The Fragrance of Worship

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This week we celebrate, what has historically been called, "The Passion Week". When you weigh all of the evidence together, it was probably in April of 30 AD that our Lord was crucified and raised. But about 6 to 8 weeks before that Passover celebration, about two months before, one of the most significant events in all of Jesus' ministry had occurred. Jesus had raised His friend Lazarus from the dead. That event is recorded in John 11, and I invite you to turn to John 11 with me.

Lazarus, along with his two sisters Mary and Martha, lived in a little town called Bethany. Bethany was just over the hill of the Mount of Olives, about 2 miles from the city of Jerusalem - a very short walk from Jerusalem itself. And Jesus had carefully calculated this miracle. Usually when Jesus' miracles were done, He did them simply for the relief of those who were troubled and without much fanfare. But in the case of the raising of Lazarus, this miracle was uniquely calculated in order to give the entire nation one great final proof of His claims. As a result of the raising of Lazarus, the Sanhedrin (the ruling body of Judaism) decided that they must seek Jesus' death. You see that in John 11:53: "So from that day on they [after they counseled together] planned together to kill Him."

Also, after the raising of Lazarus, Jesus and His disciples go from Jerusalem to a little village north of Jerusalem called Ephraim, where He waits. He waits with His disciples for just the right time to come. Verse 54 explains this: "Therefore Jesus no longer continued to walk publicly among the Jews, but went away from there to the country near the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim; and there He stayed with the disciples." But as the weeks drop passed and as the time for the feast draws near (the Passover celebration), the Jewish leaders, who had already decided to kill Jesus, demand that those who know His whereabouts turn Him into the authorities. Verse 57 of John 11: "Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where He was, he was to report it, so that they might seize Him."

In light of this, the people who were in Jerusalem, begin to wonder: will He come for the feast? Will Jesus come for Passover? There is what amounts to an arrest warrant out for Him, from the religious leaders of the nation. Is He going to come at the risk to His own safety? Verse 56: "So they were seeking for Jesus, and were saying to one another as they stood in the temple, 'What do you think; that He will not come to the feast at all?'" "You think He'll be here? I'm not sure, what do you think?" There's this spirit of anticipation about Jesus coming to the Passover.

Of course, Jesus did decide to journey to Jerusalem for that final Passover, but He took a most unlikely route to get there. Although He was in Ephraim, which is only about 18 miles north of Jerusalem, Jesus did not go directly south to Jerusalem. Instead, He and His disciples headed several days' journey north, through Samaria, into Galilee. And in Galilee, they joined a group of pilgrims coming down from Galilee for Passover. So, they simply go north two or three days, join up with a group of pilgrims coming back for the Passover, come down the Jordan valley, to Jerusalem.

But Jesus stopped at Bethany. Now, you'll notice 12:1 says it was six days before the Passover: "Jesus, therefore, six days before the Passover, came to Bethany where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead." So, apparently, Jesus and the 12 disciples stopped at Bethany, just a couple of miles outside the city of Jerusalem, late Friday afternoon. At sunset on Friday the Sabbath would begin. They stop in Bethany but the rest of the group of pilgrims that they're traveling with, would have wanted to hurry on into the city of Jerusalem (the couple of miles to Jerusalem), because the Sabbath was about to begin. They wanted to secure their lodging. There would be very few places for them to stay in the little village of Bethany. And so, they continue on to Jerusalem where they can settle in and prepare for the Sabbath.

As the crowds arrived in Jerusalem late on that Friday, they bring the news with them that He's coming. He is coming to Passover. He's going to be here. By stopping in Bethany, just two miles away from the city, Jesus put himself beyond the reach of the religious authorities because Bethany was farther than a Sabbath day's journey. They wouldn't have been able to go after sunset on Friday. And so, He's out of their reach. And in addition, Judas would have no way to go into the city of Jerusalem to arrange Jesus' betrayal.

