April
10, 2022 NOTES NOT EDITED
Extravagant Worship
John 12:1-8
SIS: The only worship that is worthy of Almighty
God is "extravagant" worship.
ex·trav·a·gant [ik-strav-uh-guhnt] –adjective
1.spending much more than is necessary or
wise; wasteful: an extravagant shopper.
2.excessively high: extravagant expenses; extravagant prices.
3.exceeding the bounds of reason, as actions, demands, opinions, or passions.
Americans
are an "extravagant" people, but not always in a positive sense. Consider how "extravagantly
wasteful" we are:
• throw away 106,000
aluminum cans every 30 seconds,
• distribute 1 mil
plastic cups on U.S. airline flights
every 6 hours,
• go through 2 million
plastic beverage bottles every five
minutes,
• discard 426,000
cell phones every day,
• use 1.14 million
brown paper supermarket bags each hour,
• use 60,000
plastic bags every five seconds,
• use 15 million
sheets of office paper every five
minutes and
• produce 170,000 Energizer batteries every 15 min.
“We can go on. Americans discard enough aluminum to rebuild our entire
commercial air fleet every three months — and aluminum represents less than one
percent of our solid waste stream. We toss 14 percent of the food we buy at the
store. More than 46,000 pieces of plastic debris float on each square mile of
ocean.”—motherjones.com/environment/2009/05/waste-not-want-not. Retrieved
September 28, 2009.
Extravagant certainly describes our habits of
consumption as Americans -- "excessively high; exceeding bounds of
reason."
But,
does "extravagant" apply to our worship experience as Americans? I think you know where this is going. Do we spend an "excessively high"
amount of time reading our Bibles for instance?
Do we spend and "excessively high" amount of time in
prayer? Do we give an "excessively
high" amount of our money in church donations? Uh-oh!
It's getting "excessively hot" in here!
We
all know the fact of the matter: our worship to God through His
church cannot be described as "extravagant" in the same measure as
the amount of waste we produce through our daily living.
In
regard to our lives, we consume extravagantly but in regard to our worship, the
operative phrase is, "just good enough."
As
we continue to examine God's Word in this time of Lent (40 days before Easter)
we have been thinking about how we live our lives in light of the sacrifice God
made on our behalf.
Certainly,
we all agree that God's love for us qualifies as "extravagant" -- excessively high; exceeding the bounds of
reason.
Today,
we are going to look at an example of "extravagant worship" by a
woman deeply thankful for what Jesus Christ had done in her life. We are going to join a family "touched
by the miraculous love of Jesus."
The response by Mary to Who Jesus is and what He had done was an act of
"extravagant worship" -- or, "holy waste."
Let's
read this story together: (Jn 12:1-8)
Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. 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. 4 But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, 5 “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.” 6 He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it. 7 “Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. 8 You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”
This
story pricks my heart. When I read it I become acutely aware that my love and
devotion to Christ is almost a sham in comparison to Mary's. And, I have so
much more to be thankful for than Mary.
At the time, Mary had only received the miracle of a "restored
loved one." However great a miracle
that was, it is a small thing compared to the miracle of eternal life that I
have received from the Lord.
Should
not my worship to God be eternally more deep and sincere than that of
Mary's? I certainly think so.
As
we explore this example of "extravagant" worship, I pray it will
deepen our love for Jesus Christ and spur us on to a more vigorous,
enthusiastic, and costly worship. I pray
that Mary's example will help us take more seriously the private and public
times of worship in our lives. There are
at least four characteristics that made Mary's worship
"extravagant."
1. First, EW involves GRATITUDE
On a recent religious talk show the hostess was interviewing a
young woman who had just recently come to know Christ and had been received
into the church. Until her recent conversion, she had lived on the wrong side
of the tracks, lived in the fast lane, and teetered on the brink of destruction.
So overwhelming was the sense of forgiveness that this young woman practically
gushed with joy as she spoke. "I can't express," she said, "the
sense of gratitude that I feel that God has changed my life."
