A Life Poured Out
There is a story in the Bible that shows up in Matthew, Mark, and John about a woman with an alabaster jar of oil. This woman breaks open the costly oil and anoints Jesus with it several days before he heads to the cross. In the scene, we are told that Jesus is eating at Simon the Leper’s home in Bethany and that his disciples are there along with many other people. In the Gospel of John, we find out that the woman with the jar of oil is Mary the sister of Martha and Lazarus.
The text doesn’t reveal what motivated her to anoint Jesus. Had an angel instructed her? Did she simply feel the urge? Did she understand something that even the disciples, despite Jesus' teachings, missed about his imminent departure? We do not know what prompted her to break open the jar and anoint Jesus, but we do know a few things.
First, the oil was extraordinarily valuable. In Mark and John, it is said to be worth about a year's wages. Second, the disciples were indignant—very angry. Third, it was to prepare Jesus for his burial, indicating she had some understanding of her actions, even if the indignant disciples did not. Again, we know it was Mary because John tells us that. We know Jesus was precious to her. She was a welcomed disciple of Jesus. This was not the first time Jesus defended Mary of criticism for what she was doing with him. Martha criticized Mary the first time she sat at Jesus' feet learning. Disciples are the ones who sit at the feet of rabbis, and Jesus told us in Luke 10 that Mary was doing the right thing. Now she is criticized even more for this gift she is pouring out upon Jesus, and Jesus once again defends her actions. "Leave her alone!"
I recently heard a pastor describe that the word "indignant" suggests the disciples were probably loudly and ruthlessly criticizing her. Can you imagine the scene? Dinner is being served; people are all around. Maybe she had the jar with her all night, just waiting for the right moment. Maybe she felt the prompting and ran to her room to grab it. No matter what led her to it, she had the bottle and was prepared for what she was supposed to do. In that time, oil such as this was possibly an investment or even a family heirloom. It was precious and costly, and she was prepared to pour it all out on Jesus.
In Mark, Jesus said that she did all she could when he was defending her. Her focus was on Jesus, and she gave her all. That is the part I want to focus on from this passage. She loved Jesus. She knew him, and he knew her. She would be one of the few to witness her savior's crucifixion. She would be there for every agonizing moment. Oh, the faith of this woman. In Matthew, Mark, and John, we read that Jesus says, "Wherever the gospel is preached, what she has done will also be told." Can you imagine the people in that room, after the death, burial, and resurrection, remembering Jesus' words when recounting the gospel story? No doubt the details of that night were retold over and over again. We obviously see this because we read of it here in the bible. Of the 4 gospel writers, three were in the room and those three include this encounter in their gospels.
She gave all she could. She gave all she had and asked for nothing in return. How often do we give all we have? I am currently in a season of reflection on this. I have been walking, praying, and asking for my life to be a pleasing sacrifice unto God. Every day, I want to give all I can and all I have to him because he is worthy of it all. I want to gladly pour out whatever gift I can as an offering, as a sacrifice. Often, we might think as the disciples did, “Shouldn’t she have sold that and given the money to the poor?” Jesus responded, “You will always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.” Sometimes, we can get confused about the things we do in the name of Jesus and miss being with Jesus first. The things we do must come from the time we spend with him.
We serve and take pictures to post about it, but we don’t give him intentional, uninterrupted, undistracted attention. We want to boast for the post, but we don’t want the cost of true worship. What is all you have? Because that is all He wants. He wants to know that what is most precious to you is not more precious than him. The number one reason people say they don’t spend time with Jesus is time—they just don’t have the time for it. But, as you have heard before, we all have the exact same amount of time in a day. What we do with that time is our choice. The seasons of my life where I have prioritized time with Jesus are the flourishing seasons. The seasons I have neglected to pour out my most precious asset have been the dry, disoriented, lost, and struggling seasons. Ironically, the busier seasons are when I begin to withhold my time; the value of my time goes up, and I give less of it, leaving me more drained and exhausted.
My time didn’t cost me as much when I was in my early 20’s with nothing but time to give. It was also easier to give undistracted time in the early 2000s. At that time there were no distractions such as social media, an entire series I could watch in 72 hours, and a phone buzzing 24/7 with notifications needing my time and attention. Yet at that time I still had a choice to give time to Jesus and, I gave Jesus so much of my time. It wasn’t until marriage, motherhood, and “real life” that I began to withhold my preciouses time with him from him.
Yet in those seasons where my time is more valuable to me than gold, if I would just pour that time out intentionally with Jesus, it would be so worth it. I have learned in hind sight that in His presence, when we pour out, He fills. When we give all we can he meets us with who He is. It is what He does. He fills us, sustains us, and gives us peace. Each person’s "all they have" is really all He wants. It doesn’t matter how much you think it is worth. All you have is worth the same as someone else’s all they have. We like to compare our "all I have" to someone else’s "all they have," which keeps us from giving our all. We convince ourselves that since it is not as much as theirs, we should not give it. Or we tell ourselves that we will give when we have plenty. Or we compare so much that we feel insecure and criticize others’ extravagant giving to make ourselves feel better. But remember, they are giving all they have too!
Jesus doesn’t compare us; he invites us into the same invitation—all we are for all He is. This exchange begins to take place in our time with Him. Each day we lay down all we are at his feet. The cost is high—ultimately, our control! We lay it down day by day, piece by piece, and in exchange, Jesus makes us more like Him. He fills us with His presence and peace. Here is the amazing thing: if all you have is 15 minutes as a tired mom of three, and that 15 minutes is precious and costly, He can do just as much in that 15 minutes as He can with the two hours another person has in a different season of life. Give Him all you have every day for the rest of your life. It will look different in every season, but all you have will always be measured the same.
The disciples who were indignant looked at what the oil was worth; Jesus looked at what it cost—the sacrifice, all she had. She did what she could. The measure of that is love and priority. She deeply loved Jesus, and he deeply loved her. She made Him a priority in that moment. She was focused on the kingdom, not on what was happening around her. She was focused on the unseen realm—the realm that is eternal. She knew things were drawing to an end with Jesus; she wasn’t missing the point, as the 12 so often were. She was in tune with all that Jesus had been teaching and telling was happening soon.
Everyone else in that room loved Jesus too and was deeply loved by Jesus. We all are! But we don’t always keep our eyes on the kingdom perspective. The disciples were focused on the wrong thing. When Peter was told to “get behind me, Satan,” it was because his mind was set on earthly things, not on kingdom things. Jesus is so loving in all of his rebukes; they don’t send us away with our tails between our legs. Instead, they invite us in. By retelling this story wherever the gospel is preached, Jesus invites us to follow Mary's example and do what we can with what we have for Jesus. Will you begin today to accept that invitation? What is all you have today? Start by giving it to Jesus as priority and watch how He will meet you there.
Here are a few tips: Go Read These Passages: Matthew 26:6-13, Mark 14:3, John 12:1-8
1. Give him the first of you. This will be hard but it will always be worth it.
2. Ask Jesus how he wants to spend the time with you. He is God. Often, we think we know what he wants and we do not even ask him. He knows you and knows how to connect with you. He may lead you to a song to sit and worship to. He may lead you to one specific scripture. Let him guide your time together.
3. Get comfortable with a journal. Journal what you are feeling, sensing, and hearing from God.
4. Get comfortable sitting and listening. You can grow in learning to hear God’s voice.