“But Judas Iscariot, the disciple who would soon betray him, said, “That perfume was worth a year’s wages. It should have been sold and the money given to the poor.” Not that he cared for the poor—he was a thief, and since he was in charge of the disciples’ money, he often stole some for himself.”
John 12:4-6 NLT
It seems that the disciples had a communal purse that supplied money for their needs as they followed Jesus in His ministry around the highways and byways of Israel. Their income would have been from donations and their needs met from hospitality. In Luke 8:1-3 we read, “Soon afterward Jesus began a tour of the nearby towns and villages, preaching and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom of God. He took his twelve disciples with him, along with some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases. Among them were Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons; Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s business manager; Susanna; and many others who were contributing from their own resources to support Jesus and his disciples”. These verses imply that there were some wealthy women around who followed Jesus and His disciples and who contributed to their funds. But the life of Jesus and His disciples would have been frugal and probably at a subsistence level.
John recorded that Judas was indignant because of Mary’s extravagant action. The perfume was valued at about a year’s wages, or three hundred denarii. In the UK today the recommended minimum wage would provide an income of around £24k, so that probably gives an indication of the value of Mary’s perfume in today’s society. Such a sum would have been a significant contribution to the disciples’ common purse. Judas suggested that the perfume could have been sold and the money given to the poor, but in reality John, with the benefit of hindsight, knew that some of it would have ended up in Judas’ pocket.
Jesus knew all about Judas and what he was up to, so why didn’t He deal with him early in His mission? We read in John 6:70-71, “Then Jesus said, “I chose the twelve of you, but one is a devil.” He was speaking of Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, one of the Twelve, who would later betray him”. There were various prophetic hints about Judas in the Old Testament and Jesus knew that he would play a pivotal part in His arrest and what followed.
The message to us pilgrims from the behaviour of Judas is not only to keep our lives clean from any form of stealing, however. Judas was a man who followed Jesus, who behaved just as the rest of the disciples, and even took part in the disciples’ ministry when Jesus sent them out on mission to the towns and villages in Judea. But in his heart he had doubts and gradually built up a resentment of Jesus, to the point that he arranged to betray Him to the authorities. The devil was complicit, of course, in Judas’ actions, as we read in Luke 22:3-4, “Then Satan entered into Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve disciples, and he went to the leading priests and captains of the Temple guard to discuss the best way to betray Jesus to them”.
Do we pilgrims follow in Judas’ footsteps and, in our churches and fellowships, seek to undermine our leaders and end up betraying them? Perhaps they don’t conform to our expectations. Perhaps they preach a message we find uncomfortable. Or perhaps there is something about the church life they promote that we disagree with. In 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13 we read, “Dear brothers and sisters, honour those who are your leaders in the Lord’s work. They work hard among you and give you spiritual guidance. Show them great respect and wholehearted love because of their work. And live peacefully with each other”. Our spiritual leaders are appointed by God and we do well to support and encourage them, regardless of our feelings. And we must let God deal with them if they do wrong in exactly the same way as He does with us. He doesn’t need our help! And through it all, and above all, we listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit, as He leads and guides us in our pilgrimage.
Dear Father God, thank You for our leaders, local and national. We pray for all those we know in a leadership position, that You will lead and guide them in Your ways. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Being a Pilgrim 