WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:12.839 Good morning, everyone. Today's reading is John chapter 12, beginning at verse 1. Do find a church Bible around you and you can find the reading on page 1079. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:33.079 John chapter 12, beginning at verse 1. 00:01:00.000 --> 00:01:11.379 And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected. 00:01:12.140 --> 00:01:17.519 Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages. 00:01:18.640 --> 00:01:22.439 He did not say this because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief. 00:01:22.900 --> 00:01:26.980 As keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it. 00:01:27.980 --> 00:01:29.680 Leave her alone, Jesus replied. 00:01:30.140 --> 00:01:33.519 It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. 00:01:34.219 --> 00:01:38.140 You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me. 00:01:39.340 --> 00:01:48.840 Meanwhile, a large crowd of Jews found out that Jesus was there and came, not only because of him, but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 00:01:49.359 --> 00:01:57.379 So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well, for on account of him, many Jews were going over to Jesus and believing in him. 00:01:57.379 --> 00:02:01.439 Great. Thank you, Pesh. 00:02:01.439 --> 00:02:04.480 And there are some spare Bibles probably at the top of the balcony. 00:02:04.659 --> 00:02:10.900 If you don't have one or you can't see one, it would help you to have one in front of you as we follow along through it. 00:02:10.900 --> 00:02:12.900 But let me pray as we come to God's word. 00:02:12.960 --> 00:02:13.379 Let me pray. 00:02:13.379 --> 00:02:30.740 Heavenly Father, what a great privilege, not only to live in this world that you have made, but also to be able to hear your voice as you speak through your word to us. 00:02:30.740 --> 00:02:41.780 And so I pray now that all of us, whatever our situation, wherever we're from, whether we come here regularly, whether this is the very first time we've ever been in any kind of church, 00:02:41.920 --> 00:02:45.500 I pray that all of us would get to listen to what you say. 00:02:46.379 --> 00:02:49.879 Take my words, weak as they are, and use them for your glory. 00:02:50.460 --> 00:02:54.640 I pray that all of us would leave transformed and changed. 00:02:55.200 --> 00:02:56.219 In Jesus' name. 00:02:56.780 --> 00:02:57.180 Amen. 00:02:57.719 --> 00:02:58.040 Amen. 00:02:58.039 --> 00:03:10.219 Now, I wonder as we start, whether you will with me just try and ponder on or think of something, or something that you have or would perhaps like to have, 00:03:10.299 --> 00:03:12.979 which represents your hopes and your dreams. 00:03:14.739 --> 00:03:17.459 Maybe it's an object that you own. 00:03:18.019 --> 00:03:22.879 Maybe it's something that you're aspiring to own or aspiring to do. 00:03:22.979 --> 00:03:26.199 Perhaps it's a qualification you're working towards. 00:03:26.199 --> 00:03:33.459 Something that sort of the existence of it captures what you're really about and who you are. 00:03:34.839 --> 00:03:40.139 Now, I don't know all of you in the room, but let me try and have a guess at some things that it might be. 00:03:41.239 --> 00:03:43.099 Maybe it's a car, right? 00:03:43.579 --> 00:03:46.699 Cars are a common status symbol, aren't they? 00:03:46.699 --> 00:03:53.099 Maybe you have a shiny BMW parked outside, and that says something about you, doesn't it? 00:03:54.000 --> 00:03:57.439 That you don't give way and that you don't stop at red lights. 00:03:57.819 --> 00:03:59.060 It says that, at least, doesn't it? 00:04:00.959 --> 00:04:01.859 Perhaps you are. 00:04:01.919 --> 00:04:02.500 I'm not that shallow. 00:04:02.819 --> 00:04:05.159 I don't have any of my hopes and dreams tied up in a car. 00:04:05.859 --> 00:04:09.599 Perhaps for you, it's your wardrobe, the clothes that you wear, right? 