“Follow Me”...As Commissioned by God

Nations become empires because of the military might. History corroborates what we know from the Bible. Ancient Egypt was known to have a mighty army. Later, the Assyrians formed one of the most brutal armies in history. They were toppled by the Babylonians, who were defeated by the Medes and Persians, who were in turn defeated by the Greeks, who conquered the known world under Alexander the Great. And eventually, the Romans would have their day. They were mighty and powerful, but the Roman army was also known for its efficiency – moving across the land at great lengths daily, in part because a system of roads was put in place throughout the empire.

To be a Roman citizen usually meant you had great pride in the army. One of the ways the emperor and senate fostered that pride was to recreate battles in the Coliseum. Many know that Christians were fed to lions, but another great spectacle was to make various captors play the role of the victims at the various places Rome had conquered, including sea battles, as picture here.

Reenactment of a Water Battle at the Roman Colosseum

The battles were obviously staged and the fighting often included gladiators who fought valiantly, but were doomed to defeat because they didn’t have the weaponry or the numbers that the Romans had – just like the original battle setting wherever it may have been. We might find this form of entertainment sick and cruel, but for the Romans it was sport – and it was entertaining.

This was not the only reminder to the people of Rome and its provinces of the power and might of Rome. Before the captives ever made it to the city of Rome, they were hauled back from their place of origin – either marched or in some form of cage. As the army led the prisoners through the streets, all of the people would be reminded of the great power of the army. It was essentially a reminder to follow Caesar or end up like the people being paraded through town. Eventually, the soldiers and their captives would make it back to Rome where they would march through the streets to the cheers of the people who celebrated another triumph of the army for the Republic of Rome.

Captives Being Led Through the Streets of Rome

At the conclusion of the message, I will explain why I have shared these facts about the Roman army. For now, we turn to Mark 14 and move very close to the end of this story we have reviewed since last April. By the time we finish Mark 14 in a few weeks, we will have moved through Gethsemane and Jesus will have already faced one trial and will be ready to stand before Pilate. Indeed, we are approaching the end of this story, and the story will get very dark from here. But, thankfully, we live on the other side of these events. We know the outcome was not only death, but included resurrection.

Therefore, we approach these verses as a reminder of the reality that our Lord did suffer. His suffering was for all of mankind, which means it was for you and for me. So, despite how uncomfortable these coming weeks may be, I encourage you to endure these truths, because the Lord endured our punishment.

The Sandwich (Mark 14.1-11)

This passage is another Markan sandwich. Again, this idea is prevalent throughout Mark’s writing. Mark takes two stories that may have some overlap, but a greater principle becomes clear by combining the two together. Literally, he places one inside the other, just as we place two pieces of bread around the contents of a sandwich.

Briefly, in this passage, Mark begins with the first piece of bread by setting the stage.

Bread 1: Just before Passover. The leaders are looking to arrest Jesus without causing an uproar.
     Contents: A woman anoints Jesus with expensive oil.
     Contents: The crowd thinks the woman has wasted this ointment.
     Contents: Jesus teaches that a great tribute has just been made.
Bread 2: Judas makes arrangements to hand Jesus over to the leaders.

The Setting (Mark 14.1-3)

Mark tells us that this is just before the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread. These two feasts originally were given independently by God, but because the Feast of Unleavened Bread began as soon as Passover ended, the two were effectively combined into one feast lasting eight days rather than the single day for Passover and the following seven days for the Unleavened Bread.

The chief priests and scribes would have been meeting in the temple area and were plotting against Jesus. The first real plotting against Jesus, per Mark, begin in Mark 3.6. Now it is getting more serious, especially after their challenges to Jesus on the Tuesday had failed. In fact, if you recall, it was at the end of day Monday that they first began to plot against Him (Mark 11.18). But their fear of the people had intensified, and the crowd in Jerusalem had grown. Passover was one of three times that all Jewish males had to travel to Jerusalem each year and estimates range from 300,000 to as many as 3 million people being there for this occasion. The Roman guard must stand ready and many reinforcements always arrived in Jerusalem to make certain disruptions were kept to a minimum. The religious leaders knew it, and wanted to find a way to take care of Jesus without getting the masses involved.

