Values Matter

Sermon for SMHP, Year B, Proper 10, Pentecost + 8, July 15, 2018

Mark 6:14-29 

                ¹⁴King Herod heard of [the disciples’ preaching,] for Jesus’ name had become known. Some were saying, “John the baptizer has been raised from the dead; and for this reason these powers are at work in him.” ¹⁵But others said, “It is Elijah.” And others said, “It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” ¹⁶But when Herod heard of it, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.”
  ¹⁷For Herod himself had sent men who arrested John, bound him, and put him in prison on account of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because Herod had married her. ¹⁸For John had been telling Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” ¹⁹And Herodias had a grudge against John, and wanted to kill him. But she could not, ²⁰for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed; and yet he liked to listen to him. ²¹But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. ²²When his daughter Herodias 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.” ²³And he solemnly swore to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom.” ²⁴She went out and said to her mother, “What should I ask for?” She replied, “The head of John the baptizer.” ²⁵Immediately she rushed back to the king and requested, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” ²⁶The king was deeply grieved; yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. ²⁷Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, ²⁸brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. ²⁹When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.

           King Herod the Great…was a paranoid tyrant and inveterate builder, who liked to put his name on stuff.  How terrible for the people of Judea.

           Herod was a Roman “client king,” meaning he ruled Judea, but was ultimately responsible to Rome.  To some, including our Israeli guide, Chaim, Herod was a great king, responsible for huge building projects all over the kingdom of Judea.  Herod’s projects included the expansion of the temple mount, including the Western Wall, which remains today.  Also the fortress at Masada and the port at Caesarea-on-the-sea. 

           Raise your hand if you’ve been to all of those places.

           According to the gospel of Matthew, Herod was the madman who murdered all babies under two in and around Bethlehem, because of the rumors of Jesus’ birth.

           Herod had an interesting relationship with his children.  He named four of them after himself:  Herod, Herod II, Herod Archelaus, and Herod Antipas.  And he had three of his children executed for treason.

           When Herod died, his kingdom was divided into tetrarchies, ruled by three of his sons:  Archelaus, Antipas, and Philip. 

           Herod Antipas got The Galilee, and he is the Herod identified in our lesson for this morning. 

           Herod Antipas.  Son of the tyrannical, easily-manipluated Herod the Great.  Tree and apple.

           Antipas was, at least according to the picture painted by the evangelist Mark and others, especially vulnerable to the manipulation of women.

           He liked John the Baptist.  He still had him thrown into the dungeon…but deep down inside, Herod liked John, even though John had taken him to task for marrying his brother’s wife.  Herodias, the wife, hated John, because John besmirched her name all over the Galilee.  But Herod Antipas protected John, because he thought of John as a righteous and holy man.

           I suspect that deep down inside, Herod wanted to think of himself as a righteous and holy man.  But he knew himself better.  He knew his weaknesses…almost as well as others did.  And he allowed himself to be captivated by the dancing of his stepdaughter.  (Go ahead and be a little grossed out by that—it’s called for.)

           This lesson is a study in contrasts, one from which we can learn much of use to us in this moment in our lives.

           John the Baptist, who is shown in icons doing what?  [pointing to Jesus, or sometimes near a lamb].  John is not Jesus, but he is an important figure because he is the first to recognize Jesus, when still a child in the womb. 

           John is the one who cries “behold!” and points to Jesus.  He precedes Jesus, not only as a prophet, but as a “righteous and holy man.”

           So there is both contrast and congruency with John and Jesus.

           Not so with Herod Antipas, who stands in stark contrast to both.  John and Jesus were men who were SO righteous and holy, whose values were SO consistent with their actions, that they were willing to lay down their lives to stand up for what was right, for their values.

           Did Herod have values? 

           I think he did.  I think deep down inside Herod wanted to do the right thing.  He feared John, Mark tells us, because John was righteous and holy.

           He protected John. 

           And he was “deeply grieved” when he got himself trapped into killing John.  Herod knew what the “holy and righteous” path would be.  He would stand up for John.

           But what did he do?

           And why?  [whine]  “Because my friends…I don’t want them to think badly of me…”

           You ever been there?  You know what the holy and righteous choice is.  But your friends are doing something else.  They’re having a grand time running down your supervisor in the break room.  They’re telling jokes that are “just a little racist.”  They’re participating in a system that is bankrupt of justice.  Little stuff like that? 

           Values matter.  And they’re not a matter of convenience.

           Values matter.  It is important for us to know and to be able to state our values.

           You have stated values.  What are they?  Tell me some of your values.

           What are our church’s stated values?

           How about our country?  What are its stated values?

           Stated values are important.  People should know where you stand.  What you stand for.  And if they are telling racist jokes in front of you, or expecting you to go along with unholy and unrighteous behavior, it is quite possible that your values aren’t as explicit as you think they are.  That your stated values haven’t been stated strongly enough.

           Stated values are important...

           But what’s even more important?

           Lived values.

           Even more important than what we say we believe is how we live out our beliefs.  And when those two are in conflict, it is our lived values which will carry. 

           Herod Antipas will go down in history as a weak man captive to his appetites.

           John the Baptist will go down in history as a rather odd man who was willing to die for the sake of holiness and righteousness.

           Values matter.  If we say we are a place building hope and proclaiming peace, but we’re not doing that, our words are empty.  They offer a clue, but there is still a mystery.

           If we say as a nation e pluribus unum, “out of the many, one,” but we start singling out some of the many as “unworthy,” then our stated values are in conflict with our lived values…and as individual members of the body, we have to decide what to do about that.

          

           We have a problem, my friends.  I think we all know it.  Some of our stated corporate values have become as meaningful as a promise from Herod the Great.  It’s not an insurmountable problem, and its not a new problem.  But it’s acute in new ways every week, and we have to make some choices.  We have to do some stuff.

           The first thing we’ve got to do is get clear on our values.  Know what they are.  Make sure they are stated.  Do people know what you believe?  Do they know what you value?  Is it clear?

           Then we’ve got to make sure that our lived values are consistent with our stated values. 

           We’ve got to be righteous and holy in word AND deed.  Let the world see our righteousness, feel our righteousness, know our righteousness.  Let it be contagious!

           That’s what makes us great.