John 12:1-11 “Prodigal Worship for a Prodigal God”

1:30There was a talent show with prizes, and it was just an incredible evening that we got to experience. I felt very honored as a newer employee at the very bottom of the totem pole that the company would do something that nice for all of us, and not just all of us, but our spouses as well, over 300 people. But it probably won't surprise you to learn that in the days leading up to the party and the days after the party, some in the company grumbled and said that the money was wasted. That that kind of money shouldn't have been spent in that way to honor the employees of the company. They saw it as a waste.

2:17Well, friends, something similar is going on here in John chapter 12, a story that's also recorded in Matthew and Mark's gospel accounts. And that is wonderful because these other two gospel writers that also report this story include little details and words that were spoken that John does not mention. And I say this often when I'm preaching, but I think it's worth repeating. The fact that multiple witnesses record the same story, but remember different details, is strong evidence that these witnesses are telling the truth.

2:56If the stories were identical in every way, every parent Every principal, every examiner of witnesses, every teacher knows that you and your siblings or you and your friends got together and made up a story and then told it. That's what you assume when the details are exactly the same. But when witnesses are actually telling the truth, all of the basic facts are the same. The details, however, complement one another and are often slightly different. And that's what we find in the accounts of Matthew, Mark, and John regarding what we find here in John 12. Now, the story in these accounts should not be conflated with what we find in Luke chapter 7.

3:42For those of you who may be familiar with that text, that's the story of the sinful woman who comes and wets Jesus' feet with her tears and then wipes them with her hair. Many students of the Bible make that mistake thinking that this is the exact same story, and it's easy to do because both of those events occur in a house. It's just one is in Galilee in the north and one is in Judea in the south.

4:07Both hosts are a man named Simon, but one is a Pharisee and the other is a leper. Both women are named Mary. Although the woman in Luke 7 is a sinful woman, a prostitute, who comes in and she is from Magdala, so she's called Mary Magdalene. And the other is Mary from Bethany, the sister of Martha and Lazarus. And so the real issue here is that Jewish parents just weren't very creative in naming their kids. I mean, you think about Jesus' own disciples. He has two dudes named James, two dudes named Judas, and two dudes named Simon, neither of which is Simon the leper or Simon the Pharisee.

4:55So be careful not to conflate the story in Luke chapter 7 with what we find in Matthew, Mark, and John. That was a different house, a different host, and a different woman. But both stories are moving and convicting. And the account that we're going to study today in John chapter 12 is particularly convicting because in this passage, we see a woman who is prodigal in her worship and devotion to Jesus. Now, if you know the word prodigal, you're probably familiar with the word because of the parable of the prodigal son.

5:31And most people never look the word up. They just associate prodigal with the son, and they know that he was a dude that made reckless choices and sinful choices. And so that's what we assume the word means. Prodigal must mean reckless, sinful, whatever else, morally bankrupt. But actually, the word prodigal means spending money or resources freely or recklessly. It can be defined as wastefully extravagant. And I love that phrase, wastefully extravagant. So, as we walk through John 12 this morning, I want to invite you to consider your own devotion to Jesus, your own worship, not just when we're gathered here in this room on Sunday mornings, but your worship as you go throughout the week. Because as Christians, our lives are supposed to be acts of worship. Our bodies are supposed to be living sacrifices. I want you to evaluate your own worship and devotion to Jesus and ask the question: can my worship be described as prodigal, wastefully extravagant?

6:41Because what we're going to learn today is our prodigal God is worthy of prodigal worship. Now, at the end of chapter 11, to remind you and catch you up if you haven't been following along with the sermons, the religious leaders planned to arrest Jesus so that they could put him to death. Now, that did not concern him because his life was one long march to the cross. Jesus came to lay down his life for us of his own accord and rise again on the third day so that we could be forgiven and reconciled to God. That was God's plan all along. That was Jesus' plan. But it wasn't yet his time. He was going to offer himself during the Passover as the final, perfect, spotless Passover Lamb.