Another factor of those travel restrictions meant that it was extremely likely that Jesus would stay in Bethany on the Sabbath (Saturday), and the first opportunity He would have to come into the city of Jerusalem would be on Sunday morning. So, as you can imagine, this built up a great deal of excitement and anticipation among the people as they prepared for what would become the Triumphal Entry. So, Jesus arrives in Bethany on Friday afternoon or early evening. That means, then, Jesus would have spent the Sabbath as any Jew would have spent it. He would have rested. He would have attended the synagogue. It began at sunset on Friday and ran through sunset on Saturday. So, in that time period, He would have rested. He would have gone to the synagogue there in Bethany, perhaps even taught - we're not told.

But at sunset Saturday night, the Sabbath was officially over. And it still happens in Israel to this day. Those of you who went with us this past year, you remember, that when the Sabbath ends in the evening - as soon as the Sabbath is over, the city just comes alive. People are going here and there, and visiting friends and family, and going to the markets because now the restrictions of the Sabbath are over. That would have happened that night as well. Then the next morning, on Sunday, Jesus would then enter into Jerusalem, hailed as Israel's king as we read about just a few minutes ago.

But probably on Saturday night, a fascinating event occurs in the life and ministry of Jesus. It's recorded for us in three of the gospels - in Matthew 26, in Mark 14, and here in John's gospel, in John 12. Let me read it for you. John 12:1: "Jesus, therefore, six days before the Passover, came to Bethany where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So they made Him a supper there, and Martha was serving; but Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with Him. Mary then took a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, who was intending to betray Him, said, 'Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and given to poor people?' Now he said this, not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into it. Therefore Jesus said, 'Let her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of My burial. For you always have the poor with you, but you do not always have Me.'"

Here at this dinner in Bethany is one of the greatest expressions of love and devotion to Jesus Christ, that has ever been expressed. And for those of us who love and follow Christ, there's much that we can learn from the story.

Now, the story unfolds with three different perspectives. It begins with the perspective of the disciples there in Bethany, those who knew and loved Jesus, especially Mary. The second perspective is Judas' perspective on the whole event. And the third perspective is the perspective of our Lord. Let's look at this story as it unfolds with these three perspectives.

The first perspective is the worship of true disciples. The worship of true disciples. You see this in verses 2 and 3. It says, "So they made Him a supper there..." The Greek word for supper refers to the evening meal. In that culture, it was the main meal of the day, as it is even still to this day and for many. But in the New Testament, this particular Greek word refers often to more formal events. It's often translated banquet. That's the idea here. This was a special occasion. This was a banquet, a dinner party. It was a feast at which Jesus was the main guest and, of course, His disciples along with Him, the apostles.

Verse 2 says, "they made Him a supper there". Now, we're not told who they are, but it becomes obvious as we work our way through this story that they here refers to those followers of His who lived in Bethany. Jesus and the Twelve are there. But in addition to them - they're the guests. In addition to them, they're at least four other true disciples at this party. And they were the hosts of the party. They're the ones throwing the feast. And remember, they're holding this feast at great personal risk to themselves. You remember back up in verse 57 of chapter 11, the leaders of Israel had said, "If you know where He is, turn Him over to us." And so, they risked at least being thrown out of the synagogue, and perhaps even being imprisoned. So, instead of turning Jesus over, they hold a party for Him.

Who are these true disciples? Well, first of all, there was the disciple in whose home this party was held. He is simply called Simon the leper, Simon the leper. He's not mentioned here by John, but both Matthew and Mark tell us that the banquet was at his house. Simon was obviously a wealthy man because here he had a room in his house that was large enough to accommodate a dinner for at least 15 people. But at some point, this wealthy man who lived in this village of Bethany just a couple of miles from Jerusalem, had contracted leprosy. It was the most dread disease of the time. It was like the word cancer is in our culture, but far worse because when he was diagnosed with leprosy, it would have meant that his life would have been completely turned on its head. He would have been driven out of his home and out of the town in which He lived. He would have had no opportunity to interact as he had with his family or friends, with his neighbors, in his business. Leprosy. But he's no longer a leper because here he is hosting this party. And because he's hosting this party, it's likely that Jesus had healed this man, that he had become not only healed, but a true follower of Jesus Christ. He enjoyed not only the miracle of physical healing, but the miracle of forgiveness and reconciliation with God. And now, he opens his home - the party for Jesus.