00:04:09.599 --> 00:04:12.500 You always make sure that you're well turned out. 00:04:13.259 --> 00:04:17.740 You're stylish and maybe cool, even. 00:04:19.459 --> 00:04:24.759 Or perhaps it's something that's been handed down to you by generations on generations. 00:04:26.360 --> 00:04:30.019 Perhaps it's a family heirloom or a piece of jewellery or something. 00:04:30.819 --> 00:04:33.139 And it speaks to you of your family connections. 00:04:33.139 --> 00:04:35.819 I belong to this group of people. 00:04:35.959 --> 00:04:37.099 They are my people. 00:04:37.279 --> 00:04:40.419 That's where I'm from, who I belong to. 00:04:42.459 --> 00:04:45.339 Maybe, though, it's something you're aspiring to. 00:04:46.099 --> 00:04:51.939 London is full of young people aspiring to make things or gain things for themselves. 00:04:53.199 --> 00:04:55.599 Perhaps it's a career ladder that you're climbing. 00:04:55.779 --> 00:04:58.839 It's a qualification, a savings goal, maybe. 00:04:58.839 --> 00:04:59.000 Maybe. 00:05:00.000 --> 00:05:01.399 Or maybe you're a parent. 00:05:02.419 --> 00:05:08.719 And it's a dream that you're pushing your children to achieve in your place, on your behalf. 00:05:10.159 --> 00:05:16.000 Well, whatever it is for you, if you were to ask Lazarus' sister, Mary, in our passage this morning, 00:05:16.379 --> 00:05:19.019 if you were to ask her that question, she would tell you, 00:05:19.379 --> 00:05:25.219 now, for me, it's a pint of pure nard or half a litre, 00:05:25.479 --> 00:05:28.799 depending on whether she was speaking to you in American or British English, right? 00:05:28.839 --> 00:05:32.119 Now, nard is a funny word. 00:05:32.239 --> 00:05:37.959 If you look down in your Bibles in verse 3, you'll notice that John explains it as expensive perfume. 00:05:38.819 --> 00:05:43.759 And historians at the time will tell you that nard is a sweet-smelling, fragrant oil 00:05:43.759 --> 00:05:47.819 that was derived from the root and spike of the nard plant, 00:05:48.279 --> 00:05:50.179 which at the time only grew in India. 00:05:50.959 --> 00:05:54.859 And so this is expensive perfume, as John describes it, 00:05:54.860 --> 00:05:58.199 is actually high-end, imported fragrance. 00:05:58.960 --> 00:06:02.240 Now, this isn't kind of Hugo Boss or Yves Saint Laurent or Dior or anything. 00:06:02.360 --> 00:06:05.400 This is way, way more expensive than that. 00:06:05.439 --> 00:06:06.259 This is next level. 00:06:07.439 --> 00:06:10.879 And verse 3 tells you that it's not just any nard. 00:06:10.879 --> 00:06:13.639 This is pure nard. 00:06:14.560 --> 00:06:17.500 It's not been watered down with olive oil or something. 00:06:17.620 --> 00:06:20.079 It's not been blended with Lidl's own brand perfume. 00:06:20.560 --> 00:06:22.779 This is the real deal. 00:06:23.420 --> 00:06:28.159 Carried on camels from India and bought in Jerusalem's most expensive shops. 00:06:29.560 --> 00:06:32.920 Judas, in verse 5, tells you that it's worth a year's wages. 00:06:33.680 --> 00:06:36.159 300 denarii, he says. 00:06:36.160 --> 00:06:40.340 That's probably somewhere near maybe 30 grand or something, he says. 00:06:41.460 --> 00:06:45.640 So it's fair to say that for Mary, owning that was a serious business. 00:06:46.380 --> 00:06:48.360 This is a statement of her wealth. 00:06:49.120 --> 00:06:52.379 It's the statement of her identity as a significant woman. 00:06:53.100 --> 00:06:55.360 You would ask around town, oh, do you know Mary? 00:06:55.940 --> 00:06:59.260 Oh, you mean Mary, the one who owns a pint of pure nard? 00:06:59.379 --> 00:07:00.160 Yeah, I know her. 00:07:00.240 --> 00:07:00.800 I've met her. 00:07:00.860 --> 00:07:02.060 I spoke to her the other day. 00:07:02.060 --> 00:07:16.280 Now, of course, if that's the context, right, that means, doesn't it, that the story of John 12 that we've just read, this story is all about giving up treasure. 