Matthew 26:6-13
The Anointing at Bethany6 Now while Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper 7 a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very costly ointment, and she poured it on his head as he sat at the table. 8 But when the disciples saw it, they were angry and said, “Why this waste? 9 For this ointment could have been sold for a large sum, and the money given to the poor.” 10 But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? She has performed a good service for me. 11 For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. 12 By pouring this ointment on my body she has prepared me for burial. 13 Truly I tell you, wherever this good news is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in remembrance of her.”
Ah, the foolishness of it all. But what we consider foolish may look completely different in God’s eyes. What the world may see as foolish may be filled with wisdom.
St. Paul writes in his letter to the Corinthians: “…God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength. Consider your own call, brothers and sisters: not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.” [I Cor 1:25-27]In today’s lesson, there seems to be several instances of what one might perceive as foolishness. But it is God’s wisdom that reigns victorious in the end.
The sweet perfume filled the air. But, ah, the foolishness. Why is this woman using such an expensive thing on Jesus? This bottle of perfume would cost a great sum; another gospel states that the ointment is worth one year’s wages. One year’s wages – you do the math. It is an expensive gift. How foolish!
The disciples are upset. “How foolish it is to do this! The money should go to the poor.” I guess it goes to show us how foolish Jesus thought money and earthly goods can be.
But what is this woman doing? What is she doing to Jesus? Washing his feet? No. That could be done with a towel and a basin of water. No, she is anointing Jesus. Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ, which literally means the Anointed One, the chosen one of God.
In the Old Testament, God would send a prophet to go and find the chosen one, and when found, the prophet would anoint that one with oil, signifying that this one is the chosen one of God. In this act, this woman anoints Jesus. What a wonderful gift. She gives her all for her Lord and savior.
What a wonderful gift. But what does the woman use for this anointing? This perfume, this gift, is a perfume used for burial. How foolish is that? Jesus is being anointed for death.
Ah, the foolishness of it all. Jesus the Messiah is anointed for death. We know the story of Holy Week and Easter. It begins with the triumphant entry into Jerusalem, the last days of Jesus’ ministry, his crucifixion and death. How foolish it all seems. Yet this is God’s foolishness, which is wiser than human wisdom. God knows what God is doing. What seems so foolish on the surface, is so very wise. God’s Son is anointed for death, because that is the battle he must face. He is victorious over sin and death.
He wins the victory for you and for me. Your sins are forgiven. New life is yours. All you have to do is know that God wins for us!
Yet how foolish we are, for we live each day under the burden of sin, separation from God. We live out this separation by trying to save ourselves. We take the gift of God for granted, or we even forget about it. We do foolish things. We make foolish decisions.
God looks at us, God’s foolish children, and must wonder why we don’t listen. Why don’t we understand? God tells us to let go of the things that the world tells us are important and do something foolish for God. Serve others, care for others, love others. That is what it is all about.
Because of what Jesus has done for you and me, may we free ourselves from trying to be wise human beings. Instead, may we be wise Christians, who seek God’s wisdom and not the wisdom of the world. May we do that which God is calling us to do.
I have long since lost the name of the person from whom I got this story. A pastor once said, “As a memento of a retreat I attended, I was given a small towel with a hand-stitched design symbolizing Jesus washing His disciples’ feet. That towel served mostly as a decoration for a few years until one of my daughters accidentally used it to clean the car. The commemorative towel has been scrubbed with stain remover and sent through the washer, but it’s indelibly marked by grease and grime. At first, I was miffed at having my memento used to wash hubcaps and bumpers. But then I began to see that towel as a picture of myself, and it caused me to ask some questions. When it comes to serving others, do I reserve myself for special occasions instead of doing an ordinary job today? When Jesus washed and wiped His disciples’ feet, didn’t His towel get dirty? What’s a towel for – decoration or demonstration?
“My little towel now serves as a reminder that self- preservation will keep me untouched but completely useless in my service for Christ. Real servants get dirty every day. Doing our daily vocation is service to God, period. It is honorable and needed.”
Jesus dies and rises for you and for me. The Anointed One.
Let us pray:
Dear God, we give thanks to you for your Son, Jesus the Anointed. Through His death and resurrection, we are set free to serve in wonderful and foolish ways. Free us for service to others. We pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.