Opening Verse of Scripture Isaiah 53:5

He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.

Collect Prayer for the Day—Before we read we pray

Most merciful God, who by the death and resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ delivered and saved the world: grant that by faith in him who suffered on the cross we may triumph in the power of his victory; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. CW

Gracious Father, you gave up your Son out of love for the world: lead us to ponder the mysteries of his passion, that we may know eternal peace through the shedding of our Saviour’s blood, Jesus Christ our Lord. CW

First Bible Reading Isaiah 43:16-21

Thus says the LORD, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters, who brings out chariot and horse, army and warrior; they lie down, they cannot rise, they are extinguished, quenched like a wick:

Do not remember the former things, or consider the things of old. I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. The wild animals will honour me, the jackals and the ostriches; for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my chosen people, the people whom I formed for myself so that they might declare my praise. NRSV

Second Reading Philippians 3v4b-14

If anyone else has reason to be confident in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.

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. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. NRSV

Gospel Reading John 12:1-8

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.’ NRSV

Post Communion Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, you have taught us that what we do for the least of our brothers and sisters we do also for you: give us the will to be the servant of others as you were the servant of all, and gave up your life and died for us, but are alive and reign, now and for ever. CW

Commentary

 Mary and her sister Martha lay on a special dinner for Jesus. This is no doubt a great big thank you for raising their brother Lazarus from the dead, a celebration in place of a wake. At the meal Mary cares for the feet of Jesus and pours very expensive perfume over them. This perfume was made from the roots of the Nard plant. It comes from China and India, it grows on the mountains of the Himalayas. It had a sweet smell, and it was used in medicine because it soothed muscles, cleaned the skin and helped relieve stress. I think I want some. It also had symbolic importance because the Jews used nard as an incense offering in the Jerusalem Temple. It was a status symbol because it was imported it was very expensive and at the time what Mary used would have cost an entire years wages. 

 

The money is no problem for Mary, she doesn’t count the financial cost in expressing her gratitude to Jesus. Imagine how you would feel if somebody you loved and had buried was suddenly alive again? How much would you give to bring back somebody from the dead, a years wages doesn’t sound such a bad price. But while everybody is enjoying themselves she is does something quite remarkable, she is cradles the feet of Jesus in her hands and she pours the costly perfume on his feet then she wipes his feet with her own hair.  Mary using her hair was really significant and she does so deliberately not because she doesn't have a cloth. In the Song of Solomon it says,

How beautiful you are my love, your hair is like a flock of goats 

 I would not try that at home gentlemen, your dearly beloved might not think that having her hair compared to domestic livestock is a compliment but they did at the time. Hair was significant and if you had your hair down it sent messages concerned with physical attraction.

 

In Deuteronomy 21 it gives instructions as to how to treat your wives and their offspring, Yes wives, you can have more than one if you are taking the Bible literally. It speaks about how if you capture a woman and decide to take her as another wife you should shave her head and not have sex with her for a month. After that you might not find her attractive and you can get rid of her. The short hair Pixie cut was not considered a great look at the time of Jesus, it was long hair because that was considered attractive, so much so that when you got married it was often tied up because you were not wanting to attract attention.  In Jewish society a woman’s hair was important. Indeed in some Jewish traditions today women will not expose their own hair and wear wigs to cover their hair as a form of privacy or modesty and others will shave off their own hair altogether.

 

We should understand that this scandalous behaviour broke the codes of behaviour. Some commentators will stress that this was a very sensual and sexually charged action for a single woman and an unmarried man to behave like this in public. I am sure that they have a point and I think today we would have the safeguarding officer right onto it with inappropriate touching. However Mary loved Jesus and would do anything for him, not least because she is full of gratitude because Jesus had brought her brother Lazarus back to life. While everybody around her is eating and drinking she also understands that because Jesus has done this amazing thing in giving life to Lazarus, his own life is now about to be taken away.  The religious authorities are furious that everybody is now talking about Jesus and not about them. Bethany was only a couple of miles from Jerusalem and at this time of year 6 days before the Passover pilgrim from all over the Roman Empire would be coming and all that they were staying around Jerusalem and talking about was Jesus. The word was already out that Jesus had to be killed and Lazarus too. Mary knows that Jesus is laying down his life and she response with love and devotion. The disciples are in denial but what Mary has done is a prophetic act foretelling Jesus’ death, washing his feet as he will soon wash the disciples’ feet.

