Isaiah
43:16-21 Psalm
126 Philippians
3:4b-14 John
12:1-8
There are things in
this life that are somewhat mind blowing when we have the privilege of
hind-sight. Today we read about the covetousness
of Judas, in contrast with what some have called the extravagant adoration of
Mary, who anointed Jesus’ feet with the expensive perfume.
In today’s economy,
the 300 denarii which the perfume was worth the equivalent of about a
year’s wage. Can you imagine yourself
doing this? Imagine that you have a jar
of an expensive substance worth a whole year’s wage. Now imagine that you see Jesus and you pour
that whole jar on his feet. Take a
moment to contemplate the enormity of this act….. It is MIND blowing. But of
course, there is more going on than what meets the eye.
The perfume was
“Nard”. It was made by squeezing certain
grasses in the Himalayas in India and had calming properties as well as
antibacterial properties. It was an oil
perfume used by Kings and also used as a foundation oil for burial, as it helped the
myrrh to adhere to the body. Myrrh, we
know was given prophetically by the wise men to Jesus at his birth. Mary was being a prophetess in that moment. She was signaling his death. She was also ministering to Jesus, anointing
him with the calming oil perfume to strengthen him for his task, being baptized
into the sins of the world and making atonement for them by going to the
cross.
Are you someone who
notices prophetic signs? If not, and
most are in this boat with you, perhaps you can somewhat sympathize with Judas,
who missed the prophetic significance and who saw this as an incredible waste….
In fact, it would appear, that for Judas, this incident was the final
straw. Something was going on inside of
him and seeing this scene of such lavish waste, set the wheels in motion for
his going to seek the authorities, offering to betray Jesus for 30 pieces of
silver.
According to my quick
google search, 30 pieces of silver was the equivalent of 120 denarii in Jesus’
day. A little less than half what the
perfume was worth, but still a sizeable amount of money, the equivalent being
about half a year’s wage.
We generally look at
the character of Judas and designate his place as one of an enemy… an
outsider… a necessary evil. While this may be true to some extent, was he
really? Judas serves as a vital warning
that should not be overlooked.
Judas was a follower
of Christ. Judas was one of the chosen
few, and had the privilege of contact with Jesus, such as a close friend or
family member. When Jesus sent out the disciples
in twos, giving them authority over unclean spirits, Judas was there, and he
was also given that authority. The
Gospel of Mark 6:12 tells us; “So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent.
and they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them.”
Now read it again, changing the word “they”
for “Judas”. Judas was an integral part of a powerful
ministry!
One comment I read
describes Judas as having a form of Godliness, that hid his weakness in
coveting. And here is the warning; a
person can be Godly, have signs and wonders that affirm their ministry and the
authority given them by God, and they can still fall so very significantly.
We have seen this
often in fact. Many great and
influential ministers in Christian history fell into some kind of scandal. Our own more orthodox churches have not been
untouched either, as our church still struggles and pays the price for the
leadership who were involved in paedophilia.
There is a commonality, and it is the image of Godliness, coupled with a
hidden covetousness that denies their own sinfulness.
We mustn’t make the
mistake of thinking that these people are so different from us. Judas is named as a chosen and precious
follower of Christ. When Christian
leaders fall, many are left disillusioned.
A wise world-renowned Bible speaker once warned, “Don’t ever think that
you’ve become too holy to sin. Because
while we are in this human flesh, we will always be just as easily able to
sin.”
In the book of
Genesis, God says to Cain when he was jealous of his brother; “If you do the
right thing, won’t you be accepted? But if you don’t do the right thing, sin
will be waiting at the door ready to strike! It will entice you, but you must
rule over it.”
That “right thing”,
was to offer a sacrifice. The offering
that Cain gave, was not acceptable because it was the “work of his hands”
rather than a sacrifice – prophetically showing that we need to come to God
through Christ, rather than coming to God by our own Goodness. Coming to God by the “work of our hands” is self-righteousness
and a form of Godliness which denies our sinful nature, thus making God to be a
liar, who said that all have sinned and fall short of His glory. Saint Paul came to understand this by heart,
and he explains it in our letter to the Philippian’s.
