Series: Legends and Legacies Part 1 – What will you be remembered for?
Part 2 – Acts 18.22-28; Part 3 Luke 2.25-32, Part 4 Hosea 3.1-3
Task: To encourage God’s people to become legends when it comes to loving Jesus.
Text: Matthew 26.6-13
Time: August 10, 2008
[TITLE SLIDE] I watched the opening ceremonies of the Summer Olympic games over the weekend and I have to tell you that I’ve never seen so many talented athletes in one place at the same time. Tyson Gay running track and field, Michael Phelps men’s swimming, Shawn Johnson gymnastics, Mays and Walsh for the doubles beach volleyball. These are all names of people who are legends in their field. And as such their legacies will inspire others for years to come. With the Olympics in full swing I want to encourage each of us to pursue legendary status too. I want to encourage each of us to become legends of a different kind. Legends that leave legacies that shape generations to come.
A legacy is something that typically is highly valued and therefore handed down from generation to generation (Encarta Dictionary, Microsoft Online). But I think we need to be aware that each one of us leaves a legacy regardless. It might not be much of a legacy, it might be a negative legacy, it might be a misplaced legacy or it could be something that others find honorable and worthy of lifting up and repeating for generations to come. What kind of legacy do you want to leave for others? What do you want to be remembered for? More importantly, what are the legacies God wants us to be remembered for? Those are the questions and issues that we’ll face together for the remainder of this month as we explore the word of God for God’s word regarding what makes worthy legends and legacies.
We begin in an unlikely arena. It’s not a coliseum, it’s not a stadium, there aren’t news reporters and television cameras snapping pictures of athletes on the bus, and there certainly isn’t any fireworks or loud music. It doesn’t take place in a large bustling city like Bejing, but in the village of Bethany a small suburb of Jerusalem in Jesus’ day as well as today.
[S] “While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, 7 a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table. 8 When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. “Why this waste?” they asked. 9“This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.” 10 Aware of this, Jesus said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. 11 The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. 12 When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial. 13 I tell you the truth, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.” (Matthew 26.6-13, NIV) [S]
I’m sure the disciples were left scratching their heads when they heard Jesus say this. Because it doesn’t appear she did anything significant does it? All she did was pour out some expensive perfume on his head. But over in the gospel of John 12.5 we learn that that perfume cost an entire annual wage of a day worker, about 300 denarii. To put that in American dollars today, that would roughly be the amount of what someone working 50 hours a week at minum wage of $5.85 or $14,625.00 before taxes. Now can you get a feel for why the disciples responded the way they did. They couldn’t believe it! What a waste, what bad judgement, what a poorly thought out thing to do. What was she thinking! She obviously didn’t think this through. Knowing the value of that perfume themselves, the disciples thought it would have been better used by selling it and giving the money to help the poor. Just think how many poor could have been helped if that perfume had been sold and the money given to a local food pantry, or distributed among the widows or used to help those in financial stress. Now, they weren’t saying this because they thought they were better than her. This was the first night of Passover and as such it was customary to give alms to the poor which would have been a noble and memorable act in itself. Nonetheless, note Jesus’ response in contrast to theirs. They thought it was negligent he thought it was beneficial. They thought it was an unworthy act and he thought it was well worth it. What they thought was a wasteful act God saw as an extravagant act of love for him. Even though selling the perfume and giving it to the poor would have been a good thing to do, what she did at that time was even more so.
Based upon Jesus’ reaction I think we can say that this unknown woman was a legend in the eyes of God. She was so “at the top of her game” that God placed her in a category all by herself. And by doing so Jesus gives us our first clue as to what kind of legacy God wants us to pass down from generation to generation.
God wants us to be remembered as people that love Christ Jesus more than our bottles of perfume whatever those might be. God wants our legacy to be one where people see and know that we love Jesus more than anything. God wants people to see and generations to hear that Bryan loved Christ in a remarkable way. Oh, that generation’s current and those to be born would know that you and I are people whose hearts burn with love for Jesus the Christ. God wants us to be legends when it comes to loving Jesus.
When it comes to being a legend for loving Jesus more than anything, what kind of legacy are you really leaving? If it’s not what you think brings honor and glory to Christ then let me offer you several suggestions that have the potential to help you become that legend. And then at the end of this message you choose the one that you believe God wants you to focus on.
To reach legendary status as someone who loves Jesus more than anything requires being a person of prayer. If we love someone we want to be with that someone right? So one step towards becoming a legend in loving Christ is to make sure we’re spending time with Jesus and one way in which we can do that is through prayer. Prayer, more than anything else can begin to awaken our love for Christ. Disciplined praying is needed. I know from personal experience how hard that is at times. It’s so much easier to spend time in prayer after my heart is ablaze for Christ Jesus. But, to be legendary will require a disciplined approach to praying so that our love is set afire. The more we are with Jesus the more he rubs off on us. The longer we meet with Christ the better we get to know his likes and dislikes. Every time we meet with Jesus it tells him that we love him more than anything else we could be doing at that time. And when others know that we are meeting with him and can not, indeed will not be disturbed, it tells them that we love Jesus more than anything as well.
Secondly, if one wants to be a legend when it comes to loving Christ they will make it a point to be in worship every week. Just as spending time in prayer tells Christ and others that you love him, so does consistently attending worship. Those who love Jesus will make an effort to be in worship to praise him, to thank him for his provisions, and to tell him how wonderful and loving he is. That’s what the woman in today’s passage was doing. She was worshiping Jesus in the presence of others. Granted it wasn’t a corporate worship service like we’re accustomed to, but it was an act of worship that communicated loud and clear to Jesus that she loved him more than anything. Just as worshiping every week for years on end tells Jesus and others that you love him, worshipping Jesus part time equates with loving Jesus part time. So, what kind of legacy are you leaving based on your worship pattern?
And lastly, if someone wants to reach legendary status like this woman in today’s passage they can do so by not only memorizing John 13.34-35, but more importantly, be seen as someone who lives it. Jesus said, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13.34-35, NIV)
Interestingly enough Jesus says that one of the ways people know how serious our love for Jesus is has to do with how much they perceive we love each other. Do you genuinely love the other disciples in this church or is there a chip on someone’s shoulder? What do those outside the church hear you say about those inside the church? What do they over hear you say about those in the church whom you don’t see eye to eye with? Do we love those who prefer a different style of worship? Do we have their best interest at heart? Or Visa Versa? Has someone wronged you and you’ve held that grudge or kept a chip on your shoulder over the years. My guess is that before we can become a legend known for loving Jesus we might need to forgive another or seek reconciliation and extend the gift of peace to another.
Sometime ago I read Frankly Covey’s book 7 Habits for Highly Effective People. And in there he had an exercise to help the reader come to grips with what would help them determine what was most worthy of their pursuit in life. It was a simple exercise that went like this. Imagine you’re sitting in the back at your funeral service. Note who is there and who is not. Note who stands up to say some words about your life. Now listen for what they say about you. Is it what you want to be remember by? Is that the legacy you want to leave behind? And then he turns the table, and puts the ball in your court. What would you want them to say about you at your funeral? What do you want to be remembered for? Then start living today the way you want to be remembered for.