 

We are told that Judas questioned why such a waste was going on. The money could have been given to the poor. The response of Jesus is quite interesting and has been used as an excuse not to bother with the poor. He says

‘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 disciples were Jews so they knew the importance of caring for the poor because it runs right through the scripture

In Deuteronomy 15 it says

“There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded.” 

 Jesus expresses this scripture and expects that when he is not there his disciples will care for the poor. This we should do as an injunction of Jesus. One of the quotations from Saint John Chrysostom from the 4th century was

‘If you cannot find Christ in the beggar at the church door, you will not find Him in the chalice’.

 

Giving to and caring for the poor is something Christians should do for all time. We are called to live a generous life towards God and others. We can sometimes be generous to ourselves but not so generous in our giving. 

 

There are at least three ways that Mary was generous

 1. Mary was generous with her money.

She spent a huge amount of money on this generous perfume. In this case the monetary value was significant but actually that was not the point. It was the generosity which Jesus appreciated and that was why he drew attention to the generosity of the widow who put in the collection plate 2 of the smallest Roman coins.

· Mary’s perfume was worth 300 days work 

· The widows mite was worth 1/32 of a days wage

It wasn’t the value which was important, it was the fact that she was generous.

2. Mary was generous with her reputation

She didn’t care what anybody else thought about her love and devotion to Jesus. They might say all kinds of things about her being a trampt because her actions were being inappropriate but she didn’t care. May God give us strength to be as willing to demonstrate our devotion to Jesus. 

 

3. Mary was generous with her time

What is clear from both the stories of Mary is that she wanted to spend as much time as she could right next to Jesus, as close as she could get. Everybody else was eating and drinking and chatting. She is at his feet wanting to spend time just being with Jesus. Time is a rare and precious commodity, a true gift for someone. By giving other people our time, we are saying to them that they matter and that they have value. In a world where numerous demands compete for our time, it is one of the most generous gifts we can give. I suspect that if that meal took place today some of the disciples would be on their phones doing social media.

 

As we progress through the coming two weeks we remember the passion of Jesus. Passion is a strong word, it is how Mary felt about Jesus and she showed it as she poured perfume on his feet and wiped them with her hair. It is how God feels for us as in Jesus he gives of himself and willingly suffers on a cross. May that passion be present in us as we generously respond to God’s love for us.   Charles Royden

 

Hymns

• We sing the praise of him who died, Tune Christ Triumphant
• Christ be beside me, Tune Bunessan
• Lord Jesus Christ, Tune Living Lord
• The royal banners forward go, Tune Gonfalon Royal
• Sing praise to the Lord
• Praise him on the trumpet
• Come on let's get up and go
• Souls of men
• Alleluia, Alleluia
• If thou but suffer God to guide thee
• Morning has broken
• Moses I know you’re the man
• The Church of Christ, Tune:Heronsgate
• There’s a wideness
• I will sing the wondrous story, Tune: Hyfrodol

Prayers for Sunday and the week ahead

Grant to us, O Lord, fullness of faith, firmness of hope and fervency of love. For the sake of the gospel may we sit loosely to our wealth and daily embrace you in the poor of the world. As we rejoice in your generosity so may we give ourselves in the service of others; through Christ our Lord. Amen.

God our Father, we come today to worship you and confess that devotion to you is often far from our minds. This morning may we refocus our attention upon our love for you and how we show that love. Help us Lord to be more willing to pour out our lives as fragrant offerings of love. We lay our lives before you and ask that we might know that love which does not count the cost. 

