John 12:1-11
Mary of Bethany, the sister of Martha and
Lazarus, was the one who sat at Jesus’ feet to soak in all His compelling words
in a previous account. This same Mary took a very expensive type of perfume
possibly her dowry and with it anointed the feet of Jesus. This was noted as a
huge sacrifice and expression of her devotion to our Lord. Many who witnessed
such a grand act of extravagance grumbled at the supposed waste. Only Judas the
stealth thief in the group made his overt complaint verbal. Mary's expression
of sacrificial worship of Jesus didn't start and stop with the perfume
anointing; she then uncovered her hair to wipe our Lord's feet. For years I
looked at this display of adoration with a bit of confusion and disgust. Didn’t
she at least have a towel to wipe his feet?
Then it hit me...it was not proper for a women to let down her hair or have
it uncovered in public unless she was a prostitute or if she was in her home
expressing love to her husband. This was a very scandalous act, one that
probably shocked the guests at the house. It expressed intimacy, a level of
sacrifice and surrender beyond one's bank account or material donation. This
was a depth of worship that was never seen in the local synagogue but one that
is a model for all of us today. Mary could have stopped at the "perfume level”
of her expression of worship; Jesus Himself was amazed by her initial expression
of devotion, but she went beyond what was considered extravagant. She desired
to go significantly deeper, to a level of spiritual and relational intimacy
only achieved by a few. She longed for the relationship that God the
Father had with God the Son and was willing to do whatever it took to get there.
Mary wanted to “dance” with the Holy Three.
So the obvious question would be: How are we
expressing worship to The Lord? We may be attending a weekend service or watching
it online, tithing and actively involved in a small group, but are we truly
worshipping our Lord? Do we desire such an intimate relationship and expression
of worship to the point that we would sacrifice all to communicate it? Finally,
what life changes do I need to make so that I can journey deeper into an
expression of adoration and worship that would amaze and honor our Lord?
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