St. Paul was pretty
darn perfect before he became a Christian.
He really was!! According to the
law, St. Paul was faultless. There was
just one fly in the ointment; Just as Mary anointing Jesus’ feet annoyed Judas,
the Christians irritated Paul. They upset
his world view, and it messed with his view of how God worked. Saint Paul was perfect, in regards to God’s
law, yet, after meeting Jesus, he regarded all his former life as loss compared
with knowing Christ. He tells us in our
reading; “Yet whatever gains I had,
these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. More than that, I regard everything as loss
because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I
have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order
that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my
own that comes from the law but one that comes through faith in Christ, the
righteousness from God based on faith.”
This is MOST
important for us to understand. We must
regard the value of having Christ as of the utmost importance and the
righteousness that come through faith in him. It is all about Christ and not our own works.
Righteousness is a
weird word that means being “right”, but in our context, it means being right
before God. None of us can ever be right
before God, in and of ourselves. Yet
through the sacrifice of Jesus, and our faith in him, we are counted as being
righteous. This is not dependant on
anything we have done.
Last week we had the
parable of the Prodigal son. Being given
enough rope, the consequences of his actions showed him the truth of his error. It was not God punishing him, that all went
wrong, but the consequences of his own actions…. It took a while for him to
realize this. The son set out full of
self-righteousness. He came back with
understanding the truth about himself – Father I am not worthy to be called
your son….. When we understand that we
have no right standing before God in and of ourselves, but we come to God
through the grace and mercy of relationship with Christ, we are considered by
God to be in a right relationship with him.
This is a way in the
desert - the way in the wilderness of our sinful human nature. There is no need to stay away from the love
of the father, because he has already paid the price for our return. It seems like there are always two messages
in the Gospel… one of love and one of warning.
God’s standard and the warning to live God’s way remains and doesn’t
diminish, yet God’s grace and Christ’s sacrifice has made a way in the desert.
The Prophet Isaiah
tells us to not look back at the former things, because he is doing something
new. That new thing would usher in a
time when he would give water in the desert to His chosen people so that they
would praise him. Now I have to tell
you, that this image is not a new thing –When the Israelites were in the
desert, God made water flow from the rock and he gave water to his thirsty
chosen people. So, Isaiah is using an
old story – or picture to proclaim the new thing that God was going to do. The water is a symbol of the refreshing Good
News and of the Holy Spirit. The new way
that God would give water to His chosen people was through the gift of His Holy
Spirit.
Saint Paul was filled
with the Holy Spirit of God, and his extravagant act of worship was not the
pouring out of expensive perfume, but he spent the rest of his life advocating
for the way of God. That was his extravagant
worship. The apostles were filled with
the Holy Spirit of God and gave their lives to the to God and followed the Spirit’s
leading also. The Holy Spirit would
teach and guide them, and the Holy Spirit will teach and guide us!
Every human is
fallible. Even you and me! We absolutely need each other, and we learn
from each other, and we even learn from those who were great in ministry, yet
fell. We do well to learn, while keeping
in mind that all are fallible. Let the
Holy Spirit confirm in our hearts what is true in what we are being taught and
pray for each other and especially pray for our leaders. Understand that while none are beyond falling,
in Christ, none are beyond redemption.
Remember, the prodigal son, was a son…. Not an outsider who was to come
to God never having known the father’s goodness, but a son who knew the father
and his ways. The father welcomed him
back. Judas seemed to miss this message.
The apostles and
early Christians, were a diverse lot. Like us, they had strengths and weaknesses and
the ability to fall – if we read the New Testament, it becomes obvious that many
did, in some form or other, but they knew that they were safe in the father’s
love through Christ. Mary poured out
perfume and St. Paul poured out his life.
For both, it was a natural response to knowing Jesus. May we so encounter Jesus… really and truly, that
we too can give, not just perfume, but unreservedly give our hearts to
God.
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