Meanwhile, Jesus is in Bethany, just on the other side of the Mount of Olives, about two miles from Jerusalem.

Map of Jerusalem & Bethany

Bethany was the home of some of His closest friends – Lazarus (whom He had just raised from the dead a few days earlier), Martha, and Mary.

Andy in Tomb of Lazarus

But in this setting, He is at the home of Simon the leper. We don’t know if Simon was a leper before this meal or became one afterward. If before, it is quite possible that Jesus healed him at some point. What we do know if that Simon the leper was not a leper at this precise time because he would not have been allowed to be around others, let alone host people in his home.

The woman comes to Jesus. Now before we get to the specifics of what she did, it is important to note that it is customary for a guest to be anointed, especially an important guest. But it is not proper for a woman to approach a man while he is eating unless she is serving food. She is not serving, at least not in this moment, so this would have been quite irregular for those who were present. Her presence would have already had others on edge, but what she does next creates quite a stir.

What does she do? She pours a jar of ointment on Jesus. Again, this act itself would have been ok. But she didn’t just pour a little bit, she drenched Jesus. Notice verse 3 says she broke the flask. This wasn’t opening up the flask and pouring a little bit on Him. This was breaking it in a fashion that the entire contents of jar must be used. In other words, now that the jar was opened, it could not be shut. All of the oil must be used now, if it was ever to be used.

The Gift (Mark 14.3,5)

The alabaster flask (jar) was the container for the oil. We read in verse 5 of an estimated value of 300 denarii. That is basically 10 months wages. In 1st Century Palestine, rarely could a woman have a career that would afford her an opportunity to earn a decent living, let alone save such a sum of money to buy so precious a gift. Thus, many have speculated that this jar was itself either a gift or a family heirloom. If this is the case, to break the jar was not just about the monetary value, it was casting aside any sentimental value as well.

The Reaction (Mark 14.4)

The word indignant is used here. The word means to be very displeased or offended. Either of those meanings reflects what the “some” expressed in verse 4. We do not know exactly who the “some” are, but we can presume that the disciples are with Jesus and likely make up, at least, part of the “some.”

Why was this group offended? This unnamed woman just “wasted” (their word) a flask full of ointment with a very high value. We might assess the situation like this. Perhaps, if she had removed the opening, she could have poured a little onto Jesus, and saved the rest for another time. But instead, she broke the flask forcing herself to pour all of the contents. Now, remember, they are likely a bit frustrated at her very presence. The woman is a she and she isn’t supposed to be among the men while they eat unless she is serving them.

So, her place among them has the men a little riled up. And now this waste of something that could have provided for the poor (obviously, a soft spot with Jesus). While the people gathered may have been genuinely concerned for the poor, they undoubtedly desired to elevate their position, so they stated the woman’s action as a waste. As usual, we can read and hear the story, but until we experience it, I am not sure we understand. Let me present it this way. Many may be aware of the phrase “Waste not, want not.” Perhaps you were done eating, but you still had food on your plate. Someone said, “You are not excused until you finish your meal.” The idea is not to waste anything because someone would find value in what you were willing to waste.

The reality is, in those scenarios, the harping over being wasteful is over a few cents or dollars. I know it is the principle that counts, but the reality is that the actual cost was little. But that is not what this woman did – she “wasted” 10 months of wages within a few seconds! If we use a nice round figure like $50,000, then her “waste” could be valued at about $41,650. $41,000 gone – in an instant. Most reasonable people would consider that a tremendous waste!

But, of course, it really wasn’t a waste.

The Teaching (Mark 14.6-9)

Jesus says that what was done was indeed out of the ordinary. She probably did not realize what she had done, but Jesus did – she had prepared Him for burial. He states that the poor will always need help (Deuteronomy 15.11), but He would not always be right before them. Then, Jesus said that what she has done will be remembered forever – and, indeed, it has been to this point.

I want to come back to this in a moment, but first, let me briefly put the last slice of bread on our sandwich.

