A BEAUTIFUL AND ETERNAL OFFERING..Wednesday evening bible study ..1-20-21

 

THE NET CLOSES AROUND JESUS

Now the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread were only two days away, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were scheming to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him. “But not during the festival,” they said, “or the people may riot.” Mark 14:1-2

The scriptures make clear that the real drama of Jesus’ passion began two days before the Passover.  The Passover has always been celebrated on the fourteenth day of the Hebrew month of Nisan.  Thus, this scripture begins with the twelfth day of Nisan.  We should realize that because of Israel’s lunar calendar, the Passover can come on any day of the week on our Gregorian calendars.  The first day of Passover is always a Sabbath, so it is quite possible to have this Sabbath running into the regular one and even have two Sabbaths celebrated together.  We also need to remember that virtually all Hebrew holidays begin at sundown on the evening before the actual day.  Such biblical timing is made clear in Genesis (cf. 1:5; 1:6; 1:13 ff.).  This was the case with Passover.

We should note that the Passover and the seven-day festival of Unleavened Bread were celebrated together.  During this period of festivity great crowds gathered at Jerusalem. People came from far and wide, even from foreign countries.  For those Jews living within a fifteen-mile radius, it was necessary that they celebrate the feast in Jerusalem.  Although some doubt his figures, Josephus the historian estimates that around three million people may have been present for the Passover on one certain occasion.1

Obviously, people crowded into the city and even overflowed into nearby towns, like Bethany and Bethphage.  Many others camped in the open areas around Jerusalem.  Passover was the festival of freedom from Egyptian bondage and nationalistic tensions always ran high at this time.  We can understand why the Jewish leaders were afraid that a riot might erupt.  Such a riot would place them in ill favor with the Roman authorities.

 Thus, “while thousands of Passover pilgrims were preparing for the joys of the feast, Jesus was preparing for the ordeal of his trial and crucifixion.” 2   Beginning with this chapter we are dealing with the very heart of the Christian gospel.  All the four gospels devote a great amount of space to the following important events: the arrest, trial, mockery, crucifixion, death and resurrection of Christ.  These make up the essence of what the gospel is all about.  These events are really the most important ones in all human history.

 The Jewish leaders were intent on finding a way to eliminate Jesus but they were fearful to try such a thing during the great feast, lest they be mobbed.  Their evil plans were on hold until one of Jesus’ disciples decided to betray him.  This was too good a break to turn down and they were forced to take advantage of it.

 

A BEAUTIFUL AND ETERNAL OFFERING

While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.  Mark 14:3

This lovely and enduring event happened in the home of one Simon the Leper in the nearby city of Bethany.  We do not know who this Simon was but we can be sure he was no longer a leper.  A gathering at the home of a leper would have been forbidden by custom and by biblical law.  Actually, a leper would not have been able to remain at home.  Perhaps he was a person Jesus had previously cured.4   In the gospel of Mark the woman remains nameless.  Perhaps there were reasons for this in those days.  However, at the end of the century when John was writing his gospel, he named the woman as Mary of Bethany, sister of Martha and Lazarus (Jn. 12:1-3). Mark tells us that the head of Jesus was anointed but John adds that the feet were also anointed.  His body was thus prepared for burial.

What can we make of these seemingly differing accounts?  It has been suggested that Simon the Leper was in fact the father of Lazarus and his sisters.  Also, this anointing must not be confused with the one mentioned in Luke 7:36-50.  This earlier anointing was at the house of a Pharisee.  While this woman also brought an alabaster jar of perfume, the writer notes that she was a sinful woman.  She came from behind Jesus and placed the anointing on Jesus’ feet as he reclined to eat.

