The Anointed One

Anointing at Bethany – John 12:1-9 with  (Mt 26:6–13; Mk 14:3–9)

Please stand for the reading of God's word.

1 Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, {in the home of a man known as Simon the Leperwhere Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. 3 Then Mary took {an alabaster jar ofMK} about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume[.] {She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his headMK} {as he was reclining at the table.MT} [S]he poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume 4 But one of his disciples {the disciples,MT} Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected {some of those present were saying indignantly to one another,MK} 5 “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.” {And they rebuked her harshly.MK} 6 He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it. 6 “Leave her alone,” said Jesus. “Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. {It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial.JN} 7 The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me. 8 She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial. 9 I tell you the truth, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.

This is the word of the Lord.

Audience: Thanks be to God.

You may be seated.

Being a father changes a lot of things. One being that about 6 months after Luca was born, I sold my Harley. I know, I know. What’s more stereotypical than a youth pastor trying to look cool with tattoos and a motorcycle? I had it for a little less than 18 months, and in that time, bent the handlebars, which I mistakenly called the steering wheel, to Byran Young and a bunch of other hardcore bikers, at a men’s breakfast. Embarrassing to say at the least.

Well, about a month ago, my brother gave me a bike. And no, I don’t mean another Harley. I mean a Trek FX2 8-speed Formula FM21 alloy, fitness bike, or in English, a dorky mountain bike that I wear with a helmet that has a large blinking red light on it to make sure people don’t run me over. A different look for sure than my motorcycle.

But let me tell you. I am actually seeing for the first time in a while. Here is what I mean. I live about a mile and a quarter from here. My normal mornings would look like getting in my car, blasting the AC, probably putting some music on, worship music of course,  and arriving at the church within minutes.

But man. Riding my bike has changed something in me. I strap on my helmet and go a measly 8mph, and it’s like I am in a completely different world. Instead of music, I hear the birds chirping, the wind blowing through, and my bike as it rides along the pavement. And for just a few minutes before I get to work, I see the sunlight piercing through the branches of the countless trees in my neighborhood, creating a painting of moving light refractions and shadows. I see mom and her three kids getting into the car, ever so patiently and caring, as they head off to work and school, making sure they have all they need for the day. I see the neighbor watering his grass with a hose, and the neighborhood cat sunbathing right next to him. I look around and realize I can see. For the first time in a while, I have a clearer view of my surroundings. Seeing what is in front of me, where God has placed me, and what He has called me to do with it. It has become a time of prayer and connection with God for me, and it’s shown me how easy it is to look around without actually seeing.

We are in our 21st week of this year-long series we are calling the Life of Christ, and I have loved every second of it. It has been so cool to walk alongside you, our students, and our children, and know that we are all studying the same thing. We are all having the same conversations about who Jesus is and what he did. And the fruit will be immense, for years to come.

Last week, Shane so wonderfully brought us to the conclusion of Jesus’s public ministry through the resurrection of Lazarus. He reminded us that Jesus is the resurrection and the life, and that we can’t be sanctified on our own. It starts with belief in Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, but sanctification requires community. We need people’s help to remove our burial cloths. We can’t do this alon. Sanctification happens in community. Discipleship happens in community. That’s why we place such a high value on membership at WACC. We desire commitment, not just consumption: participation, not just presence. We can’t do this alone. We need each other.

And you know, rising from the dead is no small thing. And this was the third most public time Jesus did this for someone, so as we can imagine, word got out. Many people became believers in Jesus, but many people, mainly the Pharisees, saw this as the final straw. What they had seen was a man who was causing a stir and had the potential to bring the Romans to take away both their temple and their nation. So they plotted to kill him and started looking for him in a search party, hoping to arrest him before the Passover Festival.

Our anchor text today, which is a harmony of the three accounts found in John 12:1-11 with  (Mt 26:6–13; Mk 14:3–9)

“Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, {in the home of a man known as Simon the LeperMT; MK}, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him.”

Tensions are high, and Jesus is lying low, which leads us to Simon the Leper’s house. It’s not clear between the three accounts who Simon was and how he was related to Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, but what we do know is that the three were living there. This was the house where Jesus had set up his base camp outside Jerusalem throughout his ministry, and it was here that the household was throwing a dinner party in his honor. (I mean, what else do you do for the man who just raised your brother from the dead?)

And it’s here that Mary does something quite unexpected. “Then Mary took {an alabaster jar ofMK} about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume[.] {She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his headMK} {as he was reclining at the table.MT} [S]he poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.”

Just imagine this for a second. You are one of the disciples, and everything seems to be going as normal. Martha is making food for everyone, and you are reclining at the table, listening to the banter between the other disciples. Someone may even mention to Lazarus how much he stinks when he came out of the grave, and yet here he is. You take a sip of wine, and then you look over, and you see Mary. She has an alabaster jar; she takes it above her head and smashes the neck against the side of the table.

