John 12:7-8
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.”
How much is too much? How far is too far? How much of a sacrifice is just too high a price to pay? It appeared that for Mary, there were no limits to the extent of her love and devotion to Jesus. How much money did you make last year? Can you imagine tithing that entire sum to your local church plus a few other ministries? It’s an interesting equation to ponder: Jesus saves me from eternal damnation AND gives me his personal assistance for the rest of my life AND THEN gives me a place in a world system that lasts forever and is just too amazing for me to be able to fully comprehend…and in return, I offer him one year’s salary.
You get the point.
Mary’s love and devotion made her capable of remarkable sacrifice, generosity, and love, which she showered upon her Lord and Savior. Judas just wanted to take care of himself under the guise of caring for the poor…but even if he HAD wanted the money for the poor, it still would have been a bad decision. WHAT? Mary was presented with a unique opportunity to serve the Lord in a powerful and meaningful way and it was a better use of those resources than had it been given to poor. When Jesus said, “…the poor you always have with you,” was he right? Of course, he was. We have always had poor people. We have always had racism. We have always had injustice and hatred and corruption and abuse. This sad reality is not an excuse for inaction, as the scriptures clearly teach, but rather a sober reminder that we—the human race— simply do not have the capacity to eradicate any of these problems. Only Jesus can do that when he establishes his Kingdom on earth. In the meantime, we must prioritize our lives based on a complete Kingdom mindset, not just a meaningful sub-set.
If you feed the poor—and they don’t know Christ— but don’t share eternal life with them, you have only placed a band-aid on a mortal wound. Yes, it’s meaningful, but not impactful for the long haul. Every day, we all make choices based on our priorities in life. Jesus calls on us to prioritize Kingdom things over temporal things…when those choices are required. In general, we should choose people over things, and investments over expenditures. Are we building up or tearing down? Are we serving others or showing deference to ourselves? Are we indulging our flesh or exercising self-control?
In terms of Mary’s priority that day, the impact has been on-going. Mark 14 records this encounter when Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her.” Indeed, it has been! The Scottish minister, Alexander Maclaren, said of this verse that, “The Evangelist who records that promise does not mention Mary’s name; John, who does mention the name, does not record the promise. It matters little whether our names are remembered, so long as Jesus bears them graven on His heart.”
How will you prioritize the Kingdom in your life, today?
