Extravagant Worship

Jesus was resolute in His journey toward Jerusalem in the days before Passover would begin. On the way He stopped to visit His friends Lazarus, Mary, and Martha in Bethany. Those who joined Him at the supper given in His honor were about to witness an extravagant act of worship by Mary.
 
John 12:1-11 describes the scene where Mary brought a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from the essence of nard. This perfume was one of the most expensive substances in the world and came from the Himalayan mountains. The actual common name of the plant is Spikenard. The plant gets its name from the hairy, spike-like roots that were crushed to extract the thick, amber-colored oil. The Bible first introduces us to this perfume in Song of Solomon 1:12. "While the king was at his table, my spikenard sends forth its fragrance." (NKJ) It was truly the fragrance of royalty.
 
To the horror of one of the disciples of Jesus, Judas Iscariot, Mary poured the entire pint of nard on Jesus's feet. Then she wiped His feet with her hair in an act of total submission. During the time in which Jesus lived, guests who came to someone's home in the Middle East would have had their feet washed by household servants. However, the anointing of His feet was an act of selfless love by Mary. Judas expressed his indignation over what he called an extreme waste of money, explaining that the value of the nard (300 denarii or a year's salary) could have been used to help the poor.
 
If we look deeper into the agenda of Judas, we can see that he was the keeper of the money bag for the disciples and freely helped himself to the coins whenever he desired. Jesus explained that Mary's extravagance was appropriate because she was anointing Him for His burial. Jesus went on to say, "You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me." (John 12:8) Sadly, Judas could not understand the act of worship that was being demonstrated before him.
 
Through the book of Revelation, we learn that both God and the devil seek worshipers. The devil had entered Judas as he was preparing to hand Jesus over to the Pharisees in a brief time. On the other hand, Jesus carried the Spirit of the Lord within Him and was worthy of all the worship shown to Him. The central question to ask ourselves is, "Who will we worship?" Pastor Francis Frangipane tells us that, "The enemy has easy access to the soul that is not protected by true worship of the Almighty!" Worship is based upon the reality of God, not circumstances. Francis goes on to say, "Without true worship of God, there can be no victory in warfare."
 
We were created first for God's pleasure. When we come to the end of our lives and go before the judgment seat of God, we will be evaluated by the way we worshiped the Lord. Whatever circumstances surround us, it is crucial for us to be true worshipers of Him. May this Passover season be used for us to move our worship of the One True God to the next level.