In the sermon text this morning from Mark 14, we are presented with two contrasting pictures: the devotion of the woman with the alabaster flask, willing to pour out the costly oil as a gift to Jesus, and the treachery of Judas, going out of his way to betray his Lord for money. This contrast between “the way of life and the way of death” (as the Didache puts it) can be found throughout our service: in the Benediction from 1 Peter (“God is opposed to the proud but gives grace to the humble”), and in the Scripture reading from Psalm 1, which we will sing as well (Blessed Are All They—Psalm 1). We will also take the woman’s devotion as a model, responding to the sermon text by singing, “I pour at Thy feet” our “treasure store” (Take My Life, And Let It Be). But Jesus’ words to the disciples following the incident point us towards something beyond ourselves: she anointed His body for burial—He was on His way to the cross. As we’ll sing during communion, any gift we bring, even our whole selves, is only made possible because He gave Himself for us (Let Thy Blood In Mercy Poured). It is the cross which makes the great contrast between us and the world, the ultimate antithesis: as Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians, “the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God.” —Henry C. Haffner
Key Words: Arrest, Kill, Costly, Wasted, Poor, Gospel, Betray, Money
Keystone Verse: You always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have Me. (Mark 14:7)