The Voice in the Wilderness, Part 7

Thank you so much for just the opportunity you give us each and every week to spend time in your Word. What a joy to know that your truth speaks to the heart of man. What a joy it is to know that when we gather together as a church family we are able to glean from you the great and wonderful truth of who you are. Today, Lord, I ask that you'd go before us and may the time of our instruction be one that enlightens us into who you are and what you have required of us, your disciples, your followers.

We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Luke chapter 3, as we conclude today, the voice in the wilderness. It's been a while. It's been, I think, seven or eight weeks. I kind of lost track after a while, but it's been a while since we've tried to begin Luke chapter 3 and finish down through verse number 20. But today we will finish down through verse number 20, the voice in the wilderness. We have been studying this man, John the Baptist, and we've been looking at his life, looking at his ministry, the message that he's given, and we've gleaned a lot from him.

And today what I want to do is give you seven words, seven words that will help you understand this man, John, as we look at the seventh point of our outline, the contention of the voice in the wilderness.

Yes, it's this voice that brought great contention. It says in verse number 18, these words. So with many other exhortations also, he preached the gospel. We'll stop right there. Just that phrase, he preached the gospel. You must understand that whenever you preach the gospel, you will bring about contention with those who do not believe the truth of Jesus Christ. You must begin to understand that when Christ came, he came not to bring peace, but a sword to divide man. Remember what it says over in Luke chapter 12.

Luke chapter 12, verse number 49, Christ says, I have come to cast fire upon the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled.

In other words, I've come to judge man, and I wish that now was the time, but it wasn't. Verse 50, but I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished. That baptism, of course, is the baptism of his death. Verse 51, do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth? I tell you, no, but rather division. For from now on, five members in one household will be divided. Three against two, and two against three. They will be divided father against son, and son against father, and mother against daughter, daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law, and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.

Christ says, listen, my whole life is about dividing the true from the false, the committed from the uncommitted, the wheat from the tares.

It will ultimately happen at the time of judgment, but it will be through my baptism, that is, my death on Calvary's cross, that will divide households. And you see, John the Baptist came preaching the gospel, and the gospel in and of itself is the truth that provides life to men, but to those who reject it, it becomes a source of great irritation and great contention. And John didn't have a very long ministry. He began about six months before Christ came on the scene, and then continued about six months after Christ was baptized and was on the scene.

So he had about a year. That's all he had. And so from the world's perspective, John's ministry was ineffective. John's ministry was a failure. But when you read the scriptures, you realize that this man in one year's time did more than all of us in this room will ever do. This one man was so strategic in the plans and purposes of God that God commended him more so than any other man. He was a great man. And let me give you seven words that will help you understand how significant this man's ministry was, and then what you need to do is somehow match your life against John's life.

Now think about this. We're looking for a model to follow. We're looking for someone like us that we can associate with, that we can follow, that we can emulate, that we can look to as a guide, that we can look to as the leader that says, I want to be like that. And as I've studied the life of John the Baptist throughout our study of Luke chapter 1, of course now in Luke chapter 3 again, I've come to realize, you know, if I could be like anybody in the Bible, John the Baptist is the man. He is the man.

I'm telling you, this guy was just way beyond anybody else. He was so incredible. And this, if you're a man, this guy is a man's man. Unlike any other man, John the Baptist was a man's man. If you want to know about manliness, study John the Baptist, and follow this man, and look at his life.

And the seven words I'm going to give you today will help you understand why this voice in the wilderness brought contention and why this voice in the wilderness brought great celebration in heaven. Okay? First word is this.

Uncompromising. Uncompromising. He came on the scene preaching the gospel, and he never compromised the truth. Turn back with me, if you would, to Matthew chapter 11. Matthew chapter 11. And let me illustrate it for you this way.