The talk show hostess knew
where she was coming from for she, too, had walked on life's wild side before
coming to Jesus. She said, "I know what you mean. Every day I thank God
for saving me!" And then she added a very profound statement: "You
know what I've noticed though? People who
have always been in the church, people who always do what they ought, who have
never really gotten into trouble, always been prim and proper, don't have the
same sense of gratitude that I do. In fact, I've noticed that for most
church people, it's not so much what God had done for them, but what they still want God to do!"
It
is easy for those of us who have been in church for a while to take the gift of
salvation for granted. It is obvious that
Mary did not take the miracle Jesus performed for granted. It meant something to her. It moved her deeply both spiritually and physically. Her gratitude could not be contained to just
spiritual platitudes, but burst out in a physically tangible way.
People
have always reacted this way in regard to spiritual matters. Think of the ancients who offered sacrifice
upon sacrifice upon sacrifice to show devotion to their deity of choice. Certainly, we cannot commend such sacrifices,
but it proves the point that worship which does not more than rattle around in
one's head is not true worship. True,
extravagant worship, will always find a physical expression.
This
is why we sing. This is why we have
public prayers. This is why we have
sacred dance and sacred art. When God
touches a person's heart, there is an unstoppable urge to do something with our
hands.
Worship
at the very core is a physical response of gratitude. It is an outward expression of a thankful
heart. We can miss the reason for Mary's
outburst of extravagance if we concentrate only on Mary's act. We must look about the room to find the reason
for Mary's extravagance. Look in verse two:
"Lazarus was among those who were
reclining at the table with [Jesus]."
There he is. Once dead. Once lost to his family.
But now, back in the picture -- full of life.
One hundred percent huggable for his sisters.
When Jesus gave Mary back her
brother, Lazarus,
from the dead it was the greatest gift she had ever
received, or could have ever conceived of.
Here's
my point: Mary found it very easy to
pour out her life -- and the family's life savings -- to Jesus because she had
received something of almost infinite worth -- a dead brother returned to her
alive.
Now
follow me here: have we not received
something of even more eternal value from Jesus than Lazarus and his
family? We do not know how long Lazarus
lived after being raised from the dead, but we do know he eventually died and
occupied a grave.
Yet,
you and I have received our life back again and we will experience eternal life
and bliss in heaven. How can we consider
what Jesus has done for us and not feel compelled to pour our lives out before
him like Mary poured out her perfume.
This is the essence of the story:
Mary's gratitude for Who Jesus is
and what He had done compelled her to EXTRAVAGANT WORSHIP. No other response would be appropriate.
At
the heart of extravagant worship is GRATITUDE.
If your worship has become lukewarm or flat it is because you have taken
the gift of God in Christ for granted -- or worse yet, never received the gift
of life in the first place. In either
case, this calls for some serious reflection.
Extravagant
Worship involves GRATITUDE.
2.
EW requires HUMILITY (v 3; Mk. 14:3)
A
little background is necessary to put this text in John into perspective. This anointing of Jesus is mentioned in
Matthew, Mark, and John. Another
anointing involving another woman -- who had lived a very sinful life-- and
involving completely different circumstances is mentioned in Luke.
In
this instance in Bethany there are minor differences that can be easily
explained as just different perspectives on the same event. But, there is a difference in John that I
believe has special theological reasons
for being included. Remember, John was
written years later than the other gospels and was a theological study of the
Life of Jesus, not so much a chronological record of His life.
In
Matthew and Mark the writers record that after Mary broke the vile she
"poured it on His head" (Mt. 26:7; Mk. 14:3)
In
our text in John, John adds theological insight by recording something that
happened the other writers did not record.
John says that Mary
"poured it on Jesus'
feet" (Jn.
12:3).
It
was common when a guest came to your house to wipe a little oil on the forehead. It
was a gesture of kindness against the harsh, hot Middle Eastern sun.
Anointing
the head was also a common way to coronate a king.
Now,
Mary did both. But, John alone was led
by the Holy Spirit to point out that she also anointed His feet. This would not be
difficult to do. In Middle Eastern
fashion guests ate lying on cots with their head at the table and their bodies
pointing away. That's the reference
given in verse two to Lazarus, "reclining at
the table." To me this is a very strange custom
but it was the common way in the Biblical times.
