And Herod said, John have I beheaded, but who is this, of whom I hear such things? And he desired to see Him. Luke 9:9
One of the most beautiful words of Scripture is the word ‘whosoever’. We rejoice that we can use this all-inclusive word when presenting the Gospel or when reminding Christians of the availability of the riches of Christ. But we should always remember that the word ‘whosoever’ is seldom found alone. It comes with a qualifier. In John 3:16, for example, the word ‘whosoever’ is qualified by ‘believeth’, so it excludes non-believers. The ‘whosoever’ in Revelation 22:17 limits the availability of the water of live only to those who will take it. There was a qualifier that prevented Herod from having the ‘whosoever’ of access to the Lord Jesus: he had beheaded John Baptist.
Herod wanted to see Jesus. He had the same desire when Jesus was sent to him by Pilate. But Herod never got to hear a word from Jesus or see any of His miracles. Herod had disqualified himself. John had sought to bring Herod’s sin before this immoral ruler. But Herod had played his little games with John, and eventually consented to his death. Rejecting John’s message of repentance prevented Herod from obtaining blessing from Jesus. Herod is not alone in his folly. Many in the world are like him. In their own way, many Christians also fall into the trap of disqualifying themselves from blessing.
God has always given His people great and precious promises. Many of these promises are unconditional; God guarantees we will be blessed. But many of God’s promises for blessing are qualified; they are available only to those who are obedient. Examples abound in the Old and New Testaments of those who God blessed because of their obedience, and of those who lost the blessing because of disobedience. If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land. But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword, for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it (Isaiah 1:19-20). A Christian who disobeys the Word of God and the direct leading of the Holy Spirit cannot expect God’s approval. But if we heed God’s messengers, as Herod should have heeded John, we place ourselves in line for blessing.
Be careful you don’t behead John today by ignoring the Word of God; obey and you can experience Jesus’ presence. -Jim MacIntosh