John 12:1-11

Mary Anoints Jesus

Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, ‘Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?’ (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) Jesus said, ‘Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.’

The Plot to Kill Lazarus

When the great crowd of the Jews learned that he was there, they came not only because of Jesus but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. So the chief priests planned to put Lazarus to death as well, since it was on account of him that many of the Jews were deserting and were believing in Jesus.

Jesus is back at the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus, and Mary honors him in the most extravagant way. Seeing Judas’ response to Mary’s action, the phrase ‘knowing the price of everything and the value of nothing’ springs to mind. All he can think of is how much money they would have made if only Mary had sold the perfume instead of wasting it on Jesus’ feet – and not because he actually cared about the poor, but because there would have been more money in the kitty for him to help himself to.

Jesus’ reply to Judas gives us another quote that’s heard a lot today: “You will always have the poor with you.” For far too many people, these words of Jesus have become an easy get-out clause whenever poverty is mentioned: “Jesus said the poor will always be with us, so that’s our excuse to ignore poverty.” But that was not what Jesus meant when he said it. Quite the opposite!

Lazarus has now become a focus of attention from the public, as well as a catalyst for many others to come to faith. But some of the attention is unwelcome – and he is now a target for death himself.

Blessings as we pray that we might honor Jesus by our thoughts and actions.  Be safe!  Be well!  The Spirit has come!

To Ponder:

• Think of a time that someone gave you a gift that was very extravagant. How did it make you feel?
• What do you think Jesus meant when he said, “You will always have the poor among you”?