woman pours perfume on Jesus | Devotions by Chris Hendrix

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August 16, 2023 · 5:37 AM

Opening The Door

I love stories where Jesus entered people’s homes. We get to see a different side of Jesus and how different people respond to it. In Luke 7 Jesus went into the home of a religious leader of the Pharisees named Simon. When Jesus sat down to eat, a woman from the neighborhood entered the home, anointed Jesus’ feet with perfume, wept tears on His feet and dried them with her hair. Simeon began to judge Jesus in his heart and doubt Him because a prophet should know this woman was a prostitute and not let her touch Him. Jesus responded that the man neglected Him by not extending normal customs to Jesus like greeting Him and anointing Him. This woman responded the way he should have and Jesus forgave her sins.

A few chapters later in Luke 19, Jesus entered Jericho with large crowds of people blocking the streets to see Him. That’s where we meet Zacchaeus who climbed up a tree to see Him. When Jesus saw him, He invited Himself over to his house. Zacchaeus was honored and the people were upset because of who Zacchaeus was. When Jesus entered his house Zacchaeus had a change of heart and offered to repay with interest the people he had stolen from. He also offered to give half of his wealth to the poor all because when he let Jesus come in, he let Him into his heart as well. In verse 9 Jesus responded, “Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham” (NLT). With that, Jesus restored Zacchaeus into the family.

In Revelation 3:20 Jesus says, “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.” Do you hear Him knocking? Once He comes in, how will you respond? Many people like Jesus as a teacher, but never let Him in because that forces us to either judge Him or be changed by Him. We see what happens to people in these two stories. You can’t let Him in and be the same person. You will either dismiss Him or become like Him. He’s still standing outside your door knocking, waiting to be let into every area of your life. He wants to fellowship with you and bring about forgiveness, healing, restoration and life change to you. Will you let Him in or hold Him at a safe distance?

Photo by Roberto Huczek on Unsplash

Mary, Martha And Judas

Recently we were driving somewhere and our son said he had a question for us. I turned down the radio and asked what it was. He asked, “Which are y’all: Mary or Martha?” I laughed that such a question would come from a 9 year old. His question is in reference to Luke 10 where Martha is busy serving Jesus while Mary just sits at His feet listening. My wife responded, “Sorry, son. You were born into a family of Martha’s!” He asked if that was a bad thing. I explained that it wasn’t because we need both Mary’s and Martha’s. The Martha’s of the world simply need to learn to not be so anxious when things don’t get done perfectly and they also need to take time to sit at the feet of Jesus and recharge. Both types are important to the Church.

We see Martha and Mary two more times in Scripture. The next time we see them is in John 11 after their brother Lazarus had died. When Jesus showed up four days later, it was Martha who ran out to meet Jesus while Mary stayed in the house. Martha expressed that if Jesus had been there, her brother wouldn’t have died. She also expressed that He was the Messiah and could raise him up. After their conversation she went to get Mary to take her to Jesus. Mary expressed the same things. It was the other people who doubted and accused when they implied that Jesus gave sight to the blind, but couldn’t keep Lazarus from dying. After that, we read that Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead.

The last time we meet them is in John 12, about two months later, just before Jesus is crucified. Martha was back to serving everyone while Lazarus ate. Verse 3 says, “Then Mary took a whole pint of a very expensive perfume made of pure nard, poured it on Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The sweet smell of the perfume filled the whole house” (GNT). Immediately Judas saw this as a waste of money and criticized her act of worship. In these stories, there are three types of people: one who worships with service, one who worships at His feet and those who criticize. I’ll ask my son’s question to you. Which are you? It’s all right to be a Martha as long as you’re not so busy you miss hearing Jesus. It’s all right being a Mary as long as you share what you learn at the feet of Jesus. It’s not ok to stand back from afar and criticize the way other people worship while never drawing near yourself. Each of us must worship in our own extravagant way and take time to hear what Jesus is saying to us.

Photo by Richard Burlton on Unsplash

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