“Lazarus and his sisters invited Jesus to dinner at their home. Martha served. Lazarus was one of those sitting at the table with them. Mary came in with a jar of very expensive aromatic oils, anointed and massaged Jesus’ feet, and then wiped them with her hair.” (John 12:1-3 MSG)
Martha Served. Martha could be counted on to do the proper thing. She was an efficient worker who knew her place. She didn’t challenge the status quo. Lazarus sat at the table with Jesus and the other men. He, too, followed conventional protocol. Mary takes an expensive jar of perfume and anoints Jesus with it. She was the only one of these three siblings who always seemed to do her own thing. She was considered the weird one--frequently improper, unpredictable, and wasteful. Yet, Jesus defends Mary’s unconventional behavior--whether she is merely listening to his teaching or anointing his feet with expensive perfume. Jesus doesn’t see her as being wasteful or inefficient.
Most of us are like Martha and Lazarus. We follow conventional patterns in how we relate to God and each other. We dress, act, participate, and serve in ways that are sanctioned and approved by our communities. We rarely break protocol and just spend time with Jesus--that would seem too indulgent, unproductive, wasteful. We are often more influenced by other people than by Jesus. Maybe we should be more like Mary--break the mold, let our hair down, and honor God by pouring everything we have at His feet.
No comments:
Post a Comment