Remember, John was in prison We'll talk about that this morning, because that's how Luke ends his discussion about John the Baptist. In fact, he will mention John the Baptist more times throughout his gospel, but it's only in reference to Jesus. But in Matthew 11, listen to what it says. Verse 2. Now when John in prison heard the words of Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, Are you the expected one, or shall we look for someone else? And Jesus answered and said to them, Go and report to John what you hear and see.

The blind receive sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who keeps from stumbling over me. Now, we read this passage in Luke 7 last week. But I want you to see something here. John's in prison, and he's wondering whether or not Christ is truly the expected one. John was not wondering in terms of doubting, he was just questioning. See, John did not have what you and I have. He didn't have the completed New Testament.

All he had was the Old Testament. We studied last week where John, in terms of the clarification of his ministry, he would clarify that he wasn't the Christ, but that he was just the prophet, the forerunner to the Messiah. For all he could do was dunk you into the water. But when the Messiah came, he would baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. John knew that. Like all the Old Testament prophets knew, that when Messiah came, he would come not only with the Spirit of God on him, but he would baptize man with the Spirit of God because that was a new covenant promise.

But he also knew, as the Old Testament prophets knew, that when Messiah came, he came to judge man. The problem with John is that he didn't understand the separation between the coming of Christ to bestow the Spirit and the coming of Christ to judge man. There's a great separation there. The Old Testament prophets didn't see that. We see it. We know it because we see how it's explained in the Scriptures. And we know how it's all going to come together. But John didn't know that. So he's thinking, wait a minute, I'm the forerunner to the Messiah.

I know that when Messiah comes, he's going to baptize with the Spirit. That's the blessing. He's going to baptize with fire. That's the burning. But yet there's no burning taking place. There's no judgment happening. I'm in prison. I shouldn't be here. If the Messiah is truly the Messiah, then there should be judgment. I should be set free. And we should have the kingdom restored. And great things should be happening. So he says to his men, go see Jesus, the Messiah. Ask him, are you the expected one?

Are you the one we're longing for? And so John's disciples did. And Christ says, you tell John, the blind see, the deaf hear, the injured are physically healed, the diseased are cured.

You tell him that all the credentials that you see are the indication that I am the Messiah. And then he says, and blessed is he who doesn't stumble over me. The blessed one is the one who doesn't stumble over the fact that yes, I am the Messiah. Yes, I've come to bless man. And yet my judgment is not yet. Now I want you to notice, that was last week.

Now listen to this, verse seven. And as these were going away, Jesus began to speak to the multitudes about John. Now I am fascinated by this because you'd think that Jesus would want John's disciples to hear all the good things he's going to say about John. So John could kind of be encouraged while he was in prison. So John could have some affirmation while he was in prison. So John could feel good about himself while he was in prison. But Jesus didn't do that because Jesus never wants man to focus on man.

He wants man to focus on God. And so John's disciples leave, go back and tell him what Christ says. And then Jesus speaks to the multitude about John. Listen to what he says. What did you go out into the wilderness to look at?

A reed shaken by the wind? What did you go see? Did you go out to see some man who had compromised? The reeds, very normal there along the Jordan, grew somewhere between 10 to 12 feet high. And those reeds would blow back and forth with all the wind that came. And sometimes when there was a strong wind, those reeds would be blown all the way down. Then when the wind stopped, they'd come right back up again. When the wind changed direction, they'd go the other way. And Jesus says, what did you expect to see?

A man who changed his message because the wind would blow one way one day and another way the next day? No. What did you expect? It speaks to John and his ability to stand strong and never compromise the truth. He was a stone. You've never met people who when you sit in a discussion, in one discussion they agree with the people there, and then at another discussion they agree with the people there, and then another discussion they agree with the people there. They're never disagreeable. This man would always stand strong on the truth no matter what anybody else thought.