Lord God, as we wait upon you now, as we listen for your voice in the silence of hearts and as we offer our prayers to you we think of those people in our lives who have loved us with a generous love we think of those who like Mary have not counted the cost of what they have given us; of those who given all of themselves to us as Christ gave himself for the world; and we thank you for them - and ask you to bless them and for you to make us like them. 

As we go into this week, O God, help us to have a focus, a purpose that is beyond that of just getting by; beyond that of just trying to make it through another week; show us we pray what you would have us do; reveal to us our own personal and unique ministry—and help us to do it. 

Bless O God those in our midst and those around the world whom we name in our hearts before you at this time; we especially ask for those who are poor in the basic needs of daily living; and for those who are poor in love; hear too the prayers we ask for those who need healing or hope in their lives, those who need justice, and those who require mercy. 

Additional Resources

Commentary  

Bethany means ‘place of the poor.’ In our Bible passage Jesus is anointed with really expensive perfume an action which might be considered totally unsuitable in a place of poor people! Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. This house should have been a house filled with mourning and sorrow, instead it is the centre of attention as the dead man and his saviour gather to eat. The people around would clearly want to see this Lazarus who had been raised after four days. Bethany is a small village only a couple of miles from Jerusalem and it would also have been crowded with pilgrims who had come to observe Passover in Jerusalem at this time. People would also have wanted to come closer to Jesus who had this extraordinary power over death, they would have wondered what he could do for them also? 

Jesus is with Mary and Martha and Lazarus, who he raised from the dead. Mary, the same Mary who had sat at the feet of Jesus as her sister Martha had been 'distracted with much serving, is once again centre stage. Once again Martha is serving, and once again Mary is rapt with love and devotion, sitting at his feet. But now Mary springs into action. In one spontaneous, reckless and, some would say wasteful gesture of extravagance, she anoints the feet of Jesus with expensive perfume and wipes them with her hair! It's a very sensual, a very intimate, and a very shocking scene. For a woman to let her hair down in public in this way and behave towards Jesus with such physical intimacy must have aroused considerable attention and scorn. To let down her hair and massage the feet of Jesus with perfume is quite a highly charged act in any culture, but at the time it was positively outrageous. We can all imagine how the disciples must have wanted to have a go at Mary for being such a tramp and behaving in this shameless fashion. 

Remember, this was no ordinary bottle of perfume but rather one costing a years salary. Can you imagine what you would have said had you witnessed this scene of such lavish adoration? Judas beat us all to it when he complained about apparent waste, claiming that the money could instead have been given to the poor. 

The biblical account tells us that Judas was not really concerned about the poor, we are told that he was a thief and helped himself to the money that the disciples shared with Jesus. This explanation discredits Judas but perhaps it also serves to demonstrate that the other disciples too, felt that it was a waste of money which would legitimately have helped ‘the poor.’ 

Judas challenged Mary on the grounds of extravagance, but we know from Matthew's Gospel that all of the disciples disliked the waste of perfume being used on Jesus. Matthew in his Gospel says 

When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. "Why this waste?" they asked. (Matthew 26:8)

In Mark’s Gospel too he records that it was "some who were there" who protested. (Mark 14:4), not just Judas!

Truthfully all of us would be appalled when we heard about this lewd behaviour and flagrant waste. Everybody except Jesus. Jesus defends Mary: "Leave her alone, " he says. "She is anointing me, making preparations for my death. "

Jesus knows how much Mary loves him, and he recognises the goodness in her devotional act of extravagant love. She loved Jesus, and she poured out her love like priceless perfume, like there was no tomorrow, without ever counting the cost. The perfume Mary poured out was worth a year's wages, would we be prepared to pour out that kind of money on somebody we love? Would we be prepared to pour it out on Jesus?

