Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table. Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it. Jesus said, “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial. For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.”
(John 12:1-8 ESV)
As Jesus and His followers proceeded through the events leading up to His Passion, people's real colors began to show. Repeatedly His closest disciples revealed their self-focus in wanting places of prominence. The Pharisees and their comrades wanted Jesus dead. And a few, like Mary, wanted to worship her Master. She listened intently to what Jesus had to say - He was going away. She saw the pieces fitting together. So, in her heart, there was only one right thing to do with this ointment: use it for Jesus. She knew the Master's heart: He cared for the poor. But there was more. True faith does good for those in need; but there is more to true faith than that. It does good because of love for Him and for others. Just as she knew Jesus' heart; He knew Judas' heart. He was no philanthropist. He pilfered from money for the poor and for ministry. As we work our way toward the commemoration of the Passover this year, Jesus knows our hearts. He knows not only what we do, but why. So let us worship Him and do good for others; He wants and deserves both.
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