Because it didn't really make any difference what anybody else thought about what he said or about who he was. The fact is he came to preach the truth. He came to preach the gospel. And he wasn't tossed to and fro, as Ephesians 4 speaks about, by every wind of doctrine. Why? Because he was solidified in the scriptures. He wasn't like James says in James 1.8, a double-minded man who, by the way, is unstable in all his ways, not just some of his ways. The double-minded man is unstable in every single way imaginable in his life.

To be double-minded is not a good thing because that's a compromising man. And John was a man who stood strong and would not compromise the truth. You see, that's why he was in prison, and that's why his message was so contentious. People hate people like that. They hate people who won't bend. They hate people who are so strong that they won't give in. And John wasn't about to give in to anybody because he had a mission in life. He was a forerunner to the Messiah. He was going to preach the gospel.

Some would say, well, you know, he could have been a little easier. He could have been a little softer. He could have been a little kinder instead of saying, you sons of poisonous snakes, you brood of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come. He could have said it a little nicer, could have been a little gentler, could have been a little kinder, could have been a little more user-friendly, could have been a little softer. Not John. Not John. He had a message to give. He was going to give it.

He was uncompromising. That's what made him so strong. How about you? Are you a compromiser? Do you like the reed that blows with whatever wind is coming your way? Do you bend that direction? Or do you stand strong against the winds of adversity, against the winds of those who disagree with you? Where do you stand? John, the apostle, was one of those men in the book of Revelation. You see, John the Baptist became, listen, the example of one, listen, who truly preaches the gospel. He became the essence of what preachers are to say and do.

And those in the Bible who followed that model ended up the same way John the Baptist ended up. In fact, it says in Revelation chapter 1 verse number 9, I, John, that is John the apostle, your brother and fellow partaker of the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. Why was John on the island of Patmos? Because he would not compromise the truth of the word of God. That's why he was there. If you go on in the book of Revelation to Revelation chapter 6, it speaks of those who died during the tribulation, verse number 9.

And when he broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and because of the testimony which they had maintained. Why did they die? Because of the testimony that they maintained based on the authority of God's word in their lives. You see, these people followed the man, John the Baptist. They understood that you can't compromise the truth of the gospel. And in the tribulation, people will die because of that. They'll lose their head.

Ironically, read later on in the book of Revelation, it's called the souls that are beheaded for Christ. Isn't it interesting? John the Baptist lost his head because he preached the gospel and held to the testimony of Jesus. And these people will lose their heads because they preached the gospel and hold to the testimony of Jesus. If you read on in the book of Revelation, Revelation chapter 12, after Satan is unable to destroy Israel, it says in verse number 17, and the dragon, who by the way is Satan, was enraged with the woman who is Israel and went off to make war with the rest of her offspring.

Okay, these are the Gentile people. And how are the Gentile people defined? That is, the Christian Gentiles defined in Scripture, the ones who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. You see, what makes us who we are is that we don't compromise. We stand strong on the truth. Folks, if you learn anything about John the Baptist, learn this, you can't afford to compromise. I told you last week, better not to compromise and lose your head than to compromise and keep your head.

Your head is just not that important, folks, when it comes to the truth of Almighty God. And so we have to understand that this man refused to compromise the truth. So he was uncompromising as he preached the gospel. Not only was he uncompromising, he was unorthodox. He was unorthodox. He was completely different than everybody else. Listen to what Jesus says in Matthew 11.

But what did you go out to see? Again, he emphasizes, what are you looking for? What did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Behold, these are those who wear soft clothing are in king's palaces. What did you go out to see? Did you go out to see another one of your leaders who are self-indulgent? No. See, John's whole ministry was one of self-denial. He was completely unorthodox. He was completely different than everybody else. He didn't live according to the system. He lived differently than everybody else.

Not because he wanted to put on a show. Not because he wanted to make himself out to be a spectacle. It's because he refused to bend to society's standards. He was just different. In fact, he was so different, you could tell by the way he dressed. Tell by the way he dressed, camel's hair, leather belt. Tell by the way he ate, he was different. And I really believe that people ought to know we are different by the way we dress and the way we eat. We just do things differently than everybody else. John did.

