John 12:1–8 ESV

1 Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table. 3 Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. 4 But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, 5 “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?” 6 He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it. 7 Jesus said, “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial. 8 For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.” This is the Gospel of our Lord! Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ!

Broken and Poured Out

1. Mary's Meaningful Anointing

The name “Mary” is seemingly quite possibly the most popular ~ and maybe confusing name in the New Testament.

There are seven Marys

Mary the mother of Jesus

Mary Magdalene

Mary of Bethany

Mary the mother of James and Joses

Mary of Cleophas

Mary the mother of John Mark

Mary of Rome

The task of keeping these seven important women of the New Testament straight frequently results in confusion or misidentification.  So… In order to keep it straight, we are talking about Mary of Bethany. And yes, there are those who say that this Mary and Mary Magdalene are one and the same. Frankly, I do not believe that to be the case, but that is my opinion… The rest of the narrative is what is important here…

Mary of Bethany was the sister of Martha. You know them. The sisters of Lazarus. So here we are.

John 12:2-3.

John 12:2–3 ESV

2 So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table. 3 Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

How about our Worship and Praise?

Jesus was at their home. Martha was busy, busy, busy serving everyone. Making sure that everything was perfect. But here’s Mary. Just sitting there listening, taking in everything that Jesus said. So Mary impulsively pours out expensive perfume on the feet of Jesus then wiped His feet with her hair.

What a demonstration of love. What an act of devotion.

Jesus had raised her brother from the dead. ~ After 4 days! He was special to Mary. But Mary was listening to the words Jesus said. She understood the deeper meanings. The foreshadowing of His death. Maybe she wasn’t sure she would be able to be there when He suffered as He said.

I don’t know. Maybe worse. Maybe, worse, she recognized that Jesus would die and no one would be able to anoint his body for burial. She was grieving.

This perfume was costly. It symbolizes what we as disciples of Christ should be willing to offer Him in return for His great love for us.

Our lives, service, and love.

Mary's faith, despite feeling sorrow, motivated her to pour out her life for Christ.

This story points us to Christ's ability to change mourning into joyful worship, calling us to recognize His impending sacrifice and our new identity in Him.

While Mary was hearing the words of Jesus and because of her intense love for Him, her feelings of loss were probably still fresh from losing Lazarus even though Jesus had raised him from the dead. “Who would raise Jesus?” She must have been thinking this “doom and gloom” that Jesus was foretelling was of His absolute demise. It was heart-breaking. But she was only seeing what was before the Cross…

She wasn’t remembering Isaiah’s prophecy from Is. 43:16-19.

2. Isaiah's Inspired Invitation

Is. 43:16-19

Isaiah 43:16–19 ESV

16 Thus says the Lord, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters, 17 who brings forth chariot and horse, army and warrior; they lie down, they cannot rise, they are extinguished, quenched like a wick: 18 “Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. 19 Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.

God wants to do NEW THINGS!

Up until Jesus came to the world, there wasn’t much ‘dead bein’ raised!’ But Jesus raised three! ~ that we know of.

Jairus’ daughter

Widow from Nain’s son

Lazarus

There was no question these three were dead. Mary knew first-hand her brother Lazarus was dead. He was dead for four days in the grave. This was a very new thing.

But even if Mary understood Isaiah’s prophetic utterance, how much more life could Jesus raise? What about His own if He were killed?

While many of the time may have been looking at the signs, wonders and miracles of Jesus as the ‘New Thing’ that Isaiah prophesied, there was so much more.

That ‘New Thing’ may be more accurately understood as after the work of the Cross, after the Resurrection, after the Ascension of Christ, when the Holy Spirit was poured out on all flesh so that we may be “witnesses” of all of the great things that Christ has done for us so that all may know of the Grace and Goodness of God so that all may know of our Savior’s Love.

We, because of the “New Thing” God has poured out on us, have a great opportunity and responsibility to be dispensers of God’s “New Thing” ~ His Grace and Mercy to a lost and dying world. This is “new” to the world because the church has not been doing this for far too long!

What greater “New Thing” could there be than a “New Life in Christ” ~ redeemed by His Saving Grace!

Paul in his letter to the Philippians acknowledges the shortcomings he had already witnessed in his own life in Philippians 3:12-14.

3. Paul's Passionate Pursuit

Phil. 3:12-14

Philippians 3:12–14 ESV

12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

What is it all about anyway?

A couple of years ago ~ 1996, there was a Kevin Costner movie called “Tin Cup” about a golfer named Roy McAvoy.

He had a line about the golf swing that correlates to our spiritual life…

Tempo is everything; perfection unobtainable… ~ Roy McAvoy

Maybe the Apostle Paul was the inspiration behind that line. But Paul understood that in this life, we are not going to be ‘perfect.’ We just need to keep moving forward. We need to keep the tempo going ~ Because Jesus has made me his own. I haven’t done it on my own, I’m not remembering the past only moving forward!

Paul was recognizing that perfection in this life wasn’t reality, but relentless pursuit of God’s Holy Presence was.

God is at work, shouldn’t we be?

Our message today started with Mary. She heard Jesus foretelling of His death, and she grieved. and then she worshipped.

The Prophet Isaiah told us that God wants to do a “New Thing.”

The Apostle Paul reminded us that essentially spiritually “if we ain’t livin’ then we be dyin’!”

Finally, King David in

Psalm 126:1-2

Psalm 126:1 ESV

1 When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dream.

Too many times, for far too long, we as God’s people have been living in the wrong dream. Maybe your feeling like your living in a Stephen King dream or an M. Night Shyamalan dream or maybe we dream like Mary.

~ Filled with grief and sorrow. Scared. We love Jesus. We pour our lives out for Him. It is a beautiful display of worship and praise. ~ And there is nothing wrong with the worship and praise. We, like Mary have been living in worshipping the Jesus who was in the grave. We seem to missed the Resurrection ~ the conquering of death, hell and the grave. Satan has been defeated and we no longer live in the nightmare of sin. We are free.

Understand, God has dreams for us too. They are dreams of blessing. He wants to do a “New Thing.” He wants to demonstrate His Glory in New ways through our lives. So, what is the key?

We need to act in faith, recognizing that we won’t ever ~ on this side of eternity “do it perfectly!” but simply allow God to demonstrate His Power and Glory in and through our lives in a “new” way. Who is tired of being a miserable christian? Churches are full of ‘em! How about this for a “New thing?”

Psalm 126:2 ESV

2 Then our mouth was filled with laughter, and our tongue with shouts of joy; then they said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.”