To Sin or Not to Sin

Mark 6:14-32

14
And King Herod heard of it, for His name had become well known; and people were
saying, "John the Baptist has risen from the dead, and that is why these miraculous
powers are at work in Him." 15 But others were saying, "He is Elijah." And others were
saying, "He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old." 16 But when Herod heard of it,
he kept saying, "John, whom I beheaded, has risen!" 17 For Herod himself had sent and
had John arrested and bound in prison on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother
Philip, because he had married her. 18 For John had been saying to Herod, "It is not
lawful for you to have your brother's wife." 19 Herodias had a grudge against him and
wanted to put him to death and could not do so; 20 for Herod was afraid of John, knowing
that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. And when he heard him,
he was very perplexed; but he used to enjoy listening to him. 21 A strategic day came
when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his lords and military commanders and
the leading men of Galilee; 22 and when the daughter of Herodias herself came in and
danced, she pleased Herod and his dinner guests; and the king said to the girl, "Ask me
for whatever you want and I will give it to you." 23 And he swore to her, "Whatever you
ask of me, I will give it to you; up to half of my kingdom." 24 And she went out and said
to her mother, "What shall I ask for?" And she said, "The head of John the Baptist." 25
Immediately she came in a hurry to the king and asked, saying, "I want you to give me
at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter." 26 And although the king was very
sorry, yet because of his oaths and because of his dinner guests, he was unwilling to
refuse her. 27 Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded him to bring
back his head. And he went and had him beheaded in the prison, 28 and brought his
head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother. 29 When his
disciples heard about this, they came and took away his body and laid it in a tomb.30 The
apostles gathered together with Jesus; and they reported to Him all that they had done
and taught. 31 And He said to them, "Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and
rest a while." (For there were many people coming and going, and they did not even have
time to eat.) 32 They went away in the boat to a secluded place by themselves.

1
The Law of Moses was given by the LORD to the people of Israel so that the people
could live with high morals and ethics. During the prophet's times, the LORD would
send messages to Israel and Judea's leadership through prophets. The prophets'
common thread is that the government officials, especially the kings, did not
appreciate the LORD's message. So, they killed the messenger. The time of the
prophets was several hundred years before the birth of John the Baptist. It is the
LORD who determines the time of events and people and not humans. The LORD
decided to send a prophet and the Messiah at the same time. Herod Antipas should
have listened to John as opposed to murdering him

Herod Antipas hid his repentance behind his royal position. He owned the power on
Earth to do what he wanted to in Galilee. He must have forgotten that the LORD
sees the sin of Israel's leaders and takes action. Herod Antipas was known for his
extravagant parties and loose morality. Each person must determine if one is going to
follow the Laws of Moses. Living by the Laws of Moses leads to a life of high character
and outstanding ethics. This is a blessing to the LORD and is treated as treasures in
Heaven.

The question of morals and ethics is a question that sometimes you will have to
answer. Morals and ethics do change as society changes. Some changes are for the
best, while others are not. The Laws of Moses, the Torah, is from the LORD and
should never change. However, society does implement laws that violate the Torah.
Well, let us wait just a moment and contemplate that statement.

Is it a violation of the Torah if society allows an act that appears to be against the
Torah, or is it that the Torah is being misinterpreted? There have been some
significant changes to society in the United States over the past few decades that some

2
consider being against the Bible. At the same time, other people see the Bible
endorsing the acts. Both cannot be right, or can they? Progressive attitudes towards
the Bible are that it is an outdated document that was wonderful for the past but is
not for today.

The Torah from the LORD is the blueprint for the Universe and is never outdated.
There are sections of the Bible that do not apply to us today. For example, the animal
sacrifice system was executed at the Temple of Jerusalem. The day of the animal
sacrifice for the atonement of sin no longer exists. If you examine the Temple's
destruction at Jerusalem in 70 CE being a God-driven event, then the LORD negated
that part of the Torah.

Notice I said that the LORD negated a part of His Law that He gave to Moses.
Therefore, it is correct that the animal sacrifice laws do not have to be followed. The
Torah can be understood in today's world. The Torah must be applied to one's life if
one wants to live a life pleasing to the LORD.

It would help if you accepted that humans are very good at sinning. The LORD built
into the Torah and thus the Universe the solution to sin. Repentance is the solution.
The Torah describes how repentance and forgiveness of sin works. Humans should
be thankful to the LORD for adding this feature to the Universe.

That does not mean you can go out and sin all you can and ask for forgiveness. There
is a difference between intentional sin and mistaken actions that are sinful. A person
must strive to live a good life without sin. When sin enters, it can be resolved through
repentance. The LORD is love, grace, and peace. He waits to forgive us. Why not
take advantage of the repentance that is offered through the Torah.

3
May the LORD bless you in your learning and studying of His Word.