He was just different. You see, he didn't want to be inundated with a self-indulgent society. That's why he was in the wilderness all that time preparing for the ministry. And that's why the bulk of his ministry was in the wilderness. He wanted to be separate from the world and its standards and its influences. And he didn't want to be measured like everyone else was measured. John was a man who was not interested in the approval of the world. See, that's what made his ministry so unorthodox because he didn't want to be like everybody else.

One of our problems is we got to be like everybody else. And that's just not a good thing. We are aliens and strangers in a foreign land. And John just wasn't into that because he was so into Jesus. Let me show you how unorthodox his ministry was.

Turn to John chapter 3 for a moment. John chapter 3. John chapter 3 verse number 22. After these things Jesus and his disciples came to the land of Judea and there he was spending time with them and baptizing. And John also was baptizing in Adinon near Salem because there was much water there and they were coming and were being baptized. Here you see where the ministry of John the Baptist and the ministry of Jesus overlapped for a brief time. Verse 24. For John had not been thrown into prison. There arose therefore discussion on the part of John's disciples with the Jew about purification.

And they came to John and said to him, Rabbi, he who was with you beyond the Jordan to whom you have borne witness, behold, he is baptizing and all are coming to him. So you can see that while the ministry was simultaneous there were some people who were a little jealous for John and his ministry. After all, John was there first.

After all, John was the one who was called John the baptizer because he was baptizing people. And now there's these other Jews coming along and he's kind of usurping John's authority. He's kind of treading on John's territory. And they're a little concerned about that. They're a little jealous for John. Verse 27. John answered and said, a man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven. You yourselves bear me witness that I said I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.

He who has the bride is the bridegroom, but the friend of the bridegroom who stands and hears him rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. And so this joy of mine has been made full. John says, my joy is complete because I've heard the voice of the bridegroom. My joy has been complete because the Messiah has spoken, the Messiah has arrived, and I am filled with joy. And then he says this, he must increase, but I must decrease. Now that's why his ministry was so unorthodox. Why? Because he just wasn't interested in self-glorification.

He wasn't interested in putting himself on display. He was totally consumed with Christ, the Messiah, being in the forefront. How many people do you know are more concerned about them and how people view them than about how they help people view Jesus? See, it's all about Christ. It's all about who he is. He must increase, I must decrease. You can translate that and put that over into your marriage, right? Because your marriage is number one, primarily above all things, a picture of Christ's relationship to the church.

That's the number one reason that there is marriage. It's so that your marriage will picture to the world Christ's sacrificial love for his bride. And so your marriage now becomes a picture. Now, if you are interested in Christ increasing and you decreasing, guess what? The problems in your marriage subside very quickly. But when you're interested in you being first and Christ not being increased in your marriage, you're going to have all kinds of problems in your marriage.

Because your marriage is about you. It's not about Christ. See, John's ministry was all about Christ. That's why it was so different. That's why it was so out there. Because everybody else was about them and John was about Christ. That's why he preached the gospel. You know, John never came and said, let me give you my testimony.

I got a great testimony. You ought to hear about my dad and what took place in his life. And my mom, she was buried. What a great testimony my parents have. Boy, this is so great. Let me tell you about my upbringing, my family and what the angel said to my father.

It wasn't about his testimony. It was about the testimony of Jesus. He preached the gospel. Didn't talk about his family. Didn't talk about his mom and his dad. Didn't talk about his upbringing. It was all about Jesus. Because people needed to see Jesus in his life. They needed to see Jesus in his message. That's why it was so way out there. Because most people just don't like that, are they? So we need to see that. So you gotta ask yourself, am I that way? Am I interested in people seeing me? Am I interested in my increasing and Christ decreasing?

