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The Kernel of Wheat

Posted on by korgrocker

“I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives. Those who love their life in this world will lose it. Those who care nothing for their life in this world will keep it for eternity. Anyone who wants to serve me must follow me, because my servants must be where I am. And the Father will honour anyone who serves me.”
John 12:24-26 NLT

‭John recorded a pivotal moment in Jesus’ ministry, where He publicly declared the true purpose of His mission, though in terms that would have puzzled the disciples. They knew, of course, of the principles of arable farming where a farmer would sow seeds to produce a crop. But what was that to do with Jesus? And how would that enable Him to enter into His glory? 

Jesus said that His life would have to be sacrificed so that there would be “a plentiful harvest of new lives”. He knew that there was coming a time quite soon when He would be executed on a Roman cross, but, equally, He knew that unless He made the ultimate human sacrifice, there would be no fruit, no church, no remedy to mitigate man’s sin. With the benefit on hindsight through the Biblical accounts, we knew what happened, and the fruit in terms of souls saved has been enormous. Numbers impossible to count. But through His sacrifice at Calvary, Jesus fulfilled God’s will. Hebrews 10:10, “For God’s will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time”. Romans 3:23-25a, “For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when he freed us from the penalty for our sins. For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. …”

But Jesus went on to say something that cuts across the sin-filled culture in which we live. He said that by if we love our lives in our natural lifetimes we will find that we will lose our lives for eternity. Conversely those who care nothing for their natural lives, who instead devote their time to others and their good, will enjoy eternal life with God. Jesus emphasised this principle by saying that His followers must honour God by serving Him. A counter-cultural way of life that does not sit easily in our grasping and selfish society. A society that asks “what’s in it for me”. A society that pursues personal gain to the detriment of others. A society that honours those who have fought their way to the top of their businesses by trampling and abusing those around them in the process. There is surely nothing new under the sun – Solomon penned this verse many years ago, “But as I looked at everything I had worked so hard to accomplish, it was all so meaningless—like chasing the wind. There was nothing really worthwhile anywhere” (Ecclesiastes 2:11). 

We pilgrims are followers of Christ and on another occasion He clearly spelled out what this means. Matthew 16:24-26, “Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul? Is anything worth more than your soul?” So everything we do in our pilgrimage must be in accordance with the long view of the destination of our souls. 

We pilgrims have the opportunity to lay down our lives for others, and by doing so, the process will follow closely the arable process of seed planting. Everywhere we go we broadcast Gospel “seeds” that will produce fruit for the Kingdom of God. Jesus paid the ultimate sacrifice on a hill called Calvary, and we pilgrims are the fruit of that sacrifice, among many brothers and sisters throughout the world.

Dear Lord Jesus. We are really grateful for what You did for us at Calvary. Please lead us to the right places, where there is receptive soil waiting for seeds to be planted. In Your precious name. Amen.

The Greeks

Posted on by korgrocker

“Some Greeks who had come to Jerusalem for the Passover celebration paid a visit to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee. They said, “Sir, we want to meet Jesus.” Philip told Andrew about it, and they went together to ask Jesus.”
John 12:20-22 NLT

‭‭In those days the term “Greeks” had a generic meaning for all non-Israelites. They had come to enjoy the Passover festival because, although not Jewish, they revered Israel’s God. John records in these verses that they tried to get access to Jesus through Philip who, perhaps, and along with Andrew, was acting as a security vetting service for Jesus, because, as we know, the religious leaders wanted to arrest Him. We can only guess about the significance of Philip being from Bethsaida – perhaps one of the “Greeks” knew him from there.

So, why did the “Greeks” want to see Jesus? They would have heard about the amazing miracles that He had performed, so, perhaps they wanted Jesus to do a few for them. A natural curiosity might have been the reason. Or perhaps they too wanted to hear at first hand some of the sayings of Jesus that they had heard about. 

We pilgrims today are in a truly favoured position. Through the Holy Spirit we have access to Jesus always. We read what Jesus said to His disciples in John 16:7, “But in fact, it is best for you that I go away, because if I don’t, the Advocate won’t come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you”. And then in John 16:13-14, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me”. Jesus was limited to being in one place at a time, even though He is divine. But the Holy Spirit is universal and omnipresent and can be with all believers all of the time. We don’t have to request an audience with Jesus and then wait our turn in a long queue, or try and book an appointment as we do at our doctor’s surgery, and then wait days or weeks before we get a ten minute slot.

