Through God

The podcast episode begins with a prayer, asking for God's presence and wisdom. The host then discusses the character of King Herod and his role in Jesus' birth story. King Herod was an evil and cruel ruler who felt threatened by the birth of Jesus and sought to eliminate him. His obsession with power led him to commit terrible acts of violence, including the killing of his own family members and innocent children. The host emphasizes that the desire for worldly power can lead to sin and separation from God. She reminds listeners that God is the only source of lasting peace and security, and that seeking approval from others can lead to deceitfulness and a straying from God. The host urges listeners to take sin seriously and ask for forgiveness from the heart to avoid repeating the same mistakes. She explains that despite the efforts of people like King Herod, God's plan cannot be changed and His kingdom will always prevail. The host concludes by reminding listeners that the true meani Hey there, it's Anna with God's Podcast. And today let's start with prayer so that God is present with us in this podcast episode. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Father, I come to you through your Son, Jesus Christ, and I lift up each and every person listening. Father, I ask that you open their ears, their hearts, and their minds, that you give them the wisdom that they need from your words. Father, use me as a vessel to spread your word and bring your children home. Father, I want to give you glory and I want to give you praise because without you, I would be nothing, but through you, you have given me the courage, the wisdom, and the words to share with others so that they can have relationship with you so that they can grow in you. And it's because of you that this is possible. Father, I just want to say thank you. I want to glorify you and praise you and pray all of this in Jesus name. Amen. Hey there, in this episode, I want to talk to you about the next character. It's not a typical character that is talked about during this season, but I feel like he needs to be explained and the role he plays in Jesus's birth story. This next character is King Herod. There are more than one Herod in the Bible, but this one was reigning during the time Jesus was born. He was the King of Judah, which ruled over the cities of Bethlehem and Jerusalem. King Herod was an evil, cruel, jealous, brutal, self-seeking, believed everyone was out to get him. He was in constant fear of being overthrown. He constantly looked over his shoulder because he was not leading faithfully. He could not escape his own deceit. Once he heard the Messiah Jesus was born, he felt his power was threatened. And once more, he was consumed by it. And he did whatever it took to eliminate Jesus. He knew there could only be one King in this kingdom. King Herod knew that either he would be on the throne or someone else would, but there was no in-between, which is why after hearing of this threat to his career, Herod unleashed one of the most grotesque campaigns of violence in history. King Herod's addiction to this worldly power drove him to mass murder. He was so consumed by being defeated. He had his wife killed, sons killed, mother-in-law killed, and children, boys under the age of two killed. Imagine being so consumed and addicted to power. You became so dark, so unrecognizable. And this darkness, this demise leads to your own death. Let's read Matthew 2, where it explains King Herod. After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the East came to Jerusalem and asked, where is the one who has been born King of the Jew? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him. When King Herod heard this, he was disturbed and all Jerusalem with him. When he had called together all the people, chiefs, priests, and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. In Bethlehem in Judea, they replied, for this is what the prophet has written. But you Bethlehem in the land of Judea are by no means least among the rulers of Judea, for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people, Israel. Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had happened. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me so that I too may go and worship him. After they heard the King, they went on their way and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed on coming to the house. They saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route, the escape to Egypt. When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. Get up, he said, take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him. So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, where he stayed until the death of Herod, and so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet, out of Egypt I call my son. When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious and gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and within its vicinity, who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled. A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and a great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted because there are no more. The return of Nazareth. After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel for those who were trying to take the child's life are dead. So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in a place of his father, Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee. And he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets that he would be called a Nazarene. After reading Matthew 2 and hearing about King Herod's obsession for power, it is a reminder to us, even today, a reminder that the desire to make a name for ourselves can lead us to sin that we didn't even know we were capable of committing. Listen, sometimes the opportunity to bring glory to God often