There was also Martha. Verse 2 says, "So they made Him a supper there, and Martha was serving..." Martha is probably directing all the work in the kitchen, in the preparation for this feast. It's likely that Simon, being a wealthy man, would have had servants and Martha is in charge. And Martha, as she always is, this is her sort of familiar role - is serving. You remember the other account in Luke 10 that happened earlier than this. Jesus was staying in their home and Mary was sitting on His feet listening to His word, and Martha was distracted with the preparation for the meal. And she chides Mary and Jesus' presence and says, "Lord, why don't you have her help me?" And our Lord teaches her a powerful lesson. Here she is serving again but there's no hint this time that there's any of that wrong spirit. Instead, she is expressing her love and devotion to Jesus Christ by serving Him. This is how she expresses her love and gratitude. Serving in this way is how many people express their love and gratitude to Christ.

A third disciple that's responsible for this banquet is really quite shocking to see in the list. It's Lazarus. Verse 2 says, "but Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with Him." Lazarus, along with his sisters, was a true disciple of Jesus Christ. Jesus, as I mentioned a moment ago, had stayed in their home. But about two months before this meal, Jesus had received word that Lazarus was gravely ill. And when Jesus finally arrived, Lazarus had been dead for four days and buried. And it was to such an extent that when Jesus told them to roll away the stone from the grave, even Lazarus' sister said, "Lord, he's been dead for four days. By this time, he stinks!" But Jesus said, "Lazarus, come forth!" and Lazarus, His friend, came forth whole and new and clean and alive. Now, less than two months later, He's attending this banquet with Jesus.

That had to have felt odd all the way around, don't you think? Notice, they were "reclining at the table". Now, you need to know a little bit about how they ate to understand what's going to unfold in a moment. In the first century, more casual meals were eaten sitting down. But on special occasions or special banquets or special feasts like this one, they reclined. In a wealthy home like Simon's home, there would have been a special room just devoted to eating like our dining rooms. Typically, the tables in that room in the first century would have been arranged in a little U-shape. There would have been one long table and the... There would have been U-seating around the edges of that lengthy table. The tables were not like ours to which you pulled up a chair. Instead, they were only about 8 to 12 inches off the floor. And the guests reclined to eat. Around the tables would have been pads or cushions, even sometimes called couches on the floor, long enough for the entire body of the guest. It would have been at an angle to the table so that the guest would have, laying on his left side, so that he could eat then with his right hand, bring the food to himself. And Lazarus was reclining at the table with Jesus.

So, in addition to Jesus and the Twelve, you have Simon the leper, you have Martha, and Lazarus. But the real focus here, in the next couple verses, is Mary. Look at verse 3: "Mary then took a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus..."

In the first century it would have been inappropriate for Mary and Martha to have joined the men at the table. It just wasn't done. It was culturally unacceptable. So, perhaps Mary was there helping Martha serve. We're not told. Or perhaps she was just standing as a spectator around the back wall of the dining room. That often happened in wealthy homes. People could come and listen to the dinner conversation even if they weren't invited to the meal itself. But according to Matthew and Mark, Mary slips in with a small jar, a beautiful expensive vial made of alabaster.

Just this week, my family and I on Monday went down to see the two-time common exhibit down in Dallas. And there at that exhibit, there are a number of examples of small alabaster vials that held perfume and oils. And that was 1300 years before Christ. Here, in the time of Christ, they're still doing the same thing.