7:29And the Passover, as we see here in verse 1, was still about a week away. It was about six days away from this event that takes place. And so Jesus took the disciples north. He went to a little town named Ephraim near the wilderness, and he hung out there for a bit with the disciples, and then he started heading south towards Jerusalem for Passover week. And on the way down to Jerusalem, they stopped about two miles away from the city in a little town called Bethany.

7:58And that's the hometown of Mary and Martha and Lazarus. No doubt they're all thrilled that he's passing back through. They are good friends with Jesus, and they decide that they're going to give a dinner in his honor. And according to Matthew and Mark, the host is a man named Simon, whom Jesus cured of leprosy. John does not mention that fact. It's not consequential to the story. But he does mention the fact that Lazarus and Martha and Mary, the three siblings from John chapter 11, are all there in this house.

8:30Lazarus is reclining at the table, because of course he is. Every time we see this man, he is horizontal. He is either sick or dead or laying near the table. But he is there as an honored guest, no doubt. They're thanking Jesus, I'm sure, for raising him back to life. They're celebrating Lazarus' new life. This is all a great thing. What is Martha doing? Martha is serving, because of course she is. And to be honest with you, I am not entirely sure. What to make of those two words, Martha served.

9:05Now, unlike the first time that we encounter Martha, she doesn't complain about it, and so maybe Jesus' gentle corrections set her free to serve without bitterness. And if that's the case, then she is using her gift of hospitality to bless Jesus and others, and that's all John is trying to show us. Martha is serving, she's a changed woman, she's now using her gift to the glory of God without any bitterness in her heart, like the first time. So praise God if that's the case.

9:34But, friends, I can't help but wondering if John is not saying something else here by including those two words, Martha served. Because why include that detail in the story? That's not essential to anything that happens. I wonder maybe if John is trying to highlight something about Martha that's true of many of us, and I know is true of me. I want you to take a quick look with me on the screen at Luke chapter 10. It says this: Now, as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village, and a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me. But the Lord answered her, Martha. Martha, you are anxious about and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.

10:42Now, Martha is a godly woman. Don't let anybody ever tell you otherwise. Martha is a godly woman. She opened her home and welcomed Jesus and all of his traveling companions, maybe regularly. She was a wonderful servant. She showed great faith in Jesus after Lazarus died. This is a generous and faithful woman. And I want you to understand that. But Martha was task-oriented. Like me, she got distracted easily by all the stuff that needs to be done.

11:21Like me, she got frustrated that other people, especially her sister, didn't see those things. And like me, it left her anxious and troubled. So very gently, Jesus helped her to see what she was missing. Martha, Martha, the dishes can wait. I'm right here. You're missing the best thing, the good portion, because you're so distracted and anxious about all that there is to do. And so maybe here in John 12, a week before Jesus. Crucifixion and burial, Martha was serving with a glad heart, full of faith, and John doesn't intend us to read anything more into it.

12:09But I wonder if he doesn't include this to show all of us who become distracted and troubled and anxious when there's a lot of stuff to do, that we can keep repeating the same mistakes over and over again. And we miss out on the best thing, the good portion, because we can't stop or we won't stop to sit at the feet of Jesus. So Martha is serving, Lazarus is reclining. What is Mary doing? Let's pick up in verse 3.

12:44Mary, therefore, took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. Now, the nard plant, not to be confused with the nard dog, the nard plant grows in the mountains of northern India. And people back in ancient times would take the root and the spike of that plant. They would extract the oil from the nard plant and they would make it into a perfume, which then they would export all over the Roman Empire. It was a really high-quality product. And according to Matthew and Mark, Mary's nard was stored in an alabaster flask. And all three gospel accounts, Matthew, Mark, Mark and John mention the cost of the perfume. So, this is no great value body spray. This is a really expensive imported perfume. And we're going to return to the cost of this substance a little bit later. Matthew and Mark record that Mary anointed Jesus' head. John records that Mary anointed his feet and wiped them with her hair. And again, this is a perfect example. People who study the Bible, who are skeptical, will say, well, see, it's just one of the many contradictions of the Bible, but this is no contradiction. These authors are recording different details to emphasize different truths and what they symbolize.