Jesus came to His own people the Jews, but right at the start of His ministry He made that universal statement, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). And then a bit later he said, “And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd” (John 10:16). Jesus came “to seek and save the lost” in all the nations, including the “Greeks”.

Father God. We are so grateful that Your plan for salvation was for all human beings, not just the Jews, and it was implemented through Your Son, Jesus. We are deeply grateful. Amen.


Natural Evangelism

Posted on by korgrocker

“Many in the crowd had seen Jesus call Lazarus from the tomb, raising him from the dead, and they were telling others about it. That was the reason so many went out to meet him—because they had heard about this miraculous sign. Then the Pharisees said to each other, “There’s nothing we can do. Look, everyone has gone after him!””
John 12:17-19 NLT

For those people who believed that evangelism didn’t start until after the Day of Pentecost, referring to that tremendous sermon from Peter after which three thousand men were saved, and which we can read in Acts 2, then they have missed something. The news about the raising of Lazarus from the dead, a miracle initially observed by a “crowd” of people (perhaps thirty or forty?), spread quickly through Jerusalem and the surrounding areas and even to the Passover visitors. The people who observed Lazarus emerge from the grave still wrapped in his graveclothes would never forget what had happened before their eyes, and they couldn’t wait to go and tell someone. A natural response to something out of the ordinary. But isn’t that evangelism?

Another remarkable event took place on the Day of Pentecost, when the people in the upper room, who had just experienced the tongues of fire and the ruach of God rushing through the place, burst out onto the streets of Jerusalem, speaking in languages native to the many visitors who had come for the Feast. Isn’t that evangelism?

The Pharisees were at a loss to know what to do. The amazing miracle that Jesus had committed had become common knowledge in that area and the people flocked out to see Him as he rode the donkey up the road into Jerusalem. In despair, they realised that they had been deserted, and didn’t have the following amongst the people that they had previously enjoyed. Their teaching was heavy and boring. They were unable to demonstrate miracles. And no amount of threats could stop the people from following the Man who did such amazing things. Isn’t that the result of evangelism?

We pilgrims have experienced a remarkable miracle ourselves. That the Creator God of the Universe would love us so much that through His Son, Jesus, He has allowed us to enter His presence sinless and righteous, and has ensured that we will be with Him for all eternity. That’s a miracle, and one that we cannot but tell everyone we meet. It’s a message that will not often be welcomed. Faced with a choice, people will prefer the pleasures of sin over the assurance of an eternity spent with God. But we pilgrims pray every day and ask God to lead us to just the right person who will be receptive to hear our miraculous message. We are not all great evangelists preaching messages to thousands of people. We might be like the teenager who persuaded a friend to go to church with him, and the friend was saved. That friend was Billy Graham. We don’t know what happened to the teenager, but we do know that he was faithful in doing what God had asked him to do.

So who knows – the next time we share our messages of hope, there might be another Billy Graham waiting to hear what we have to say. Isn’t that evangelism?

Dear God. Your love has motivated us to the point that we cannot help but tell others about all that You have done for us. Please lead us to the right people. In Jesus name. Amen.

Prophetic Fulfilment

Posted on by korgrocker

“Jesus found a young donkey and rode on it, fulfilling the prophecy that said: “Don’t be afraid, people of Jerusalem. Look, your King is coming, riding on a donkey’s colt.” His disciples didn’t understand at the time that this was a fulfilment of prophecy. But after Jesus entered into his glory, they remembered what had happened and realised that these things had been written about him.”
John 12:14-16 NLT

We pilgrims have the benefit of hindsight over events that took place two thousand years ago. Bible scholars in recent times have claimed that Jesus fulfilled over three hundred Old Testament prophecies when He came to this world as a Jewish baby boy, finally dying on a Roman cross thirty years or so later. And there are many more prophecies still waiting to be fulfilled, prophecies that refer to His second coming, at a time yet to be determined. As John recorded, the disciples didn’t know at the time that Jesus’ donkey ride into Jerusalem took place just as Zechariah prophesied six or seven hundred years before. There were too many details for that first Palm Sunday just to be a random event, driven by the need of transport for a supposedly tired Jesus.

