15/05/2024
*MEDITATIONS ON DAILY ⓂANNA*
WEDNESDAY 15TH MAY 2024.
*STRATEGIC FIGHT AGAINST CHRIST*
*TEXT:* ACTS 12:1-5,18-24.
1 Now about that time, Herod, the king, stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church.
2 And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.
3 And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.)
4 And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people.
5.Peter, therefore, was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.................................
18. Now, as soon as it was day, there was no small stir among the soldiers, what was become of Peter.
19 And when Herod had sought for him and found him not, he examined the keepers and commanded that they should be put to death. And he went down from Judaea to Caesarea, and there abode.
20 And Herod was highly displeased with them of Tyre and Sidon: but they came with one accord to him, and, having made Blastus the king's chamberlain their friend, desired peace; because their country was nourished by the king's country.
21 And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them.
22 And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man.
23 And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him, because he gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost.
24 But the word of God grew and multiplied.
*Timeless Truth:*
_"But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived."_
2 Timothy 3:13.
*INTRODUCTION*
"Herod the Great" was the king who ruled in the days of Jesus' birth and cruelly killed all the babies who were below two years in an attempt to kill Christ (Matthew 2-16). The "Herod Agrippa I" mentioned in the text was the grandson of Herod the Great. His avowed hatred for Christianity resonates like that of his grandfather against Jesus. This Herod Agrippa I in the text was also the nephew of "Herod Antipas", who had a role in the trial of Jesus and cruelly mocked and became complicit in the death of Jesus (Luke 23:7-12). The Herods were not Jews but of the descendants of Esau or Edom. The Herod dynasty, who obviously harboured a generational hatred against Israel or the Jews, used their position of authority and priviledge to continue the bitter hatred against against the seed of Jacob, Jesus Christ, and His followers. *"A man's foes shall be they of his own household"* Matt.10:36.
*1. Strategic Ancestral Hostility against Christ*
a. Herod did not purge himself from generational hatred that started with his progenitor called Esau, and he became a callous, willing, and ready antichrist in the hands of Satan, atrociously persecuting Christ and the Christians. There are those who used the position and the privilege God has given them to oppress others and even fight against God, who graciously made them rulers or leaders. *"Now about that time, Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church"* v1. It was politically motivated since the Christians were innocent and obedient set of righteous people with no just accusation against them. He became a murderer of the innocent instead of being their descendants. *"He killed James, the brother of John, with a sword."* v2. As if that was not gruesome enough, he planned to kill Peter, too. This was a strategic persecution against the Church as he was manipulated by Satan. The principle is *"smite the shepherd and the sheep shall scatter."* Once the leaders or apostles are imprisoned and killed, it was envisaged that the effect on the followers will be catastrophic and disastrous. This underscores the reason why righteous leaders need support, prayers, and protection.
b. Why did Herod have to do this? *"And because he saw that it pleased the Jews"*. Being a non-Jew king, he wanted his acceptance rate to increase and be more popular among the subjects. Since many of the subjects hated the Christians, he saw persecuting and killing the Christian as a way of boosting his image and popularity. Here is the problem. Leaders are expected to love, listen, and come up with programmes that will benefit the people and use these to win their hearts. If, instead, they see themselves as more responsible to their subject than God and they want to please their people by all means, they will eventually go into compromises and all forms of evil. Pleasing God must be the priority of all leaders, and all other concerns will be taken care of by God Himself. When this principle of pleasing God as a priority is overlooked, it is inevitable that, directly or indirectly, fighting God will be the result.
*Question*
Have you purged yourself of all tribal, racial, gender, religious, and household hatred? Are you a God centric leader or a people centred leader?