She starts weeping, as she takes this oil and pours it over the head of Jesus. She lets her hair down, and you step back out of pure astonishment. She then proceeds to anoint Jesus’s feet and rub them with her hair.

She doesn’t care what anyone else is thinking. She doesn’t think about the cost of the jar. She only sees Jesus. She sees him as worthy. Worthy of everything.

 Mary loved Jesus so deeply that social dignity, money, and public opinion became irrelevant.

Things like perfume and fragrances, and oil like this were highly valued in ancient isreal. And this was not a bottle of middle-school locker-room Axe body spray. This was pure nard, a rare and precious spice imported from northern India, saved only for the best. Quite expensive to say at the least.

            But Mary does something kind of strange here, at least to the average Western American in 2026. She takes this oil and anoints Jesus with it. Not just on his feet, but on his whole body. From head to toe, Jesus is now covered in this pure nard, which is red in color. Why does she do this? What is the purpose?

            Well, anointing is a practice spread throughout the entire Bible. This isn’t a random occurrence. Mary didn’t do this by accident; it was on purpose. Intentional. Birthed from an imagination baptized in scripture. The practice of anointing symbolizes special recognition, setting a person or thing apart as holy and/or conferring divine authority. A sacrament, a visual representation, of invisible and divine grace.

            Anointing someone is a symbol to set someone apart. And it’s done all throughout the Old Testament for very specific reasons.

We first see this when Moses sets Aaron apart as Israel’s high priest in Leviticus 8:12. Setting Aaron apart as the mediator between God and Israel. The only one who was allowed in the Holy of Holies. The one who sacrificed on behalf of the sins of Israel. Aaron was anointed and set apart for this very reason.

And then again in 1 Kings 19:16, as God commands Elijah to anoint Elisha to succeed him as a prophet. The one who speaks on behalf of God. The man set apart to hear from God, and speak forth truth to the people of Israel so that they might come into a relationship with him again.

And then, once again, in 1 Samuel 16:13, Samuel anoints David as king of Israel. The one in charge of the kingdom, the one who holds the government, the land, the people on his shoulders. The one set apart with divine authority.

Throughout scripture, the practice of anointing—an act symbolizing divine grace to set someone apart for ministry—was repeatedly performed for priests, prophets, and kings.

And within the Jewish mindset, as reflected in scripture and the prophets, the expectation of the savior of the world, as prophesied by God himself in Genesis 3:15, would be a king who would establish an earthly kingdom.

Just look at Isaiah 9:6-7: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace, there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever.” The expectation, the hope, was for a king to come, stop all of the oppression, overcome whatever kingdom needed to be overthrown, and reign forever. The expectation was that through the line of David, a political kingdom would reign forever, by an anointed king.

A messiah would come. Save everyone and everything, and create a new kingdom.

In fact, Martha, Mary’s sister, with the most profound proclamation of Jesus’ identity, said just a chapter ago in John 11:27, “Jesus, I believe that you are the Messiah, the son of God, who is to come into the world.”

The Hebrew word for Messiah is mashiach. Can you say that with me? mah-shee-AHKH. Do you know what this word means? You might have been saying it your whole life without even knowing. Mashiachliterally means the anointed one. Martha, just a few verses ago, says to Jesus, “Jesus, I believe that you are the anointed one, the son of God, who is to come into the world.”

And here is Mary, honoring Jesus at a meal, breaking pure nard over his head and body. Anointing the anointed one. There is something else I don’t want you to miss here. Mary doesn’t just pour oil on his head, but also on his feet, and she does something that might seem weird to us, but in ancient Israel, it wasn’t just weird, but scandalous. John 12:3 She poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair.

In ancient Israel, as was custom, only her husband was allowed to see a woman’s hair. Women at this time did not let their hair down in public. One commentator said this would be equivalent to a woman today attending a dinner party and lifting her skirt. Mary was not supposed to do this. Yet she does. Mary is acting in extravagant abandon, breaking the bottle to ensure that there is not one drop that isn’t placed on the messiah. She just as Adam and Eve were in the Garden, presents herself in the cultural context of her time, as naked and unashamed. She is in the presence of God, and she recklessly makes herself vulnerable, all out of pure adoration and praise. She makes herself culturally vulnerable in complete devotion to Jesus.

She gives it her all. She anoints Jesus on his head, likely dripping down all over his clothes, and puts herself in the place of a servant, and wipes down the feet of the one she saw clearly as the Messiah. “And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.”

            Yet, the 12 completely miss it. They are looking at Jesus; they have been walking with him for three years, seeing countless miracles, feeding the five thousand, turning water into wine, stopping a woman from bleeding, making the lame walk, and the blind see, and ya know, raising three people from the dead, and they aren’t seeing it.  They don’t see who Jesus really is. Matthew 26:8 says they saw what Mary had done, and they were indignant.

