Open—Steve Stewart
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John, Chapter 12.
Verse one.
Then six, then Jesus, six days before the Passover, came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, which had been dead, whom he raised from the dead.
There they made him a supper, and Martha served. The Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with him.
Ben took Mary a pound of ointment. A spikenard. Very costly.
And anointed the feet of Jesus.
And wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the odor of the ointment. And saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, which should betray him. Why was not this ointment sold for 300 pence and given to the poor?
This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief.
And he had the bag and bear what was put therein.
Then said Jesus, let her alone against the day of my bearing, as she kept this.
For the poor always ye have with you, but may ye have not always.
Like to turn, just hold our place there and read the same account in the Gospel of Matthew.
Chapter 26.
Verse six. Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the House of Simon the leper, there came to him a woman having an alabaster box.
Of very precious ointment imported on his head as he sat at meat. But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste? For this ointment might have been sold for much.
And been given to the poor. When Jesus understood it, he said unto them, Why trouble ye the woman?
For she hath brought a good work upon me. For ye have the poor always with you.
But may ye have not always, For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she did it for my burial. 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 memorial of her.
Person, Mark. 11Th chapter.
Mark 11 verse 11. And Jesus entered into Jerusalem, and into the temple, and when he had looked round about on upon all things, and now the even tide was come, he went out unto Bethany with the 12.
In the 110th Psalm. Maybe I'll just read it because I probably won't quote it in the last verse.
110th Psalm.
Verse seven. He shall drink of the brook, and the way therefore shall he lift up.
We had.
The Lord Jesus was in the way. He was in the way to the cross.
It was the valley of the shadow of death.
It was a low place, and that's where the brook is. It's in the valley. It's in the low place.
And in that place, as he was heading to the cross, God the Father provided for his Son that which would refresh his heart, and he would drink of the brook in the way. And what was it that refreshed his heart? He went into Jerusalem to the temple. He looked round about on all things, and there was nothing left there.
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To attract his heart anymore.
And he went out to Bethany because there was a little company.
Now drew his heart.
Who have him as the object of their own hearts.
And there he found comfort.
And there he found that which would refresh his soul on his way to Calvary's cross.
Was a House of Simon the Leper we read in that city.
And in the 10th of Luke we read there was a House of Martha and Mary her sister.
And we find the Lord there, with Mary, sitting at the Lord's feet, hearing his word.
There was Lazarus, who we read in our chapter here, who was raised.
Who is dead and was raised from the dead?
Lazarus, whom thou lovest, they said to him, is sick.
There are those that he loved that welcomed him.
And there they made him a supper.
I don't know if they knew it. Perhaps they had a sense, I know Mary did, of that impending storm of opposition. He who endured such contradiction of sinners against himself was approaching, and they prepare him this supper.
It was the last time that they would ever do it.
What a privilege we have to sit down at a supper that he has prepared.
But he is looking.
To enjoy us.
To refresh his heart on the cross, he said I thirst. Do we respond to the thirst that's in his heart?
They did.
They prepared him a supper in that home.
You know Martha and Mary, both of their names.
And the root word of the name is Mara.
And we learn from the book of Ruth that that name means bitter.
The Lord came into Bethany and it was a scene of sorrow, domestic sorrow.
Also Simon the leper.
I don't know if it was the same house as Martha and Mary's, perhaps not, but morally they seem connected.
And then at home years before.
Little girl had been born.
What shall we call her?
Another color better.
In time, another girl is born. What will we call her?
Call her bitter, too.
Who can come into a scene like that and bring blessing?
And relief.
We know the sorrow in Chapter 11 when Lazarus Stein, as this chapter opens, speaks of him or Lazarus was which had been dead, whom he raised from the dead. Romans one and verse four tells us he's declared to be the Son of God.
With power.
We're in the spirit of holiness by the resurrection of the dead.
Who else could come into that scene with the Son of God?
And bring blessing.
And now he comes into this house on his way to the Cross, and in this place where he had.
Come in scene of sorrow and brought blessing. They loved him.
They were occupied with him.
And so this little picture to us really there's those things which are individual and those things I think would which can present to us the assembly.
It's the seed of the assembly that we get in John and in the 20th chapter.
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In resurrection, when the Lord comes into that little company.
He says in verse 21 Then Jesus.
