The Gospel According to John: 12:1-11

Series Introduction:

The theme verse for our series is John 20:31

John 20:31 – “…these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.”

The “these” John is referring to are the seven recorded SIGNS/miracles and the seven recoded “I Am” STATEMENTS of Jesus. John focused on those 14 key SIGNS and STATEMENTS in order to show us that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the Savior of the World because He’s God’s only begotten Son. God had John write these things so that we would believe and put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ so that by the grace of God we would be FREED from the penalty of our sin and given life to the FULL here on earth and life FOREVER in heaven.

[Read Text]:

John 12:1–11 (NASB)

1 Jesus, therefore, six days before the Passover, came to Bethany where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 So they made Him a supper there, and Martha was serving; but Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with Him. 3 Mary then took a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. 4 But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, who was intending to betray Him, said, 5 “Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and given to poor people?” 6 Now he said this, not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into it. 7 Therefore Jesus said, “Let her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of My burial. 8 “For you always have the poor with you, but you do not always have Me.” 9 The large crowd of the Jews then learned that He was there; and they came, not for Jesus’ sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He raised from the dead. 10 But the chief priests planned to put Lazarus to death also; 11 because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and were believing in Jesus.

We see Martha, Mary and Lazarus all worshipping Jesus in our text here and that is what I want to talk to you this morning. Worshipping Jesus.

FIRST, sort as a preface, let’s make it clear that who we worship is of first importance.

Luke 4:8 (ESV)

“You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.”

SECOND, how we worship is vitally important too.

John 4:24 (NASB)

24 “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

Worshipping in truth…

Truth meaning sincere:

Isaiah 29:13 (ESV)

“...This people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me...”

Truth meaning, not in opposition to the Scripture:

1 Corinthians 14:40 (NASB)

But all things must be done properly and in an orderly manner.

Worshipping in the right spirit…

1 Timothy 1:5 (NASB)

...the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.

Psalm 100:2 (NASB)

Serve the Lord with gladness...

So with those clear expectations guidelines for worship laid out, let’s look to our text we read here in the Gospel of John. There are three general ways we ALL should be worshipping Jesus that are seen here in this passage and since we were just talking about her, let’s start with Martha’s example.

Worship Jesus with your talent.

(v. 2) “...Martha was serving...”

The Hebrew word for “worship” in the OT is synonymous with “serve”. In fact, In the NASB the word is translated “serve” over 140 times and “worship” only about 20 times. The CSB translation splits it more about 60/40. Worship and service are synonymous in the Scripture.

We worship Jesus through service when we take the talent and abilities He has given us and use them for His glory.

Psalm 33:2–3 (ESV)

Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre; make melody to him with the harp of ten strings! Sing to him a new song; play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.

Romans 12:6–8 (NASB)

6 Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; 7 if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; 8 or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.

When we come at it with the right spirit we won’t worry about how other people are worshipping

Earlier in her life, Martha had learned this the hard way…

Luke 10:38–42 (NASB)

38 Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. 40 But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.” 41 But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; 42 but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”

Don’t expect other people to worship God with the same skills or at the same skill level or even in the same way you do. Martha learned that the hard way and was rebuked for it.

Use your God given talent to worship the Lord!

Worshipping Jesus with your time.

(v. 2) “...Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table with Him.”

He was having dinner with Jesus. This wasn’t a fast food situation. This wasn’t a tv dinner. This was supper. (btw, The meal after lunch and before bed is supper…not dinner…)

Notice how this is described… He was reclining at the table. He is relaxed. Un hurried. Focused on this one thing. He isn’t just having supper, He is having supper with Jesus.

I believe Lazarus was exactly where he wanted to be doing what he wanted to do. He was worshipping Jesus with his time.

His spirit of worship was like that of the Psalmist in:

Psalm 84:10 (ESV)

10 For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere...

(v. 8) “For you always have the poor with you, but you do not always have Me.”

Ephesians 5:15–16 (NASB)

15...be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, 16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil.

Worshipping Jesus with your treasures.

The word worship comes from the old English word, “weorthscipe”. And it means to show to ascribe worth. It is about showing one what they are worth to you. And that is what worship is. In worship we show God how much we value Him.

(v. 3) “Mary then took a pound of very costly perfume of pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair; and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.”

Mary worshipped Jesus with her treasure. It is a “very costly” perfume. Not just expensive… VERY expensive. She valued worshiping Jesus more than the most expensive thing she owned.

Worship that isn’t worth much to you isn’t worth much to God.

Additionally, using her hair to wipe clean the dirty, muddy feet of Jesus was also worshipping with a treasure…

1 Corinthians 11:15 (NASB)

“...if a woman has long hair, it is a glory to her? For her hair is given to her for a covering.”

Mary worship Jesus with the best of what she had to offer Him.

Cain & Able’s worship…

Genesis 4:3–5 (NASB)

3 So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the Lord of the fruit of the ground. 4 Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and for his offering; 5 but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard. So Cain became very angry and his countenance fell.

The widow’s worship…

Mark 12:43–44 (ESV)

43 And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

Worshipping Jesus with our treasures should look like what the apostle Paul said in...

2 Corinthians 9:7 (NASB)

7 Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

Why does worshipping Jesus with our treasure matter?

Matthew 6:21 (NASB)

21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

If you withhold your treasure from Jesus you are also withholding your heart.

IN CONTRAST:

Judas, in contrast, didn’t worship with His treasures, he worshipped other people’s treasures.

(v. 4-6) 4 But Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples, who was intending to betray Him, said, 5 “Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and given to poor people?” 6 Now he said this, not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into it.

The Pharisees, wanted to kill Jesus because they worshipped their treasure too. Their treasure was the praise of man and because Jesus was getting it and they weren’t, they wanted to kill Jesus and kill Lazarus…

10 But the chief priests planned to put Lazarus to death also; 11 because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and were believing in Jesus.

So let me ask you about your worship.

What are you giving to Jesus?

Are you worshipping Him with all you heart and all your soul and all your mind and all your strength?

We start by giving Him our lives. If you haven’t done that I’d like to encourage you to give you life to Jesus today as an act of worship. In light of what He has done for us, it is only proper...

Romans 12:1 (NIV)

1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.

You respond as the Spirit leads.

Memory Verse of the Week:

John 17:13 (NASB)

13 “But now I come to You; and these things I speak in the world so that they may have My joy made full in themselves.

Discussion Questions: (John 12:1-11)

Why do you think Jesus came back to Bethany before Passover? (v. 1)

What does Martha’s serving tell you about her? (v. 2a)

What does Lazarus being at the table with Jesus tell you about him? (v. 2b)

How does Mary’s act of worship demonstrate her heart for the Lord? (v. 3)

In contrast to Martha, Mary and Lazarus, who or what did Judas worship? (v. 4-6) In what ways do we struggling worshipping the same idols as Judas?

Do you think this verse was a prophetic declaration by Jesus? Compare (v. 7) with Luke 23:54-56.

What do you think Jesus meant in (v. 8) about always having the poor and not always having Him?

Why do you think the people wants to see Jesus and Lazarus? (v. 9)

How does the threat on the life of Lazarus and the general persecution of Christians fit into the same category? (v. 10-11)

Why were people believing in Jesus? (v. 11) How might God have people believe in Jesus now on your account?

What else does this passage tell us about God?

What else does the text teach us about ourselves?

Did anything else in these verses stick out to you?

How do you believe God is leading you to respond to His word?