From what we learn in the Bible, how would you describe Jesus’ life?
He was a hard worker. We learn that often Jesus was very tired and could fall asleep even when others could not because of some precarious condition. Do you recall the story of Jesus and the disciples crossing the Sea of Galilee in a bad storm? The disciples were afraid they would drown, but Jesus didn’t have a care in the world. He was sleeping (Matthew 8:23). To sleep under these conditions tells us that his body was physically exhausted.
He once said, “As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming when no one can work” (John 9:4). But Jesus would also agree with the adage, “All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy,” so He also enjoyed some social life.
Our text tells us about the time Jesus and His disciples attended a party in the home of Simon the leper. He knew how to relax and enjoy a good time with friends.
They were in Bethany and Simon had just served them a good meal. While He was reclining at the table, which was the usual posture for eating a banquet meal, a woman poured a whole jar of expensive ointment on His head. John, in his Gospel, identifies the woman as Mary, the sister of Lazarus and Martha.
This brought criticism from some of those at the party. “‘Why this waste of perfume? It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.’ And they rebuked her harshly” (4-5).
But Jesus defended her by saying, “Leave her alone. Why are you bothering her?” What some called wasteful, Jesus called beautiful. “The poor you will always have with you and you can help them at any time you want. But you will not always have me. She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial” (6-8). Jesus made it clear that love can sometimes express itself extravagantly, and that’s
all right with Him.
Mary loved Jesus. He had been a frequent visitor in their home and when He made one of His visits, she loved to sit at His feet and learn from Him (Luke 10:38f). She knew what comfort Jesus brought to her and Martha when Jesus came to them after their brother Lazarus had died. It was wonderful that Jesus raised her dead brother, but His words, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he dies, yet shall he live; and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die” (John 11:25).
This love for Jesus moved her to act extravagantly. She must have thought, This might well be the last time that I will have an opportunity to show Jesus how much I love Him. There might be no “next time.” And there wasn’t. This was the last time they would enjoy His presence at their parties.
Don’t you have those times when love stimulates you to live extravagantly? Your actions could be criticized by family and friends, but you don’t care. You had to do it. When we were thinking about how we would celebrate our golden wedding anniversary, we chose to live extravagantly. We had been given a large gift of money and Eunice and I chose to spend that gift on a big, week-long party at an ocean house off the coast of South Carolina.
Our whole family (all fifteen of us) were together for a week. It’s one of those things that you do now or never. Love moved us to live extravagantly and we enjoyed every minute of it because we were pretty sure Jesus was saying, enjoy it. We don’t always have to be practical.
St. John writes, “We love because he first loved us” (I John 4:19). Have you experienced His love? If so, are there not times when you need to show Jesus that love, even to the point of extravagance? You had to say a strong word for Him in a crowd where some didn’t want to hear any of that “Jesus talk.” It might have cost you some friends, but there was nothing else you could do. That’s love that causes you to act extravagantly.
The only way a congregation will experience an ongoing stewardship program is when its people are challenged to give out of love for Christ. I know this to be true without question. The first years of my ministry found me using every trick in the book to raise enough money to keep the congregation going for another year. Members of the two congregations I served during those years would pay their church dues like they did to any other organization where they belonged. One could find little extravagance in their giving.
Then came the day when a man taught me the basics of true stewardship. It was summarized in one short statement. “You give out of love to Christ in relationship to your faith. You are giving of your time and money to Christ because you love Him. As your faith in Him grows, your love will grow and your giving will be more extravagant in the eyes of those who do not know the Lord. It was a love for the Lord that motivated the widow to give all she had. It was a love for the Lord that caused a congregation to yearly increase their giving until the amount given exceeded two million dollars and is still increasing.
Many of us have been raised conservatively and that is good. We must be responsible people and pay our bills, but there is a time when love shows itself in extravagance. And this is not only in the giving of money, but in the giving of our lives for Christ when it costs a great deal.
How wonderful it is to hear from our Lord, That which you did was a beautiful act.