Wheresoever the gospel shall be preached…that also which this woman hath done shall be spoken of.

Mark 14:9

Why did the Lord say this? Because the gospel is meant to produce this kind of action. This is what the gospel is for. The gospel is not just to satisfy sinners. Praise God, the sinner has his part. God meets his need and showers him with blessings; but that is, we may say, a blessed byproduct of the gospel and not its primary aim. The gospel is preached in the first place so that the Lord may be satisfied. But we must remember this, that he will never be satisfied without our “wasting” ourselves upon him. Have you ever given too much to the Lord? May I tell you something? In divine service the principle of waste is the principle of power. Real usefulness in the hands of God is measured in term of waste. Our work for him springs from our ministering to him, and so do all fruits.

Watchman Nee

This is one of those incredible stories in the Bible about the life of Jesus. It seems on this particular day, the Lord had been invited to Simon the Pharisee’s house for a meal. We learn from the story that Simon hadn’t invited because of friendship or wanting to become a disciple. Instead he really didn’t care for Jesus as is implied by the fact that he didn’t even show the hospitality of having Jesus’ feet washed. Every invited guest would have been given that courtesy. Not to have washed the feet of an invited guest was an insult. Into that room comes a woman. We never learn her name and this is a different story than the one in which Mary the sister of Lazarus washes the feet of Jesus. In this case we are in Simon’s home and in Mary’s case it was in the home of Lazarus. We don’t know when or where this woman had encountered Jesus. We know that at some point He had touched her heart and her sins had been forgiven. On this day she had come to openly express her love and gratitude to the Lord for His mercy and loving kindness.

The intensity of this act is unparalleled. Here is a woman-a notorious woman, a woman of the street who had found the courage to enter a room filled with men. In that day and culture, no woman would have dared, much less a woman of notoriety. Only love deeper than that which can be described in human terms could compel such an action. That in itself would be noteworthy. But the story doesn’t end here.

Not only does this woman enter the room, but she goes directly to Jesus and falls down at His feet. Considering who she is and what she’s done in light of the love and kindness of Jesus, breaks open the dam of her heart. Scripture says that those who have been forgiven much, love much. Once we see the undeserving sinners we have been and the depth of God’s love, it will open the bottled up emotions of our hearts and out will pour worship and thanksgiving. No wonder Revelation records the scene around the throne as the host of heaven fall down before the throne and lift their voices up in worship and adoration to the Lamb who was slain. As she bows before Jesus, her love, gratitude and worship move her emotionally. This is no dry, stale ritual. She’s not the least bit interested what she can get from the Lord and neither is she concerned about what the others in the room may think. As far as she’s concerned the only person present besides herself is Christ. As she thinks about the love given to an undeserving sinner, tears of gratitude flow from her eyes and begin to soak those tired, dirty feet of the Savior who walked dusty streets seeking the lost sheep of heaven. As those streams of tears turned the dust into muddy rivulets, she makes the next astonishing move- she unbraids her hair. Now this may not seem much to us in our society today but in that day no woman was ever seen in public without her hair put up and it was only taken down in the privacy of her home. What an incredible symbolic gesture this was. In essence she was saying without words to Jesus that He was her lord and master. She was giving Him the highest honor humanly possible. The washing of His feet with her tears and now drying them with her hair- which by the way the Bible says that a woman’s hair is her glory- would have been in anyone’s estimate an act of extravagance. Mere religious people would be offended at such “waste.” But the story continues and we read with awe that she had brought with her an alabaster box of expensive perfumed ointment. Some scholars have put the price at a year’s wages. This was no impulsive response. Indeed it was a planned, premeditated act of “wasteful” worship. She opens the box and lavishly pours it over the feet of Jesus. Imagine the thoughts of the crowd! What a waste! Simon the host was certainly offended at the very presence of this woman- especially with who she was- and now in light that he hadn’t even given the courtesy of having Jesus feet washed, the act of this woman shamed him and angered him because his deliberate snub of Jesus was exposed. Simon was one of those who only to use Christ for his personal benefit. He had no desire to worship Him or surrender to His lordship. And anything or anyone who was so freely lavishing love and affection upon Jesus without any ulterior motive was in his opinion a waste. Not only was Simon offended but also Judas. Judas covered up his disgust at the waste of the woman by appearing to be offended that instead of donating the ointment to the ministry, she wasted it on Jesus. His words reflect his heart. “Should this not have been sold and the money given to the poor?” he asked. The writer of the Gospel goes on to say that Judas was the treasurer and apparently he occasionally helped himself to the funds. But this elaborate “waste” exposed his heart as one of a betrayer. It would be some time before he acted as a betrayer in the selling of Jesus to the religious leaders for thirty pieces of silver, but that day the seed that was in his heart began to sprout. What is then the heart of a betrayer? The answer is this: a betrayer always seeks to get something personally from their service to the Lord. It is beyond their scope of thinking that someone could be so grateful to the Lord for His love that they would worship this expressively and unashamedly without expecting anything in return.