Or am I interested in Christ increasing and me decreasing? Do I want Christ on display in my marriage? Do I want Christ on display in my family? Do I want Christ on display in my message? Do I want Christ on display in my life? Or do I want people to see me? That's John the Baptist saying. That's the way he was. So his ministry was uncompromising, unorthodox and unequaled among men. Unequaled. Listen to what it says. Back to Matthew chapter 11 again. But why did you go out? To see a prophet? Yes, I say to you, and one who is more than a prophet.

This is the one about whom it is written. Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you. Truly I say to you, among those born of women, there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist. Not one. Unequal. Unequaled among men. Unorthodox in all of his manners. Uncompromising in his entire message. That's John the Baptist. He's unequaled. There's nobody you can compare with him. He is so utterly different. He stands out above all. He was the forerunner to the Messiah.

And so Christ wants this multitude to understand who John is, why he was the way he was, and why he was so great. He's unequaled before men because, you see, he came to point the way to the Messiah. And then Christ says these words.

Very interesting. He says, yet he was least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John. Wow. That's amazing. Here was the greatest man ever born of a woman, John the Baptist. Nobody greater than John. Yet, Christ says, the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John.

So that tells me that the one that John came to point to was the Messiah, which made his ministry so unique is because he could identify the Messiah to people by pointing to Christ and saying, behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. And yet even the least in the kingdom of heaven is just as great or greater than John because you too can point people to the Messiah. See, he was unequaled among men because he was totally committed to pointing people to Jesus, keeping people focused on who Christ is and what he was about.

John the Baptist came preaching the gospel. And that's why there was so much contention surrounding his ministry. It's because he would not compromise the truth for no one. He would not change his ways. His whole life was completely focused on emphasizing Jesus Christ above himself and Christ's own words that he was unequaled among men. No man like him because he kept preaching the gospel, the truth, and pointing people to the Savior. Back to Luke chapter three. Back to Luke chapter three. So with many other exhortations, also he preached the gospel to the people.

We'll stop right there. To the people. His ministry was unlimited in its scope, unlimited in its measure. Why? Because he preached the gospel to the people, not just to the Jews, not just to certain Jews, but to Gentiles as well, all people. You see, John wasn't concerned about whether you were a boy or a girl, a man or a woman, a husband or a wife, a Jew or a Gentile. He wasn't concerned about who you were. He even preached the gospel to Herod who was an Idumean, an Edomite, a descendant of Esau.

He preached the gospel to everybody. There wasn't a certain segment of people he preached to. There wasn't a certain segment of people he focused in on. He just preached the gospel to all the people because he wanted everybody to hear it. He wasn't limited in his scope. He was unlimited in his scope. He preached the gospel to everybody. And you know what's so good about that? Listen to what John says over in John chapter 10, verse number 41. This is a great testimony. It says this, while John performed no sign, yet everything John said about this man Christ was true.

Folks, let me tell you something. That is a fabulous testimony. John the Baptist did no miracle, none. You'd think if somebody was going to be great, they'd be supernatural. They'd do all kinds of supernatural things to get people's attention. John just preached the gospel. You want to be great? Just preach the gospel. That's all you got. Just preach the gospel. But see, we think we've got to do all these things to make ourselves great in the eyes of men. But God says, you want to be great?

Just preach the gospel. Everything he said about Jesus was absolutely true. Can that be said of you? That everything you say about Jesus is true. That you know exactly who he is, what he was about, what he did, why he did it. It's absolutely accurate. And John the apostle, his testimony about John the Baptist was that everything he said was absolutely accurate, was true. And this man had a ministry that was unlimited, not limited to certain groups of people. He was not partial. He was impartial. He spoke to everybody.

So many times we only want to share gospel with certain groups of people or certain individuals. We can't limit our evangelistic escapades. But not John. His was unlimited. He spoke to all the people. He preached the gospel to everyone he came in contact with, not just the Jews, but to the nations. So what marked John's ministry? One, it was uncompromising. Two, it was unorthodox. Three, it was unequaled. Four, it was unlimited. And five, it was uninhibited or unintimidated. Listen to this. Verse number 19.