requires us to make decisions that go against the popular choice or the unexpected path. Ambition isn't always bad, but if our ambition is for our own glory, we are likely to find ourselves entangled in a life of compromise and sin, just like King Herod, maybe not as extreme as King Herod, but it could lead to the darkness and demise of our own selves, leading us away from God. It is a reminder that worldly power does not provide a lasting peace or security. Just like King Herod, he lived a life that was literally looking over his shoulder, worrying, having anxiety, feeling stressed out all the time. He couldn't escape it. But King Herod also gives us the reminder that God is our only guarantee of lasting peace, contentment, and security, friend. No other counterfeit solution will ever do. We have to take this type of sin very seriously when it comes to ourselves and leading us away from God. This type of earthly desire of wanting power, wanting to be in charge, wanting to be on top, wanting to have a name for ourselves can lead us to this darkness. We often take the approval of others and put it on a high pedestal, making it an idol in our life, causing us to fall, to fail, and to be deceitful towards God. Leading us astray from Him because we want the approval of others. We want the power. We want the name. We want the success. We want all the glory when the glory needs to be given to God. Sin is sin, friend, and it seriously can separate us from God. And when sin is left unaddressed, it can quickly escalate. And we can't look at this sin as it just this once, or it's not that big of a deal because God hates all sin, no matter what type of sin you are committing. And most likely you will commit the sin again. And each time it will progress and the damage will have been done in our lives or to others' lives and to the cause of Jesus Christ. It's like we are putting Him back on that cross each time we sin and think it's not a big deal, but it definitely is. So when you truly ask for forgiveness, do it from your heart so that you will not continue to make the same sin happen over and over again. And this is why I chose this character. And the reason why I think God chose Herod to be a part of such a beautiful story when Herod's character is so ugly, so deceitful, so evil, and so cruel. But I feel like Herod played a very important role for us in this story. I believe God chose to implement Herod into this beautiful story because it is a reminder to us and to our earthly flesh of how not to be, or how our hearts should never be, because it will turn us away from God. It is also a reminder that no matter what these people did in these stories, they could not get rid of Jesus and go against God's plan. The plan of God could not be changed. God's purpose will always prevail and His kingdom will always be glorified, no matter how hard they try to destroy it. God is the most high, the Alpha, the Omega, the Lord of Lords, the maker of heaven and earth, and He will not lose. That is God's promise. God promises His people that we will one day be in eternal life with Him. That is the promise. That is the glory. That is the true meaning of all of God's verses, that He is in charge and that no matter how hard people try to go against Him, no matter how hard Satan is trying to deceit Him, no matter how hard Satan is going after His children, Satan will not win. God gave us the ultimate gift of this season, the birth of Jesus and King Herod is a reminder of how we need to not live our lives, how we need to be in union with God, how we need to be in word with God, to study His word, to understand His word, to keep praying to God through His son, Jesus Christ, to have relationship with God. That is the ultimate reminder. That is the ultimate goal. And I hope you enjoy today's episode and that you get a better understanding of the characters in the birth of Jesus' story so that you can be reminded of the true meaning of this season. It is not for the gifts. It is not for the holiday decorations or the Hallmark version of Christmas, but it is ultimately the gift that God gave us, His son, Jesus Christ. And that is what needs to be celebrated. That is what we have to keep looking forward to. I don't have all the answers, but I do give you what God gives me, the understanding that I get from Him. And I hope that you enjoy it. I hope it helps you get closer to God and get better into learning His word for His Bible has all the answers. So take what I explained to you and go back to God and get discernment for yourself because ultimately He is the only one to give you the answers. I hope that you can share this episode with someone else because we never know what someone is going through. And we could be the light that shines through so that they know that God loves them, that they know that God is with them and through God, they can get through anything. So share this episode with someone in need, someone you feel that needs to hear from God. Until next time, friend, keep Bibling, keep spreading God's word and do not live a life like Herod. Let's end this episode with a prayer. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Father, I come to you through your son, Jesus Christ. And I ask you God to forgive us for the times we seek approval of others. Every time, even if we gain the approval of others, make it so it does not satisfy us. You are the only one who can satisfy our souls. Keep our eyes fixed on Jesus. Help us to take our sins seriously. Convict us and bring us back in line with you, Lord. Make our hearts align with yours. Make our minds align with yours. Make our gestures align with yours. Let us be the light in this dark world so that others may see you through us and want to know you more, Father. Father, we just want to say thank you. We praise you and we love you. And we pray all of this in Jesus name. Amen.