We must pause to note the extravagance of Mary’s offering.  She came with an alabaster jar of pure nard.  It was expensive almost beyond imagination.  We know today that nard (Nardostachys grandiflora) or spikenard as it is also called, is the spice taken from a plant which grows in the high Himalayan areas of India, Nepal and China. 6

It is difficult for us to imagine just how valuable this offering was.  John 12:3 tells us that Mary brought a pint of pure nard.  Mark informs us that this ointment could have been sold for three hundred denarii.  We may remember that a denari was the average daily wage for a laboring man.7  So here we have a sacrifice that was close to 2 or 3 year’s wage for a working person.  If we translate this offering into modern figures in the US, it would come to an amount of at least $54,000.  We would be extremely careful even handling such an expensive gift.  Yet, Mary recklessly broke the jar and poured the anointing out over Jesus.  Such an expensive ointment was no doubt a family heirloom.  It has even been suggested that the precious ointment was Mary’s dowry. The disciples where not only shocked by the cost of the ointment she was using, but of the amount that she was using. This act of devotion was seen as waste to the disciples. The cost of the ointment that she used was shocking to me as well. It takes devotion and selflessness to do something like that. She probably did not think twice about using it. The ointment that she used was most likely intended for her own burial but instead she used it for Jesus. She also probably spent her life savings for it. This act shows her trust, devotion, and love that she had for him. I think it would be difficult for people today to do something like that. In the world we live in today, the value or cost of something can often times overshadow or distort the moral and meaning of a deed or gift.

So,     “Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, ‘Why this waste of perfume?   It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.’ And they rebuked her harshly” (14:4-5).  Even while the almost intoxicating and exhilarating smell wafted through the air the devil’s advocates began their howl of complaints.  We know from John’s gospel (1 2:4) that the leader of the pack was Judas Iscariot.  He was the one who quickly calculated the value of the gift.  John tells us that Judas didn’t really care about the poor but that he was a thief and commonly stole money from the communal purse (12:6).  We can see in John 13:29, that Jesus and his company were apparently in the habit of giving to the poor anyway.

“‘Leave her alone,’ said Jesus. ‘Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me’” (14:6).   In the Greek language there are two words for “good.”   First there is agathos, meaning a thing that is morally good.  Then there is kalos, meaning a thing that is not just good but is actually both good and lovely.  This latter word is used here.9   Once again we see how Jesus honored women.  They made up such a vital part of the gospel story.  In the ancient world women had a generally low position.  Jesus changed that forever.

To the grumblers Jesus then said: “The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me” (14:7).  Obviously in every society, even in the most affluent ones, there will always be poor people (cf. Deut. 15:11).

It appears that with their complaints Judas and the other disciples were actually demeaning Jesus.  It was Mary who grasped his real and immeasurable worth.  Apparently, she was the first person to fully realize that the gospel implied suffering.10

 Jesus said: “She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial.  Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her” (14:8-9). 

When Mary gave her best at the feet of Jesus, she may have started a ‘wave of blessing’ that has been going on ever since.  

We can praise her memory by acknowledging that the simple, beautiful act of a guileless Judean woman is even now being remembered the world over. 

It is good to always give our flowers while people can still smell them.  The other women of the resurrection story wanted to do a similar thing and anoint the body of Jesus but they were too late, since Jesus had already arisen from the dead. This is a lesson for us.. Jesus said to be ever watchful because we are not certain when the father will come for us… To love our brothers and sisters in Christ, to love thy neighbour as thy self in our works is to follow in the footsteps of  Mary from Judea.. When we extend our love to others we also anoint Jesus and honour him as this as it was his command that we do so…

Now we have the opposite character depicted in this chapter giving us a stark contrast…..

THE BETRAYER

Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them.   They were delighted to hear this and promised to give him money. So he watched for an opportunity to hand him over.  Mark 14:10-11

No doubt, Judas was really stung by Jesus’ rebuke, but obviously there were more serious things about Jesus’ ministry that were troubling him.  We can only guess at the real problems.  Several commentators feel that he was displeased that Jesus did not seek to become a natural deliverer of the people and save them from the Romans.  Some have felt that Judas was trying to force the hand of Jesus and help him become such a deliverer.  This is all speculation of course.  The scripture makes clear that he was a greedy thief and perhaps greed was his sole motivation.  For sure, the devil entered into Judas and urged him to perform his despicable act (Lk.22:3; Jn. 13:27).

