The Value Of Her Gift

If you purchase something, you are agreeing the Value or Worth placed upon the thing is what is willing to be surrendered to attain it. 

I submit to you then that, you would have to experience something or someone far greater in value in order to consider gifting that earlier, obtained something.

Said another way - have you ever purchased an extremely high quality and expensive product that was meant for yourself but then the exact person that could use your purchase came to mind?  

Remember the sisters of Mary and Martha and their brother Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead? Well, I take you back in time, specifically to John 12:1-8, after Jesus had raised Lazarus, to the house of the siblings. They were holding a dinner in honor of Jesus. As Martha served and Lazarus reclined at the table, Mary took a pound, a pint or half a liter of some of the most expensive perfume of the day and poured it all on the feet of Jesus.

Then Mary proceeded to take her own hair and rub the perfume into His feet as the strong scent of the perfume consumed the house.

Judas Iscariot, the treasurer, was not happy about how Mary spent her gift because of his own greediness and extortion behavior. 

However, Jesus spoke up. First Jesus said, "Leave her alone." To me this speaks that Mary's behavior is personal, the action is between her and the Lord and nobody should be concerned about it. Then Jesus elaborates  and commended Mary's actions - 

"It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me." 

Mary saw there was a way to show her love and appreciation to The Lord besides using the perfume or nard in the standard way - for burial proceedings. 

Let the fact not be lost on us that Mary did not rub the perfume into the feet of Jesus with a towel, cloth or rag - she used her own hair. This action, by a woman, was one of the most humbling and respectful acts that a woman could perform in those days. Paul confirms this in his letter to the believers in Corinth when he says, "but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering." (1 Corinthians 11:15).

As Judas fusses over the use and subsequent loss of personal revenue to his pocket, he reveals the enormous monetary cost it was to anyone, especially a female, therefore making the gift to Jesus all that more special to Mary. Judas says, "Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages." (John 12:5)

The New International Version makes the worth clear - "a year's wages". Other translations say "three hundred pence" with the Greek for pence being Denarius. The denari, that day, was worth a day's salary. Three hundred of these would equal a year's worth of pay.

Whether Jesus raised His voice or not, when He said - "Leave her alone." - Jesus accepted Mary's personal gift of great value. I feel sure there are many ways in which Mary displayed her loyalty to the cause of Jesus before this personal gift of value interaction. Mary's time, energy, expertise and testimony on the favor of Jesus and His message of "kingdom come" was I'm sure very much appreciated and will one day be rewarded. 

However, this gift was from a prompting of her heart and from the resources she had earned and bought that was a display of what was precious to her. Let us recall the words of Jesus recorded by Matthew - "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:21) 

From then till today, money has been the currency to untold treasures. Funds have supplied us with support for the needs and wants in our lives. But when you have a purchase, like that of Mary, that has cost you a whole year's worth of an occupation and you decide in one sitting to pour it all out on someone's feet and humble yourself with the rubbing of it with your hair - that has potential to cause a stir from the house, astonishment from one and acceptance from the one that counts.

John recorded that Mary continued to bless Jesus with her personal gift even when Judas blurted out his displeasure. John's account pictures Mary rightfully ignoring Judas and dedicating her money in the form of the perfume. She graced His Grace, The Lord Jesus, the treasure of her heart with the best she had to offer at the time - The Value Of Her Gift.