Week 4
Mark 14:6, 8 “But Jesus said, ‘Let her alone; why do you bother her? She has done a good deed to Me…She has done what she could; she has anointed My body beforehand for the burial.”
It is important that every Christian do what he or she can do for the Lord during his or her time in life. We must take the gifts, talents, abilities, and opportunities that the Lord gives to us and use them for His glory and the good of others. Every deed, even small deeds, will be noticed, affirmed, and blessed by our Lord.
The woman in this story did what she could; she used what she had to show her love for Jesus and her worship of Jesus. The gift she gave was something she had, and she freely and effusively gave it to Jesus. It was a financially costly gift, but even more it was a gift of love, which made the gift all the more precious. She had her detractors, of course. There were those who misunderstood her gift and sacrifice; they criticized her and called her foolish. They defamed her and disparaged her gift.
But Jesus saw her sacrificial effort, He commended it, and He defended it to those who would revile her. There will always be those who misunderstand, misread, and malign every effort to love and serve Jesus. The greatest gift, and the most beautiful expression of our love for Jesus, will always have those who throw judgment and vilification like a brick against the feeble efforts of our service. We must not be overly sensitive and yield to the sting of the criticism. Jesus will not criticize your loving gift; He will see it for the beautiful deed that it is. As long as Jesus sees our deeds and our hearts with which we do our deeds of service, then that is enough. We need no other endorsement or plaudits from others. If God approves of our effort, then that is enough!
It is important to note that Jesus saw more in the loving deed than even the woman did. God was using her life and her simple expression of love to do something truly profound. She did not know this, but Jesus gave to her the assurance that for as long as the gospel is preached in this world, her deed of love would be remembered with admiration. The Lord will not allow our service and sacrifice to go to waste, because He will take it and use it, just like He did with the little boy’s lunch (remember the feeding of the multitude?); Jesus took the food and fed the great crowd of people. It does not matter what others think or say about your service. What truly matters is what God says and thinks. Give Him your best; give Him your service with all the love in your heart. And you will find that God will use your effort to bring about many wonderful things that you cannot presently imagine.
Prayer: Dear Father, I give to You this day my life and service. Help me to take what You have given to me and use it for Your glory and honor. Take my meager efforts and make them a blessing to others today and in the days to come. Amen.