And said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you, as my Father has sent me, Even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said, Receive ye the Holy Ghost.
He's the second Adam, he's a life giving spirit and he breathes into them life and resurrection. His own resurrection life called in John 10 abundant life.
In Romans 8, the spirit of life in Christ Jesus, which have made us free.
Love, sin and death.
Eternal life, as John presents it.
A life that knows and enjoys communion with the Father and the Son. And we have in that way the seed of the assembly in John 20. And so here at this scene there is Lazarus, who he loved before he died. He was a disciple before he died.
Died and raised from the dead. It's a picture to us of that company who is in the enjoyment of eternal life.
Resurrection Life.
Sitting at the table with him.
Enjoying fellowship and communion with him, Martha served no complaint. Like Luke 10 with her ServiceNow, she's happily serving that table.
Lazarus there in communion with him. Lazarus specifically mentioned there'd been a change. He'd been raised from the dead. Martha, there'd been a change. She went from complaining service to happy service.
No mention in that way of Mary, because we find Mary at the Lord's feet in Luke 10. We find her at the Lord's feet in Luke 11.
And we find her at the Lord's feet here. There's no change with her. She's the same.
In the Gospel of Luke Chapter 7, the Lord was anointed as well. It's a different scene. It's a different woman. We don't want to mix them up.
There the Lord is invited to Pharisees house, and he comes in and lays at me.
The Pharisee does not provide him those common courtesies that he would show a guest in his home.
The Lord passes over it. He doesn't mention it.
He lays it table. His feet would be there for all to see that the Pharisee had not provided him water to wash his feet.
His dishonor evident.
And a woman from the city, a Sinner comes in, and.
And the burden of her sin.
And conviction of her conscience, having heard previously those words, I believe this man receiveth sinners, and Edith with them.
And she comes in to find the only one that can meet the need of her soul. She stands alone in the gospels of all that came to the Lord.
I believe.
As a Sinner, because of her sins, how many came to be healed?
From so many different things. But she came not to be healed, not to because she was blind or hauled or maimed or anything. She came because of her sins.
And she came in in tears.
And there were the feet of the Lord.
The one that was the object of her heart.
Was signally dishonored before everyone.
She came to anoint him, but she washed his feet first with her tears. She rectified that dishonor and then anointed him.
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Oh, she heard those wonderful words.
My sins be forgiven thee, which he heard more thy faith to save thee not only forgiveness of sins may have been in a governmental way.
But a life of deliverance from sin. My faith to save thee.
Mary comes in here not as a Sinner.
Not in tears of repentance like Luke 7.
But she comes in with this alabaster box of ointment that which had been stored up.
That which had been treasured and kept and reserved.
And she comes in. What is pictured here is worship.
It's worship.
She comes in to pour out all that she can upon the Lord Jesus Christ.
You know, contemplating this portion.
And I thought of how we get Martha's house and Mary.
There in Luke 10, Simon the leper's house.
In Matthew 26 and I had wondered are they the same house or not and scripture does not say.
And now why doesn't scripture say if they were the same house, why didn't it say it?
Because in Luke 10, Martha's serving an honored guest in her home.
And if this was presented to us as Martha's home?
Or that Simon the Leper's house was the same home.
Than what Mary does would be like what that woman who was a Sinner.
In the city did in rectifying what the Pharisee had not done.
Shown the common courtesy that should have been given to any honored guest.
But it's not presented as her home.
This is not an act of justice showing a common courtesy to any honored guests. This is the overflow.
Of the heart.
In Exodus 30, we read of a holy anointing ointment.
That was to be prepared. Turn back to that Exodus 30.
Verse 31.
And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, This shall be.
And holy anointing oil unto me throughout your generations.
Upon man's flesh shall it not be poured, neither shall eat make any other like it after the composition of it. It is holy, and it shall be holy unto you.
Verse 37. And As for the perfume which thou shalt make, ye shall not make to yourselves.
According to the composition thereof, it shall be unto thee holy.
For the Lord.
Whosoever shall make like unto that who smell thereto, shall even be cut off from his people.
I think we could probably drive around this city.
And see on some signs in front of various.
Churches. They're called a worship service.
I have.
Nieces that are on a worship team.
And it involves a lot of music.
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And various things.
