John 12:1-11
Six days before the Passover Jesus came
to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. There they
gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table
with him. Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed
Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the
fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who
was about to betray him), said, ‘Why was this perfume not sold for three
hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?’ (He said this not because he
cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and
used to steal what was put into it.) Jesus said, ‘Leave her alone. She bought
it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor
with you, but you do not always have me.’ When the great crowd of the Jews
learned that he was there, they came not only because of Jesus but also to see
Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. So the chief priests planned to put
Lazarus to death as well, since it was on account of him that many of the Jews
were deserting and were believing in Jesus.
The Gospel for Holy Monday shows us a
gathering of friends so intimate that it might be called a family gathering
amid the threatening storm clouds of Jesus’ betrayal. But it is not only Jesus
who is threatened. Both Mary and Lazarus are also threatened by their association
with Jesus.
Mary’s act of love for Jesus is mocked
by Judas, who is a calculating figure. Mary’s love for Jesus, however, goes
beyond calculation, and her act of adoration out in the open exposes her to
ridicule.
Lazarus, as a living sign of Jesus’
authority, is a living challenge to those who deny Jesus’ authority. And John
reports that as such, his life as well as Jesus’ life is sought after by those
whose power is brought into question by Jesus’ works.
When Christians bear witness to the
love and power of God in Christ, we become associated with him, for better and
for worse. Those who love God may seek us out, but those who are threatened by
God or who simply misunderstand him may be moved to antipathy toward us. We may
be mocked behind our backs or openly. We may be threatened with censure, and in
many places around the world those whose lives are touched by Jesus’ life,
marked with Jesus’ cross, are threatened with death. This is especially true
today in the Middle East and in the land of Jesus’ birth, death, and
resurrection.
Yet we are encouraged to love, to
witness, by this: the joy of being in communion with Jesus is worth the cost. And
he who received Mary’s act of love and raised Lazarus from the dead will also
be with us, to protect us, to strengthen us, and to receive us.
ROTH