One Person// Two Responses

Its days leading up to what Christians call Good Friday and Easter, and the story of the Bible narrates two individuals and their responses to this one Person – Jesus, The Son of God who came down to earth to die for our sins.

The story is recorded in the Bible in Matthew 26: 6-15, with Matthew 26:6-13 recording an action by a woman who anoints Jesus with expensive perfume and Matthew 26:14-15 recording the action of a man who decides to betray Jesus for 30 silver coins.

What stark contrast, what different responses to the Son of Man who would soon die on the cross for the sins of the world.

Its a few days before the Passover festival, a festival commemorating how God saved the Israelites by passing over them as they obediently spread the blood of a lamb over their doorpost. Jesus knows He is about to be crucified, and perhaps He wanted to find comfort by staying with some friends in Bethany.

A woman (who most accept to be Mary of Bethany) comes with an alabaster jar of expensive perfume and lavishes it at Jesus feet. The alabaster jar was her whole livelihood, her worth as a woman. Imagine a whole jar of expensive perfume poured out, the smell that filled the room and the indignation of the people around. ‘What a waste!’ Did she understand what she was doing? We don’t know, but we know something, she loved Jesus dearly and was willing to give her all to Him in extravagant worship.

And Jesus received it, knowing that He would in a greater way pour out His life for all mankind, and she had the privilege of pouring her life out to Him beforehand.

Meanwhile, there’s a different response from another person. A man who followed Jesus, seeing Him doing signs, miracles and wonders, healing the sick and feeding the hungry miraculously, can’t stand it anymore. Perhaps he felt Jesus was getting crazy, perhaps he couldn’t take what the woman did to Jesus and Jesus acceptance of it. Jesus didn’t fit into what He thought a Saviour should look like. But one thing we know, he fell prey to the love of money. While the woman’s heart worshipped Jesus, his heart tended towards wealth and riches, and He rejected the one God-Man who could save His life and give Him true riches.

Jesus often divides. Yes, Jesus unites, but the name of Jesus also divides hearts. When someone gets to know Jesus, a response is needed, and it either tends towards that of worship – like the woman, or the love of money – like Judas. It often depends on whether we truly seek God and want to know this Jesus of the Bible.

What is your response? Who will you worship?

The more I know the Jesus of the Bible, the more I experience His kindness and mercy, the more I want to worship Him. I realise that no cost is as great as the cost He bore for me.

In the days to come, Jesus would be arrested and crucified. He, the Creator of Heaven of Earth, would die on a cross although He did no wrong. And as we encounter this Jesus, may we follow the footsteps of Mary, pouring out our worship in humble adoration because here is one who counted the cost yet laid down His life for us.

May you this season, seek the Jesus of the Bible out, and may You know Him as the Humble King, the Suffering Servant, the Perfect Sacrifice and the Risen Saviour and may you find Him more valuable than anything you can hold on to in this world.