To I think they would take it to seek to encourage and warm up the hearts of the Saints that are there.
It's for them.
It's for them.
I'm not finding fault with what they're listening to. I don't know what it is, but it's for them.
This was not to be poured on flesh.
It was not for personal enjoyment.
Not for personal edification.
It was a holy anointing oil that was holy for God.
And that's what worship is. It's holy for him.
And you can't get a higher thought in your heart and worship than God's own thoughts of His beloved Son. And we cannot OfferUp anything more in worship higher and greater than God's own thoughts.
Of his beloved son.
This oil, this ointment, was stored up in that alabaster box.
Until the time came.
And it was time.
I don't know that Mary knew this was the last opportunity she would have.
But I think she sensed the impending storm that swirled around.
That one that she loved.
And in spiritual instinct, it was time, and she knew it, and she came, and she brought.
That gift?
Support it.
On his feet.
In Matthew, she anointed his head, he says. She's anointed my body.
In Isaiah, one man in the flesh is described from the foot sole of the foot.
To the crown of the head, full of wounds and bruises and putrefying sores. That's man in the flesh. But in Song of Solomon he is described from the head to the feet, and it ends with these altogether lovely all she valued, all of him. She anoints his head in Matthew because he's presented as king.
His feet and John, because he's the divine Incarnate Son of God, come down to walk in this world.
Made flesh and dwelling among us.
She valued all of him.
And she takes her hair.
And she wipes his feet.
A house is filled with the odor of that ointment wasn't to be poured on man's flesh.
But all everyone in that house enjoyed it.
And she carried that savor with her, for she had wiped his feet with the hair of her head. I don't know how long that lasted, but I think it was a long time.
Judas interrupts that beautiful scene. The flesh is so rude.
It's so ugly.
So stark in its ugliness.
Makes us shrink.
We read it.
He calculates the very lowest price.
That could be given to that of ointment.
And Matthew believe they say it could have been sold for more than 300 pence.
Here he says, why wasn't it sold for 300 pence, the lowest market price had it figured out.
But his motives are exposed by the Spirit of God and the divine commentary.
That he was a thief.
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He had no use for the Lord, but you know he affected.
The other disciples, and we find in Matthew that they're all saying the same thing.
They jumped on the bandwagon. Sounds like a lofty ideal give to the poor. Shouldn't this have been used that way?
Worship's an auto waste.
It's not a waste when we come to remember the Lord and his death and to pour out to Him, whether in silence or whether a brother is used to speak in an audible way and express on behalf of all our appreciation of Christ to God the Father, it's not a waste.
It's not a waste.
Lord responds.
Let her alone.
Let her alone.
He maketh the wrath of man to praise him, and the remainder he restrains.
He allowed Judas to say what he said to bring out the value of Mary's gift.
And then he stops it right there.
He doesn't let it go any further.
Let her alone.
Some time before this they have looked on the Lord Jesus and all the works.
That he had done by the power of the Spirit of God.
And they said.
By the Prince of the Demons, he casts out demons.
By Beelzebub he casts out demons.
They are attributing the work of the Spirit of God.
To Satan.
Oh brother, we need to be so careful.
There's the work of the Spirit of God and the soul.
And their heart is on fire like a smoking wax. It says of him. He wouldn't quench a smoking flax.
And there is a desire to pick up the word of God and to walk in it and to do it.
For him that we don't come in and say that's legal.
And attribute that which is a work of the Spirit of God to sinful flesh.
Thus we take our place.
For those that said, he casts out demons by the Prince of the demons.
She didn't respond. She is content to let the Lord defend her.
And the Lord brings a light on it that perhaps even Mary herself.
Had not fully entered into against the day of my bearing. Hath she kept this?
Kept it, treasured it, stored it, and the time came to pour it out. And that's worship, those things that we glean in our own meditations and enjoyment of Christ from the Scriptures, and they're stored up in the time comes.
To pour it out upon him.
Against the day of my burying, as she kept this, you know, the day of his burying came.
In the last chapter? In chapter 20. Not the last chapter, I'm sorry. Or maybe it's chapter 19, chapter 19.
The day of his bearing came.
Says verse 39. There came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and Alice.
About 100 LB weight, and they took the body of Jesus and wounded in linen clothes with the spices as the manner of the Jews is to bury.
