Matthew 26:1 - 16
When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples, 2 “As you know, the Passover is two days away—and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.”
3 Then the chief priests and the elders of the people assembled in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, 4 and they schemed to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him. 5 “But not during the festival,” they said, “or there may be a riot among the people.”
6 While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of Simon the Leper, 7 a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table.
8 When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. “Why this waste?” they asked. 9 “This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.”
10 Aware of this, Jesus said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. 11 The poor you will always have with you,[a] but you will not always have me. 12 When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. 13 Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”
Questions:
ReplyDelete1. I kind of have the same question. Why did Jesus praise this wasteful expenditure on Himself?
2. Could disgust at the waste be the reason why Judas betrayed Jesus? (It's reported in other Gospels that it was Judas who led the complaining about the waste - and that he was greedy and stole money from the common funds).
http://www.bonairbaptist.org/files/uploads/07-29-12Whythiswaste.pdf says:
ReplyDeleteJohn tells us that Judas was the first to ask that out loud.
But soon the others joined in. “What a waste!” they complained
Perhaps she
had anticipated using it on the body of Martha or Lazarus, her siblings.
But she didn’t see the pouring out of that perfume as a waste. Because Mary loved Jesus.
Mary loved Jesus with abandon. She loved him extravagantly, lavishly. She loved him so
much she gave him her very best.
Jesus came and turned our values upside down. He said things like, “Don’t lay up
treasures on earth,” and “the first shall be last,” and “if you want to be great be a
servant,” and really unconventional things like that. Some of what our world considers a
waste Jesus declared valuable.
But
Mary didn’t consider the pouring of that precious perfume on Jesus a waste. Because
Mary loved Jesus. She loved him extravagantly. With abandon. Without regard for
what others thought or what it cost her. Mary loved Jesus.
And Jesus said, “People are going to talk about this for a long, long time.”
Life gets crazy sometimes. And it’s hard to remember what’s important. But the
complexities and peripheries and even the conflicts…all seem less important when I
remember that it’s about loving Jesus.
https://bible.org/seriespage/lesson-64-wasting-your-life-jesus-john-121-11 says:
ReplyDeleteJesus “intends that the preaching of the Gospel should issue in something along the very lines of the action of Mary here, namely, that people should come to Him and waste themselves on Him.” Or, to state it another way (p. 187), the gospel is “to bring each one of us to a true estimate of His worth.” If Jesus is the pearl of great price and the treasure hidden in the field, then it’s not a waste to sell everything you have to buy that pearl or buy that field. Jesus is worthy for you to devote all you are and all you have to Him.
So this is a story about how not to waste your life. It’s also a story about motivation: why do you do what you do for the Lord? Do you serve Him for the satisfaction you get when you see results? It is satisfying to see Him use you, but that’s the wrong motivation. Do you serve Him because it helps others? Again, it’s gratifying to see others helped, but that’s the wrong motivation for serving Him. The true motive for serving Christ is because He is worthy of everything you can do for Him and because you love Him and want to please Him because He gave Himself for you on the cross. We learn this from Mary’s act of devotion.
But John contrasts Mary’s act of devotion with Judas’ self-centered focus and with the evil plans of the chief priests, who now not only want to kill Jesus, but also Lazarus, whose resurrection was resulting in many believing in Jesus.
So the story’s lesson is: A life spent in selfless devotion to Jesus is not wasted, but a life spent on self is totally wasted.
Mary’s act reflects four components of selfless devotion:
A. Selfless devotion is costly.
Mary’s anointing Jesus with this perfume was costly in at least three ways:
1) SELFLESS DEVOTION COSTS YOU FINANCIALLY: “DO I TREASURE JESUS MORE THAN MY STUFF?”
2) SELFLESS DEVOTION COSTS YOU SOCIALLY: “DO I TREASURE JESUS MORE THAN MY PRIDE?”
3) SELFLESS DEVOTION COSTS YOU SOME CRITICISM: “DO I TREASURE JESUS MORE THAN MY REPUTATION?”
Count on it: If you give yourself without reserve to Jesus, you will be criticized and the loudest criticism will come from some church members
B. Selfless devotion stems from personal love and gratitude.
C. Selfless devotion flows from knowing Jesus personally.
D. Selfless devotion results in action.
This story highlights three results that flow from selfless devotion: one from Mary, one from Martha, and one from Lazarus:
1) ACTION RESULTS IN THE FRAGRANCE OF CHRIST SURROUNDING YOUR LIFE.
2) ACTION RESULTS IN SERVICE FOR CHRIST.
3) ACTION RESULTS IN WITNESS FOR CHRIST.
http://www.compellingtruth.org/Judas-betray-Jesus.html says:
ReplyDeleteWhy did Judas betray Jesus? Because Jesus could not or would not be who Judas wanted Him to be. Judas wandered with Jesus for a good three years and came to the conclusion that a poor, itinerant teacher who refused to take political power was not of any significant value to him. Judas used Jesus throughout the three years, and he used Him again in the end. When Judas realized what the high priests had planned for Jesus, Judas regretted his selfishness. But he still couldn't accept Jesus as Lord.
Judas was not the only person in Jesus' life who used Him. The people who lined the road to Jerusalem (Matthew 21:1-11) thought He was a political king and military conqueror who would chase Rome out of Israel and re-establish the autonomous Jewish nation. When they learned He had no political power, they were quick to demand His death (Matthew 27:20).
Countless people today do the same thing. They hear about Jesus' healing power, or His ability to grant wishes or comfort. Many even respect His teaching. And they learn about His character, His claims, and His crucifixion. But they don't accept Him as Lord. We are just as guilty as Judas when we use Jesus for our own selfish gain.