Let’s apply this to us. Could it be that we are frugal in our worship and service to Christ? Do we expect to “receive” something in return for our efforts? How many are there who seek to find a church where they “ get fed,” are “cared for,” and seen as “important”? I’m not suggesting that these things aren’t important but if our focus remains on what we get where does that leave Jesus? When Christ died on the cross it was for us and not Himself, therefore when we gather as believers it ought to be for Him and not ourselves. We can choose to be Simon or Judas or we can choose to become “wasteful worshippers.” We may not have the opportunity to literally wash the feet of Jesus but we can still bow down at His feet in worship. We don’t have to remain rigidly upright, stoic, and formal. He is worthy of “wasteful extravagant worship.” A mere token of thanks seems insufficient in light of His gift of love. We may never get to “let down our hair and dry those feet” but we can exalt Him far above our selfish desires, preferences, and demands that we “get something” out of church. As a matter of fact those who focus on getting something out of church are seldom satisfied. Those on the other hand who enter the presence of Jesus to worship without demand are hardly ever disappointed with the encounter.

What’s holding you back? Fear? Pride? The betrayer’s heart? Ritual? Isn’t He worth breaking the barriers by entering into the room? Hasn’t He done so much for you that your heart is so filled with gratitude that tears of joy and gratitude can pour from your eyes? Isn’t He so exalted in your heart that your only response is to lay your glory, pride, or self at His feet in abject adoration? One day scripture says we will cast our crowns(glory) down at His feet, but why wait till then? Why not now? Will you love Him so much that you will give up your best, your most expensive thing you call your own? For some that may be time, for others treasure, and others talents. Whatever it is that you hold dear will you offer it to Him? For the woman it was an alabaster box of ointment. For Abraham it was his son. For Moses it was his position as Pharaoh’s adopted son. For Paul it was his status as a Hebrew’s Hebrew.

Oh that we as the people of God would take on the nature if our Heavenly Father who displayed “wastefulness” when He gave up His Beloved Son for you and I. How little a alabaster box of ointment is in comparison to such lavish waste.

May our gratitude and wonder at the love of God so overflow our hearts that we lose control and with the rocks and trees, we cry out in praise and worship. May the day come that when the church gathers, she becomes so immersed in worship that all else becomes unimportant.

Paul put this into words better than I:

“But whatever former things were gains to me [as I thought then], these things [once regarded as advancements in merit] I have come to consider as loss [absolutely worthless] for the sake of Christ [and the purpose which He has given my life]. But more than that, I count everything as loss compared to the priceless privilege and supreme advantage of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord [and of growing more deeply and thoroughly acquainted with Him—a joy unequaled]. For His sake I have lost everything, and I consider it all garbage, so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him [believing and relying on Him], not having any righteousness of my own derived from [my obedience to] the Law and its rituals, but [possessing] that [genuine righteousness] which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith. And this, so that I may know Him [experientially, becoming more thoroughly acquainted with Him, understanding the remarkable wonders of His Person more completely] and [in that same way experience] the power of His resurrection [which overflows and is active in believers], and [that I may share] the fellowship of His sufferings, by being continually conformed [inwardly into His likeness even] to His death [dying as He did]; so that I may attain to the resurrection [that will raise me] from the dead.”

Philippians 3:7-11

Dr. John Thompson