John
was pointing out the great "humility" of Mary. Humility is a blessed virtue much commanded
in Scripture. The Lord Himself said,
"Blessed are the
poor in spirit for theirs is
the kingdom of heaven." (Mt. 5:3).
Jesus
also said,
"Whoever humbles
himself like [a] child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven" (Mt. 18:4).
There
was nothing more disgusting to a Middle Easterner of Jesus' day than to touch
someone feet -- much less get your face down close enough to wipe the dust off
with your hair. This was so disgusting
as to be almost disgraceful for a lady like Mary. Plus, she let down her hair. This was another act sure to bring her scorn.
Respectable
woman did not let their hair down in public.
That was something only reserved for the husband.
Anointing
the feet of a guest was the duty of the lowest slave in the household. Mary gladly took upon herself that duty in
order to show her Lord "extravagant worship."
Extravagant
Worship will always open one up to the ridicule and perhaps scorn of
others. It did Mary. Look in verses 4-5,
4 But one of his disciples,
Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, 5 “Why wasn’t
this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s
wages.” 6 He did not say this because he cared about the poor but
because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to
what was put into it."
Again,
John writing much later for a more specific theological purpose adds the part about Judas.
Matthew and Mark point out that all the disciples had a problem with
Mary's extravagance -- Judas just had different reasons for objecting.
It
takes great humility to give "extravagant worship" to the Lord
because I can guarantee you SOMEONE IS GOING TO OBJECT!
Take
the example of David as instructive of this fact.
12 Now King David was told,
“The Lord has blessed the household of Obed-Edom and everything he has, because
of the ark of God.” So David went down and brought up the ark of God from the
house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing. 13 When those
who were carrying the ark of the Lord had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull
and a fattened calf. 14 David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before
the Lord with all his might,
...........................................
16 As the ark of the Lord was entering the City of David, Michal
daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and
dancing before the Lord, she despised him in her heart.
If
you are so humble as to allow yourself to give "extravagant worship"
to God, don't be surprised if someone objects.
So
often in our Baptist church we put way too much starch in our Sunday
clothes. We are so stiff in worship
sometimes we can hardly sit down -- and when we do sit down, we are not about
to get back up -- and certainly NOT DANCE.
Friend,
pride in our tradition keeps us from giving God "extravagant
worship." And pride, is the
deadliest of all sins.
We
will do just about anything to protect our pride and our standing in the
community. We are like one man I read about. This man was vain and self-centered. He came from a prominent family and was going
to write a book to make sure that his fine family name would live on long after
he was gone.
But
as he began looking into his family background, he discovered more than a few
skeletons in his closet.
One example was the man's Uncle Fred who had been convicted of murder and
eventually, after a long prison stay, electrocuted. Why, this would ruin the
family name if it got out. So, the man
sort of rewrote the part about his Uncle Fred, the prisoner who was
electrocuted. The written version went
like this:
"My Uncle Fred occupied the
chair of applied electricity at one of our leading government institutions. He
was attached to this position by the strongest of ties and his death came as a
great shock!"
Our
pride keeps us from giving our Lord "Extravagant Worship." It keeps our voices soft when the Spirit
calls us to shout. It keeps our hands to
our sides when the Spirit urges us to raise them in an act of humble surrender.
Mary's
extravagant worship involved gratitude and it required humility. But, her EW
did something special:
3.
EW influences OTHERS (v. 3b)
"And the house was
filled with the
fragrance of perfume"
Mary's
act of extravagant worship blessed the others in the room.
Let
me say that again . . . Mary's act of extravagant worship blessed the others in
the room.
I
would hope that my life would "sweeten" the little corner of life
where I live. Over the last week while
meditating on this story, I have tried to be extra pleasant everywhere I've
gone. I've tried to be cautious of how I
speak to others I meet in my daily life.
In
short, I decided it would be much better to leave a sweet perfume behind when I
leave rather than the stink of self-centeredness.