Matthew alone tells us that Judas actually bargained with the high priest and his associates for the price he was to be paid for Jesus.  They agreed on thirty pieces of silver (Matt. 26:14-16).  This is a reference to Zechariah 11:12-13.  In Exodus 21:32, we see that thirty pieces of silver was the price for a slave that had been gored by an animal.  So he sold his Master for the price of a slave… the basest act of treachery in history.

There is a serious lesson here.  If we are faithless in small matters we are likely to also be faithless in great matters (Matt. 25:21, 23).  Judas first pilfered the common purse for a few coins, then later he was able to sell Jesus the Messiah of Israel for a few pieces of silver.

 

Of course, none of this was a surprise to Jesus.  He knew from the very beginning that he would be betrayed by one of his own disciples.  In John 6:70 Jesus had predicted, “…Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!”  Jesus knew his betrayal would come by the hands of an intimate friend (Jn. 13:18), and he knew exactly who that friend would be.  In the end it would not be man, but God himself who would deliver Jesus into their hands (Isa. 53:10).14 The act despicable, horrendous and heart breaking but as has been pointed out in our bible study it was in a sense the fulfilment of God’s wishes and of the prophecy of Jesus Christ unfolded… 

The chapter is concluded with yet another prophesy to Peter..

“When the servant girl saw him there, she said again to those standing around, ‘This fellow is one of them.’ Again he denied it. After a little while, those standing near said to Peter, ‘Surely you are one of them, for you are a Galilean.’ He began to call down curses,  and he swore to them, ‘I don’t know this man you’re talking about’” (14:69-71). 

Those standing near began to accuse Peter.  John adds that one of those was a relative of the man whose ear Peter had sliced off (Jn. 18:26).  All the fingers were pointed at Peter.  Unfortunately, his Galilean accent confirmed their charges whenever he opened his mouth.  Finally in desperation Peter began to call down curses on himself, swearing to everyone that he never knew this Jesus.

 “Immediately the rooster crowed the second time. Then Peter remembered the word Jesus had spoken to him: Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.  And he broke down and wept” (14:72).  “Peter’s renunciation is the first open denial of Jesus in Mark.” 76   It broke the man apart.  To add to his heartache, Luke tells us that at this precise moment Jesus turned and looked directly at Peter (Lk. 22:61).  The great disciple broke down and wept bitterly. Peter was a humble fisherman from Bethsaida..

According to the Acts of the Apostles, Peter and John were sent from Jerusalem to Samaria (Acts 8:14). The author of the Acts of the Apostles portrays Peter as the central figure within the early Christian community.  Peter AD 30; died between AD 64 and 68) also known as Simon Peter, Simeon, , Cephas, or Peter the Apostle. He was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ, and one of the first leaders of the early Church. According to Christian tradition, ironically Peter was crucified in Rome under Emperor Nero. The ancient Christian churches all venerate Peter as a major saint and as the founder of the Church of Antioch and of Rome.

The dark experience that Christ foretold had to deepen his faith and assist him in the awesome task which lay ahead.

  I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hell will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

 Matthew 16:18–19 (NIV)

Through the power of God this is what Peter did for us and we are forever grateful for his life and sacrifice…

We are grateful this evening for all of the many gifts that God has bestowed upon us, for his grace and forgiveness as Peter was also forgiven for his weaknesses…

We ask Lord, tonight that our humble bible study be blessed and that your blessings ripple out through all who are in need and are desiring of your love..

Help us to remember that you are always by our side..that you will guide us in this life toward the kingdom of heaven. Strengthen in our faith  in the face of temptation and adversity.

We ask these things in Jesus name…

Amen