ApprehendingGrace.com

³While he [Jesus] was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.

⁴Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, “Why this waste of perfume? ⁵It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.” And they rebuked her harshly.

⁶“Leave her alone,” said Jesus. “Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. ⁷The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me. ⁸She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial. ⁹I tell you the truth, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”
Mark 14:4-9

What surprised me the most as I read this story last week was Jesus’ reaction. I began to think over other stories and parables and it seems to me that Jesus always commended extravagant actions of worship and faith!

While it was customary to anoint the heads of important guests, this woman’s action went above and beyond. The IVP Bible Background Commentary on the New Testament points out that “Her anointing of Jesus represents a major sacrifice and indicates the depth of her love.”

Upon reading the commentary, the Holy Spirit brought two questions to mind:

How long has it been since you gave Jesus a gift that represented a major sacrifice?
Or have your gifts indicated that the depth of your love for Him has grown shallow?

And so I pose the question to you, dear reader:

How long has it been since you gave Jesus a gift that represented a major sacrifice?
Or have your gifts indicated that the depth of your love for Him has grown shallow?

It seems like a long time since my gift to Jesus has represented a major sacrifice. My service has been steady, but my sacrifice has been light. Steady service is good, and we probably can’t live our lives in “major sacrifice” mode all the time. But if our love for Jesus is genuine, there will be times when our actions are extravagant and represent a major sacrifice.

During this holiday season, I encourage you to seek God with a sincere heart.

Ask Him what gift He would like you to give Him for His birthday.
Ask Him what He wants from you in 2011.

And celebrate the season with extravagant praise to the One who is worthy of more than our greatest sacrifice and our greatest extravagance.

This entry was posted on Saturday, November 27th, 2010 at 10:44 am and is filed under Christian Living, Christmas, Reading through the Bible in a Year, Serving God, worship. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.