14:15The reality of the situation is surely with all of that nard that she used, she anointed both Jesus' head and his feet, but they highlight different things to highlight different truths. And so, what are Matthew and Mark doing? They're focusing on Jesus' head because he is the true king of Israel. And I want you to remember back to when David was anointed as king. Take a look on the screen at 1 Samuel chapter 16. Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah.

15:00Now, here in John 12, Mary is anointing Jesus, David's descendant, as king of Israel in the midst of his brothers, the disciples. And so what Matthew and Mark are showing us, they're focusing on the head because Jesus is the true king of Israel. But John focuses on the feet because he is using Mary as an example of devoted service to Jesus, the kind of service that every believer should render to him. Take a look at Bruce Milne's observations. He notes, significantly, Mary is mentioned three times in the Gospels and always in association with Jesus' feet. Thus, she sat at the Lord's feet to listen to his teaching. She fell at Jesus' feet to indicate her dependence. Now she anoints Jesus' feet to express her devotion. True service for Jesus springs from a wholehearted commitment to him as Lord. The feet of Jesus is where service for him begins.

16:13So Mary anointed both Jesus' head and his feet, and the symbolism is clear. Jesus is our king, worthy of our obedience. And Jesus is our master and Lord, worthy of our service. But, friends, I think we need to take a little more time to reflect on what Mary did and the effect of what she did and that effect that it had on the guests. The way that Mary anointed Jesus was prodigal in nature. It was wastefully extravagant. To break open a flask of expensive perfume and pour a pound of it on someone is prodigal. Wastefully extravagant.

17:04Using her hair to wipe his feet is a whole nother level. Women simply did not unbind their hair in public like this. Only prostitutes did that. And however, you feel about feet, feet in the first century had to have been the grossest things ever. You are walking around the dusty Middle East in scorching heat, wearing sandals when there's sewage and manure everywhere. That is why washing feet was reserved for the lowliest servant in the house. So imagine the scene with me. This is a very fancy dinner party. That's why the guests are reclining at table. They didn't always recline at table to eat. They only did that on special occasions. So this is a very fancy dinner party.

17:58And Mary is likely. A very wealthy woman. When Lazarus, her brother, died, many mourners came all the way from Jerusalem to mourn his death with the family. He had a proper burial in a tomb. Not every family could afford that. And she owns this expensive, big alabaster flask of imported ointment. So this wealthy woman walks in and she's holding this expensive bottle of perfume. And what do you think she's going to do? What's your expectation? She comes in discreetly. This is the first century. She's a woman. She comes in discreetly and just kind of dabs a little bit on Jesus, the guest of honor. Maybe she also anoints Lazarus with just a little dab because he's her brother. Maybe she does that for everybody at the table, but then, with great decorum, she just quietly walks out of the room. Mary looks generous. The guests feel honored. Everybody's super happy.

19:03Instead, she comes in, breaks the flask, and dumps it on Jesus' head and his feet. Everybody is stunned, but you know, maybe Mary's just flexing a little. I got so much cash, I don't even care, you know. But then she gets down on the floor and unbinds her hair and starts wiping Jesus' feet with it. You can almost hear the gasps. All social conventions, all decorum has been thrown out the window. She is making a scene.

19:40What kind of respectable woman takes down her hair in public like that? Who would use their hair to wipe somebody's feet? That's what you do with nasty rags. Party fouls have been committed. The play is under further review. Everybody is uncomfortable. All of this is very undignified. But that actually puts Mary in some really good company. In 2 Samuel 6, King David is finally bringing the Ark back to Bethlehem, where it belongs. And as the Ark is coming back into Bethlehem, he is leaping and dancing before the Lord. He is worshiping and celebrating. But his wife, Saul's daughter, Michael, despised him for it. I want you to look on the screen at 2 Samuel 6.