John, here, doesn't tell us about the alabaster jar. He simply describes the contents of that jar. He says inside it there was a very expensive perfume made from nard. Nard is a fragrant ointment that comes from a plant and that plant only grows in the Himalayan mountains - in the Himalayan mountains between India and Tibet. The fragrance comes from the roots of the plant - very, very expensive because it had to be imported all the way from India into Israel in hermetically sealed alabaster jars. Because it was so expensive, sometimes, those who wanted to have a bit of it would mix that precious substance with some other substance - sort of water it down, in effect, and to reduce the cost. But Mary's, you'll notice, was pure nard. It was the most expensive. It was the most precious. And she didn't just have a little of it, she had a large amount. In our text it says a pound. The Greek word refers to a weight - the Roman pound which, when you convert to liquid ounces, would have been about 12 ounces. So, this container she has, has within it about the volume of a soft drink can. But this was very, very expensive perfume.

Not surprisingly, Judas knew exactly how much it was worth. You'll notice he mentions that it's worth 300 denarii. Now, a denarius was the average daily pay for a common worker. You couldn't work on Sabbath, and you couldn't work on the other feast days so, essentially, there were 300 workdays a year. So, the cost of this perfume is a year's wages for a common worker - incredibly, incredibly expensive. So, either Mary and her family were wealthy, which is probably true, or this was a valuable family heirloom passed down by inheritance.

Mark tells us that she does something very unusual with that alabaster jar - she broke it and anointed - here we learn, as in all the gospel accounts - anointed Jesus with that expensive perfume. Why? Why did she do this? Well, there are a couple of reasons hinted at in the text.

First of all, she did it to express her gratitude to Jesus for raising her brother Lazarus from the dead. You'll notice in verse 3 it says, "Mary then". Literally, Mary "therefore". Look back at verse 2 because Lazarus was sitting there at the table with Jesus. Mary is struck with gratitude for the fact that her brother, who two months before was dead, is now alive and sitting there having dinner with Jesus. Therefore, she does this. So, it's to express her gratitude.

But it's more than that. It's also to honor Jesus. It was common in that time to anoint honored guests, the special guests. When the person came in, you anointed them with oil and that was the recognition that, in fact, they were your privileged and special guests. It was true with the rabbis. If a rabbi came into your house, you anointed him as a special guest. And certainly, it would be true of a king and the very next day Jesus will ride into the city of Jerusalem as Israel's king. So, she anoints Him to honor Him.

Matthew and Mark tell us that she anointed Jesus' head and the rest of His body. But John focuses on what Mary did at His feet because doing anything related to someone else's feet, in the first century, was always reserved for the very lowest slave. When you came to someone's house, you came in so you wouldn't track the dirt that your feet had accumulated from the dirt of the roads on which you walked. The lowest slave would be assigned the task to be there to wash your feet. You remember, even just a few days after this incident on Thursday night at the Passover supper, Jesus will get up because (during the supper) because when they came in there was no slave and none of the disciples were willing to humble themselves to wash the others' feet. And so, Jesus gets up during the supper, assumes the role of the lowest slave, and washes everyone's feet. So, what Mary does here is an act of great humility.

But there was more to it than that. Notice verse 3: "[she] anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair..." After she poured out the rest of that 12 ounces of that extremely valuable, extremely expensive, perfume she began to wipe up the excess that was on His feet with her hair.

Now, that was simply never done. This would have been stranger in the first century culture than it seems to us today, because Jewish women never let their hair down in public. There are a number of documents that document this. One of them comes from the writings of the rabbis. Let me read it to you. Kametha had seven sons who all performed the office of high priest. So, here's a woman, specially blessed with seven boys, and every one of them eventually became the high priest of Israel - the highest position you could achieve. The rabbis go on to say - they ask of her how she came to this honor? She answered, "The rafters of my house never saw the hairs of my head. Even in my own house I never let my hair down, where it could be seen." In the Jewish culture letting your hair down was reserved for the intimacy of the relationship with your spouse. To let your hair down like that in public was to essentially testify that you were an immoral woman. It was a sign of the kind of person you were.

