A Waste of Good Perfume - Don't Worry it Wasn't Bieber's!

In our staff meeting this morning at church, our senior pastor read this passage:

6 Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the leper,7 There came unto him a woman having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat. 8 But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste?9 For this ointment might have been sold for much, and given to the poor.10 When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon me.11 For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not always.12 For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial.13 Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her.


At first glance this passage is confusing to me. I thought Jesus was all about being wise with our money, loving others (which includes the poor), and not putting yourself first. But then He goes and lets a women pour out an expensive bottle of perfume onto HIS feet. 


Let's talk perfume for a moment. Here's a glimpse into the world of luxury perfume and the cost of it.

1. Clive Christian Imperial Majesty

This is a $215,000 bottle of perfume. It's 16.9 ounces(less than a bottled coke), the ring of the lid is 18 carat gold and it has a 5 carat diamond stuck to it, oh and it gets delivered to your door in a Bentley. 

Justin Bieber's perfume sells for about $30 a bottle and gets delivered in a UPS truck.   

The Bible says that the bottle the women poured onto Jesus's feet was, "very precious" that's Hebrew for really really expensive. Now that we can put a modern day dollar amount on what was being poured out onto Jesus's feet, what's your reaction? Is it any different from the disciples? $215,000? That's two homes for people who have been foreclosed on. That's 20 nice cars for people who need transportation to work. That's groceries and gas for 40-50 families for a year. And Jesus lets her pour it on his feet. Why?

Because He is seeing this act how we should see it. Think about this, we are confined to our finite bodies and minds. That means that we are slaves to finite logic and perception. We are also bound to finite resources. That's why when we see 200 grand being pour out onto the ground, we get a little upset. 

Jesus wasn't and isn't restricted to finite thinking. Jesus isn't limited to finite resources. With a simple thought He could produce a 1,000 more bottles of that perfume. But that's not the point or the focus. The focus is on the fact that Jesus saw what mattered. The woman giving an extravagant gift to Jesus out of the love in her heart for Him. To Jesus, it didn't matter if that bottle costs $20 or $2 million. What mattered was the heart with which it was given. 

Don't get caught up in seeing only the finite. Take a step back and try to examine things of this world through the infinte mind of Christ.

Pastor Larry related this extravagance to the cross. What Jesus did for us was so extravagant, that no level of hate, disobedience, rebellion, apathy, or anger could even come close to matching it. The extravagant love of Jesus covers over all of our sins that lay at our feet.

 

Have you thanked Him today? Have you done anything extravagant back to Him?