Thought from today’s Bible reading from Acts 11-12.
The death of Herod provides a few lessons for us. One lesson is that we must be careful of the type of praise from men that we are willing to accept.
“On an appointed day Herod, having put on his royal apparel, took his seat on the rostrum and began delivering an address to them. The people kept crying out, ‘The voice of a god and not of a man!’ And immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died” (Acts 12:21-23).
As a ruler of the people, many looked up to Herod and depended upon him. Some praised him as if he were a god. When this happened, he was struck by the angel and died a slow, agonizing death. However, it is important to note that Herod was not killed because the people wrongly praised him as a god. Notice a couple of examples of others who were not killed, even though they received worship that should have been exclusively for God.
“When Peter entered, Cornelius met him, and fell at his feet and worshiped him. But Peter raised him up, saying, ‘Stand up; I too an must a man’” (Acts 10:25-26).
“When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they raised their voice, saying in the Lycaonian language, ‘The gods have become like men and have come down to us.’ And they began calling Barnabas, Zeus, and Paul, Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates, and wanted to offer sacrifice with the crowds. But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their robes and rushed out into the crowd, crying out and saying, ‘Men, why are you doing these things? We are also men of the same nature as you, and preach the gospel to you that you should turn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them’” (Acts 14:11-15).
Herod’s sin was not in being praised, but in welcoming and accepting the praise. We cannot control what others say, think, or do. But we can control how we react, and we will be held accountable for this. Therefore, let us not go along with the misconceptions and errors of others. Instead, let us humbly defend the truth as we try to lead people to the Lord.
Tomorrow’s reading: Acts 13-14
[I’m using the Chronological reading plan on the Bible Gateway website if you’d like to follow along, too.]
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