At the home of Simon the Leper in Bethany, Jesus was anointed with expensive perfume by a woman in the house. After witnessing this, the disciples became upset with the woman and told her that she had wasted the perfume that could have been sold for a high price and the money given to the poor. Jesus then points out to them that the woman had done a "beautiful" thing for him. He said, "The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. When she poured the perfume on me, she prepared me for burial". Then Jesus told them that this gospel should always include the fact that this woman had done this for him and to do this will be in memory of her.
Problems:
The disciples were quick to chastise the woman for wasting a valuable commodity, but they failed to see her purpose. I wonder how the disciples felt after hearing Jesus tell them that she had done a good thing for him and why they hadn't performed some similar form of preparation?
Parallels:
Mark 14:3-9; John 12:1-11
Promises:
In this passage Jesus makes the promise to the woman who had anointed him with the perfume that this act of hers will always be mentioned in the gospel. By doing this, Jesus has preserved the memory of this woman for others to witness. I am also relatively sure that this woman, by definition of this act, revered Jesus and recognized him as the Messiah. Not only will her actions be honored, but also her faith and belief.
The perils I see here are those who had witnessed the miracles Jesus had performed and the prophecies he had spoken, but not even those who walked with him realized or even condoned the act of kindness that this woman had shown him. To me this message speaks of those who think they know Jesus and may even have a special relationship with him, but fail to show, in the most basic way, they understand what this means.
Precepts:
The precept or command I see in this passage is that we should not judge the actions of others. This woman was doing a most "beautiful" thing for Jesus, but others viewed her actions as wasteful and maybe even harmful. All we can do is to build our own relationship with Jesus and accept that others are doing what they need to do for this relationship as well.
Applications:
I can apply this message in my life today first to remember the woman who did such a wonderful thing for Jesus, and then to ask myself, "What have I done today that Jesus would want it written down somewhere for everyone to read about"? I cannot judge the relationship others have with Jesus, but I can nurture mine. This is the only thing that is important.
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