John 11:55-12:11

Apparently it was pretty public knowledge that Jesus had left the Jerusalem area to guard His life. The chief priests and Pharisees had ordered people to report Jesus’ whereabouts so that these religious leaders could seize Him, and many of the people who had gathered to prepare for the Passover wondered whether Jesus would dare to show up.

 

So six days before the Passover, rather than going into Jerusalem, Jesus went to Bethany, where Lazarus was living (since Jesus had raised him from the dead). It was near enough to Jerusalem that He could attend the Passover, but Jesus’ wasn’t yet making a public appearance in Jerusalem itself. They had a supper. Martha served, Lazarus reclined at the table with Jesus, and Mary anointed Jesus’ feet with extremely expensive perfume; this whole family loved Jesus dearly and was extremely grateful for His love toward them.

 

But one of Jesus’ disciples was not happy. He grumbled that Mary should not have anointed Jesus’ feet with such expensive perfume. He made it sound as if his cause was noble; the perfume could have been sold and the money could have been given to the poor. But John tells us that this disciple had been put in charge of the collections and, being a thief, would help himself to the money. This disciple was Judas Iscariot, and he intended to betray Jesus to the religious authorities – we’ll learn later that this was, again, for money.

 

Jesus knew His death was coming. He was not in Bethany to avoid death, but to prepare for it. Jesus answered Judas with His own coming death in mind: “Allow her to guard/designate it for the day of My burial. For the poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have Me.” Jesus’ argument was that the perfume was not being wasted, but was appropriately being used for the (general) purpose of His death. Not all wealth is intended for the poor; there are times in our lives when it is appropriate to be extravagant toward those we love. Goodbyes are one of those times, a time to communicate how valuable a person is and how much he or she will be missed. Mary probably intended her perfume to express her gratitude for Lazarus’ life, and for Jesus’ love that continued to bring Him back to them in Bethany despite the danger. This would probably count as another appropriate reason to be extravagant toward Jesus. But Jesus saw more going on, and He knew His death was approaching. The Passover was only six days away, and Jesus would be seized the night of the Passover. His death was truly near.

 

For all involved, the stakes were rising. Jesus knew that His death was approaching. The Jews found out that Jesus was in Bethany, and many went out to see Him, and not only Him, but to see Lazarus because Jesus had raised him from the dead; more Jews were believing in Jesus. The religious leaders felt more threatened because so many people believed in Jesus; they feared that the Jews would revolt against the Romans and that the Romans would crush them, and they now needed to kill both Jesus and Lazarus to keep this revolt from happening. Judas was preparing to betray Jesus. The disciples were (unknowingly) about to lose Jesus. The history of the universe was approaching its most decisive event. And all because Jesus was willingly walking straight toward death.

 

Father, Jesus is truly worthy of the best that I have – of all that I have. His love and obedience toward You led Him to this point. He did not flinch as He prepare to die to save the world – to save me. He was on a mission. He had counted the cost. May I see Him as He is and walk by faith with love for Him. May I respond the way that Lazarus, Martha, and Mary did, serving Him, fellowshipping with Him, lovingly spending my wealth on Him in recognition of all that He has done for me. May Judas’ legacy have no place in my life; may I never seek to twist my connection to Jesus into earthly gain, giving up all the blessings that Jesus has died to offer me.