When
we come together in church to worship God together, we should be especially
mindful of what kind of odor we are creating by our presence.
I
read somewhere that "everybody
brightens a room--some when they enter, and others when they leave!"
Over
the years I have learned that there are certain people, that when you inquire
upon greeting them: "Hello, so and so, how are you doing," they will
actually begin to tell you in painstaking detail.
Two
ladies were talking at the supermarket. "I ran into old Mrs. Burgess on my
way up here," said one. "And I made the mistake of asking her how she
was." "Did she tell you?" said the other woman. "Yes she did. In groanological order."
Mary
was no such person. She was an
"extravagant worshipper" of the Lord Jesus Christ and she positively
influenced everyone around her.
When
we live in the attitude of "extravagant worship" where every thing we
have, every thing we do, and every where we go we demonstrate the love we have
for the Lord Jesus Christ, we will leave the sweet perfume of devotion wafting
in the air when we leave.
Living
a life of "Extravagant Worship" positively influences others.
EW
involves gratitude. EW requires
humility. EW positively influence
others. Also,
4. EW anticipates HEAVEN (v 7)
7 “Leave her alone,” Jesus
replied. “It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my
burial.
All
three accounts contain this statement about Mary anointing him with one of the
spices traditionally used to prepare a dead body for burial.
Did
Mary fully understand Jesus' words? It
is doubtful. The Bible indicates that
the disciples were surprised to see Jesus die. They certainly did not
comprehend the substitutionary meaning of His death. No, sometimes there is
more truth available to us than we can fully comprehend in one instance. This seems to be such an incidence.
So,
I'm not sure Mary fully comprehended the fact that Jesus was going to die on a
cross in just a few days in order that she -- and all believers before, during,
and after her -- could have eternal life.
Her gift anticipates this, but not in a manner fully understood by her
or the disciples.
But,
it is something fully comprehendable by you and I we can clearly see that "extravagant
worship" arises in part because we anticipate the great blessing of heaven
that awaits us after we die. Just as
Jesus died and was raised from the dead, so every believer in Christ will
likewise rise from the dead. Paul writes
in Rom 6:3-7:
Don’t you know that all
of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We
were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just
as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may
live a new life. 5 If we have been united with him like this in his
death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. 6 For
we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might
be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin— 7 because
anyone who has died has been freed from sin.
This was what Mary act pointed to,
eventhough she
and the disciples could not fully appreciate it -- yet.
WE
can fully appreciate it. Our acts
of "extravagant worship" arise out of a hopeful anticipation of that
day when we will worship God around the throne in heaven. The Apostle John describes that scene:
After this I looked and
there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every
nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of
the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their
hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice:
“Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb.”
11 All the angels were
standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures.
They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying:
“Amen!
Praise and glory
and wisdom and thanks and honor
and power and strength
be to our God for ever and ever.
Amen! (Rev. 7:9-12)
Our
worship here and now should be preparatory to a time when we will worship God
in His very presence in Heaven.
EW
arises out the grateful heart of person's who anticipate that day when we will
worship around God's throne in heaven.
CONCLUSION: This message profoundly impacted my life as
I've studied, meditated, and prayed about what it really means, and how it
applies to our lives today.
So
often -- perhaps most often -- our worship to God (in church or out) looks
nothing like that which Mary gave to Jesus that day in Bethany. This bears repeating:
So often -- perhaps
most often -- our worship to God (in church or out) looks nothing like that
which Mary gave to Jesus that day in Bethany.
How
many times when we come together for worship do we come only giving God what we
consider "GOOD ENOUGH." How
many times do we enter this sanctuary and yet do not even intend to give God
"extravagant worship." How
often do we gather in worship and all of our lives stay safely in the bottle of
our religion?
God
wants us to come before Him broken, contrite, and all that we are poured out
before Him. Good Enough just ain't good
enough when it comes to giving God our worship.
Friends,
let's make a covenant with eachother and with God today that we will give only
"extravagant worship" to God -- not only on Sundays, but every day of
our lives.
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