Trapped
Have you ever been trapped in your own words?
At that time Herod the ruler heard reports about Jesus; and he said to his servants, ‘This is John the Baptist; he has been raised from the dead, and for this reason these powers are at work in him.’ For Herod had arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because John had been telling him, ‘It is not lawful for you to have her.’ Though Herod wanted to put him to death, he feared the crowd, because they regarded him as a prophet. But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company, and she pleased Herod so much that he promised on oath to grant her whatever she might ask. Prompted by her mother, she said, ‘Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.’ The king was grieved, yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he commanded it to be given; he sent and had John beheaded in the prison. The head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, who brought it to her mother. His disciples came and took the body and buried it; then they went and told Jesus. - Matthew 14:1-12
Herod gets so caught up in the reverie that he loses control of what he is saying, and it comes back to bite him.
He could have easily backed down when he heard what was asked of him, but his pride prevented him from changing his mind, or offering n alternative. So, because of his pride, John the Baptist was killed.
The reading starts in the present (Jesus's ministry has already begun) and then jumps backward to explain how Herod screwed up, causing Jesus' ministry to flourish.
It was not until the death of John that his followers became followers of Jesus. So you could argue that it was Herod who helped Jesus become popular.
What if Herod had not given in to Herodias' daughter, and John had continued to live? Would Jesus have become so popular so soon?
When we fall victim to our own pride, we tend to mess things up for us royally. We do things we will regret, and those things may come back to haunt us.
Everything we do comes with consequences, and whether we like it or not, those consequences are ours to own. So, if there is a message for us here, it might be that we should not be afraid to back down from our stand when we believe we have made a mistake.
It is better to be embarrassed and ashamed than to carry the burden of guilt forever.
More to come...