“Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.”
(John 12v5 NIV)
What he said made sense.
It seemed the right thing to do.
What he said was only what others were thinking.
They were in Bethany which was the home for the poor.
The outcasts, those rejected.
And those who were ill or infirm, the nobodies.
The money would go a long way to meeting their needs.
We can justify anything if we try hard enough.
Just put enough words around it and you have an excuse.
You don’t hear Jesus complaining though.
He knew how poor people were.
He knew how much that perfume cost.
But He also knew what price He was about to pay for everyone.
The world cannot grasp the depth of the love He had for them.
What He was about to do was to be the greatest act of love in history.
Jesus was about to be hung on a cross for you, me and everyone.
Everyone who has lived, is living and will live.
A year’s wages was as nothing compared to the eternal value of that selfless act.
Mary may not have realised that.
It didn’t matter to her how much the perfume cost.
She knew Jesus was worth it.
Her worship of Jesus was extravagant.
She didn’t just sing a few songs on a Sunday.
It cost her something.
Part of her was in the gift, the love offering.
She loved Him with all that she had.
Whether she knew the significance of what she was doing or not is not important.
The important thing is that she loved Him completely.
Let us be the same.
