TIME AT HIS FEET
Prayer
Praying On The Journey With Christ
A Commitment To Encounter Christ Through The Gospel Of John
Object:
John 12:1-8
Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus' feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, "Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?" (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) Jesus said, "Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me."
COMMENTARY
Judas, Lazarus, and Mary are all intertwined in this text. Judas cared little about the poor or Jesus. Collecting money was his specialty, and like many other persons, there was never quite enough of it on deposit to make him feel secure. Additionally, he was a thief.
Lazarus knows that being the object of a miracle of Jesus puts one in a dangerous position, especially if one isn't quiet about it. If Lazarus were smart, he would go to a distant land, raise tomatoes, and be inwardly grateful to be alive. However, he did much more. He became known. Many believed because of him.
Mary anoints Jesus' feet not as a simple gesture of servitude, but as recognition of him as Messiah. She has seen beyond the great arena of service to Christ, to the greater arena of being in the presence of God. That difference is most difficult for us to comprehend, because the mysterious presence of "God with us" has been diluted by a simpler duty of giving and receiving service to and from one another in the name of Christ. Prayer may help us understand.
PRAYER
Lord Jesus, everyone who comes into your life brings consequences. Judas' true nature is found out, Lazarus becomes a target to be murdered, and Mary, who knows who you really are, is criticized for her devotion. Sometimes it seems it would be better never to learn a thing about you, or to follow you for more than a moment.
Judas, Lord, must have been a painful case for you. Here was a man who had every opportunity to come into the faith, but his love for money was greater than all. He is such a pathetic man, because he has no vision. He cannot see whom he is with. He can only see money.
Lazarus, Lord, loved you enough to cause you to weep over his death. Was it a favor to bring him back into this world? Did you do it for him or for us? Were you just doing what God does best by restoring life? You use us, Lord, even when it doesn't suit us. You use us to show your power. You must have this privilege if your will is to be done, on earth, as in heaven.
Mary saw you most clearly, Lord. She didn't see feet that needed anointing when she looked at you. She saw God in your eyes, love in your heart, the Messiah upon earth. For her to be true she had no choice but to fall at your feet with anointing oil. Like the wise man at your birth, bringing the gift of myrrh, now it is administered in love by the wisest of women in preparation for your burial.
Lord, with that oil and kneeling, Mary proclaimed to all of us the mysterious presence of a sacrificing God among us. She wasn't denying the plight of the miserable poor, but only indicating that she knew you were going to die.
Mary showed us, Lord, that time at your feet is essential. If we see you rightly, dying like the poor and forsaken, won't we also see the poor as our poor? You know that if we kneel rightly before you, when we rise we will no longer serve one another begrudgingly.
Lord, she saw you dying for her as she knelt before you. She saw your burial coming, your sacrifice, for her. She saw herself as a sinner who needed a Savior. And although she couldn't see your resurrection yet, she knew that being died for by you was more important than anything else on earth.
Lord, help us see that we cannot serve our neighbor rightly without first kneeling at your feet. Help us see that we cannot stop worrying about our own sin until we see the price you paid to make it have no more power to separate us from one another. Help us see what Mary saw when she saw you. Help us see you now, almighty God. Amen.
Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus' feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, "Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?" (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) Jesus said, "Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me."
COMMENTARY
Judas, Lazarus, and Mary are all intertwined in this text. Judas cared little about the poor or Jesus. Collecting money was his specialty, and like many other persons, there was never quite enough of it on deposit to make him feel secure. Additionally, he was a thief.
Lazarus knows that being the object of a miracle of Jesus puts one in a dangerous position, especially if one isn't quiet about it. If Lazarus were smart, he would go to a distant land, raise tomatoes, and be inwardly grateful to be alive. However, he did much more. He became known. Many believed because of him.
Mary anoints Jesus' feet not as a simple gesture of servitude, but as recognition of him as Messiah. She has seen beyond the great arena of service to Christ, to the greater arena of being in the presence of God. That difference is most difficult for us to comprehend, because the mysterious presence of "God with us" has been diluted by a simpler duty of giving and receiving service to and from one another in the name of Christ. Prayer may help us understand.
PRAYER
Lord Jesus, everyone who comes into your life brings consequences. Judas' true nature is found out, Lazarus becomes a target to be murdered, and Mary, who knows who you really are, is criticized for her devotion. Sometimes it seems it would be better never to learn a thing about you, or to follow you for more than a moment.
Judas, Lord, must have been a painful case for you. Here was a man who had every opportunity to come into the faith, but his love for money was greater than all. He is such a pathetic man, because he has no vision. He cannot see whom he is with. He can only see money.
Lazarus, Lord, loved you enough to cause you to weep over his death. Was it a favor to bring him back into this world? Did you do it for him or for us? Were you just doing what God does best by restoring life? You use us, Lord, even when it doesn't suit us. You use us to show your power. You must have this privilege if your will is to be done, on earth, as in heaven.
Mary saw you most clearly, Lord. She didn't see feet that needed anointing when she looked at you. She saw God in your eyes, love in your heart, the Messiah upon earth. For her to be true she had no choice but to fall at your feet with anointing oil. Like the wise man at your birth, bringing the gift of myrrh, now it is administered in love by the wisest of women in preparation for your burial.
Lord, with that oil and kneeling, Mary proclaimed to all of us the mysterious presence of a sacrificing God among us. She wasn't denying the plight of the miserable poor, but only indicating that she knew you were going to die.
Mary showed us, Lord, that time at your feet is essential. If we see you rightly, dying like the poor and forsaken, won't we also see the poor as our poor? You know that if we kneel rightly before you, when we rise we will no longer serve one another begrudgingly.
Lord, she saw you dying for her as she knelt before you. She saw your burial coming, your sacrifice, for her. She saw herself as a sinner who needed a Savior. And although she couldn't see your resurrection yet, she knew that being died for by you was more important than anything else on earth.
Lord, help us see that we cannot serve our neighbor rightly without first kneeling at your feet. Help us see that we cannot stop worrying about our own sin until we see the price you paid to make it have no more power to separate us from one another. Help us see what Mary saw when she saw you. Help us see you now, almighty God. Amen.
