EXPENSIVE DEVOTION
"Meanwhile Jesus was in Bethany, at the home of Simon the leper; during supper a woman came in with a beautiful flask of expensive perfume. Then, breaking the seal, she poured it over his (Jesus) head." Mark 14:3 See also Mark 14: 3-9
By now, the disciples had seen Jesus do many good works for the poor, the afflicted and the downtrodden. It must have been Jesus' custom to share whatever money they had with the poor. We can deduce that many followers of Jesus sold some of their possessions to give to the poor. When the disciples became critical of the woman's extravagant, loving act, Jesus rebuked them for berating the woman "for doing a good thing."
Even with the poor all around us, our focus must still be to love and honor God first. As Jesus reminded His disciples that they would always have an opportunity to help the poor but not at the expense of honoring Him--not that either is totally exclusive of the other. However, God gave His Son pre-eminence over all, and the Son glorified the Father, even over His physical well-being.
Apparently, this was the last straw for Judas Iscariot, for, following this incident with the woman, he went straight away to betray Jesus to the Jewish leaders. Why was this incident the trigger to Judas' betrayal? Many have speculated about it, but the truth is we only know that Judas harbored sin in his heart and did not honor Jesus as God's Son or Messiah. This gave Satan a foothold in Judas' mind and heart, which led to his destructive behavior. Honoring Jesus Christ and God our Father before all else is an expensive act of devotion. Many would just as soon not go to that expense. Think about it.
"Meanwhile Jesus was in Bethany, at the home of Simon the leper; during supper a woman came in with a beautiful flask of expensive perfume. Then, breaking the seal, she poured it over his (Jesus) head." Mark 14:3 See also Mark 14: 3-9
By now, the disciples had seen Jesus do many good works for the poor, the afflicted and the downtrodden. It must have been Jesus' custom to share whatever money they had with the poor. We can deduce that many followers of Jesus sold some of their possessions to give to the poor. When the disciples became critical of the woman's extravagant, loving act, Jesus rebuked them for berating the woman "for doing a good thing."
Even with the poor all around us, our focus must still be to love and honor God first. As Jesus reminded His disciples that they would always have an opportunity to help the poor but not at the expense of honoring Him--not that either is totally exclusive of the other. However, God gave His Son pre-eminence over all, and the Son glorified the Father, even over His physical well-being.
Apparently, this was the last straw for Judas Iscariot, for, following this incident with the woman, he went straight away to betray Jesus to the Jewish leaders. Why was this incident the trigger to Judas' betrayal? Many have speculated about it, but the truth is we only know that Judas harbored sin in his heart and did not honor Jesus as God's Son or Messiah. This gave Satan a foothold in Judas' mind and heart, which led to his destructive behavior. Honoring Jesus Christ and God our Father before all else is an expensive act of devotion. Many would just as soon not go to that expense. Think about it.
© S.M. Hudson, Hidden Treasure Ministries, December 2003. All rights reserved.
Categories: forgiveness