Mary had much to be thankful to Jesus for, he had raised her dead brother Lazarus from his stinking tomb, how could she deny Jesus her best perfume? What Mary did was highly provocative, but she was highly motivated and her spontaneous act of loving gratitude could not be inhibited by social etiquette. Mary responds to the love and acceptance she found in Jesus. Her affection for Jesus is an example to us all. It is not the time to talk budgets, but to show love. What Mary did was outstanding. She gave Jesus not just words or promises about her love. She put those words into direct action. She did not consider the cost because her love was greater than financial considerations. We need so very much to learn the lesson which Jesus understood about generosity when he publicly approved of what she did. The woman’s response stands in contrast to that of the Chief Priests and Judas who will serve them in their wicked murder of Jesus. It is also a contrast to the behaviour of Peter and the disciples. In the Gospels Jesus is pictured as abandoned by his inner circle of disciples. In the end it will be a few women who are left standing near Golgotha and who will venture to the tomb. The unlikely ones in Mark and John’s world, the women, become the models. 

This is a deliberately subversive passage, and reflects so much of the experience of Jesus’ ministry. Others were so good, so devout, and so busy trying to be holy that they missed the point. This action made by the woman when she breaks the perfume container open and spreads the contents over Jesus’ feet, speaks louder than a thousand words. Mark even suggests that Jesus predicted how memorable her act would be. 

Jesus was surrounded by many of noble lives, high religious prestige and good moral deeds. It was none of these which attracted him, nor those who like Peter spoke strongly of their unswerving loyalty. Mary had faith in Jesus and she put that faith into an act of extravagant loving devotion. In so washing his feet her actions spoke louder than words, she showed that love which is beyond that which words can express. 

All of this provoked the Jewish chief priests and we are given a glimpse of why they want to have Jesus and Lazarus put to death. Simply they are envious and greedy and do not want Jesus to take over their religious authority. Jesus was just too popular and this would have implications for them and their status in the community. There was no answer, Jesus had to go. In a short time this greed will end in the cross for Jesus. Charles Royden 

Commentary

Here is another Bible story about greed, betrayal and love and sacrifice. Picture the scene; Jesus has raised Lazarus from the dead and now he is eating with him and his sisters Mary and Martha. What should have been a house filled with mourning and sorrow is instead the centre of attention as the dead man and his saviour gather to eat. The people around would clearly want to see this Lazarus who had been raised after four days, they would also want to come closer to Jesus who had this extraordinary power. Who knows what he could do for them also? 

This provoked the Jewish chief priests and we are given a glimpse of why they want to have Jesus and Lazarus put to death. Simply they are envious and greedy and do not want Jesus to take over their religious authority. Jesus was just too popular and this would have implications for them and their status in the community. There was no answer, Jesus had to go. In this scene we find also Mary who does something quite remarkable. She takes some perfume and breaks the jar open to pour it all over the feet of Jesus. This was no ordinary bottle of perfume but rather one costing a years salary. Can you imagine what you would have said had you witnessed this scene of such lavish adoration? Judas beat us all to it when he complained about apparent waste, claiming that the money could instead have been given to the poor. 

The biblical account tells us that Judas was not really concerned about the poor, we are told that he was a thief and helped himself to the money that the disciples shared with Jesus. This explanation discredits Judas but perhaps it also serves to demonstrate that the other disciples too, felt that it was a waste of money which would legitimately have helped ‘the poor.’ 

The money is in some ways incidental, the focus of this story is the woman a person responding to the love and acceptance she found in Jesus. It is not the time to talk budgets, but to show love. The woman’s response stands in contrast to that of the Chief Priests and Judas who will serve them in their wicked murder of Jesus. It is also a contrast to the behaviour of Peter and the disciples. In the Gospels Jesus is pictured as abandoned by his inner circle of disciples. In the end it will be a few women who are left standing near Golgotha and who will venture to the tomb. The unlikely ones in Mark and John’s world, the women, become the models. This is deliberately subversive and reflects so much of the experience of Jesus’ ministry. Others were so good, so devout, and so busy being so, that they missed the point. This is grindingly obvious, when a woman like this inarticulately breaks the perfume container open and spreads the contents over Jesus’ feet. Mark even suggests that Jesus predicted how memorable her act would be. 

