as they shared the gospel.
This is a pattern that has been seen throughout history when the radical and transformative grace of the gospel challenges those in power. It should be no surprise to those of us who follow Jesus today that when we share this same message we also may face hardship, persecution and even death, as some do in parts of the world. This is one of the challenges of the ministry we all share in when decide to follow Jesus; one that John and those before him knew full well and one which we should understand as we continue in our journey of discipleship.
To Ponder:
- Have you ever been in a position where you have been ridiculed or persecuted because of your faith?
- What stories of persecution have challenged or inspired you?
- What should we be doing to help or support those being persecuted?
Credits – ‘Word Clock’ by Matt Clark under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0