Thursday 1st August
Read John 12:4-6
“But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, 5 ‘Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.’ 6 He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.” (NIVUK)
There is plausibility in the objection that this is an immense waste of resources that could better be used in altruistic ways. Most of us have justified decisions in this way in the past. One can compare it today to arguments that say building a brand-new stadium for the Olympics for over a billion dollars is a frivolous waste of taxpayer funds compared with housing the many thousands of homeless people suffering right now. Yet sport does bring joy to many.
It is just as easy to wander into a dry utilitarian faith that seeks only to do the most good with the resources available. Don Carson captures the thought that underlies the passage well. He writes that whilst ‘self-righteous piety sometimes snuffs out genuine compassion, it must also be admitted, with shame, that social activism, even that which meets real needs, sometimes masks a spirit that knows nothing of worship and adoration’.
Mary has not considered the cost at all. She only seeks to honour and worship her Lord. Her extravagant adoration has been extolled through two thousand years and counting.