Jesus was surrounded by many of noble lives, high religious prestige and good moral deeds. It was none of these which attracted him, nor those who like Peter spoke strongly of their unswerving loyalty. Mary had faith in Jesus and she put that faith into an act of extravagant loving devotion. In so washing his feet her actions spoke louder than words, she showed that > love is beyond that which words can express. Charles Royden

Commentary 

Those of you who watch ‘Friends’ and who are up with the latest series, will have watched the episode recently where Phoebe and Mike are planning their wedding. It is all going to cost so much that Phoebe decides that they should write out a cheque for the full amount and take it as a gift to a children’s charity. The extravagant cost of the wedding can do so much for the poor children. Then after a time to consider what she has done, Phoebe returns to the charity and asks for her cheque back. She has a terribly torn conscience because although she really wants to help the children, she also wants to be able to celebrate her wedding. She wants the day to be extravagant because it is an important day for her and Mike. Fortunately for Phoebe, the man in the charity office forces her to take back the cheque and she promises she will give to the children at another time. 

The truth is that we all find it much easier to accept generosity and to justify extravagance when it is shown towards us. We can convince ourselves that we really do need an expensive holiday, a new car or private health care. However the Puritan within us all is much more critical when it comes to the expenditure of others. We have been dismissive of the financial priorities of other people. Surely there is no need for people to waste money on fripperies like Gucci scarves or a couple of thousand pounds on a case of Chateau Lynch Bages? 

But then we have to deal with the Gospels, where Jesus makes it just so difficult to be sensible about expenditure. He seems to delight in waste and extravagance, like the time when he not only fed the hungry crowds, but he went and made too much food and there were basket left over. Or the time when Jesus turned water into wine, not just a little wine but 180 gallons of it, when everybody had already been drinking too much and it was good wine!

So too in the lesson today we have another example of a generosity too far. Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. Bethany is a small village only a couple of miles from Jerusalem, and it would have been crowded with pilgrims who had come to observe Passover in Jerusalem. Bethany means ‘place of the poor.’ At Bethany Jesus is in the home of Mary and Martha and Lazarus, who he raised from the dead. Mary, the same Mary who had sat at the feet of Jesus as her sister Martha had been 'distracted with much serving, is once again centre stage. Once again Martha is serving, and once again Mary is rapt with love and devotion, sitting at his feet. But now Mary springs into action. In one spontaneous, reckless and, some would say wasteful gesture of extravagance, she anoints the feet of Jesus with expensive perfume and wipes them with her hair. It's a very sensual, a very intimate, and a very shocking scene. For a woman to let her hair down in public in this way and behave towards Jesus with such physical intimacy must have aroused considerable attention and scorn. 

It is a curious human trait that we so often criticise in others, behaviour which we secretly find exciting ourselves. Read the tabloids and you see page after page of editorial exposing the shameless behaviour of those caught out, especially in sexual indiscretions. And it is all told in full detail with pictures! Are we all such obvious hypocrites?

So we can imagine this scene when Mary started performing such overtly sensual and improper gestures over the body of Jesus. To let down her hair and massage the feet of Jesus with perfume is quite a highly charged act in any culture, but at the time it was positively outrageous. It might not have been the done thing to criticise Jesus, but how the disciples must have all wanted to have a go at Mary for being such a tramp and behaving in this shameless fashion. 

We are told that it was Judas who spoke out, he challenged Mary and did so on the grounds of extravagance. But we can be sure that all of the others there that night must have wanted to say something, even if some of them felt legitimately embarrassed. We know from Matthew's Gospel that all of the disciples disliked the waste of perfume being used on Jesus! Matthew in his Gospel says 

When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. "Why this waste?" they asked. (Matthew 26:8)

In Mark’s Gospel too he records that it was "some who were there" who protested. (Mark 14:4), not just Judas!

