Don't Lose Your Head

 Mark 6: 14-29

The Death of John the Baptist

14 King Herod heard of it, for Jesus’s[a] name had become known. Some were[b] saying, “John the baptizer has been raised from the dead, and for this reason these powers are at work in him.” 15 But others said, “It is Elijah.” And others said, “It is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” 16 But when Herod heard of it, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.”

17 For 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[c] had married her. 18 For John had been telling Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” 19 And Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to kill him. But she could not, 20 for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he protected him. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed,[d] and yet he liked to listen to him. 21 But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his courtiers and officers and for the leaders of Galilee. 22 When his daughter Herodias[e] 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.” 23 And he swore[f] to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom.” 24 She went out and said to her mother, “What should I ask for?” She replied, “The head of John the baptizer.” 25 Immediately 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.” 26 The king was deeply grieved, yet out of regard for his oaths and for the guests, he did not want to refuse her. 27 Immediately the king sent a soldier of the guard with orders to bring John’s[g] head. He went and beheaded him in the prison, 28 brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl. Then the girl gave it to her mother. 29 When his disciples heard about it, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

MESSAGE

“Don't Lose Your Head”

So, here we are.

The middle of a sunny July, last week’s tornado warning notwithstanding.

In an historic church, in a quiet suburb on the outskirts of Rochester.

Your new pastor and her young family just moved to town two weeks ago.

Time to preach the Good News.

What’s the topic today?

Oh, you know, the beheading of John the Baptist.

Sheesh. Did we already run out of nice Bible stories?

Here’s the thing about the Bible. Sometimes you flip it open, hoping to find some inspirational words, and you find the kind everyone likes. The kind that are soft and comforting and look great on a coffee mug, or on a poster with a backdrop of trees and a river with the text over it in a really pretty font. Sometimes when I turn to the revised common lectionary, this guide we use as advice on what to preach on from week to week, I see an easier text to preach, like Jesus telling us not to worry because God will clothe us as beautifully as the lilies of the valley, or the prophet Isaiah telling us that we will soar on wings like eagles, or the Psalmist asking, Who are we, that God is mindful of us?

But that’s all just sometimes. And only if you’re going out of your way to look for pleasant Bible stories. Chances are, if you were to flip open your Bible to any random page, you’ll find a story about someone who just died, or someone who’s about to die. Because there’s a whole lot of that in scripture. And often, even if I stick to the lectionary, I’ll be challenged to preach on a text like this.

So why would I go ahead and preach about Jesus’ cousin getting the Marie Antoinette treatment when I could have shifted a few verses in either direction and found something more comforting for all of you?

Because the Bible isn’t just here for our comfort. It’s here for Good News despite the discomfort. It’s here to help us through life in a very messy world, a world with senseless violence and many innocent lives taken every day, and scripture provides us that insight only by not shying away from the stories of folx just like us who tried to follow God and quickly found out just how hard that is. This is such a story, the kind that author and biblical scholar Phyllis Trible would have called a “text of terror”, the kind that still exists to teach us a real and important lesson, but in a much grittier manner than most of us would prefer. And because we’re all so bravely diving into the deep end together this morning, I’m handing y’all a floatie and telling you that in a story like this one, the best thing you as a reader can do is look at how the characters on the page use their power. Who has the most of it, who has the least, who uses power for selfish gain, and who uses power for the transformation of the world? The ones who accomplish the latter are the ones we want to live like.

We have a few key characters in this text:

John the Baptist, who meets his disastrous end.

King Herod, who doesn’t want to say it outright, but who is actually in awe of John the Baptist.

Herodias, Herod’s sister in law who he unethically married, and who has a huge grudge against John the Baptist for pointing that information out to Herod.

Salome, the daughter of Herodias, making her King Herod’s young stepdaughter.

And Jesus’ disciples.

Interestingly, we don’t hear from Jesus himself in this pericope, but we absolutely see his influence–just like in our lives.

Herodias has managed to get John the Baptist thrown in a dungeon for challenging her marriage to King Herod, her first selfish use of her power. If John were to keep running his mouth, he could cost her her position as the most powerful woman in Galilee. But she hasn’t been able to convince Herod to execute John, because of John’s limited, but important power: his ability to speak truth so clearly that it makes you stop short of the bad thing you might have done. John is prophetic, and speaks to the will of God, whether people want to hear it or not. It’s a power that changes hearts, but costs him his head, because sometimes using your power for good comes at a steep cost.

At Herod’s birthday party, Herodias realizes she has a brief window of increased power, and she uses it to do evil. She also uses this increased power to exploit her daughter, Salome, a character I grieve for in this story as much as John the Baptist because she really has no power at all. Her mom puts her up to dancing for the grownups, including her step dad, in order to wow him into a Godfather-like state of granting favors. She's a little girl dancing in front of a bunch of old men, and it's as gross as it sounds. If she had said no to her mom, doubtless having at least some notion of what Herodias had planned, I can’t imagine it would have ended well for her. And saying yes to her mom means taking a man’s life. Can you imagine? Once Salome woos her stepdad, he offers the big favor, and Herodias tells her daughter to take the big swing: John the Baptist’s head on a platter. King Herod had every ability to stop that from happening, if he cared enough to. But his ego and reputation were more important to him than John. Who do we hurt when we fail to use our power? When we don’t speak up and do the right thing?

It’s a heartbreaking story, and it marks the end of the innocent days of Jesus’ ministry, if there were any. When we catch back up with him in a few verses he’s deeply bereaved, and he has a new and painful sense of urgency about his ministry.

But before we get there, we have this wonderful, soft glow of light, and it’s the Good News for us this morning. It’s the actions of the disciples. It’s how they use their power. They can’t take on King Herod and Queen Herodias, at least not yet. They don’t have that kind of sway. They certainly don’t have the power to restore life to their dear friend John, nor can they free Salome from the cruel and twisted household she’ll be growing up in. But they can gather the body of their friend, and give him a proper, respectful, loving burial. John can rest in peace and rise in glory, living on in the hearts of people like Jesus’ disciples, who, themselves, will test what their power can do.

It’s easy to lose hope in this world, when we see the awful decisions that very powerful people make sometimes. It’s easy to feel powerless, because if we can’t stand toe to toe with the King Herods among us, then what can we do? Let this story be a reminder to you, in the moments when life is trying and scary, that we can’t always change the beginning or middle of the story, but often we can significantly change the ending for good, especially if we work together.

Amen.