But one of his disciples {the disciples,MT} Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected {some of those present were saying indignantly to one another,MK} 5 “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.” {And they rebuked her harshly.MK}

They were angry. Annoyed and rather confused. As we discussed earlier, this oil was not cheap. In fact, in today’s time, it would be worth about 12,000. This was high-quality stuff. John specifically says that Judas Iscariot, the betrayer, spurted out, “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor?” Which, in reality, doesn’t sound that crazy to say! Here is this group of people who don’t have homes, jobs, or ways to make money, or even given to the poor, and Mary has just poured 12,000 dollars out on Jesus’s head.

They were looking, but they weren’t seeing.

They thought they were doing the right thing. And were they really that wrong in their thinking? I mean, over and over again, Jesus says to take care of the poor. To take care of those less fortunate than us. To look for the lost and give them a helping hand. To give to everyone who asks and not to turn away from those who want to borrow.

But Jesus, I can imagine rather harshly but out of love states “6 “Leave her alone,” “Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. {It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial.JN} 7 The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me.

Did you catch that? She has done a beautiful thing to me. It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial.

Not “she has done a great thing for me, and anointed me as the ultimate high priest, prophet, or king!” But it was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial.

Whatever Mary’s actual motivation, Jesus makes it clear that what she has performed is an act of homage far more significant than even she knows.

Mary saw.

Judas saw money.

The disciples saw waste.

Jesus saw worship.

Hebrews 1 tells us that Jesus is the fulfillment of all the Prophets, the Word of God himself, and the ultimate high priest. Revelation 19 states that Jesus is the King of Kings.

Christ is not a surname. It’s not Jesus’s last name. It’s Greek for anointed one. Jesus Christ is Jesus the anointed one.

And the Jewish expectation is that he would come in and overthrow Rome. Break down walls, rip apart the government structures, and move forward triumphantly, and establish an earthly kingdom that would last forever.

And here he is, priest, prophet, and king, saying, “I am here to bring forth the kingdom of God, but to do so, I have to die.” Truly, Jesus was born to die. Jesus is the ultimate high priest, the ultimate prophet, the ultimate king. And the ultimate sacrifice.

Jesus isnt saying, don’t take care of the poor. Of course, he isnt saying that, and to think anything differently is weaponizing the Bible for your own self-gain. What he is saying is that Mary has done something not even she fully understands; she has anointed his body, his head, and his feet to die on the cross.

Baths or running water were not common at this time. Meaning, just a few days later, as Jesus hangs on the cross, in aggravating pain, suffocating as he tries to hold himself up, the aroma of this pure nard likely fills his nostrils.

Peter, whom Jesus states will be the rock upon which he will build his church in Matthew 16:15-17, calls Jesus “the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” He says you are the anointed one! You are one to save us all. You are the one who came to bring forth peace.

Yet it’s not Peter who anoints jesus. It’s not Peter who takes action based on what he is seeing. It’s not Peter who anoints Jesus, but Mary.

Why? Because it’s completely possible to look without actually seeing. It’s completely possible to think you have a clear vision, to think that you have got it right, and completely miss the point.

The disciples thought they were doing the right thing. They were indignant! Angry at the sight of what they thought was a misuse of funds for the case of the poor. They were trying to do the right thing. But in trying to do the right thing, they missed the main thing. They became distracted and lost sight of what really matters.

Are we not the same? Maybe you have been a Christian your whole life, or maybe this is your first time inside a church. But let me tell you what is arguably the easiest path the devil can take us down.

It’s completely possible to be serving in the church, to show up to every prayer meeting, every VBS setup day, to tithe, get baptized, pray for people, fast, sing in worship, and even give money to the poor, and not know Jesus at all.

Whether we want to acknowledge it or not, there are certain cultural norms within the church that are accepted and praised. If you do this, you will be liked. If you do that, you might be asked to do it again. It feels good to help people. You might receive a warm feeling in your heart when you fill the snack pack lunch for Lamar.

All of us are worried about raising our kids correctly, doing the best we possibly can at our jobs, leading with love and patience in our marriages, or figuring out what retirement looks like.

But all of that is possible without knowing Jesus. All of that is possible without seeing who Jesus actually is.

You can look like Jesus without ever truly seeing Jesus for who he is.

What I am saying is this:

It’s completely possible to look without actually seeing.

It’s completely possible to look without actually seeing.

Don’t miss the point. Don’t be blinded by this world and the distractions it brings with it. Don’t be blinded by the perceived expectations of what life is supposed to look like. Don’t even try hard to look like what you think you are supposed to look like.