Yes, we can criticise Judas, but none of the disciples would have approved and truthfully all of us would be appalled when we heard about this lewd behaviour and flagrant waste. Everybody except Jesus

Jesus defends Mary: "Leave her alone, " he says. "She is anointing me, making preparations for my death. "

Jesus knows how much Mary loves him, and he recognises the goodness in her devotional act of extravagant love. She loved Jesus, and she poured out her love like priceless perfume, like there was no tomorrow, without ever counting the cost. The perfume Mary poured out was worth a year's wages, would we be prepared to pour out that kind of money on somebody we love? Would we be prepared to pour it out on Jesus. 

If we let our heads rule our hearts, we would never build beautiful churches with spires and steeples, never have stained glass or a silver chalice. There is a part of us all which is begrudging and miserly and which can always suggest a better way to spend money.

What this woman did was outstanding. She gave Jesus not just words or promises about her love. She put those words into direct action. She did not consider the cost because her love was greater than financial considerations. We need so very much to learn the lesson which Jesus understood about generosity when he publicly approved of what she did. 

Mary had much to be thankful to Jesus for, he had raised her dead brother Lazarus from his stinking tomb, how could she deny Jesus her best perfume? What Mary did was highly provocative, but she was highly motivated and her spontaneous act of loving gratitude could not be inhibited by social etiquette. Her affection for Jesus is an example to us all. 

Perhaps Mary also perceived that Jesus had but days to live. Wouldn’t we all use our resources differently if we knew that we or our loved ones would be dead within the week? Funerals are a time when people are often criticised for lavish expenditure. How many times have I heard that ‘if all the money spent on flowers had been given to charity it would have been put to much better use.’ But this is to miss the point, they are given out of love for somebody precious and sometimes in the face of death it is all that we can do, because no words can offer comfort or console in presence of such overwhelming loss. We can never be critical of those who spend money on funeral flowers, oak coffins with silk lining or limousines to carry the mourners.

But sometimes people at a funeral do wish that they had chance to go back and say something or do something. They regret that they failed to tell show their real love and appreciation. The day of the funeral is too late. The opportunity has passed. Mary, however inadvertently, has seized the moment. She made her grand gesture while Jesus was still alive to enjoy it. So what of us, what are the lessons which we have learn? 

To be less critical of how other people assess their priorities?

To be less eager to gloat at the behaviour of others and more willing to understand and appreciate their motives? 

Perhaps also to recognise that with every passing day we have less opportunity to demonstrate our love for others, and so we have to make the most of the opportunities of every day. So often when we give to God we do count the cost, we measure the time and make sure that we are not 'going over the top.' When we are responding to the love of God in Christ Jesus we cannot afford to be less than extravagantly generous. 

Meditation for family service

Last night I was due to go out and visit friends. Much as I wanted and looked forward to going I was very tired and felt a bit miserable. So wanting to be good company for my guests I decided to go and have a refreshing shower with Radox. The secret herbal essences are supposed to be so very good for us to enliven our bodies and minds. Whatever, after a shower I felt great and ready to go out. 

This option was not open for Jesus or his disciples. No showers! But they could wash their feet in a bowl and this must have been for them such a refreshing thing to do in a hot dusty country. Of course it was not the done thing to wash the feet of other people, any more than today it is considered appropriate to wipe somebody else's nose. Only a slave would consider doing such a thing. But in our reading today we are told that Mary poured perfume over Jesus and washed his feet and wiped them with her hair and the house was filled with the fragrance. 

Does anybody here have a mummy who has perfume bought for her? 

Who buys the perfume? 

Now how much do they spend? 

How much would the men think to be a lot of money to spend on perfume? 

How much would you have to spend to get one which was able to fill the whole house with the fragrance? 

Just think of what we would say today if somebody spent a whole years salary, say 20k on a bottle of perfume and used it all up in one go! 

I have brought some of my wife's perfume along today. I have tried to get her used to Boots No7 but she stubbornly refuses and likes instead Channel. Listen to how they describe Channel No5 on their website - quote...'it has so many tones of smell', and it is an artificial fragrance. Now listen to what they say about Co-Co, which is my favourite, 'it has a background smell of wood and leather'. 