00:07:16.819 --> 00:07:17.720 That's what it's about. 00:07:18.459 --> 00:07:22.699 Mary pours out her treasure in such a way that she cannot get it back. 00:07:22.699 --> 00:07:32.639 And not just a dribble of it, she pours out the whole thing on the feet of Jesus and then wipes his feet with her hair, filling the room with a fresh, fragrant smell. 00:07:34.219 --> 00:07:38.819 Now, we'll think in a moment about why she did it, but it's worth noticing that not everybody is happy. 00:07:39.800 --> 00:07:40.539 You saw that, didn't you? 00:07:40.579 --> 00:07:41.939 When Pesh read it for us. 00:07:42.259 --> 00:07:43.240 Not everybody is happy. 00:07:43.579 --> 00:07:48.139 Judas, for a start, he thinks it's a waste of money, money that should have been spent more wisely. 00:07:48.139 --> 00:07:49.399 Look at verse 5. 00:07:50.060 --> 00:07:52.779 Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? 00:07:52.860 --> 00:07:54.060 It was worth a year's wages. 00:07:55.019 --> 00:07:57.039 It's not actually a terrible point, is it? 00:07:57.259 --> 00:08:00.279 But he doesn't make it because he cares about the poor. 00:08:00.459 --> 00:08:03.639 He makes it because he doesn't share Mary's passion for Jesus. 00:08:04.560 --> 00:08:07.139 So John tells us in verse 6 he didn't care about the poor. 00:08:07.439 --> 00:08:08.279 He was a thief. 00:08:08.899 --> 00:08:12.399 And as keeper of the money bag, he stole what was put into it. 00:08:13.639 --> 00:08:15.139 But it's not just Judas who is unimpressed. 00:08:15.139 --> 00:08:17.979 The chief priests are also unimpressed. 00:08:18.899 --> 00:08:22.300 The chief priests at the time, they think this Jesus thing is getting out of hand. 00:08:23.300 --> 00:08:30.060 Having planned to get rid of Jesus at the end of chapter 11, they now add Lazarus to the hit list in verses 10 and 11. 00:08:31.079 --> 00:08:38.559 It turns out that if you bring a guy out of the tomb, everybody wants to listen to him and hear his story. 00:08:39.379 --> 00:08:43.100 And so the Jewish leaders, unimpressed, want to get rid of him as well. 00:08:43.100 --> 00:08:53.259 But if Judas and the Jewish leaders are unimpressed, it's fair to say that Jesus is impressed. 00:08:54.540 --> 00:09:00.080 Jesus says in verse 7 that Mary has saved the perfume by pouring it on his feet. 00:09:00.840 --> 00:09:02.340 It's a strange sentence. 00:09:02.480 --> 00:09:03.580 Look down at verse 7. 00:09:04.120 --> 00:09:06.420 Leave her alone, Jesus replies to Judas. 00:09:06.419 --> 00:09:11.659 It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. 00:09:13.279 --> 00:09:15.699 This is a few days before Jesus' death. 00:09:16.079 --> 00:09:19.439 But Jesus doesn't mean, oh, she's gone a bit too early. 00:09:20.019 --> 00:09:22.199 She's poured it out a few days before she should have done. 00:09:22.860 --> 00:09:27.199 No, what he's saying there is this is the right use of that fragrance. 00:09:27.200 --> 00:09:31.460 This is what nard exists for. 00:09:32.540 --> 00:09:35.400 This is how you save pure nard. 00:09:35.940 --> 00:09:40.259 Saving pure nard is to pour it on the feet of Jesus while you get the chance. 00:09:40.780 --> 00:09:45.100 Because he says the poor you will always have with you, but me you won't. 00:09:45.660 --> 00:09:49.720 There's only a few opportunities in life to meet Jesus like this. 00:09:51.340 --> 00:09:53.180 Now, put that all together for a moment. 00:09:53.920 --> 00:09:55.860 And it's pretty clear what the story is about. 00:09:55.860 --> 00:10:03.680 Mary thinks, Jesus agrees, and John tells us that Jesus is more precious than nard. 00:10:05.480 --> 00:10:06.539 Much more precious. 00:10:07.200 --> 00:10:13.379 In fact, so much more precious that the way to save nard, if you like, the very purpose of nard, 00:10:13.659 --> 00:10:19.080 the appropriate use of all treasure is to pour it out on the feet of Jesus. 