Jaw-dropping Jewels about Jesus
Rarely does Jesus, God the Son, do exactly what we expect of Him. It seems odd that He so frequently surprises us, given that He never changes. Hebrews 13:8 makes this absolute statement: “Jesus the same yesterday, and today, and forever.” Still, though He is blessedly consistent in His goodness, Jesus does unforeseen things. Even when He does what is expected, He does not always do it in the way that we anticipate. Let us join with Jesus on a jaw-dropping journey. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
We return to the anointing of Jesus by Mary of Bethany: “And being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as He sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard very precious, and she brake the box, and poured it on His head” (Mark 14:3). “Spikenard” (often called just nard) is noted for its aroma, and John adds in His Gospel account that “the house was filled with the odour of the ointment” (12:3d). This detail reminds me of Philippians 4:18, where Paul writes, “But I have all, and abound: I am full, having received of Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you, an odour of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, well pleasing to God.” The Apostle uses the imagery of the Old Testament altar of incense (Exodus 30:1-10, 34-38) upon which “sweet incense” (verse 7) would burn as a “perpetual incense before the LORD” (verse 8). Paul had received a gift from the believers in Philippi and was deeply grateful. He then points out that this offering was really given to God and was “acceptable” and “well pleasing” to Him. This statement of fact is most helpful. We cannot duplicate Mary’s act of giving directly to Jesus, for He is no longer incarnate, physically present with us. However, any giving to others in His name is just as “acceptable” and “well pleasing” to Him. Furthermore, Jesus said, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me” (Matthew 25:40c). In that sense, then, our giving becomes an ongoing anointing of our Savior. What an encouragement to continue to give!