On Monday I told you that I wanted to focus upon the last week of Jesus' earthly life before the crucifixion. Many people refer to this week as "Holy Week". After a reading of the gospel accounts, one thing is certain; Jesus had a lot to say before His death. Many of our favorite scripture readings come from this portion of His life.
I have already mentioned the Triumphal Entry, Jesus Weeping Over Jerusalem, the Cleansing of the Temple, and the lesson of the Withered Fig Tree. However, time does not allow me to talk about everything. I could talk about the authority of Jesus being questioned, the parable of the Two Sons, the parable of the Wicked Vinedressers, or the parable of the Wedding Feast. That's not all: Jesus sharing with the Sadducees about the resurrection, the Scribes and the greatest commandment, or the Pharisees and paying taxes to Ceasar. The point is - there's a lot of ground to cover.
One of my favorite stories is found in Matt. 26:6-13 concerning Jesus' anointing at Bethany. I love this story because it goes to the heart of worship. Here we have Jesus at the home of Simon the leper when a woman enters with an alabaster flask filled with very costly oil and she pours the oil upon His head as He sat at the table. This event caused a great misunderstanding among the disciples because they felt it was a waste of resources. However, Jesus states that the woman has done a good work for Him.
If there is one thing that I can point out about this scripture to affect where you are today its this: True and genuine worship takes precedence over anything else we can do for God. But what about the poor? Jesus said, "...you have the poor with you always, but Me you do not have always." In other words, they could sell and give at any other time to help the poor but the worship that could be given to Christ in His earthly body was coming to an end. Now understand that this verse does not get us off the hook for doing ministry. Nowhere in scripture do we find the Lord telling us to neglect the needy, the hurting, or the lost. But genuine ministry flows from a heart of worship.
This woman provided both. What she did in sacrificing this precious oil was an act of worship. Pouring it upon His head was an act of ministry. Jesus said, "she did it for My burial." And somewhere in the records of worship this woman's named is mentioned. Jesus said that "wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her." It doesn't matter if you are ministering in the U.S. or some dark continent in the world - people are still preaching about the woman who anointed the body of Jesus at Simon's house.
Isn't it amazing what genuine worship will do for you. Not only is God blessed by our affectionate worship, but our lives are changed as well. Bringing worship to God also brings blessings to us. It's like the song says, "Praises go up while blessings fall down." During this "Holy Week" I encourage you to worship the Lord with all of your heart, all of your minds, and all of your strength. There are many activities that you can involve yourself in during this week, but none will do more for your relationship with the Lord than to bow before Him in genuine worship. God delights in the praises of His people. Allow God to delight in you this week.
Phillips, Craig, and Dean wrote a song titled "Pour My Love on You" that says it all:
Like oil upon Your feet
Like wine for You to drink
Like water from heart
I pour my love on You.
If praise is like perfume
I lavish mine on you
Till every drop is gone
I pour my love on You.
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