00:10:21.700 --> 00:10:24.440 So it doesn't really matter, does it, what your nard is? 00:10:24.440 --> 00:10:36.400 Because if you know who Jesus is, if you see Jesus like Mary saw Jesus, then you will see that Jesus is greater treasure than whatever else it is you hold on to. 00:10:36.399 --> 00:10:42.959 Now, I just hope you can see, even right at the very beginning here, just how helpful that is. 00:10:43.779 --> 00:10:49.779 We're used to, aren't we, talking about Christians as if a Christian is someone who believes that Jesus existed. 00:10:51.159 --> 00:10:56.720 Perhaps we believe that a Christian is someone who is maybe interested enough in Jesus to listen to some of the things that he has to say. 00:10:56.720 --> 00:11:01.240 They attend church from time to time because they're kind of into the Jesus thing. 00:11:02.240 --> 00:11:08.240 But even Judas and the chief priests would meet that criteria of being a Christian, wouldn't they? 00:11:08.940 --> 00:11:11.279 So it's got to be something more than that. 00:11:11.480 --> 00:11:12.600 That can't be right. 00:11:13.379 --> 00:11:17.220 And so John here is explaining to you and to me what a Christian really is. 00:11:17.220 --> 00:11:22.300 A Christian, he says, is not someone who just believes a few stated facts about Jesus. 00:11:22.899 --> 00:11:29.779 But a Christian, someone who really believes in Jesus, is someone who recognizes the value of Jesus, 00:11:30.340 --> 00:11:36.180 so much so that they take whatever is most precious to them and they pour it out at his feet. 00:11:36.179 --> 00:11:39.339 That's a Christian, he says. 00:11:41.620 --> 00:11:46.159 So we take the things that define us, the things that we imagine that we couldn't do without, 00:11:46.559 --> 00:11:49.919 the things that we imagine are bringing us security and confidence, 00:11:49.919 --> 00:11:54.719 and we say, these things are nothing compared to you, Jesus. 00:11:56.399 --> 00:11:57.679 Nothing compared to you. 00:11:58.359 --> 00:12:00.979 All that I am, I give to you, we say. 00:12:03.000 --> 00:12:05.979 Perhaps you're here this morning and you're a friend of Zane. 00:12:06.179 --> 00:12:06.879 Zane or Martinez. 00:12:07.179 --> 00:12:09.139 And perhaps you've seen this change in them. 00:12:10.659 --> 00:12:15.159 You can see that for them, being a Christian is not just that they believe a set of ideas about Jesus. 00:12:15.799 --> 00:12:19.139 It's not just that they have sympathy for a certain community or a culture. 00:12:19.620 --> 00:12:22.699 Really, if you were to describe it, it would be something like this. 00:12:23.239 --> 00:12:28.459 Somehow, Jesus has become the most important thing in their lives. 00:12:30.019 --> 00:12:32.779 Everything else that they trusted in, everything else that they hoped in, 00:12:33.000 --> 00:12:35.519 all of that seems to have gone away, have been poured out. 00:12:35.519 --> 00:12:37.679 And now Jesus is their greatest treasure. 00:12:38.740 --> 00:12:41.000 And John says, no, that's because they've become a Christian. 00:12:41.639 --> 00:12:43.279 That's what a real Christian is. 00:12:45.419 --> 00:12:49.840 Maybe I could be so bold as to ask you whether you have seen that about Jesus. 00:12:49.840 --> 00:12:56.340 Can I ask you whether you have seen in Jesus what Mary saw in Jesus? 00:12:56.899 --> 00:12:58.620 What John is trying to show you? 00:13:00.019 --> 00:13:02.280 Perhaps you would describe yourself as a Christian this morning. 00:13:02.379 --> 00:13:04.399 Maybe you're even a regular at church. 00:13:04.460 --> 00:13:06.960 And perhaps I've even slightly offended you by asking the question. 00:13:06.960 --> 00:13:13.639 But just for a moment, suspend the offense and just say, listen, is it just that I'm fascinated about the ideas about Jesus? 00:13:14.280 --> 00:13:16.780 Or I have some sympathy with his moral code? 00:13:17.019 --> 00:13:23.940 Or is it that I am persuaded deep in my heart that Jesus is the greatest treasure this world can afford? 