Bethany

Serving the Master’s Table

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Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served.  John 12:1

Mary gets all the good press in most of today’s Bible teaching but we need to remember that Jesus also loved Martha and Lazarus. Lazarus the faithful silent brother, Mary the quiet and shy listener, and Martha the enthusiastic servant, each held a special place in the great heart of our Master. If you are one who speaks their mind without pause and who wishes others would help out more because you are overwhelmed by your activities then you need to know that you are greatly loved by Jesus Christ.
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Just two days before the last supper and the cross Jesus was given a banquet apparently hosted by Martha though the Gospel of Mark tells us it was at Simon the leper’s house. Martha seems often to have been at the hub of activity.  Remember that it was she who first invited Jesus to her home in Bethany and served him while her sister Mary sat listening. Jesus lovingly takes us each as we  are. He doesn’t expect us who are like Martha to suddenly change into an eager listening Mary or a silent Lazarus. Yet in His acceptance Jesus does begin a sometimes painful work of transformation.

The Fragrance of the Perfume

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Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled withoctober-04-assorted-001 the fragrance of the oil          John 12:3

While Hollywood has generally given us the impression that Mary was a young beautiful woman, that may not have been the reality. In that time even poor young beautiful women would have been married and Mary was not poor. While we do not know Mary’s age it seems possible that she and Martha were both widows, living with their brother Lazarus. That would give us an entirely different view than the film version. In this scene we meet a Mary who kept all her savings in that perfume jar. It acted as something of a retirement account. As she grew older with no marital prospects, no way to work or even the right to own property that perfume was all she had besides the kindness of her brother. She was presenting  that gift in a single defining moment as her worship and expression of love to the Lord Jesus.

As the fragrance filled the room people began one by one to realize how exorbitant and yes even a little crazy what Mary was doing really was! Her family and friends were shocked but silent. Then one by one the disciples, beginning with Judas,  began to protest. “Why wasn’t this sold …and given to the poor?”

But Jesus knew Mary’s heart and while she remained silently at His feet He defended her. Today we have little to describe how Peter or John, Andrew or Phillip worshiped, but Mary’s act remains as the Bible’s best example of how we should be after 2,000 years. In a way that costly perfume continues to fill each of our rooms with its fragrance!

Mary Listened at His Feet

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 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 Luke 10:38-39

Usually when we hear about this story there is a contrast given be
tween these two sisters. Lost in the comparison however is the learning process and growth of Mary. The Mary of John twelve who washed his feet with the perfume from the alabaster jar is a Mary who has gone through the doubts, confusion and struggles that all of us face. Let’s pause just a moment today to see the day it all began. kimg1348

The morning Jesus came to Bethany the family of Lazarus, Martha and Mary welcomed him into their home. While the films usually depict Mary as a young beautiful woman there is nothing in scripture to support that. In fact, since there is no husband mentioned for either Martha or Mary it is just as likely that they were two middle-aged widows. What the Bible does tell us is that Mary was eager to hear everything that Jesus had to say. She was so eager in fact that she left her kitchen duties, silently bearing the criticism of her sister to sit at the Master’s feet.

Jesus defended Mary by saying, “Mary has chosen that good part” NKJV though it seems unlikely that this was some sort of reasoned decision. But what we do know is that the words of Jesus had an irresistible power and life which began a miraculous work in Mary’s heart that day. She just knew that she needed to understand his message more than anything else that day. No matter where any of us are in our lives Jesus is still speaking today. Whether we are old or young, if we are just beginning our journey with Jesus or if we have walked with Him a while He still comes into any home that welcomes him.What we do when Jesus comes?  He’s on the road to your village today!