At this point we will provide perfume for anybody in church who would like to be sprayed with it. The whole church will smell of perfume, as did the house of Jesus on that special day of anointing. 

Conclusion 

What this woman did was outstanding. She gave Jesus not just words or promises about her love. She put those words into direct action. She did not consider the cost because her love was greater than financial considerations. We need so very much to learn the lesson which Jesus understood about generosity when he publicly approved of what she did. So often when we give to God we do count the cost, we measure the time and make sure that we are not 'going over the top.' When we are responding to the love of God in Christ Jesus we cannot afford to be less than extravagantly generous. 

Commentary

All four Gospels tell the story from the Gospel today 

• A woman who kneels at Jesus’s feet
• Breaks an alabaster jar filled with priceless perfume
• Then wipes the feet of Jesus with her hair.

Each Gospel writer tells the story differently, for example in our story it is Mary, in Luke Jesus goes to the house of a Pharisee and the woman is described as a sinner. This has caused some to say that there must have been more than one episode, by different women, in different houses. The idea that Jesus was going around having different women pouring perfume over him and rubbing his feet with their hair I find more concerning than the fact that there are contradictions in scripture!

Put the differences aside and the fact remains that this is one of the most sensual, tender, and provocative moments in the entire New Testament.

 

We are not going to look at all the Gospel accounts today just what John tells us and it is a very moving story with a deep meaning and important lessons for us all. John tells us that the woman is Mary of Bethany, the sister of Martha and their brother was Lazarus. Remember Lazarus died and Mary and Martha beseeched Jesus to do something to help. Jesus did, there was a most amazing miracle when Jesus raised Lazarus from death ! We are then told that the Jewish authorities were so jealous of the ministry of Jesus that they were looking for a way to kill him.

 

It is after this restoration of life to their brother that the two sisters host a dinner party for Jesus. There should have been a wake and mourning but instead it is a time for celebration and thanksgiving. It is during the festivities that Mary breaks open her jar and anoints Jesus with the scented Nard and then strokes his feet with her hair. This was the really expensive stuff, pure quality not some eu de toilette. Moreover it is not a little bottle it was a big bottle, one Roman pound or about 12 ounces of ointment. This was worth a year’s wages.

 

John tells us that it was as the fragrance of this ointment filled the house that Judas, who was the treasurer, rebuked Mary for her scandalous generosity:

“Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?” 

John is quick to point out that Judas was not really motivated by concern for the poor but rather because he was a thief. So he was probably annoyed that he didn’t manage to get his hands on the ointment and steal it before Mary used it.

 

It is a somewhat odd story at first glance. It was undoubtedly something of a scandalous act and broke with the taboos of that culture. Bishop Richard Chartres says that is has a ‘disturbing erotic dimension.’ Such an overt statement has other Biblical commentators rattled and in one commentary I read by a theologian called Edward Klink he says

‘not to say that this was a sexual act - not at all.’

It is probably safe to say that it wasn’t sexual but of course it was a sensual act, it could barely be otherwise.

 

There are some things to be said about the anointing

1. Nard was one of the ingredient of the perfume which that was used in making the consecrated incense, the Ketoret. This was the incense offered on the altar of the First and Second Temple. A pleasing odour was a form of worship. Just As the fragrance filled the temple so the fragrance would have filled the house where Jesus was. John has already spoken of the body of the crucified and resurrected Jesus as the Temple (2:21). So Mary could be seen as offering worship.
2. It was also usually kings or priests who were anointed and not just in the Bible in other cultures. The action of Mary shows Jesus as a king. Just as the crowds will shout Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, blessed is the King of Israel.
3. I am sure that Mary was also filled with gratitude for the fact that her dead brother was now enjoying the party and who would not give everything they have to bring back a loved on who had died?

 

I am sure these things are all important but listen to the words of Jesus and I think he saw in what Mary did something even deeper. When Judas shatters the moment with his comment about it being a waste of money Jesus says

‘Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial.

