Morning, Zane.
Reading this story surrounding Peter’s supernatural deliverance from prison along with the account of Herod’s devise is about as close to viewing a modern movie as any other plot for a movie that I can imagine. It contains both delightful entertainment over Perter’s supernatural escape, but also sadness over the result of that event which caused 16 innocent guards to be executed—since Herod had to blame the guards for what God did. Wild stuff!
You might be interested to know, Zane, that I just received a request from OYCP to consider making myself available again as a MENTOR. Apparently they are finding there are not enough MENTORS to go around to meet the volume of applications being received. How do you think I should respond to that request? (For the benefit of others who don’t know, OYCP is a program under the Oregon National Guard--OREGON YOUTH CHALLENGE PROJECT--that reaches out to help at-risk youth in our ailing culture. I served as a Mentor with Zane when he was a cadet in that program.)
Hope you have a great day. Love and prayers—Tua/Ray.
Herod sure didn’t see it this way, but for me he shows himself to be the picture of a hard-hearted self-centered Biblical FOOL. His concept of personal worth seems to be measured and defined by the power and control he is able to wield over people. Does that mindset sound a bit familiar? Does it ever show up in our modern world? This chapter sees Herod exhilarated by the popular applause he receives after having James executed, but then he turns frustrated and angry over the fact that he can’t repeat the same brutal treatment of Peter. He carries on to display a distorted duplicity—although he seems to completely dismiss the possibility of The True God intervening in the mind-boggling escape of Peter (then has the guards executed for their incompetence), only a few days later he actually accepts the praises of people after his speech at Caesarea where they shout, “This is the voice of a god, not a man!” Good grief! That’s nuts! How can that be intelligent? It doesn’t take long to prove that he isn’t even close to godhood—as he is absolutely powerless to prevent little teeny weenie worms from consuming his flesh. Little teeny weenie worms should be no big deal for a real god. And even if he is a little bit god, he is shown, at best, to only be a teeny weenie wormy god! Furthermore, the historical record says that “the word of God (the power and influence of the REAL GOD) continued to increase and spread” (v. 24) and little teeny weenie Herod couldn’t do a thing about it!
Like they do in the movie industry, maybe I’ll add a little fiction: So when Herod returned to his wife at the hotel that night in Caesarea, she noticed that he appeared very discouraged and depressed. She said, “What’s eating you, honey?” He simply said, “Worms.” (Smile.)
Our FOCUS VERSE says that “Herod did not give praise to God.” He obviously programmed himself to avoid that kind of thing. That’s what FOOLS do! In so doing, he programmed himself to decline doing what he was actually created to do. I am convinced that the surest way to oppose God is to withhold the contrition and praise that is due Him—and the surest way to receive His grace and blessing is to render praise that is due Him. “It is fitting for the upright to praise him” (Psalm 33:1). All things considered, to NOT praise Him is simply NOT fitting—because, I’ll say it again, it violates the very purpose for our being given existence.