Now the place where He was, in the place where He is crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new sepulchre, wherein was never man yet laid. There they lay Jesus. Therefore, because of the Jews, preparation day for the sepulchre was nigh at hand. What a precious act.
Of love, devotion to the Lord, they would take his body down. God didn't allow his son after that spear pierced his side to be touched by any unbelieving hand after that moment. And it was loving hands that took him down and laid him in that tomb. And the amount of spices that are broad is mentioned 100 LB weight.
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Mary brought one.
But there's no mention of the fragrance and.
John 19.
There's no mention of the costliness.
And John 19.
If I can put it this way.
They're too late.
She came.
Beforehand.
To anoint his body to the bearing. The Lord leaves us here tomorrow. We have an opportunity and it may be the last one.
To remember him and his death.
We won't remember him in death.
Like that in heaven.
We'll have him.
This is our opportunity.
This is our opportunity in the day of his rejection.
As it was in Bethany those many years ago.
To honor him in that way.
And to pour out upon him what we have stored up in our hearts.
I'll just close it there.
The poor ye have always with you.
Is a wonderful place for service.
But worship takes the highest place and.
True service flows.
From worship.
That comes from a heart illuminated by the truth of God. The Father seeketh such to worship Him, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth.
From hearts sitting at his feet, illuminated by the truth of God, finding in Him there all.
Comes a storing up of that which is then poured out in worship.
And then service takes its right place and flows from that. Just make one brief mention in the book of Judges.
That very thing is one of the great lessons of that book.
Judah's name means praise.
And Judah was to take the lead.
He was to be in the forefront. The scepter was not to depart from Judah, but over the course of the Book of Judges.
Another tribe comes to the forefront. It's a tribe of Ephraim. Ephraim means fruitfulness, and it's a picture of service.
And Ephraim comes to the front.
And in the end of Judges, where we get a whole tribe going off into idolatry and we get the terrible.
Conflict that took place with the tribe of Benjamin and the sin that was committed that initiated it really is the result of getting those two tribes switched. What's the lesson when worship is not first and service does flowing from it? When service becomes 1St and worship takes a back seat?
Then worship becomes an idol and an object in itself, and that's what it did in the church's history.
And those that are occupied in service got elevated to places of prominence and practically worshipped themselves.
When worship and service get out of order, idolatry is what comes in.
And the history of Ruth and of Samuel is God reversing that?
I'm going to. Sorry I'm taking a little more time. I guess we have a few more minutes. Let's just turn back to.
The Psalms again.
Leave it to 78 Psalm.
Maybe it's 79th, I'll have to get there.
78.
78 Psalm and the end of the Psalm you get the history in the beginning of the book of first Samuel.
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Idolatry had come in verse 58. They provoked him to anger with their high places and moved him to jealousy with their graven images. When God heard this, he was wroth and greatly abhorred Israel, so that he forsook the Tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent which he had placed among men. That's where Eli and his sons served.
He delivered his strength, that is the ark, into captivity, and his glory into the enemy's hand, the Philistines.
And he gave us people over unto the sword, and was wroth with his inheritance.
The fire consumed their young men, and their maidens were not given to marriage. Their priests fell by the sword, and their widows made no lamentation. And so Eli's wicked sons were slain. His wife was in labor with a child, and all that she mentions is call him Ichabod. The glory is departed.
The Lord awakened this one out of sleep, and like as a mighty man that shouteth by reason of wine, and he smote his enemies in the hinder parts. That's the emeralds. He put them to a perpetual reproach. Moreover, he refused the Tabernacle of Joseph, and chose not the tribe of Ephraim.
But he chose but chose the tribe of Judah.
And Mount Zion, which he loved.
And he built his sanctuary like high palaces, like the earth, which he had established forever. And he chose David also his servant, and took him from the sheepfolds, from following the use. Great with young, he brought him to feed Jacob his people, and Israel his inheritance. So he fed them according to the integrity of his heart.
And guided them by the skillfulness.
Of his hands, and he brings Judah praise to the forefront, and he raises David up, who writes those beautiful psalms of praise and worship. And he sets everything back in its right order. And praise worship is first and then Ephraim fruitfulness.
Flows from it.
#195.
195.
Yet, Savior, thou shalt have full faith.