00:13:23.940 --> 00:13:27.060 And that I should follow Mary's example? 00:13:28.800 --> 00:13:30.120 Now that's a big ask, isn't it? 00:13:30.140 --> 00:13:38.180 And so John, I think, gives us two reasons, two things that would persuade us that Mary has done exactly the right thing here and that we should follow her example. 00:13:39.140 --> 00:13:41.020 And so the first thing to notice is this. 00:13:41.440 --> 00:13:43.680 Jesus poured out his life for you. 00:13:43.679 --> 00:13:47.239 This is all over John's book, right? 00:13:47.319 --> 00:13:49.599 But it's hinted at even in this story. 00:13:49.919 --> 00:13:51.159 Verse 1, look down at it. 00:13:51.479 --> 00:13:53.779 Six days before Passover, we're told. 00:13:54.539 --> 00:13:57.500 Now Passover is when Jesus is going to be taken to the cross. 00:13:57.620 --> 00:14:01.899 So the events of this story happen six days before Jesus dies on the cross. 00:14:02.259 --> 00:14:05.419 It's probably maybe the Saturday night after sundown, end of the Sabbath. 00:14:05.759 --> 00:14:07.979 And by Friday, Jesus is going to be crucified. 00:14:09.219 --> 00:14:11.659 But John isn't just concerned about the timing. 00:14:11.659 --> 00:14:14.379 It's not just a note of the timing here. 00:14:14.779 --> 00:14:20.600 Rather, the point is that the Passover celebration sheds some light for you on what's actually going on. 00:14:21.579 --> 00:14:25.679 Passover, if you know, is the Jewish celebration of the liberation from Egypt. 00:14:26.279 --> 00:14:28.980 A liberation which came at the cost of a lamb. 00:14:29.559 --> 00:14:34.980 A sacrificial lamb whose blood was shed and painted on the doorposts of every home. 00:14:34.980 --> 00:14:40.759 And so that the angel of judgment passed over their houses when he came. 00:14:41.659 --> 00:14:49.620 And in John's book, right from the very beginning of John's book, Jesus has been identified as being that lamb. 00:14:50.579 --> 00:14:56.919 John the Baptist, at the beginning of the Gospel of John, sees Jesus walking towards him and says, 00:14:57.480 --> 00:15:01.600 Behold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. 00:15:01.600 --> 00:15:07.019 And now it's six days before Passover. 00:15:07.580 --> 00:15:10.460 And in verse seven, Jesus says he's about to be buried. 00:15:10.920 --> 00:15:14.180 And in verse eight, he says, you're not going to have me with you for much longer. 00:15:15.120 --> 00:15:18.420 Because Jesus is about to go to the cross in the place of sinners. 00:15:19.220 --> 00:15:23.379 The lamb of God facing the judgment of God in the place of his people. 00:15:23.379 --> 00:15:27.759 Now, when you see it in that context, can you see what's happening here? 00:15:28.820 --> 00:15:37.480 Mary is pouring out her treasure on the feet of the one who poured out his life for her. 00:15:39.059 --> 00:15:41.320 Mary's not crazy, is she, in the story? 00:15:42.240 --> 00:15:45.100 She's not just taking it all a bit too seriously. 00:15:45.100 --> 00:15:54.820 No, Mary is responding in kind to the Lord Jesus, the lamb of God, who in a few days' time will give his life for her rescue. 00:15:55.139 --> 00:15:58.860 Not from slavery in Egypt, but from slavery to sin and death. 00:16:00.019 --> 00:16:03.720 And so she pulls out her treasure on him who poured out his life for her. 00:16:05.700 --> 00:16:06.759 Think about it like this. 00:16:06.840 --> 00:16:09.320 Go back to thinking what your greatest treasure is. 00:16:09.860 --> 00:16:13.100 Your car, your reputation, your fit, your phone, whatever it is. 00:16:13.100 --> 00:16:15.240 Your aspirations for a job and money. 00:16:15.580 --> 00:16:17.180 Ask this question of it, right? 00:16:17.960 --> 00:16:20.180 What has your treasure ever done for you? 00:16:22.200 --> 00:16:23.860 What is it given for you? 00:16:25.540 --> 00:16:30.460 I mean, your car might impress, but your car doesn't care about you, does it? 00:16:31.540 --> 00:16:35.139 Your career or your reputation or status, it might be impressive on LinkedIn. 