How Much Do We Love Jesus ?

How Much Do We Love Jesus ?

Mark 14:1-19

How long has it been since you did something for someone just because you loved them ?

Cleaned your room ?

Sent some flowers ?

Sent someone a card ?

On a scale of 1-10, how are you at expressing your love ?

Joke: Husband who came home, and told his wife he was taking her out for supper !

Joke: After being away on business, Tim thought it would be nice to bring his wife a little gift. "How about some perfume?" he asked the cosmetics clerk. She showed him a bottle costing $50.00. "That’s a bit much," said Tim, so she returned with a smaller bottle for $30.00. "That’s still quite a bit," Tim complained. Growing annoyed, the clerk brought out a tiny $15.00 bottle. "What I mean," said Tim, "is I’d like to see something really cheap." The clerk handed him a mirror

It is important that we show our love to those that we love !

But it is far more important that we show our love for Christ, for until we understand the importance of showing him our love, I do believe that we will ever fully comprehend how to love, and express love for others !

Thought: How long has it been since you did something for Christ just because you love him ?

Many times what we do for him is out of obligation rather than adoration !

What we do for him should be in response to what he has done for us !

This morning in our text we read the beautiful story of how a woman(named Mary) expressed her love for her Lord.

Two days before the feast of the passover........only a couple of days until the crucifixion

In Bethany.........only a few miles from Jerusalem.

In the home of Simon the Leper........who has been healed by the Lord. The 12 disciples were also present with him !

As they sit at the table and eat, a beautiful scene unfolds.........

I. She Expresses Her Love Instead Of Conforming To The Crowd. V3

Everyone in that house that day had received something from the Lord.

Simon.......cured of Leprosy.

The disciples.......saved, and called to serve.

Yet, only Mary expresses her love for him !

Everyone else seems to be just sitting around the table, and enjoying the fellowship with the Lord. Yet, she has a desire to show her love for the Lord, and to do something for him. The fact that none of the others choose to do such a thing does not keep her from sharing her love for Christ. It does not bother her that she is the only one. It does not bother her that others are watching ! She is not aiming to please the crowd, but Christ ! She could have stayed in the shadows, or among the crowd or in a comfort zone, but she chose instead to do a work for the Lord....which he calls a beautiful work !

II. She Expresses Her Love Without Considering The Cost !

Many Biblical scholars believe that this flask of precious ointment was a heirloom. It had been passed from generation to generation !

The ointment that she poured over the head of the Lord Jesus was expensive perfume ! It was worth approx a year’s wages. Yet the price of what she gave is not as important as the point ! The point is she gave her best !

Illust. Little boy who had nothing to give.........

She did what she could !

Illust. Bill Borden

In 1904 William Borden graduated from a Chicago high school. As heir to the Borden Dairy estate, he was already a millionaire. For his high school graduation present, his parents gave him a trip around the world. As he traveled through Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, Borden felt a growing burden for the world’s hurting people. Finally, he wrote home to say, "I’m going to give my life to prepare for the mission field." After making this decision, William Borden wrote two words in the back of his Bible: "No Reserves."

Borden arrived at Yale University (Connecticut) in 1905 trying to look like just one more freshman. Very quickly, however, Borden’s classmates noticed something unusual about him. One of them wrote: "He came to college far ahead, spiritually, of any of us. He had already given his heart in full surrender to Christ and had really done it. We who were his classmates learned to lean on him and find in him a strength that was solid as a rock, just because of this settled purpose and consecration."

Borden’s first disappointment at Yale came when he heard the university president speak on the students’ need of "having a fixed purpose." After hearing that speech, Borden wrote: "He neglected to say what our purpose should be, and where we should get the ability to persevere and the strength to resist temptations." Looking around at the Yale faculty and student body, Borden lamented the results of this empty philosophy: moral weakness and sin-ruined lives.