So, what's going on here? Well, Matthew, Mark, and John all recorded the same incident. But Luke records a similar incident, not the same one, but a similar incident that had happened maybe as much as a year and a half before this. And I think we can learn a lot about what Mary is doing from that incident.

Turn back with me to Luke 7. In Luke 7 - again, this is not the same incident for a number of reasons. This one happens in Galilee. The one we're studying happens in Bethany, down near Jerusalem. And there are a number of other reasons but let me just show you what happens here. Luke 7:36: "Now one of the Pharisees was requesting Him [Jesus] to dine with him, and He entered the Pharisee's house and reclined at the table. And there was a woman in the city who was a sinner [in other words, an immoral woman, very possibly a prostitute]; and when she learned that He was reclining at the table in the Pharisee's house, she brought [same scenario] an alabaster vial of perfume, and standing behind Him at His feet, weeping, she began to wet His feet with her tears, and kept wiping them with the hair of her head, and kissing His feet and anointing them with the perfume. Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he said to himself [in his own heart], 'If this man were a prophet He would know who and what sort of person this woman is [He wouldn't let this happen] who is touching Him, that she is a sinner.' And Jesus answered him [even though he hadn't said anything, Jesus knew what was in his heart], 'Simon, I have something to say to you.' And he replied, 'Say it, Teacher.'" And Jesus gives him a little parable about forgiveness.

But then I want you to see when Jesus makes the point down in verse 44: "Turning toward the woman, He [Jesus] said to Simon [now this is a different Simon. This is a Pharisee], 'Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet [which would have been a huge sign of disrespect, but he didn't bother having Jesus' feet washed], but she has wet My feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You gave Me no kiss [which, again, was a sign of welcome of a special guest]; but she, since the time I came in, has not ceased to kiss My feet. You did not anoint My head with oil [that recognition of the privileged position of the guest], but she anointed My feet with perfume. For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little.' Then He said to her, 'Your sins have been forgiven.' Those who were reclining at the table with Him began to say to themselves, 'Who is this man who even forgives sins?' And He said to the woman, 'Your faith has saved you; go in peace.'"

Now, what I want you to see here, is that this immoral woman wipes Jesus' feet with her hair, why? Certainly, is an expression of humility. But there's more than that. She does it as an expression of her repentance. Here is this woman who may have been a prostitute in Galilee, who comes in and begs, in a sense, for Jesus' forgiveness. She acknowledges her own sinfulness.

Now, undoubtedly, Mary had heard of the story because it occurred as much as a year and a half before. And it appears, that in the account we're studying in John 12, she was imitating that. So, part of what Mary was trying to do was not only humble herself before Christ, generally, but to humble herself by acknowledging her own sinfulness. She was essentially saying, "I am an immoral woman in need of forgiveness" - not that she was sinful in the same way as the other woman, but that she was in fact a sinner. This would be a similar act to the tax collector in the story Jesus tells who won't lift up his eyes to heaven but, instead, puts his face down and beats his chest. The act of these two women is the ultimate expression of humility and the acknowledgment of sin and the desperate need of forgiveness. "I am a woman who is a sinner in need of forgiveness." Now, keep that in mind, because in a moment, Jesus is going to give us even deeper insight into what Mary did. But it will be related to this acknowledgment of sin.

Now, one more point back in John 12, that John makes about Mary's supreme display of love here. Notice verse 3 again: "and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume." What she had done, literally filled Simon the leper's house with the fragrance of the perfume. There's also a hint here that the fragrance of true worship wafts far beyond the heart where it actually occurs. What Simon the leper and Martha and Lazarus and especially Mary did at this dinner, was pure love and worship - the worship of true disciples for their Lord.