*2. Strange Antagonistic Hypocrisy against the Church*
a. It should be surprising that the Jews still harboured hatred against Jesus and the disciples for no just reason. *"And because he saw that it pleased the Jews"*. The Jews who were subject prefered to encourage their political leader to continue in evil instead of cautioning him. This was wrong. The Jews were looking for the Messiah. Eventually, the Messiah *"came to his own, and his own received him not."* After performing mighty miracles which none ever did, He died for their sins on the cross, and the noise of his resurrection could not be denied by any. Since then, they saw the transformed lives of His disciples. Instead of receiving Christ, or at worst, just cherishing their lives without joining them, they opted to hate and persecute the believers. Were they not hypocrites? There is no gracious or good thing a believer will do without facing persecution in one form or the other. No matter how good and righteous a Christian is, the devil inside the sinners will always hate Jesus inside the believers. Grace invites persecution, keeps through persecution, but never cancels it. *"Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake."* Luke 6:22.
b. Peter, James, and John were the inner circle of Jesus. He gave them special attention. He took them to mount of transfiguration, He took them to the garden of Gethsmanne etc.(Matthew 17:1, 26:37, Mark 5:37, 9:2, 14:33; Luke 5:37, 9:2, and 14:33). Why would Jesus allow the adversary to kill this specially trained disciple "prematurely"? No disciple was promised a persecution- free life. In fact, when James and John desired a special place in heaven, Jesus told them that indirectly, they were asking for special persecution. They answered that they were willing. Jesus put a stamp of approval on their willingness or consecration to suffer anything for Christ's sake. *"And they said unto him, We can. And Jesus said unto them, Ye shall indeed drink of the cup that I drink of; and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall ye be baptized,* Mark 10:38. This is the cup of sufferings for James, and John also drank his own later. James drinks the cup joyfully. History said the soldier guarding James before the judge was so affected by his witness that he declared himself a Christian also and was willingly executed for Jesus' sake alongside James (Eusebius, Church History 2.9.2-3).
*Question*
Do you shy away from persecutions, or you are decided to follow Christ totally and do His will not minding the persecutions that may follow?
*3. Senseless Arrogance incurs Hell Condemnation*
a. Leaders who love the praises and acceptance of men more than that of God always enjoy the flattering of people, and people will always give them undue accolades. That was what happened to Herod. He was flattered when he made an oration to those of Tyre and Sidon. *"And the people gave a shout, saying, It is voice of a god, and not of a man."* By implication, they exalted Herod above the status of a man when he knew he was not more than a man and proudly put his seat among the gods. The pride in his heart made him lose every sense of sincere reasoning that would have helped him to reject the praise that should be due to God alone. How does the oratory gift elevate him to a god and remove him from being a man? He shared in the glory that belongs to God when God said *"I am the Lord: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images",* Isaiah 42:8. If you are a proud lover of human praise and you have something to offer, people will give you the praise, though hypocritically, so as to get what you can offer but at the end God will judge you and bring you down. If angels refuse to accept the praises due to God, who is man to share the glory that is meant for God? (Revelation 19:9,10). According to history, a severe pain also arose in Herod's belly, and began in a most violent manner… when he had been quite worn out by the pain in his belly for five days, he departed this life.” (Antiquities, XIX.8.2). Were it not for the Bible record, people would not have thought it was pride that killed him as a result of direct divine judgement. People could have said it was medical complications "after a brief illness." *"Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time"*, I Peter 5:6.
*Question*
Are you a humble person who is not desirous of human praise or deceived by the flattery of man? Why do you think that God did appear not to judge Herod for the persecutions but rather judged him for his pride?
*Prayer Points*
1Increase my humility and let me never love flattery of people but let pleasing you be my priority ever🙏.
2.Lord, frustrate every subtle plan of the gates of hell against your church🙏🏼.
3.Grant us more of your grace to stand firm in the face of any persecution. 🙏🏼
4.Lord expose all hidden hatred against fellow believers in the church and purge all by the blood of Jesus 🙏🏼.
*HYMN:* Christ Our Mighty Captain
*Bible in One year:*
2 SAMUEL 9-11.
*Read, meditate, pray, and share with others. God bless you as you do that.*