People today generally seem to care little for prophecies. They might dabble a little in their horoscopes, invented as a form of entertainment in a newspaper or magazine. They might read about something that creates a bit of interest, something supposedly “prophetic”, like the sayings of the French philosopher Nostradamus. But in the main, 21st Century Western man cares little for a future that they think is probably out of reach and therefore lacks importance. 

So why does the Old Testament hold so many prophecies? To me, it exposes a loving and caring God who spoke through faithful men about events to come. Men who listened to what God was telling them and they faithfully wrote it down both to encourage and warn God’s people. All the prophecies also add weight to the authenticity of the Bible because, after all, it is God’s only written work. 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realise what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.” The prophecies in the Bible have formed the Canon of Scripture and even today they are an important part of our pilgrimage, leading us and guiding us in God’s ways.

Prophecy in the church today consists of forth-telling and fore-telling, proclamation and prediction. In the Old Testament, there was much fore-telling, with the prophets of old bringing about amazing predictions about what was going to happen at some time in the future. But on 21st Century Planet Earth, we need to be careful with predictive prophecy. God’s Word, the Bible, is complete, and we are warned about adding anything to it – Revelation 22:18-19, “And I solemnly declare to everyone who hears the words of prophecy written in this book: If anyone adds anything to what is written here, God will add to that person the plagues described in this book. And if anyone removes any of the words from this book of prophecy, God will remove that person’s share in the tree of life and in the holy city that are described in this book”.

Sadly, in recent years men and women have tried to predict such Biblical events such as Armageddon, with the Jehovah Witnesses “prophesying” that it would take place in 1974. Such was the weight given to this date that some members of the JW organisation even sold their houses in preparation. Of course, 1974 came and went with no change in the world. If Armageddon had come we wouldn’t be here now. There are many other occasions when predictive prophecies have come to be shown what they really were – human inventions. However, fore-telling can still be a valid prophetic influence in the church today and we should never say never. Instead, we should test the spirits, and never make life changing decisions based on a single prophecy. We must always look to God for confirmation. Our loving Heavenly Father won’t want us to be misled.

Regarding prophecy that is forth-telling, a “prophetic” message delivered from the pulpit can explain God’s Word in a way that is more easily understood and applied in our lives. 1 Corinthians 12:10 lists a number of spiritual gifts, including prophesy, “He gives one person the power to perform miracles, and another the ability to prophesy. He gives someone else the ability to discern whether a message is from the Spirit of God or from another spirit. Still another person is given the ability to speak in unknown languages, while another is given the ability to interpret what is being said.” The gift of prophecy enables someone to “speak forth” or declare the divine will, to interpret the purposes of God, or to make known in any way the truth of God which is designed to influence people. Prophets are men and women who are speaking on behalf of God, and the Holy Spirit has equipped them to speak out what God wants them to.

But back to our verses of Scripture from John. Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem fulfilled Zechariah’s prophecy written down many years before. That is the sign of a true prophecy and one that validates the prophet himself. And it also reveals that God Himself spoke to Zechariah, and others, as part of His salvation plan to rescue mankind. An amazing message but sadly the Jewish religious leaders failed to make the connection.

Dear Father God. You have given us many gifts and we thank You for the gift of prophecy. Please help us to recognise Your prophets and treat them well. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Jesus on a Donkey

Posted on by korgrocker

The people “took palm branches and went down the road to meet him. They shouted, “Praise God! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hail to the King of Israel!” Jesus found a young donkey and rode on it, fulfilling the prophecy that said: “Don’t be afraid, people of Jerusalem. Look, your King is coming, riding on a donkey’s colt.””
John 12:13-15 NLT

In Luke’s Gospel we find some details about the origin of the donkey. We read in Luke 19:29-31, “As he came to the towns of Bethphage and Bethany on the Mount of Olives, he sent two disciples ahead. “Go into that village over there,” he told them. “As you enter it, you will see a young donkey tied there that no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks, ‘Why are you untying that colt?’ just say, ‘The Lord needs it.’”” And John helpfully pointed out that this event was a fulfilment of the prophecy in Zechariah 9:9, “Rejoice, O people of Zion! Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem! Look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous and victorious, yet he is humble, riding on a donkey— riding on a donkey’s colt.” 

We pilgrims know the story well, and may even have re-enacted it in our Sunday School days. Some rural churches today even manage to find a real donkey to add some reality to the tale. Yet in acting out the Palm Sunday story, three attributes of Jesus in the Zechariah prophecy are often overlooked.

