Extravagant Worship

John 12:1-3

For about six months I have been trying to wrap my hands around what intimacy with Christ really means. I have searched the scriptures, searched my heart, and sought God. I know there are several passages that support the fact that although we can never know Christ fully, we can know Him truly. What I do see in scripture is that women just like you and me did know Christ. My heart thrills at the thought! He came over and ate dinner at their house! Can you imagine? I mean, what would you cook if God was coming for dinner? I'm just not sure my Paula Deen's Baked Spaghetti would be good enough!

In today's scripture passage, we see Jesus in the home of his friends Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. If we will recall from another encounter, Mary was the one that was usually found sitting at Jesus' feet listening to him teach. However, today we find her in a much more personal encounter.

It appears from the text, that Mary approached Jesus without fear. This shows me that she really knew Him. She would not have approached Him to do what she did if she were the least bit afraid of rejection or humiliation. Mary then took her expensive perfume and began to pour it on Jesus' feet. Mary's act of devotion here was costly because what she was pouring out could have possibly been here most valuable material possession. She was also humbling herself by attending to Jesus' feet which was a servant's work. I guess the most powerful part of this story, however is the fact that Mary wiped Jesus' feet with her hair. In Jewish culture, respectable women did not unbind their hair in public. Mary was truly a respectable woman and she meant no disrespect in her act of worship. I believe she was truly showing Jesus that she was willing to be a little undignified for the sake of knowing Christ.

Christ has delivered us and set us free. Are we willing to pour out our most valuable possession for Him? Are we willing to humble ourselves to the place of a servant for the cause of Christ? And, are we willing to worship without regard to what others think even if it is a little undignified?

"I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes."
2 Samuel 6:22
King David's answer when ridiculed about dancing before the Lord...