Done For Love

Done For Love

John 12: 1 - 8

Intro: As I worked on this sermon, I heard in my head a song from “A Chorus Line.” I can imagine Mary singing this song later in her life. It goes like this, “Kiss today goodbye, the sweetness and the sorrow. Wish me luck, the same to you. But I can’t regret what I did for love, what I did for love. Look my eyes are dry. The gift was ours to borrow. It’s as if we always knew, and I won’t forget what I did for love. What I did for love. Gone, Love is never gone. As we travel on, love’s what we’ll remember.”

I There are three main characters in this passage: Jesus, Mary and Judas. I want to concentrate on Mary.

A She is the sister of Lazarus and Martha who has every reason to love Jesus. He is not only her rabbi or teacher; but. he raised her brother from the dead. What she did was done for love.

B She uses a pint of Nard to show her love. It was a costly oil made from the root of a plant grown in India, Nepal or China costing 300 denari about $20.50 per ounce or $328 (a year’s wages then).

C. Not only did May anoint Jesus with expensive perfume; but, she humbled herself at his feet and used her hair to wipe them.

II Mary teaches us much about loving the Lord. She demonstrates her love without calculating the cost.

A It was considered a great honor to anoint a person’s head; but, Mary anoints the feet of Jesus. This is a sign of great humility.

B It was an expensive gift in more ways than one. Kneeling at one’s feet is humbling. At the time of Jesus only harlots let down their hair.

C Though the monetary cost was great, Mary didn’t think about herself or her reputation. She showed her devotion to her Lord, not counting the cost.

III Mary teaches us that God doesn’t want our money. God want us to come to God humbly and submissive.

A There are always those like Judas who think extravagant gifts are wasteful, to give so much of our money and time to the church.

B How far are we willing to go to show our love for Christ Jesus? Is there a point at which extravagant giving becomes foolishness?

C The amount of the gift is not the point of this story. Rather, the point is the attitude of gratitude and love that Mary demonstrated.

Concl: What do you think? How much to you love Christ Jesus? Once we have given our lives to Christ seeking to live as a child of God, there is no turning back. Love is not love if it stops to calculate the cost. What are you willing to selflessly do for the love of Jesus?