“She did what she could” (Mark 14:8).
The woman entered the room where the party was going on and reverently kneeled down in front of Jesus. She brought a very expensive bottle of perfume with her and proceeded with pouring it onto His feet. Then she took her own long flowing hair and wiped Christ’s feet with it. The sweet fragrance of the oil filled the whole house. All of a sudden, every one in the room heard Judas Iscariot complaining loudly, saying: “Why this waste of perfume? It could have been sold for more than 300 pieces of silver and the money given to the poor.” Jesus showed disappointment in the statement of His disciple. Judas Iscariot judged her action from a monetary viewpoint. His practical mind turned the worth of a sacred love into a common exchange of silver bars. If everyone looked at life through a materialistic perspective, then they would not be able to appreciate the special meaning of gratitude, respect, and love!
The woman came to Christ with a heart full of gratitude. She was thankful to God because her sins were forgiven. She showed respect by kneeling down and using her own hair to wipe His feet. Her actions were considered peculiar by human standards. She was able to think of those special actions only because her heart was full of love and she did not hesitate to carry them out. She understood that the Lord was not going to be around on this earth much longer because He was going to die. Therefore she used the most expensive perfume to honor Him without calculation or hesitation even though she could have sold the perfume and use the money to feed her family for a whole year. Love was the motive for her action. Indeed, she did all that she could.
Today, many people believe in God but very few people truly love Him. In the small number of those who love God, even a smaller number would do everything within their power to glorify Him. Perhaps the gratefulness in our heart, the sense of reverence toward God, or the love we have for Him is not sufficient for us to perform “wasteful” actions to honor Him. We often calculate our gains even though we say we love Him! Let us serve God with all our ability.
When we truly love another person, we are ready to do everything we can to bring happiness to them.
Pastor Thoai Duong