20:37And David returned to bless his household. But Michael, the daughter of Saul, came out to meet David and said, How the king of Israel honored himself today, uncovering himself today before the eyes of his servants' female servants, as one of the vulgar fellows shamelessly uncovers himself. And David said to Michael, it was before the Lord, who chose me above your father and above all his house to appoint me as prince over Israel, the people of the Lord. And I will celebrate before the Lord. I will make myself yet more contemptible than this, and I will be abased in your eyes. But by the female servants of whom you have spoken, by them I shall be held in honor. And Michael, the daughter of Saul, had no child to the day of her death.

21:37Michael despised David for his uninhibited worship. She shamed him for acting so undignified in front of his subjects. But he told her, I will celebrate before the Lord. I will make myself more contemptible than this. Friends, if we're honest, I think we've all been embarrassed of other Christians at different times. Maybe we're embarrassed of those who are more expressive than us in corporate worship. Maybe we're embarrassed of those who share their faith openly in public places.

22:19Maybe we're embarrassed of those who talk about Jesus all the time, no matter who's around. We've all felt embarrassed by other Christians at different times in our lives. And that's because we see some of those things as undignified. They're too zealous, too over the top. It makes us uncomfortable, just as it made Michael uncomfortable, just as Mary's act of devotion surely made the entire room uncomfortable. But David did not care what Michael or anybody else thought. He was not going to stop celebrating before the Lord because she thought it was undignified.

23:00And Mary did not care what anybody else thought either. Hers was a prodigal worship, a wastefully extravagant worship, because she believed that the Lord was worthy of it. And it's good that she didn't care what other people thought because other people didn't think too highly of what she just did. Let's pick up in verse 4. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples, he who was about to betray him, said, Why was this ointment not sold for 300 denarii and given to the poor? He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief. And having charge of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

23:54Michael despised David, and Judas despised Mary. But before we treat Judas too harshly, Matthew and Mark note that it was all the disciples, not just Judas, who were upset. And they were big mad. The text in Matthew and Mark says they were indignant. Judas was just the one who voiced what everybody else was thinking or whispering among themselves. In the other accounts, the disciples are noted as saying, why this waste? Why this waste? You can hear the contempt in the question.

24:35Judas continues, why wasn't this ointment sold for 300 denarii and given to the poor? Now, obviously, as John says, he's not interested in the poor. He wants to sell that perfume, put the money in the bag so that he can help himself to some of the profits. But it makes you wonder how much 300 denarii is, doesn't it? Well, I did some math. Which was very hard and took me a long time. You probably have a footnote in your Bible that a denarius is a day's wage for a laborer. So if the Jews are working six days a week, that's about 300 days in the year. So it's about a year's wages. Okay, well, if we assume that a worker is earning minimum wage, then here in our great state of Texas, minimum wage is $7.25.

25:28There are at least 2,000. Hours in a working year. And so that means that in today's currency, this perfume was worth $14,500. Let that sink in. Mary took a bottle of perfume that in today's currency was worth $14,500, broke it open, and poured it on Jesus' head and feet. Now let me ask you a question. If you saw somebody pour $14,500 of something on someone else, what would you think? You would be stunned, speechless. You would think they were crazy. You would probably, if we're honest, be a little angry. And you might say something like, why this waste?

26:16$14,500 is a down payment on a home. That is tuition money, wedding money. It's almost gas money. I would be furious if I saw someone pour $14,500 worth of anything on anybody else. But just like Judas, we might cover up the true intentions of our heart with pious-sounding language like concern for the poor. But really, we're just mad because we would have liked to have those funds so that we could spend them on ourselves. Look at how Mark remembers the event in Mark 14.

26:58There were some who said to themselves, Indignantly, why was the ointment wasted like that? For this ointment could have been sold for more than 300 denarii and given to the poor. And they scolded her. They scolded her. They rebuked Mary in front of everybody at the dinner party for her prodigal worship, for her wasteful extravagance, just like Michael scolded David for his prodigal worship. So the question is: what is Jesus going to do? I mean, had Mary acted rashly and foolishly, maybe even sinfully, by doing this?

