Jesus Anointed at Bethany  April 9, 2006
Read John 12:1-8

Key verse: John 12-3
"Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair. and the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume."

Mary seemed drawn to the feet of Jesus. It is not surprising that of all those who followed Jesus, Mary was the one to anoint His feet. Martha. too, was prone toward acts of service, but she had developed a different kind of relationship with Jesus than Mary had. While Maratha had labored on Jesus’ behalf in the kitchen, Mary had joyfully sat at Jesus’ feet and listened to him. Because Mary had come to know and love Jesus in this way, she was ready to humble herself and offer this expression of love to Him.

The Blackaby brothers in their book, Experiencing God Day-By-Day, wrote that the way we express our love for Jesus depends  on the kind of relationship we have developed with Him. Our love for Him will not grow unless we spend time with him, listen to His voice and experience His love for us. If we find that our love for Jesus has waned or that we struggle to serve Him, it is a clear sign that we must take time to sit at His feet. We may have been involved in Christian activity on His behalf and yet neglected our relationship with Him. After we have spent time in intimate fellowship with our Lord and received His love, we will be prepared to serve Him.

Joni Eareckson Tada, in her book Diamonds in the Dust, wrote that for weeks, Jesus had been telling His disciples that He would soon be crucified and taken from them. Did they listen? But one person listened, really listened to the words of Jesus. It was Mary, the sister of Martha. Surely the Lord was deeply touched by her demonstration of devotion, the pouring of perfume on His feet. What may have touched Him more, however, was the knowledge that Mary was doing this as a preparation for His burial.

How did Mary know all this? She sat at the feet of Jesus and drank in His every word. She pondered the things He said, weighing everything, considering it all. The disciples failed to genuinely listen and missed the chance to minister to the Lord before He went to the cross. We bring so much delight to the Lord when we sit at His feet and consider all the things He says.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, today as we set at your feet to listen, oh may we genuinely hear what wonderful things You have to say. Amen.

Luther McCollum

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