There's another perspective in this passage though. It's a second perspective - the perspective of Judas. Let's call it: the pretense of a false disciple. The pretense of a false disciple here in verses 4 through 6. The New Testament makes it clear that there were then and there are today, many who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ who, in fact, are not. In some cases, they're not because the gospel they've embraced is a false gospel; the Christ they worship is a different Christ. In other cases, the New Testament warns us that there will be people who will agree with the New Testament gospel, who will acknowledge the biblical Jesus, and who claim to belong to Him but, in fact, are not genuine Christians.

Probably the most haunting words of Jesus on this are Matthew 7, at the end of the Sermon on the Mount where He says, "Many will say to Me on that day [the Day of Judgement], 'Lord, Lord, [look at what we've done] ... And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice [work] lawlessness.'"

The most tragic example of a false disciple, I think, has to be Judas Iscariot. And here in John 12, John takes the mask off of Judas' hypocrisy and we get a glimpse into his heart, more so than really any other passage in all the New Testament. And while there's only one Judas Iscariot and always will be only one, the heart of every false disciple looks very much the same.

Look at how the false disciple responds. First of all, he objects to lavish worship. He objects to lavish worship. Verse 4: "But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, who was intending to betray Him, said, 'Why was this perfume not sold...?" He essentially calls what Mary did a waste of precious resources. Judas knows the value of perfume, but He doesn't know the value of worship. He has no appreciation for true worship. For false disciples it's always like that, isn't it? For false disciples it's always about the form and the show and the ritual and the tradition. They come to a service, even like this morning, and they go through the motions, but their hearts are never really engaged. They never really worship God. Like Judas, they just don't get it. Judas didn't get it. He didn't understand what Mary had done. He didn't understand the preciousness of her worship.

And he influences the other disciples, the true disciples, because Matthew and Mark tell us that they chimed in, "Yeah, I don't understand. Why would she do this?" So, essentially, Mary is being castigated by those that are there for what she has done, and Jesus is going to have to step into her defense. But Judas' perspective about what she had done was simply this: it was a waste! She wasted her time and her resources. That's Judas' perspective about Mary's act of love. And false believers always subject to lavish worship. They don't understand it. They don't get it.

There's a second insight here into the heart of a false disciple. He pretends to be motivated by concern for others. He pretends or appears to be motivated by concern for others. Verse 5: "Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and given to poor people?" Judas wants others to think that he is really interested in the poor. But it's just a facade. He's not truly interested in them. There's no motive in his heart for them. But false disciples always want to appear altruistic. They always want to appear like they have the concern of everybody else in mind.

But that brings us to the third insight we get here into a false disciple. He's motivated, always, by self-interest. He's motivated always by self-interest. Look at versus 6: "Now he said this, not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into it."

As John writes his gospel, almost 60 years after these events, he had learned either from Jesus, after the resurrection or by direct revelation, what was really going on in Judas' heart. And here he lets us see it. Judas was a first-class hypocrite. He wasn't concerned about the poor at all. It was all about him and how he could benefit. He was the treasurer for the group, and he kept the money box. And because he had the heart of a thief, he used to dip into the till. He used to pilfer what was put into it.

There's a lesson here about false disciples. A false disciple may do many good things. Judas distributed money for the poor out of that money box. Judas paid for the care and the needs of the disciples and Jesus out of that money box. But he didn't do those good things from a genuine heart of love for them. It was always about what he could get out of it. And that's always true. A false disciple may do many good things but it's not from a genuine heart of love for others, it's always about what they can get. In the end, their faith is all about them. It's not about worship - ascribing to our great God what He deserves. It's not about loving and serving others. Instead, it's all about what they can get out of it. Listen. American churches are filled with false disciples who are only there to further their own self-interests. They never worship God from the heart, and they don't understand those who do. They may express some interest in helping and serving others, but if you can trace it back to the source, it's always selfishly motivated.

