To me, the story of Mary anointing Jesus with her costly perfume prior to his crucifixion is one of the most beautiful stories in the Bible.
It is rich with meaning, layered with context and powerful in application.
And according to Bible scholars it would have taken place the just two days before the Last Supper. Just forty-eight hours before the Savior of the world would hand himself over to religious leaders to be killed.
And so on this day, more than 2,000 years after Mary’s hands cracked open her alabaster jar, we pause to reflect upon the events of long ago. Events which have just as much relevance to the world today as they did back then—when Jesus demonstrated the greatest act of love the world has ever known.
As I stare at the precious powerful words in my Bible, I can’t help but imagine the scene in my mind…
Mary and Martha find themselves in a familiar setting—a dinner party to honor Jesus. They’ve been here before. Not at this exact party, but one like it. Could it really have only been a few years ago? It feels as if everything has changed since then. And really, everything had.
The biggest change being their brother Lazarus, who had been dead and buried in the tomb, but who was now sitting with Jesus—and very much alive!
How could anything ever be the same again?
Mary and Martha had watched Jesus call their brother out of the grave. They had seen his life giving power with their own eyes.
And yet even before that life-altering demonstration, they had been changed.
Changed by his compassion. When Jesus wept with them at the tomb, when they saw their pain reflected in his eyes—eyes that looked on them with such love and understanding—they were undone. His compassion invited them to lay every hurt, every fear, every broken shard at his feet. And they did. They wept before him. They grieved and cried and ached in his arms. Arms that held them fast. Arms that shielded them in their time of need. Arms that formed an impenetrable wall of love and protection around them.
They had also been changed by his words. Words that held the answers to all the mysteries of life. Powerful words that spoke not just to their ears, but to their souls. Words filled with kindness and strength. Enduring words that ushered them into light. That invited them into hope. Words that drove out evil; words that commanded storms; words that brought nourishment, healing and freedom; words that brought life….
Yes, everything had changed since their last dinner party.
And yet Mary and Martha both understood, deep in their bones, that everything was about to change again.
When Jesus walked into the house it felt as if all of heaven held its breath. The very air felt heavy—a dreadful sorrow mixed with a hopeful anticipation. The feeling was unsettling, yet electric.
The sisters didn’t know what to do. So they simply did what they could.
Tonight they would give everything they had to the One they loved more than any other.
For Martha that meant serving.
She didn’t have much but she knew how throw a wonderful party. She knew how to cook, and she was good at it. She knew how to run an efficient kitchen. And she knew how to effortlessly keep the food and drink flowing while creating a cozy and inviting atmosphere. And whereas the last dinner party she organized for Jesus was done out of a sense of duty and done from a place of bitterness at her sister’s lack of help, this party was nothing but a pure act of worship.
That is what she had to offer her Savior and she would offer it all.
As she joyfully filled the cup of the man reclining across from Jesus, so lost in her worship of her Savior that she couldn’t help but hum a song he had taught her, Jesus caught her eye.
His expression flooded her heart with more love than she had ever known. His eyes told her that he not only knew of her motives for tonight, but that he was deeply touched by her act of worship.
He smiled at her and she knew in that instant that every party she ever threw from that moment on, every act of service she ever did for another person, would be done for him.
As if aware of her silent determination, Jesus nodded his approval. And Martha felt as though her heart might burst with gratitude.
And yet, she had a job to do—for him. And so she moved to the next guest and proceeded to fill his cup.
Meanwhile, Mary watched her sister float from one dinner guest to the next. How different Martha was from their last party. Mary was delighted for her sister. Delighted by the peace her sister had found.
It was the same peace Mary had first discovered while sitting at Jesus’ feet just a few years ago. A peace which had changed everything for her. A peace which she longed to share with others. A peace provided by the one now reclining across the room from her.
So different from Martha, Mary was not blessed with the gifts of service and hospitality. She did it of course, for it was her duty, but it was not her passion.
Secretly, deep down in the most hidden part of her soul, she longed to be a teacher. For oh how she loved to learn! Her very soul craved knowledge and understanding. Her most favorite times were sitting at Jesus’ feet and learning from him. And she had learned so much! Now she simply longed to be able to teach others what he had taught her.
But she was just a woman. She could never be a teacher. She was not even allowed to speak in public, and certainly not to a man—except Jesus of course.
Jesus often asked her questions and even invited her response. And when he listened, he listened with his entire being. He made her feel as if she had the most important things to say—even more important than the Pharisees!
As Mary reflected back on their conversations, on the things he had taught her, on the way he encouraged her to share her thoughts with him, a love so pure and so powerful began to well up inside of her. And more than anything she wanted him to know the depth of her love—the full measure of her worship.
But what could she offer him?
She was no one.
She had nothing.
Except….
She looked down at the bag she carried. The bag containing the alabaster jar filled with her life savings—in the form of costly perfume. She had brought it with her to give to Jesus. Knowing the money it could bring would go a long way to support his ministry.
