Matthew 26 -- A Study In Contrasts

Quite a few things to note today.  When Mary broke open the expensive bottle of perfume and poured it over Jesus’ head and fee, wiping them with her hair, Judas asked, “WHY the WASTE?”

 

My commentary, noting that a woman’s hair is her glory, said, “She surrendered her glory to the Lord and worshipped Him with the precious gift that she brought … Jesus did not criticize the disciples because they were concerned about the poor … He was cautioning them against missing THEIR opportunity to worship.  They would always have opportunities to help the poor.  But they would not always have the opportunity to worship at His feet and prepare Him for burial.”  The waste was with Judas – “He wasted his opportunities, his life, and his soul!”

 

Another thing – Jesus told His disciples that they would all fall away.  “When Peter disagreed with the Lord, this was the beginning of his sin of denying the Lord.  Peter was unwilling to apply the word all to himself.  Instead of reassuring Peter, the Lord gave him a personal warning:  He would deny Christ three times!  Peter thought he was better than the other men, and Jesus told him he would be even more cowardly than the others … Had Peter listened to the word and obeyed it, he would not have denied his Lord three times.”

 

Quite a contrast there – Mary not caring what others thought and not wounded by their words.  Judas in the room for the Passover feast, with Satan within him, and Peter letting pride cause him to fail miserably three times when he might have only failed once with all the others.

 

Father, I want to be like Mary.  I don’t want to miss opportunities to worship You and Your Son.  I don’t want to waste opportunities, nor let my pride keep me from following Your will.  Help me to be more like Your Son – despite the agony He must have faced with the thought of taking on my sins and those of everyone who would ever live, He stayed the course.

 

Your Brother In Christ,

Gary Ford