When King Herod heard about Jesus, he thought he was John the Baptist risen from the dead. Which means Herod had guilt feelings over the death of John the Baptist and was probably daily consumed with his death.

Here's how John the Baptist had died: John the Baptist had confronted the king and his wife for being together because his wife was actually his brother's wife first and now they were committing adultery. At that time Herod wanted to kill John the Baptist but was afraid of the people who followed John. But over time Herod grew to like John the Baptist and didn't want to kill him. But having him there in prison was a reminder to Herod and his wife of their sin. So Herodias, the wife, wanted to see John dead. So when the wife's daughter had danced for the king at his birthday celebration before the guests, Herod was so pleased with her he promised to give her whatever she asked. The mother prompted her to ask for John's head on a platter. The King was distressed because he grew to like John the Baptist because he could recognize something special about him and his words. But he “had” to follow through on his promise because as a king he could not ruin his reputation and be accused of being a liar.

I don't know if you ever noticed how when certain people around you, who aren't serving the lord, feel uncomfortable in your presence because they know they aren't where God wants them even though verbally they either deny God's existence or they claim to be a Christian. A person living in sin is uncomfortable around committed followers of Christ. I've actually had a co-worker pull me aside and tell me that my presence made him uncomfortable because he wasn't following the Lord like he knew he should be. That was without me even confronting him or “witnessing” to him. That was the power of God convicting and speaking to his heart. We may feel we aren't good witnesses for Jesus, and yes there's always room for improvement, but living the life of Jesus is a huge witness in and of itself. Don't deny the power and work of his Spirit through your life.