Jesus was, and is, righteous. Although he came to this world as a human being, Jesus never committed a sin. Ever. We read in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.” And because he was sinless, He was righteous. 1 John 3:7, “Dear children, don’t let anyone deceive you about this: When people do what is right, it shows that they are righteous, even as Christ is righteous.” 

The Zechariah prophecy also proclaimed that the coming King was victorious. In the Jewish people’s minds, that would have meant their King was victorious in battle. This was of course correct, but not in the way the people wanted. Jesus came and defeated the devil through His victory on the cross. There, He satisfied the justice of God on our behalf and broke the power of sin, Satan, and death. Once and for all. The disciples on the Road to Emmaus expressed the disappointment present in the Jewish people, “We had hoped he was the Messiah who had come to rescue Israel. This all happened three days ago” (Luke 24:21). For the people, the excitement of the first Palm Sunday evaporated in the event that took place on a hill called Calvary, an event that left a big hole in their hopes and dreams. 

The third quality of the coming King in the Zechariah prophecy was that He was humble. Paul wrote about Jesus’ humility in Philippians 2:5-8, “You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.”

Jesus ticked all the Zechariah boxes down to the last detail. And we read on in Philippians, “Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:9-11). That’s our Saviour. the Lord of lords and the King of kings.

Dear Lord Jesus. Thank You for humbly obeying Father God’s mission for You on Planet Earth. We praise and worship You today. Amen.

Jesus is Coming

Posted on by korgrocker

“The next day, the news that Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem swept through the city. A large crowd of Passover visitors took palm branches and went down the road to meet him. They shouted, “Praise God! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hail to the King of Israel!””
John 12:12-13 NLT

The Pharisees’ worst nightmare was happening before their eyes. A large crowd of people, in Jerusalem for the Passover festival, somehow heard that Jesus was on His way. So they decided to go out to welcome Him, and they started shouting out, “Hosanna” and “Hail to the King of Israel”. They ripped palm branches off the trees to use to amplify their excitement about the coming of Jesus. If Jesus was indeed the coming King, where would that leave the religious leaders, the Pharisees, and all the other religious leaders? Their whole way of life would disappear and leave them without influence and authority. 

We pilgrims look back over the account of the first Palm Sunday and wonder what it must have been like. As usual, John’s account in his Gospel was a bit sparse on details, but the film makers have many times tried to portray their interpretation of Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem. As we try and imagine the events, the personal details, the atmosphere, superimposing our own limited understanding of first Century Jewish society, we can get a glimpse of the excitement and expectations of the people. They were extremely fed up with being occupied by yet another foreign power. Here was the coming King. Surely He would resolve their problems. 

The people were in Jerusalem for the Passover festival, and the Passover Psalms would have been foremost in their minds. They quoted from Psalm 118 when they cried out, “Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord!” Many of the people had been in Jerusalem for previous Passovers but they had never experienced one like this. Gripped by excitement they shouted and waved the palm branches. What a time that must have been, welcoming their King and Messiah. 

We pilgrims today look forward to the second coming of Jesus. Through the Holy Spirit the Apostle John wrote down amazing visions and from these we have a few hints of the events that will lead up to it. We see a series of events and natural happenings that Jesus called the birth pangs of the coming age. Wars, rumours of wars, earthquakes, famine and more beside. The clock towards the Day of the Lord started ticking on the day Luke wrote about in Acts 1:9, when Jesus was taken up into the clouds, His ascension into Heaven. So the question for us believers is, are we ready? Will we be waving metaphorical palm branches welcoming Jesus to this world? Or will we be like the Pharisees, dreading the loss of our worldly lives and wealth? Jesus said, “However, no one knows the day or hour when these things will happen, not even the angels in heaven or the Son himself. Only the Father knows” (Matthew 24:36). So we will be ready for when He comes, won’t we?

Dear Father God. We have so much to look forward to. As we sit in Your presence, worshipping at Your feet, we perhaps feel a sense of excitement about what is to come. And we ready ourselves to welcome the victorious King, Jesus. Amen.

Exterminate!