Jesus sees the loving touch of ointment on his feet as nothing less than a part of the preparation of his body for death. Jesus does not see what Mary does as an erotic act, he see that this ointment was purchased for the complete opposite - embalming. As such this was an action filled with deep sorrow as well as being generous, kind, loving and extravagant..

 

This made clear in the fact that it was Jesus feet which she caressed. It was normal if you anointed somebody that your poured oil on their head, the most honourable part of a person. However anointing the feet was rare because caring for feet was the most demeaning task assigned to household slaves. This is why John made the point that he was not even worthy to untie Jesus sandals. It was a task not even expected of servants.

 

Anointing the feet was something done to a dead body. It seems Mary might have understood more about what Jesus was about than the other disciples who never wanted to think about Jesus dying. Mary knows death is coming and she is suffering a kind of bereavement, she recognises that this is perhaps the last time that she will be close to the living Jesus and she lavishes her love while Jesus is still alive and prepares his body.

 

Imagine you had somebody you really loved and you knew that they would be dead in a week, how would you feel? Perhaps the same as Mary. As she caressed the feet of Jesus she would have had all the same feelings we have when we are confronted by death, all the same regrets 

• If only we had more time
• I wish we had said this or done that.

 

Of course when it comes to facing life and death the normal customs and practices don’t matter. The normal cultural taboos are cast aside and Mary was the one person who seemed to understand the reality of what was going on. This was the last happy meal with Jesus before he would be taken from her, so who cares if others felt she was too affectionate, over the top, embarrassing. Her priority was Jesus and as the Temple was filled with the smell of precious herbs of worship, she ensured that so too would be the body of Jesus, which John tells us in Chapter 2 was the real Temple.       

 

 As generous and loving as Mary was to Jesus may we show the same devotion as we approach this Easter. Jesus gives to us an example of how we might go about doing this when he tells us that whilst we might not have him with us we always have the poor. We might not be able like Mary to care for the physical body of Jesus body, but we know that Jesus taught that what we do for those who are less fortunate than ourselves we do to him.

 

Note - The use of sweet smelling ointment or perfume befitted the office of a king both in the Old Testament and in other countries. In 1 Samuel 8:11-13 God through Samuel directly connect perfume with service required of a king. The Greek historian Polybius recounts how the eccentric Antiochus Epiphanies would have precious ointments brought to him. An onlooker exclaimed ’How lucky you are you kings, to use such scents and smell so sweet.’

 

Other thoughts  Oil is used for very special things in the Bible The woman did a beautiful thing for Jesus but it has been recognised that it has other significances. A little while ago we set a special stone in Bedford Cemetery and I anointed it with oil and said prayers. It was a stone to remember all the babies who had been buried in communal graves without proper markings or dignity over many years previously. In some ways it was an atonement for the past wrongs. I remember it well because I noticed as a I poured the oil over the rock that it seemed to seep into the stone and I imagine that the stone will for ever hold the mark of the place where the oil was poured. Oil is used for anointing things and making a special statement of prayer It is also used for anointing people. It might be if somebody had a special need, when they felt that they needed God's help—like when they're sick—then we anoint them. It comes from the Bible, where it says that we're supposed to anoint those who are sick with oil, and pray for them (James 5:14-16). Have any of you ever seen someone anointed? We put a little oil on their forehead. As we do, we say something like: "You are anointed for forgiveness, for strength, and for healing." And we pray for them. There's more to it than that, of course. But that's the big part. In the Bible people were anointed also when they became kings, they put oil on kings when they became kings. They just poured oil on their heads and let it run down all over them. Does that sound weird? Why do you think they did that? It was just part of the ceremony making them a king. They were "anointed." Does anyone know what the word "Messiah" means? "One who is anointed" by God. In another language the word is "Christ." Have you heard that word? Yes, Jesus was "Christ", anointed by God, like a king. And so when the woman poured the perfume over Jesus it has been noted that she was in some ways also performing a very special anointing of Jesus