27:36What is Jesus going to think about her act? Let's look at verse 7. Jesus said, Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial. For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me. Far from scolding her, Jesus comes to her defense and says, Leave her alone. And Matthew and Mark record that Jesus also said, She has done a beautiful thing to me. I mean, you just think about that for a second. This is a man who had no place to lay his head, that when he was arrested and crucified, the only thing he owned was the clothes on his back. This was probably the nicest thing that anyone ever did for him.

28:24Everybody, and this is really convicting, everybody always wanted something from Jesus. Mary wanted to do something for Jesus. And she was scolded. As for the poor, the people that Judas allegedly wanted to help with the sale of the ointment, Jesus is very clear: you are always going to have them with you. And Christians, I think that's really important to understand. Because of sin and the curse, there are always going to be poor people among us. What that means is no government program, no non-profit agency, even the church itself, will not be able to fully eradicate poverty before Jesus returns.

29:15So we are always going to have the poor with us. And Mark records that Jesus also said, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. This is almost a side note, a passing observation that Jesus makes in response to what the disciples were thinking and saying. So I don't want to spend a whole lot of time here because this is not the main point that Jesus is making. But I do want to note this.

29:43Commands, encouragements, and examples to remember and help the poor abound in Scripture. The poor are often more receptive to the gospel than the rich. Jesus said, it's easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. Than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. The early church grew exponentially for hundreds of years because Christians were the only people who would minister to and serve the outcasts of society, the poor, the orphan, and the widow.

30:20So I just want to take this brief moment to challenge us as a church to find ways to do good to the poor. Friends, poverty is overwhelming. I feel this way. You probably feel this way. Poverty is overwhelming. It's everywhere. It's present even in our own community. And it can feel like I don't even know where to start. And because it's so overwhelming, instead of doing anything, we do nothing. So I want to challenge you, excuse me, I want to challenge you this morning to find a place to start. And you can start small.

30:58Start by sponsoring a child or a family through an organization like Compassion International. Pray for them, give to them, support them. When you get home today, grab a couple of bottles of water, some snacks, some clothes that have been sitting in your closet for a long time that you don't wear, and one of the six Bibles that you don't read. I don't mean to say you don't read the Bible. I'm just saying you have too many of them like me. That came out wrong. Yeah, I trust that you read the Bible.

31:31Take all that stuff and put it in a box and put it in your trunk. And that way, the next time you see a homeless person who's asking for help, you don't have to go through that thing that you go through and that I go through every time. Well, all I have on me is cash, or I don't even have cash on me. If I gave them cash, what would they do with it? Well, you've got water, snacks, clothes, and a Bible. You can hand it to them right there and then.

31:55It doesn't matter what you decide to do, but Jesus said, you'll always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good to them. We should do good to the poor. We're encouraged to do good to the poor all throughout Scripture. We just have to be ready. So the disciples will always have the poor with them, but they won't always have him. So the time for doing good to Jesus and blessing him before his crucifixion is now.

32:22Mary is right to seize this opportunity and do this beautiful thing to prepare him for his burial. Verse 9. When the large crowd of the Jews learned that Jesus was there, they came, not only on account of him, but also to see Lazarus, whom he raised from the dead. So the chief priests made plans to put Lazarus to death as well, because on account of him, many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus.

32:56Friends, the religious leaders are so blinded by their pride. Desire to preserve the status quo, like we talked about last week, that they are denying the truth about Jesus and are willing to break God's law and commit murder to cover it up. Now, the plan isn't just to get rid of Jesus, the plan is to get rid of the guy he raised from the dead, Lazarus, by murdering him. This is how sin works. Sin leads to more sin.

33:33If you're around in the 80s and 90s, you may remember those lay's potato chips commercials. Bet you can't eat just one. The idea was that lay's potato chips are so good, you'd end up eating most of the bag. Well, friends, that's the scary thing about sin. It operates in much the same way. Bet you can't sin just once. Think about King David. He lusted in his heart, but that wasn't satisfying enough, so he committed adultery. After he committed adultery, he knew that was wrong, so he lied to cover it up. When all of his lies and deceptions failed, he plotted the murder of Bathsheba's husband Uriah and had it carried out on the battlefield.