We've seen the worship of true disciples and the pretense of a false disciple - Judas. For a third perspective, Jesus' perspective, let's look at the assessment of our Lord. The assessment of our Lord, verse 7: "Therefore Jesus said, 'Let her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of My burial. For you always have the poor with you, but you do not always have Me.'" Jesus tells Judas, along with the other disciples who've been infected with his attitude, "Let her alone". And then He explains that He takes priority in this case over the poor. Mark sort of fills out what He says a little bit. Mark says, "for you always have the poor with you [and, whenever you wish, you can do good to them], but you do not always have Me."

By the way, just as an aside, that means that caring for the poor, starting with those that are believers and continuing to others, is still a priority of Jesus Christ. He wants them to be cared for by us. That's why we have a benevolence fund. That's why we try to reach out even in our community and you need to do the same.

Then Jesus explains the reason Mary didn't sell the perfume and give away the proceeds. He tells Judas and the rest what she had in mind. Verse 7: "so that she may keep it for the day of My burial." Jesus, here, explains Mary's heart. Her greatest act of worship wasn't merely the sacrifice of something that was costly to her. You can do that without it being a true act of worship. You remember 1 Corinthians 13? I can sell everything I have and give it all to the poor. I can give my body to be burned and if I don't have love, it's what? It's worthless. It means nothing. What Mary did to Jesus that night was the genuine expression of her love and her adoration to the One who was about to die, about to die for her, to die for her to make it possible for a holy God to forgive the very sins she was acknowledging.

You say, "Did Mary understand that?" Well, there's some commentators who say she didn't understand, that she was simply going through this expression of her love and Jesus is the one who gives it meaning. But I think Mary did understand. Remember, Jesus had explained this before. And Mary was a very good listener. She sat at His feet, remember? She listened to His word.

Let me show you what Jesus had said. Turn back to Mark 8. And these occurred before that night. Mark 8:31: "And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. And He was stating the matter plainly. [So much so that] ... Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him [and say, 'Lord, that can't happen']." They knew what He was telling them was going to happen. Turn over to chapter 10 - Mark 10:32: "They were on the road going up to Jerusalem [they're on their way to Bethany, folks, where they're going to have this dinner], and Jesus was walking on ahead of them; and they were amazed, and those who followed were fearful [so they understood what was coming]. And again He took the twelve aside and began to tell them what was going to happen to Him, saying, 'Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death and will hand Him over to the Gentiles. They will mock Him and spit on Him, and scourge Him and kill Him, and three days later He will rise again.'" And then, of course, James and John interject their desire to have a place of honor in His kingdom. And He ends that discussion, notice in verse 45, by telling them why He's going to die: "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve [and here's why I'm going to die], and to give His [My] life a ransom for many."

This is on the way to Bethany. This is on the way to the dinner. And while Mary wasn't there, you can bet there was a sort of pall of grief, anticipation, fear (that we just read about). And you can bet that the disciples shared these things with Mary, and she had probably heard them before. Mary did this knowingly. Jesus does not say she did this unwittingly. Instead, Jesus makes a very direct statement that this was her plan. This was her intention.

It's even clearer in the parallel gospels. In Matthew 26, Matthew 26:12, it says, "For when she poured this perfume on My body, she did it [in order] to prepare Me for burial." In Mark 14, Jesus puts it every bit as bluntly in Mark 14:8: "She has done what she could; she has anointed My body beforehand for the burial." You see the point is, unlike Jesus' disciples, Mary really got it. She not only understood that Jesus had said He was going to go to die, but she connected His death with her sin, that His death would be for sin, for her sin. And because she got it, she's rendering this act of worship to Christ. In both Matthew and Mark, Jesus adds this amazing promise. He says, "Truly I say to you, wherever the gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be spoken of in memory of her." Folks, you're hearing the story this morning because Jesus wanted you to hear it. This is His assessment of her supreme act of worship.

