"Doing What I Can”

On the last week of our Lord’s life on earth,  Jesus spent Wednesday in Bethany with friends. He was honored at a dinner that evening, at the home of Simon the Leper. Simon apparently had been a leper Jesus had healed. John says Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, who Jesus raised from the dead were there, and Matthew says the 12 were there, too.

John tells us that the woman who anointed Jesus was Mary, the sister of Lazarus. This fact has led some to suggest that this dinner hosted by Simon was a “thank you” dinner put together by Mary and Martha to thank Jesus for raising their brother from the dead. John says Martha served, while Mary presented this special gift to Jesus out of gratitude for what He had done in brining Lazarus from death to life.

Those who have been born again through faith in Jesus, should never forget how like Lazarus, we were spiritually dead in our sin. But just as Jesus called Lazarus to life from the dead, He has done the same for us.

“I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life.” - John 5:24 (NLT)

“I am thankful that God would save me and give me new life. I know me well enough to know that I do not deserve to be saved and yet He saved me. I know that my salvation was born in His heart, not mine! I realize that the salvation I have is not performance based. It is a free gift of a good God. I know that I am saved because He is good not because I am good. I know that the Lord Jesus has taken care of all my sins already, the past ones, the present ones, and those yet to come. He paid all of my debt. I know that His love is stronger than my weakest moments and when I fail He just loves me more. I know that even when I have been unfaithful He has been faithful still. I know that He is the author and the finisher of my faith. I know that salvation starts with Jesus, goes forward with Jesus, and ends with Jesus. It is all Jesus. God’s grace is my song. He is my Lord and Savior and it is totally all undeserved by me. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for saving me. Thank you for loving me!” - Austin Gardner, Vision Baptist Church, Alpharetta, GA

It has been said that eternal life is God’s gift to me; and how I live my life is my gift to God. So as one who is concerned with how to live in such a way as to express my thankfulness for my salvation, I must ask the question, “How can I make sure I am living my life in the best way possible? How can I make sure I am doing all I can with my life?”

This passage teaches us the answer to that important question.

At one point in my life, I was wrestling with this very question and felt led by God to this passage to find the answer. When I read this story in Mark 14, what Jesus said about this woman’s action in verse 8 leaped off the page at me, “She did what she could.” Why did Jesus say this about Mary and how can I make sure He will make the same statement about me when I come to the end of my life? There were three things Mary did and enabled Jesus to declare, “She did what she could.”

1. She used what she had.

“What an astonishing moment! Mary, who loved to sit at the feet of Jesus (Luke 10:39), unexpectedly approached her reclining Lord, bearing a priceless alabaster vial of imported Indian perfume (very likely a family heirloom), snapped the narrow neck of the flask, poured a generous portion on Jesus’ head, anointing Him, and then poured a generous portion on His feet - humbly, worshipfully, wiping His feet with her hair.” - R. Kent Hughes

Think with me about this perfume.

A. It was priceless - some present said if it had been sold, it would have brought a price that would be more than a year’s wages (v. 5).

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor, the average U.S. annual salary in 2023 was $59,384. Can you imagine giving Jesus a gift of $60,000? That’s what Mary did.

B. It was precious - something that valuable had to be special and above average in terms of quality. It was something to be used carefully, not wastefully (v. 4).

C. It was personal - This was something that belonged to Mary or to her family, possibly a family heirloom, as Hughes suggests. Something one would not surrender lightly or easily.