Martha served a special dinner to honor Jesus. Her brother
Lazarus was also there. After a while, Mary came in. She opened up
a jar of sweet-smelling perfume. It was a very special perfume
that was rare and quite valuable. Then to everyone's surprise,
Mary poured out this rare perfume—right onto Jesus' feet. And she
used her own hair to wipe His feet. This was her way to show how
much she loved Jesus. And this wonderful fragrance filled the
entire house!
"Mary, what have you done?" cried Judas Iscariot. "You've wasted
all that costly perfume! It should have been sold and the money
given to the poor." But Judas was thinking only of himself. He was
the money-keeper for Jesus and the disciples–and when no one was
looking, he often stole from them.
"Let her be," said Jesus gently. "Mary has done what is right and
good. This perfume is to be my burial ointment. You see, I will
not be with you much longer. But you will always be able to give
to the poor."
A Lavish Gift
D
o you think Jesus should have greed with Judas? The money from the perfume could have been given to the poor. Instead, Mary chose to lavishly pour the perfume on Jesus' feet and wipe it off with her hair. This act was done out of Mary's love for Jesus.
Jesus always accepts our gifts of love, even when other people don't understand them. He deserves our best, and he appreciates our love that moves us to be extravagant for him.