But when Herod the Tetrarch was reproved by him on account of Herodias, his brother's wife, on account of all the wicked things which Herod had done, he added this also to them all, that he locked John up in prison. This man was unintimidated, uninhibited in how he approached people. Now there's a lot of us who will confront people on their sin, but won't confront people in our family who sin. You ever know people like that? We're strong against sin unless it happens in our family. Then we're a little weak on sin.

Or we're strong on sin unless someone in prominence sins. We don't want to confront them. Here is Herod. Herod was a powerful man. Herod was a Tetrarch. He was a ruler of one of the four regions. We talked about him earlier in Luke chapter 3, verse number 1. He's best known for his interaction with Christ in Luke chapter 23. He built that city Tiberias there in the city of Galilee. He built it for Tiberias Caesar. He built it over a cemetery and put all kinds of pagan idols on it in a fury to the Jewish community.

He was a wicked man, a wicked man. And this man, despised by the Jews, was confronted by John the Baptist on the fact that he had his brother's wife. Now his father had ten wives. So really his wife was his half-sister. If you go back and you look at the details of all the wives that his father had and who the children were that were a part of that family, you realize that Herod Antipas had married his sister, his half-sister, who was his brother's wife.

So he was committing incest. He was committing adultery. He had gone against the law of God. And John the Baptist wouldn't let him go. He confronted him on it. He confronted the man's moral character. And to shut him up, he had to throw him in prison because John kept confronting his sin. Now think about that. This man wasn't intimidated by anybody. He didn't care where you were from, what you'd wore, what you said, how much money you had, how much power you had. He was un-intimidated by the monarchy, by the sovereign rulers of that day.

He would speak against them because he had sinned. He'd call Herod to a point of repentance. It wasn't that he spoke against them because he was a monarch, he was a king. He didn't speak against them because he would get notoriety. He spoke against them because he had sinned. And Herod needed to repent of a sin, right? Herod was like everybody else. Just because he was the king in the land didn't mean he didn't have to repent of a sin. He sure did need to repent. And so he was confronted by John, but that doesn't mean everybody else was confronted.

And John would not reserve any of his message because Herod was the king. None. He would speak against a man who was so against him. And John would do it uncompromisingly because that's the way he was. It's interesting to note that Jesus in the Scriptures never visited Tiberias. If you go to Galilee today and you stand in, we always stay in Tiberias. And you can see all the surrounding cities around the Sea of Galilee. But the Bible never records that Christ ever went to Tiberias. Remember his father was the one known for slaughtering all the male babies two years and under.

Because there was another king that was born that he found out from the Magi. And so evidently Christ just avoided Tiberias. Never went to that city. If he did, it's not recorded in the Scriptures. I think that if he did, it probably would have been recorded in the Scriptures. But he didn't go there as far as we know. And why? Because it wasn't his time yet. He will come face to face with Herod in Luke chapter 23. And he will speak about his own time and his death because Herod couldn't take Christ's life until Christ was willing to lay it down.

He was in complete control of his life. And yet John would confront this man on a sin. This man's life was so wicked, he would make a black mark on a piece of coal. That's pretty good, isn't it? That's pretty dark. This man was a wicked man. And John wouldn't let him go. He was uninhibited, unintimidated. Let me ask you a question.

Who intimidates you as to why you won't confront them on their sin and call them to a point of repentance? Is it somebody in your family, a brother, a sister, a father, a mother, a son, or a daughter, that you won't call them to a point of repentance? Just kind of let it go because it's the holiday season and you don't want to disrupt the family? What would John the Baptist do? Put yourself in his sandals. How would he do it? That's the way you should do it. Because he preached the gospel uncompromisingly.