The Setup (Mark 14.10-11)

Many believe that this instance was the final straw for Judas. Perhaps he was one of the indignant persons who was causing the woman trouble. Perhaps not. Many speculations have been made for the motives of Judas, but Scripture does not give a clear indication of why he betrayed Jesus, only that he did so.

Whatever his reasons, he goes to the chief priests to offer to give them Jesus. We must realize that under any ordinary circumstance, Judas would not have been allowed near, but he must have said something to pique their interests. An arrangement for money was made, although we are not told that Judas asked for money (Matthew writes that Judas asked for something, but did not specify money). The only question which remained – when would this take place?

The passage began with the religious leaders looking for a way to arrest Jesus without making a scene. Their “prayers” had been answered. Not because it was their plan, but because it was God’s.

All of Israel was about to celebrate the remembrance of the Passover. That night, the people would be freed because of the death of the firstborn son. Now the plans were in place to kill the firstborn Son of the King of Israel so that all people might be truly free.

The truth is that Jesus came to die. He was appointed to die. And on this day, He was anointed for burial. It was a necessary preparation. But consider the implications. This ointment would be with Him each step of the way – during each event of the last day or so of His life. The aroma would have stayed with Jesus for days, so everywhere he went during his last week, Jesus would have smelled like a king!

• In the Garden when He was arrested.
• On trial with the Jews when some spit on Him or hit Him.
• In the dungeon where He was beaten.
• On trial with Pilate – the Roman governor.
• On trial with Herod – the Jewish king
• At the post where the Romans tortured Him.
• In the streets as He carried the cross.
• On the cross as He suffered and died.

Through the smell of His sweat, and the smell of His blood, the aroma of the woman’s gift would remain. Through His agony and pain, Jesus would have a not so subtle reminder that though He was King, He was being rejected by the people He came to save.

CONCLUSION

As I began this message, I spoke of the power of the Roman army and their custom of parading people through the streets as a reminder to the people for what has happened in the past, and could happen to those aligning the streets if they chose to rebel.

As I just mentioned, the aroma of the ointment was with Jesus in His final days. The scent would have been unmistakable as He was paraded through the streets, was beaten, and eventually died. Paul reminds us that we, too, are anointed, and the aroma that we wear permeates the air around us as we are victoriously paraded by God through those around us.

In 2 Corinthians 2.14-16, Paul writes that the aroma of Christ to God is evident to all those who are near the parade in which we march. As the Romans paraded their captives through the crowd, the smell of sweat and blood would have smelled like death to some and victory to others. Likewise, as Paul says, in God’s triumphant parade, the aroma of Christ is upon us. To some, they will smell the sweet sense of salvation. To others they will hear condemnation and fear death. But our job is to spread His fragrance wherever we go. Not because we are captives of God, but because we have been anointed as His servants.

Our anointing is not in preparation for burial as was the anointing of Jesus in this story. Our anointing is because of the resurrection and the opportunity to have, as one author calls it, life after life after death. That is, being alive after death is not the goal. Living after we die is really the goal. Think of it this way, many people have a heartbeat today, but are not really alive – they just exist. But others make the most of life. We should be preparing ourselves and others to truly live after we die – which isn’t when our body gives way, but when we give ourselves to Jesus. As Paul said, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2.20).

JOURNEY:

That is why our JOURNEY letter for the week is: E – Engage.

We have been chosen by God. We have been anointed to serve. The question cannot be “Will I serve others?” Rather it must be, “How will I serve others because I desire to serve God?” We cannot betray Jesus physically as Judas did, but when we are not obedient to do what He wants us to do, we betray Him just the same.

OPPORTUNITY: Let the fragrance of God emanate from you, so that others may find reason to give God the glory.

REMEMBRANCE: Jesus is worth everything. What others thought was a waste, the woman thought was worthy of Jesus. Not the value of the gift, nor even the sentimentality of the item was worth anything compared to how this unnamed woman felt towards her Lord. Do we feel the same about His value to us?

NEXT STEP(S): Love: Our love for Jesus must be more than just words. We show our love for Him in how we live our lives for God and others, and what we are willing to give up just to be with Him.