Six days before Easter is today!

John 12:1-11

Six days before the Passover, Jesus went to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom he had raised from the dead. They gave a dinner for him there; Martha waited on them and Lazarus was among those at table. Mary brought in a pound of very costly ointment, pure nard, and with it anointed the feet of Jesus, wiping them with her hair; the house was full of the scent of the ointment. Then Judas Iscariot – one of his disciples, the man who was to betray him – said, ‘Why wasn’t this ointment sold for three hundred denarii, and the money given to the poor?’ He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he was in charge of the common fund and used to help himself to the contributions. So Jesus said, ‘Leave her alone; she has done all she could; she had to keep this scent for the day of my burial. You have the poor with you always, you will not always have me. Meanwhile a large number of Jews heard that he was there and came not only on account of Jesus but also to see Lazarus whom he had raised from the dead. Then the chief priests decided to kill Lazarus as well, since it was on his account that many of the Jews were leaving them and believing in Jesus.

Food for thought!

Six days before...! Mary brought her perfume, very expensive. Judas calculated it to cost 300 silver pieces. Now, to get an idea of this; Jesus was valued in 30 silver pieces. This perfume was 10x more expensive than Jesus, that is according to Judas. That is why this man saw it as sheer waste.

Jesus silenced him by saying that money could be given to the poor at any time, but a kindness done to him must be done now, for soon the chance could be gone forever.

How much extravagant are you with Jesus? How much are you ready to do for love of Jesus? Look at Mary's extravagancy. She took the most precious thing she possessed and spent it all on Jesus. Love is not love if it calculates the cost. Love gives its all and its only regret is that it has not still more to give.

What is most expensive to you? Consider this story.

Young married couple Della and James were very much in love with each other but could barely afford their one-room apartment due to their very bad economic situation. For Christmas, Della decides to buy Jim a chain for his prized pocket watch given to him by his father's father. To raise the funds, she has her long, beautiful hair cut off and sold to make a wig. Meanwhile, Jim decides to sell his watch to buy Della a beautiful set of combs made out of tortoiseshell and jewels for her lovely, knee-length brown hair. Although each is disappointed to find the gift they chose rendered useless (she no longer has the hair; he no longer has the watch), each is pleased with the gift that they received, because it represents their love for one another.

Love is not only extravagant, it is unselfconscious. Mary wiped Jesus' feet with the hair of her head. It was a spectacle, that could only be explained by her love to Jesus. She loved him so much that it was nothing to her what others thought and said.

As we think about the sacrifice she made for the Lord, we need to ask ourselves the question: Have we? Have we done what we could for others? Have we given all there is to give? Notice the areas where she did what she could. As we do, search your heart and see if you have. Just as Jesus does this week, she has done what she could.

Yes, this is what Jesus himself did, as yesterday's second reading put it, (Phi 2:6-8)

6 Who, although being essentially one with God and in the form of God [ possessing the fullness of the attributes which make God God], did not think this equality with God was a thing to be eagerly grasped or retained, 7 But emptied Himself [of all privileges and rightful dignity], so as to assume the guise of a servant (slave), in that He became like men and was born a human being. 8 And after He had appeared in human form, He abased and humbled Himself [still further] and carried His obedience to the extreme of death, even the death of the cross!

Like the woman in the gospel reading, Jesus emptied himself completely; he broke his bottle of life for us. He too, poured every drop out for our sake. I wonder if we have broken the alabaster box of our life and poured out ourselves, every drop for someone we love? Have you ever loved someone to the point of emptying all of yourself? That's what Jesus does today and throughout this week.