In The Word
Read: Matthew 26:1-16
The Plot to Kill Jesus
26 When Jesus had finished all these words, He said to His disciples, 2 “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man is to be handed over for crucifixion.”
3 Then the chief priests and the elders of the people were gathered together in the court of the high priest, named Caiaphas; 4 and they plotted together to seize Jesus by stealth and kill Him. 5 But they were saying, “Not during the festival, otherwise a riot might occur among the people.”
The Precious Ointment
6 Now when Jesus was in Bethany, at the home of Simon the leper, 7 a woman came to Him with an alabaster vial of very costly perfume, and she poured it on His head as He reclined at the table. 8 But the disciples were indignant when they saw this, and said, “Why this waste?9 For this perfume might have been sold for a high price and the money given to the poor.”10 But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you bother the woman? For she has done a good deed to Me. 11 For you always have the poor with you; but you do not always have Me. 12 For when she poured this perfume on My body, she did it to prepare Me for burial.13 Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be spoken of in memory of her.”
Judas’s Bargain
14 Then one of the twelve, named Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, “What are you willing to give me to betray Him to you?” And they weighed out thirty pieces of silver to him. 16 From then on he began looking for a good opportunity to betray Jesus.
New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation
Walking In The Word
In just a few days, the Son of Man would be crucified. While at a home in Bethany reclining with His friends and disciples, Yahshua was honored and worshiped by a woman. Her actions showed her deep love for Christ. We know by John’s account that this woman was Mary the sister of Lazarus. She was a worshiper and follower of Christ. With everything within her, she wanted to show Him her love. She was the one Martha had gotten upset with for sitting at the feet of Yahshua. Again others tried to make her look bad in front of Christ. However, once more our Lord tells them to leave her alone because what she was doing was right. Others looked at what she did as a waste, while our Lord look at what she did as worship.
Judas was the main person who was upset about this act of worship. He pretended to be worried about the poor, but Judas’ true motive was himself. He was the treasurer of the disciples and would skim money meant for the ministry for himself. After this incident, Judas decided to betray our Lord for thirty pieces of silver.
Have you given to God in such a way that others ridicule or call crazy? If you have, others may look at what you did as a waste, but our Lord looks at what you did as worship. If you haven’t worshiped God in such a way, ask yourself, “Is He worth it?” When people skim from the tithe, they are acting like Judas. If they are not careful, they will end up betraying Him for the riches of the world instead of receiving the riches of Christ.