Lent - Pt 35

And while he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head. There were some who said to themselves indignantly, “Why was the ointment wasted like that? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.” And they scolded her. But Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have me. She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burial. And truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.” (Mark 14:3-9 ESV).

Our reading today is one of the most striking examples of the contrast between the way of the world and the way of Jesus. Our culture prizes success measured by the value of the things we place around us. The picture I have chosen today is actually a backdrop used by professional photographers to simulate the softness and serenity of the exchange of vows between two people about to be married. I’m sure it is a real place; however, it is not real. When I went to the manufacturer’s site, I found it instructive reading the instructions for the care and use of this product. I have absolutely no problem with using such things for documenting special moments in our lives through professional photography; however, isn’t it interesting that we typically must find a facsimile of reality to create the “perfect memory”? Today our brief meditation reminds us that when we worship the wrong things nothing else will come out quite right. Our call is to worship the living God who has given himself for us in the sacrifice of Jesus. This is the genuine reality that will bring a new sense of what matters. This allows us to correctly prioritize our life. In turn that produces an incredible truth. Suddenly we find ourselves “wasting” our lives on Jesus by giving them to his agenda rather than our own. That will include caring about justice for the poor. Contrary to what is sometimes assumed, Jesus is not minimizing our responsibility to the poor in this passage. He actually is quoting from Deuteronomy 15, which encourages radical generosity to the poor. However, such generosity flows from worshiping God. First things first! Put God ahead of all else as the only one worthy of your worship and you will find you are pouring yourself out in all sorts of beautiful ways in service to others. When we value these things we will see Jesus more clearly than ever before!