Posted on by korgrocker

“When all the people heard of Jesus’ arrival, they flocked to see him and also to see Lazarus, the man Jesus had raised from the dead. Then the leading priests decided to kill Lazarus, too, for it was because of him that many of the people had deserted them and believed in Jesus.”
John 12:9-11 NLT

Jesus and Lazarus had become famous in that part of the world and the Jerusalem grapevine was working overtime. There was no social media in those days but the news of Jesus’ arrival soon got around. And John recorded that the people flocked to see them. Other Bible versions talk about a “great many” of the Jews, or a “large crowd”, and the reason that they went to see Jesus was because they believed in Him. 

Sadly, the religious leaders were so riven with jealousy that they had decided to restore their standing in the community by eliminating who they perceived as being their opponents. Lazarus wouldn’t have been quietly getting on with his life – he would have been quite vociferous in proclaiming what Jesus had done for him. He was a living, breathing miracle and the Pharisees and their cohorts could find no way to refute what had happened. Their stance was no different to that of totalitarian regimes around the world today, where opponents of the leadership are eliminated, either clandestinely, or by conviction following trumped up and false charges. We see it happening in Russia, Iran, North Korea, China and other countries, countries that have become an axis of devil-inspired evil. The devil’s ploys are well known and have been around since the snake slithered around the Garden, deceiving Adam and Eve in the process. 

The Jewish leaders should have know better because they had access to the writings and laws of Moses and the other prophets, but their twisted logic and scriptural misinterpretation had convinced them that Jesus was not who He said He was, in spite of the amazing miracles that He had performed. How did they think that bringing a man back to life, a man who had been dead and buried for four days, would be possible without the power of God behind it. So they decided that the Source of their concerns must be exterminated, and, for good measure, they would attempt to kill Lazarus as well. 

John the Baptist appeared out of the desert dressed and behaving like an Old Testament prophet, and the people flocked to him, responding to his message of repentance. We read in Luke 3:3, “Then John went from place to place on both sides of the Jordan River, preaching that people should be baptised to show that they had repented of their sins and turned to God to be forgiven.” John widely trailed the coming of Jesus and the Pharisees had plenty of notice about Who was coming. “Then John testified, “I saw the Holy Spirit descending like a dove from heaven and resting upon him. I didn’t know he was the one, but when God sent me to baptise with water, he told me, ‘The one on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is the one who will baptise with the Holy Spirit.’ I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testify that he is the Chosen One of God”” (John 1:32-34). Initially, the people thought that John was the coming Messiah, but in John 3:27-28, 30, we read, “John replied, “No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven. You yourselves know how plainly I told you, ‘I am not the Messiah. I am only here to prepare the way for him.’ … He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less.” 

But the religious leaders wanted to do away with Jesus because they refused to accept the evidence before them. There was John’s testimony about Jesus. There was the evidence of the miracles. But they rejected it all because to accept that Jesus was indeed the Son of God meant change, so perhaps they thought that if they killed Jesus and Lazarus then the threat against their cosy world would disappear. Little did they know that it was all part of God’s plan for the salvation of mankind.

Dear God. You had a master plan ready ever since the Fall in the Garden. And aren’t we pilgrims glad You did! We praise and worship You today. Amen.

Preparation for Burial

Posted on by korgrocker

“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.” … Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. She did this in preparation for my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.””
John 12:4-5, 7-8 NLT

Mary caused quite a stir amongst the disciples. To recap, she poured a very expensive quantity of the perfume nard all over Jesus’ feet and then wiped it all with her hair. Judas was outraged and told everyone present that this was a missed opportunity and that Mary had wasted her resources on anointing Jesus’ feet. 

But as an aside, this probably brought into focus Judas’ relationship with Jesus. His opinion of the Master was lacking integrity and he had obviously failed to grasp who Jesus really was. But before we condemn him, think about this. Although we would all have liked to be present with the Son of God, the question of us all is this – would be willing to waste something worth a year’s wages on anointing Jesus’ feet? Hmmm…

Back to John’s account. Jesus came to Mary’s defence and He said something that must have appeared strange to the disciples – “She did this in preparation for my burial”. The disciples were probably having trouble keeping up with events, and what was going on before them was puzzling to them. Why was Jesus thinking about His own death and burial? After all, He was still a relatively young man, and anyway no-one knew when they would die. After death, a person in those days was buried wrapped in shrouds of cloth and heavily anointed with perfumes. But as we know, the smell of a perfume, even an expensive one, fades away over a few days, so, the disciples thought, was Jesus’ death and burial so close? With the benefit of hindsight, we know that it was but the disciples didn’t.