That's what made his ministry so great. He was an orthodox in all of his manners. He was an equal among men. He was unlimited in the measure in which he would preach that gospel. He was a man who was uninhibited by the monarchy of his day. And because of that he was a man who was unpopular. Unpopular. And this is where it gets a little difficult for people like you and me because we want to be popular. But John really didn't care about that kind of stuff, see. He had a mission. His mission was about Christ.

Making sure the word of the Lord got out there. It wasn't about him. So whether people liked him or didn't like him, whether he was at the front of the Jerusalem Post or whether he wasn't, it wasn't important to him. What was important is that Christ would increase and he would decrease. He became very unpopular. The Bible says in verse number 20 that he was locked up in prison.

Now turn over to Matthew 14 for a moment. Matthew chapter 14. Verse number one. At that time Herod the Tetrarch heard the news about Jesus and said to his servants, this is John the Baptist. He has risen from the dead and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him. Herod, this is after John's death. He's already been beheaded. And he is in a panic that John has risen from the dead. That somehow John is walking around doing all this miraculous work, camouflaging himself as Jesus. He's scared to death.

Then it says in verse three, for when Herod had John arrested, he bound him and put him in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. So not only did John confront Herod, he confronted Herodias. And his wife didn't like the fact that this prophet was going around condemning their relationship and speaking against their sin openly. So they put him in prison. Verse four. For John had been saying to him, it is not lawful for you to have her. And although he wanted to put him to death, he feared the multitude because they regarded him as a prophet.

So here is Herod. Now look at this. Here's Herod. Compare him to John. He feared the multitude so he didn't kill him. John could care less what the multitude thought. But Herod was influenced by the people. That's your typical politician, right? Completely influenced by the people. What will the people think? What will they do? How will they react? John was like, who cares how they react? Let's just do whatever we got to do. And Herod was like, well, we can't kill him because the multitude likes him.

And if they like him, then we're going to have a little bit of a problem here. Notice this over in Mark chapter six, verse 20.

Herod was afraid of John knowing that he was a righteous and holy man. Folks, that's integrity. Here is Herod the Tetrarch, who's a wicked, rebellious man knowing that John the Baptist is righteous and holy. He knows that. What a testimony John had. And kept him safe. And when he heard him, he was very perplexed, but he used to enjoy listening to him. He loved to listen to John. See, there was something about him because John had respect. Let me tell you something.

When you compromise the truth, you have no respect among your peers or among those you associate with. People think, well, if I don't compromise and I stand strong, then people aren't going to like me. Listen, better to be respected than to be liked. Right? John was respected. He was a holy and a righteous man. And Herod loved to hear this man speak because he could say it like nobody else could say it. That's John the Baptist. What a great man. Go back to Matthew chapter 14. This is an incredible story.

Verse six, but when Herod's birthday came, the daughter of Herodias stands before him before them and pleased Herod. The word for please is a word that deals with sexual excitement. Herod was aroused by what he saw in Herodias' daughter. It says, verse seven, thereupon he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. Having been prompted by her mother, she said, give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptist. And although he was grieved, the king commanded it to be given because of his oaths and because of his dinner guest.

And he sent and had John beheaded in the prison. And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl and she brought it to her mother. What an incredible story. I wish we had time just to go into the details of all that took place that led up to this one episode where this young lady would dance before Herod and he would say, you know, whatever you want, it's yours. I'll just give it to you. Trying to impress people with his power. And she said, well, I want the head of John the Baptist on a platter and I want it now, right here.

And you know, because he's not a man of integrity, he's just going to say, well, okay. You know, he was grieved in his heart, but not grieved enough to change his decision. So, he went and had John beheaded and that head then brought on a silver platter before his wife, because that's what she wanted. She despised John. She hated him. You know why? Because he confronted their sin. Why are preachers hated? Because they confront people in their sin. People don't like them. And Herodias hated John because she was exposed in her sinful lifestyle.