But as she watched him converse with those at the table, she noticed a weariness in his eyes. It was a weariness she had never seen in him before. Was it her imagination or were his shoulders slightly slumped? Mary inhaled deeply. As she did snippets of past teachings filled her mind.
Hints at something awful.
Words she had tried to push aside now came flooding back.
Poured out…broken….destroyed….rebuilt….suffer….lay down my life.
No!
Mary’s head snaps up.
Jesus catches her eye.
He dips his head in a slight nod.
And she knows.
She knows her Savior is about to lay down his life.
It can’t be. She recoils from the thought. And yet she knows it’s true.
Her feet begin to move of their own accord.
She has to do something.
But what?
What do you offer someone who has given you everything and is about to give you even more?
She grabs hold of the jar.
She breaks it.
Suddenly, the only thing that matters to her is pouring out all she has on the One who has poured out his heart for her.
Tears flow freely down her face. She couldn’t stop them even if she tried. And she has no desire to try. Instead she allows her tears to flow as freely as the perfume she pours out on his head, on his feet.
Oh his precious feet.
The feet where she had sat so many times, learning from him.
Being changed by him.
Being seen by him.
She kneels at those same feet—somehow knowing this will be her last time to do so.
Sobs break free from her body.
Perfume and tears mingle with the dirt and sand on his feet.
His precious feet shouldn’t be dirty. They are the feet of pure love.
Mary has no cloth with which to clean his feet.
All she has is her hair.
Without a second thought she unbinds her hair. It cascades around her shoulders and down her back.
There is a gasp somewhere behind her. She doesn’t care. Let them say what they want. They will anyway.
The only one who truly matters looks at her with more love than she thought possible. He smiles and she is undone.
She wants to scream, NO! She wants to beg him to not do what he is about to do. And yet she knows he must.
He nods.
She knows.
This will be her last act of worship before he does what he came to this earth to do. And so she pours out every last drop on him. If he is about to give himself up, if he is about to suffer, then he will do so with the fragrance of her worship lingering on him.
The room is silent. The only sound is Mary’s weeping—and that of her sister whose hand is resting Mary’s shoulder.
The jar is now empty. Her life savings now anoints the body of her Savior.
If only I had more to give.…
“Daughter, it is enough,” he whispers followed by, “Thank you.”
Thank you? Jesus thanked her? Oh master, it is I who will spend my life thanking you!
He smiles again and nods. He knows she will keep her word. That the rest of her life will be lived in gratitude and worship.
The sacred moment is suddenly interrupted by a disgruntled voice. A voice thick with indignation and greed.
“What did you do silly woman?! That could have been sold and the money given to the poor!”
Mary’s shoulders fall. The words hit their intended mark. Is she just a silly wasteful woman?
“Leave her alone.”
Jesus’ words lift her head. The authority by which he speaks silences the room.
His eyes are fixed on the objector—his look is one of love mixed with deep sorrow. “Why do you criticize her for doing such a good thing to me?” he asks, “you will always have the poor among you, and you can help them whenever you want to. But you will not always have me. She has done what she could and has anointed my body for burial ahead of time.”
Mary’s heart sinks with his words. Confirmation of what she had sensed moments ago.
Jesus now turns his attention to Mary. She is still sitting at his feet. He wipes a tear from her face and then lifts her head to look at him.
His next words set her heart on fire.
“I tell you the truth,” he says to everyone, while speaking directly to her, “wherever the Good News is preached throughout the world, this woman’s deed will be remembered and discussed.”
A silent gasp shutters through her.
A knowing grin raises the corners of Jesus’ lips.
Is it possible he knows of her hidden dream? It is possible he knows that more than anything she wants to teach others as she has been taught? Could it be that with one sentence, one declaration, Jesus made her—silly, simple, female Mary—a teacher???
His grin spreads into a full blown smile and he whispers, “Many will learn from you my precious daughter. Many will learn from your beautiful act of worship.”
Mary would have fallen to the floor if not for her sister’s arm on her shoulder. Instead, the two sisters stand to their feet. They bow their heads to Jesus and retreat to the kitchen to process all that has happened.
They both know that dark days are coming, but they will not think about that tonight.
For tonight is a night for worship. A night for rejoicing. A night to bask in the fragrance of love and sacrifice.
It is truly a night to remember….
Has Jesus changed you? How? What do you have to give? Will you offer it to him this week as an act of worship? Will you remember all that he has done and thank him? He loves you more than you will ever know and he is with you. Will you sit at his feet and allow him to show you the full measure of his love?
*[This story was written with my Bible, heart and imagination open. Obviously, I wasn’t there so I don’t know the details, but I drew from John 12:1-11; Matthew 26:6-13 and Mark 14:1-9]
Jennifer this is magnificent! Thank you for sharing this beautiful perspective. It is so wonderful. ?
Thank you so much <3