“Motivation - Love or Betrayal?”
Almost everyone can tell you the story of Judas Iscariot. You remember, the disciple who chose to sell out Jesus to the religious leaders of his day for 30 pieces of silver. This amount was also the compensation paid to a slave’s master if a slave was killed by an ox. This amount was estimated to be a laborer’s wages for about 4 months.
There’s another story prior to the arrest of Jesus and it’s told in all four Gospels. Matthew and Mark put this event just before the Last Supper, while John puts it just before Jesus’ Triumphal entry. Regardless, the content of the story is the same as it tells of a woman who crashed a party at the home of Simon the Leper where Jesus was spending the night.
This woman is identified as Mary (John 12:1-3), the sister of Martha and Lazarus. Mary entered the house carrying an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume and poured it on the head of Jesus. The Bible says the disciples saw this lady as indignant and pouring out this perfume was a waste of money that could be given to the poor. The response of Jesus was, “Why are you bothering her, she has done a beautiful thing. When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial” (Matt. 26:6-12).
What Jesus says next is very significant, “I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her” (v. 13). If you’ve been in a Bible preaching church for any length of time, you most likely have heard this story. If you haven’t you should have.
There’s a huge contrast between the actions of Judas Iscariot and this woman. One was motivated by selfishness and greed, the other by love and devotion to her Lord. We first meet Mary during a visit Jesus paid to her home. She simply sat at his feet and listened. Our last glimpse of Mary shows her to have become a woman of thoughtful and worshipful action. She seemed to understand better even than the disciples, why Jesus was going to die.
Pride, arrogance, and selfishness will block our understanding of God’s love for us. Reading and listening to his Word will teach us “There’s no greater love than to lay down one’s life for a friend” (John 15:13). That’s what Jesus did for you and me. Mary was moved with compassion because she knew the price Jesus would pay for her sin. That price was His life – the same price he paid for your and my sins.
Pastor Carnes