Did killing John the Baptist solve anything? No, nothing. Nothing for them. But for John, his ministry, although it was unlimited, unorthodox, although it was unpopular and ungodly, uninhibited, unequaled, and uncompromising, his ministry was unforgettable. Unforgettable. I mean, this man was beheaded and where did he go? Heaven. Can you imagine his reception in heaven? Can you imagine the joy in heaven over the death of John? Precious in the sight of the Lord of the death of the saints, and here is John in glory.

What a day of rejoicing that was. But you know, John, unforgettable ministry. You know, remember we read over in Matthew 14 that Herod was afraid that John had arisen from the dead. It was really Christ who was going around performing all the miracles, but he thought that Christ was John. Think about that. He thought that Christ was John. Remember in Luke chapter 3, when the people came to him when they were being baptized, they said, are you the expected one or do we look for somebody else? They didn't know if John was Jesus, or excuse me, John was the Messiah or not.

So they were a little confused about who John was. Are you the Messiah? Herod was confused that Jesus must have been John. In Matthew 16, when Christ is in Caesarea Philippi, he asked this question, who do men say that I am? And the very first words out of the mouth of the apostles was, well, some say, you're John the Baptist.

Now you think about that. There is nobody in scripture that's more confused about being Jesus than John. People were confused. Are you Jesus? Are you the Messiah? No, I'm John. I'm not the Messiah. He's coming after me. And Herod in all of his confusion thought that Jesus was John. So Christ asked, who do men say that I am? Well, some say you're John the Baptist. You see, John was so much like Christ, people thought John was Christ. That's what made him so unbelievably great. So you've got to ask yourself the question, do people think you are the Christ?

Not that you're the Messiah, not that you're God, nothing like that. But is your life so much like Christ that when they see you, they see the Lord Jesus Christ? See, that's what John's life was all about. Emulating the Messiah, living for him, making sure that he increased and John the Baptist decreased. And so the question comes, listen, here's the question. How do I know that when people see me, they see Christ? How do I know that my life will cause them to see Christ? How will I know that my life is Christ-like?

How will I know? Simple answer. All those who live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer what? There's your answer. You know that you are emulating Christ by the persecution you receive. The less persecution you receive, the less people see Jesus in you. The more persecution you receive because you without compromise the truth. Your life is so different than everybody else's. You only care about what God says because you are concerned about him increasing and you decreasing.

But your message is so, so widespread that it reaches everybody because you want everybody to embrace the same Christ that you preach. When that happens, you're willing to be like Christ. You're willing to live the Christ-like life. And the Bible makes us promise all those who live godly in Christ Jesus shall not may suffer but will suffer persecution. See that? That was John. He lived godly. What happened? Suffered persecution. He lost his head. He died. Why? Because he was only concerned about one thing and that is preaching the gospel, putting Jesus on display.

How about you? What consumes your life? What are you about this Christmas season? Wow. What a time to emulate the Christ, right? What a time to live an uncompromising life. What a time to go into your family. Maybe your family's all unsaved and this is the year man you're gonna preach it like it's supposed to be preached. And they might kick you out of the family. So what? Is it that important that you keep your family and lose your testimony? Or is it more important that you stand firm for Christ no matter what anybody else thinks?

That's what's most important, right? Emulate the life of John. Follow in his sandals. Live the kind of life he lived and hear the words of Christ. Yet those in the kingdom of God are greater than John the Baptist. Let's pray. Father, we thank you, Lord, for this day and just the greatness of your word and how it challenges us to live a righteous and holy life. I pray for every man and woman in this room that, Lord, we would be challenged to live the life of John no matter what anybody else thinks, to live a life that's uncompromising, that stands strong on the truth, that's so utterly different than everybody else that people stand to take note that this man, this woman is truly different.

Not to be different for a different sake, but to be different for the sake of Jesus Christ, our Lord. And may we be consumed with the increasing of Christ in our life and the decreasing of ourselves in life. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.