Jesus isn’t saying don’t take care of the poor. He isn’t saying, don’t worry about graduating high school. He isnt saying don’t get married. He isn’t saying don’t tithe. Or have kids, or work really hard. What he is saying is that it’s all about him. There is nothing more important than him. Everything we have, everything we do, everything around us, is meant to point back to God. Creation itself is not the point. Creation itself points back to the creator. Everything is a signpost back to the one who made it all. The one who gives us life.

But everything we have, our job, our family, our kids, our purpose, all of that is meaningless; it all lacks substance, unless you see who Jesus is and do all of it for him.

None of it matters unless you set apart the anointed one at the top of everything. Everything must flow, just as the oil did on Jesus’ head down.

skip at 9:30

Seniors, I need you to look at me when I say this. Every year, I go through the grief of losing another group of kids I have gotten to know and love for the past 7 years. I have seen you walk through those doors across the alley, in your brother’s fedoras, and army khaki pants. I have walked with you as you figured out what normal human hygiene looks like and the smells that accompany that journey. We have gotten to talk about life, school, and your future. We have walked through the death of family members together, and we have traveled the world together, preaching the name of Jesus. We have laughed, we have cried, you have dealt with my awkwardness, and you have loved my sons unconditionally and taken him in as your own. All of you are going to be kingdom workers, all of you are going to go out into this world, and be the kind of people who will bear fruit. Because I know you. I trust you. And I love you.

Whether you are leaving me forever to go to the motherland that is Ozark Christian College, or staying here, I want you to know that this church will always be your home church. We will always be here for you when you need us. We have got your back. No matter what you do or where you go, this is a group of people. This is the body of Christ, which will always love you and walk with you. I want you to look around and see all of the faces of the people who have prayed for you, and paid for your camps, and have given their money and their time so that you might just have the chance to know Christ in some small way. This is a church of seed planters. There are avenues of trees where you can find shade.

I want you to take a breath. Take this is in. Because you won’t get another moment like this. This is special. Look around. Find the eyes of your parents. Your grandparents. Those you love and cherish. You didn’t get here on your own.

And now I want you to look at your parents. And I want you to do two things. I want you to say thank you, and that you are sorry. Cause man, you really had some moments over the past 18 years. You were smelly, whiny, and eventually you started having opinions and talking back… and that was all before you started kindergarten. But they loved you anyway, and they have done more than I and this church have done, what God called us to do from the very beginning. To see potential. To see this clean slate of a human being, and to cultivate and to create and to pull out the potential of who God made you to be. They love you so much.

And we are all proud of you. trust in him to walk you through the wilderness because we need you. You are the future of the Church.

But you can’t miss this. None of us can miss this. It’s easy to look like Jesus. It’s easy to try and do the right thing.

But just doing the right thing isn’t the gospel. Trying to keep the rules and hold people to them will lead you to look more religious than like Jesus. And those who were anointed as priests became Pharisees, and it was they who didn’t see Jesus for who he was, and plotted to kill him.

We can’t get it backward. We can’t start with behavior modification. That’s not what this is about. This, what we are here for, is not about just doing the right thing. It’s about living life to the full. The way in which God created us to live. To see, and hear, and love.

You can’t earn your way into eternal life. And as one of my best friends once said, “You can’t behave yourself out of hell.” You can’t live here and now in a peace that surpasses all understanding by just giving money to the poor. You can’t stop the constant noise, bear the weight that comes with the complexities of being human in a broken and fallen world, by acting right.

The only way to live life to the full is in reckless abandon at the feet of the king of kings, the fulfillment of all the prophets, the ultimate high priest, who sacrificed himself for you and for me by dying on the cross. The only way to live life to the full is to see Jesus for who he really is.

All of what we have, all of what we do, all of what we will do in the future, unless it comes from a clear vision of Jesus and who he is, will mean nothing. It’s all his. It’s all about him. As Paul says, in Romans 12:1 the point of life is “to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.”I t’s not about the job, the kids, the house, the accomplishments, or even trying to do the right thing for the sake of doing the right thing.

Jesus said to the indignant disciples 8 She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial. 9 I tell you the truth, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”

She did what she could. She used what she had. She gave her all for him. She took her life and what God had given her and gave it back to him. Because she saw him for who he truly is. The messiah. The anointed one. The one who came not to bring an earthly kingdom, but to bring heaven and earth back together in everlasting harmony. And because of that, here we are talking about her two thousand years later.

Riding my bike has reminded me to see God’s see life, to see creation, as images, icons, paintings of who he truly is. To take it in, and not make life what’s around me an idol or an expectation of what I think it should be, but as God intended it. To point back to him. To point back to the relationship we were created for.

Mary saw Jesus clearly, and because she saw him clearly, she gave everything.

It’s all about him. And what he did, and what we can never do.

Do you see it?