34:22Bet you can't sin just once. Sin leads to more sin. The religious leaders are doing this, they're adding sin to sin. At every turn, they could have said, enough is enough. If we're on a path where we have to keep breaking God's law, clearly we're on the wrong path. They could have said that at any time, but most of them didn't do that because sin blinds us to what's really going on in our hearts. We are experts at justifying ourselves. They should have done what Mary did and fell at the feet of Jesus. But instead, they hardened their hearts even further.

35:06I shared a bit at the beginning of the sermon about our company Christmas party and how some people in the organization thought it was a waste of money. People thought that about Mary's Act too. But what they reveal when they think that about what Mary did is that they don't understand the kind of God that we serve. And in Luke chapter 15, we find what we know as the parable of the prodigal son. And in this parable, the younger of two sons demands his inheritance before the father has died, and he squanders it all in reckless living. When he runs out of money, he hires himself out to feed pigs, and he's so hungry that he seriously considers eating out of the same trough as the pigs. But one day he comes to his senses. He realizes that he's been a fool, and it would be better for him to go home to his dad and admit that, apologize to him. And ask to be a slave in the house because at least then he would have enough to eat. So that's what he does. But his dad, who clearly has been hoping and praying for his return this whole time, he sees him when he's a long way off. He runs out to him and embraces him and kisses him. And the son starts his prepared speech about how he doesn't deserve to be his son and how he'll be a slave. And the father cuts him off. And he calls to the servants: bring the best robe, bring a ring, bring shoes for his feet, slaughter the fattened calf for a celebration.

36:37You see, friends, we are all the foolish younger sons who have spit in our heavenly father's face, who have snatched from him what he would have freely given to us anyway. And we've run off to live the life that we want to live apart from him. If and when we ever come to our senses and decide to return, what do we expect? We expect to have to pay God back for all the wrong things that we've done. We expect to have to work to earn his love. In other words, we expect the exact same things that the younger son expected.

37:21But God, in his prodigal love, his wastefully extravagant love, does not work like that. That's the point of the parable. God is so wastefully extravagant in his love that the older brother is furious when he learns what the father has done and that he would be so generous with his younger brother who has come back because his mentality is just like ours. It's one of earning. That we have to pay God back for all the wrong that we've done, that we've got to work to earn his love. But friends, that is not how grace works.

38:01And we see that fully and perfectly demonstrated, this wastefully extravagant love in the way that Jesus came for us. Jesus came for us, though he never spit in his father's face. He never disobeyed. He always obeyed. He was the model son. And yet he offered himself in our place. He went to the cross where we should have gone, and he died where we should have died. He was buried and he rose again, so that through faith, we could be wrapped in the robe of Christ's righteousness so that we could be forgiven and reconciled to God.

38:48And Jesus taught that those who have been forgiven much love much. And that is what Mary's act demonstrates. This is the act of a woman who loves fully and completely because she knows she's. Been forgiven fully and completely. No cost was too high to her financially or socially because she believed that Jesus was worthy of that kind of worship. And she's right. Our prodigal God is worthy of prodigal worship. And so I invite you today: I hope that you will evaluate your own worship and consider where and what, and most importantly, why you're holding back from worshiping such a gracious God like Mary did.

39:43Let's pray. Father, you are a God who is worthy of prodigal worship. Wastefully extravagant worship that makes us look undignified, overzealous. Too extreme for many other people, including sometimes people in the church. God, we pray that you would forgive us for caring more about what other people think and what other people say than about what you, the God of the universe, who sent his only son for us, thinks of us. We pray that you would, through the power of your grace and the power of your Holy Spirit, that you would defeat the fear of man that exists in every one of us at some level so that we can live lives of worship that do not make sense to many people around us, but that honor and glorify you.

41:26Thank you for Mary's example. Thank you for the men who wrote down the details of this act of prodigal worship so that she could become our teacher and example today in the way that we should respond to our Savior, Jesus. In Christ's name we pray. Amen. Thank you for listening to the sermon audio from New Life Baptist Church in College Station, Texas. For more information or to support our ministry, visit us online at newlifecs.net.