Jesus then said something that superficially seemed a bit callous, and dismissive of the problems of being poor. The rest of the disciples may have agreed with Judas, that surely benefiting poor people was more important than “wasting” all that perfume. But Jesus knew what was happening. The next few days would have been marked by one significant factor as the smell of the perfume followed Jesus everywhere He found Himself. In the Garden, before Pilate, abused by soldiers, and lastly on the Cross. And through it all was Mary, smelling of nard herself, reminding everyone of her act of worship at Jesus’ feet. Jesus was telling the disciples that poor people could have been helped at any time but  Mary’s act alone would not have made even a dent in the overall problem of poverty. Jesus wasn’t dismissive of the poor. He was focused on His mission “and that was not to feed the poor”to seek and save the lost“. 

By the way, we mustn’t take from today’s verses the thought that the poor don’t matter. Of course we must help those in need, in every aspect of their poverty, natural or spiritual. The Apostles James wrote, “Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you” (James 1:27). And there are other impoverished groups in the world today who need our help. And we may even need that help ourselves. 

Perhaps one day we will meet Mary in Heaven and will still be able to smell the perfume. But on the other hand, we will be too busy worshipping Jesus, I’m sure. Mary knew who Jesus was and she was prepared to lay down her life and possessions for Him. Her example has travelled through the centuries ever since, as a reminder that we truly do worship at Jesus’ feet with all that we are.

Dear Lord Jesus, we worship You today with all our beings. You are our Lord and Master and before You today we bow down, unworthy even to be in Your presence. Amen.

Judas the Thief

Posted on by korgrocker

“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.

Perfumed Feet

Posted on by korgrocker

“Six days before the Passover celebration began, Jesus arrived in Bethany, the home of Lazarus—the man he had raised from the dead. A dinner was prepared in Jesus’ honour. Martha served, and Lazarus was among those who ate with him. Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance.”
John 12:1-3 NLT

Jesus was back in Bethany again, at the home of Lazarus, and his two sisters, Martha and Mary. And John recorded that there was a meal “prepared in Jesus’ honour”, served by Martha as usual. But after the meal, Mary did a strange thing. She took a jar of perfume, expensive perfume, and tipped it over Jesus’ feet. What followed was also strange – she wiped His feet with her hair. And as we might expect, it was impossible to go anywhere in the house without being able to smell the perfume. 

Why did Mary do something so extravagant? Again, John wrote the account of what happened in his usual dispassionate terms, but we can imagine the consternation on the faces of those present. Perhaps Martha and Lazarus were a bit embarrassed about their sister’s behaviour. The disciples and others who were present might have been distracted from their conversations as they looked on. Women in those days were supposed to stay in the background and not bother the men with anything. Perhaps Mary committed a social gaff but there was something far more important going on. Mary left us with a picture of an act of worship of Jesus with a gift that mattered. We don’t know what Mary was keeping this jar of perfume for, or where she had acquired it from, but it was obviously a very precious possession. It was important to her.

What do we pilgrims consider important and precious to us, and would be be prepared to lay it down at Jesus’ feet in an act of worship? The perfume would have run over Jesus’ feet and the floor, and Mary mopped up any stray liquid with her hair. It was then gone forever, never to be returned to the bottle. There were others gifts that Mary could have offered to Jesus. Perhaps a lamb that was important to her, or a sum of money, her life savings. But in every other possibility, the gift stayed intact. 

The Apostle Paul wrote, “And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him” (Romans 12:1). We pilgrims lay our lives down at the feet of Jesus, in an act of worship that ties us to Him for ever. The smell of Mary’s perfume would have stayed with Jesus all through the rest of His short life, and in our cases, our lives must stay with Jesus for the rest of our earthly days. According to Paul, by laying down our lives before Jesus, we too are a wonderful fragrance. 2 Corinthians 2:14-15a, “But thank God! He has made us his captives and continues to lead us along in Christ’s triumphal procession. Now he uses us to spread the knowledge of Christ everywhere, like a sweet perfume. Our lives are a Christ-like fragrance rising up to God. …“. By the grace of God we will never change from a pleasant perfume in God’s nostrils, to becoming an unpleasant stench. Will we?

Dear God. In everything we do and say we want to be pleasing to You. For Jesus’ sake. Amen.