Let me ask you this morning, are you a true disciple who genuinely worships Jesus Christ as a practice of your life? Or are you more like Judas? You claim to have a relationship with Jesus Christ, but in the end your life and even your faith is all about you. Any spiritual activity is just kind of a facade or a show, to cover over, to hide the reality of what's going on in your heart and in your life. Listen, you can be a true disciple today. Or maybe you don't even claim to be a follower of Jesus Christ at all. The question for you is: are you like Mary, willing to come to Him this morning, willing to acknowledge your sin and, as she had done before, to leave that sin and to commit yourself fully to Him as your Master and your Savior?

Listen, like Mary, we're all sinners. We have all broken God's law as it is summarized in the Ten Commandments. Oh, maybe, we've not broken it by our actions. Maybe you haven't actually murdered someone. Maybe you haven't actually committed adultery. But Jesus said we've broken it in our hearts because He defined murder as hating someone. He defined committing adultery as lusting in our hearts. We've all broken God's law and our only hope is in the death of Jesus Christ to satisfy God's just anger against our sins. And, like Mary, we only come to enjoy forgiveness by humbly acknowledging our sins, by turning from them, and putting all our confidence in Jesus Christ and Him alone. Have you ever really come to that place - personally, individually?

What Mary did that night, spending an entire year's income on perfume that she poured out on Jesus' body, was a great act of worship. But listen carefully, Christian. Jesus said that specific act was only appropriate once. It was only appropriate then, while He was here.

So, the question is: what's the point of this for us? How can we, sitting here in 21st century America, how can we imitate Mary's amazing expression of love and worship? Well, it's really quite simple. Like Mary, our greatest act of worship and adoration of Jesus Christ is this: when we humbly acknowledge our own sin and when we reflect on His death as our substitute. That's what was happening there that night. Mary was anointing Him for His burial, His death. She was acknowledging that He was going to die. And He had said why He was going to die - for sin. And so, she comes letting out her hair and wiping His feet in the acknowledgement that she was a sinner in need of the forgiveness that His death would buy.

This week, you and I have a special opportunity to do just that. Let me encourage you to read and meditate on the events of the Passion Week. Reflect on your own sin that caused Jesus' suffering and death. Think about the sinful choices you have made that nailed Jesus and held Him there on the cross. Think deeply about the suffering Jesus encountered in both body and soul, enduring the wrath of God for you. And then express - express out loud, express in your heart - your love and your gratitude and your adoration to Jesus Christ, even as those disciples at that dinner did that night, and especially as Mary did. And attend our Good Friday communion services because the Lord's table is the primary way Christ Himself gave us to remember His death and what caused it - our sin.

Listen, if you're a Christian, you can be like Mary today. If you will cultivate a deep awareness and humble acknowledgment of your sin and shame before God, and if at the same time, you will worship, adore, and honor Jesus Christ for His death for you. You see, when those two things - an acknowledgment of your sin and a reflection on the death of Jesus Christ for it - when those two things are blended together in our hearts it becomes a sweet fragrance, a fragrance that fills our own souls, a fragrance that reaches across the lives we touch, and it becomes a fragrance of sweet worship to our Lord Himself. We are to worship Him by acknowledging our sin and at the same time reflecting on His amazing love that would drive Him to death on our behalf. If we will do that, even this week, we will be like Mary.

Let's pray together.

Father thank You for this amazing story, it's amazing record of that night, now almost 2000 years ago, when Mary expressed her worship in a way that we never can, in that she was able to actually anoint your body for your burial. And yet, Lord, we thank You that we can still worship as she did, if we will humbly acknowledge our sin and shame, that we are sinners who desperately need Your forgiveness and reflect on Your death for us. Father, even this week, make us worshippers like that. And I pray for the person here this morning, Father, who really is more like Judas than those true disciples, whose appearance is right, who seems to everyone around them to be right, but inside they're full of hypocrisy. They don't really know You. May this be the day when they fall down before Christ, acknowledging their sin, as Mary did, and seeking the forgiveness, as that sinful woman in Luke 7 did, that only He can give. We pray in Jesus' name, Amen!