00:16:35.279 --> 00:16:38.460 It might open doors for you, but it doesn't love you. 00:16:39.080 --> 00:16:40.860 It doesn't serve you in any way. 00:16:40.860 --> 00:16:46.100 Even the sentimental connection that we have with our family through an heirloom that we treasure, 00:16:46.419 --> 00:16:50.259 it might bring us kind of meaning and significance in a place that we feel like we belong, 00:16:50.680 --> 00:16:54.620 but it doesn't help us with moral guilt in the face of a holy God. 00:16:56.379 --> 00:16:58.899 Of course, it was the same for Mary's Nard, wasn't it? 00:17:00.200 --> 00:17:02.200 Mary's Nard brought her status, right? 00:17:02.700 --> 00:17:06.579 There would be very few people in her community who would own such a thing. 00:17:06.579 --> 00:17:08.720 And so she had the creds, right? 00:17:09.659 --> 00:17:12.579 It would also bring her a level of security, I would imagine. 00:17:14.299 --> 00:17:16.679 It's portable cash, isn't it, in those days. 00:17:16.720 --> 00:17:19.179 It's like the go bag, yeah? 00:17:19.480 --> 00:17:20.740 I can just grab it and run. 00:17:21.240 --> 00:17:24.179 Or if terrible people are descending on the house, 00:17:24.240 --> 00:17:28.000 I can bury it and hide it from invaders or occupying Romans or thieves. 00:17:28.000 --> 00:17:30.119 And it's more secure, isn't it? 00:17:30.119 --> 00:17:32.119 Because it's not like cattle who get sick and die. 00:17:32.220 --> 00:17:33.559 It's not like sheep who wander off. 00:17:34.079 --> 00:17:37.900 It's not like her house that she could get kicked out of or that could get burnt down. 00:17:38.980 --> 00:17:42.920 No, it was 30 grand in the hand whenever she wanted it. 00:17:43.980 --> 00:17:47.799 But for all of that, Nard never really cared about Mary. 00:17:47.799 --> 00:17:52.480 I mean, she must have had to save up and sacrifice to get it, 00:17:52.579 --> 00:17:53.960 but it was a totally one-way street. 00:17:55.159 --> 00:18:00.139 And here in John 12, she encounters the Son of God in human flesh, her maker, 00:18:00.980 --> 00:18:03.680 reclining in front of her, eating at her table, 00:18:04.039 --> 00:18:06.399 who in a few short days will be hanging on a cross, 00:18:06.779 --> 00:18:09.519 bleeding out under the judgment of God in her place, 00:18:09.819 --> 00:18:13.139 the innocent Lamb of God in the place of sinful humanity, 00:18:13.619 --> 00:18:15.819 there for her freedom and her forgiveness. 00:18:15.819 --> 00:18:22.359 And she goes, wow, this treasure is yours, Jesus. 00:18:23.700 --> 00:18:26.039 You are worth more than this. 00:18:26.519 --> 00:18:29.460 You've done more for me than this could ever do. 00:18:30.039 --> 00:18:31.299 You are true treasure. 00:18:33.220 --> 00:18:36.960 Perhaps one of the greatest ironies in life, it's a tragic irony, 00:18:37.700 --> 00:18:42.179 is that we spend so much of our time and our energy making sacrifices for things 00:18:42.179 --> 00:18:44.279 that ultimately do nothing for us, 00:18:44.279 --> 00:18:51.039 while ignoring the one who left the glories of heaven for the filth of a Roman cross, 00:18:51.160 --> 00:18:54.079 because following him is way too much of a sacrifice. 00:18:55.339 --> 00:18:59.220 Jesus says, deny yourself, take up your cross and follow me. 00:18:59.519 --> 00:19:00.779 And we say, wait a minute. 00:19:01.920 --> 00:19:02.660 That's all a bit extreme. 00:19:03.960 --> 00:19:06.440 You know, Jesus, if you'd said, read your Bible a bit, 00:19:06.740 --> 00:19:08.359 go to church a few times a year, 00:19:08.680 --> 00:19:10.660 try and be a good person, I would have done that. 00:19:10.660 --> 00:19:13.240 But take up your cross and follow me? 00:19:13.779 --> 00:19:14.140 Really? 00:19:15.880 --> 00:19:17.060 And so what do we do? 00:19:17.840 --> 00:19:21.880 Well, we go away and we sacrifice sleep and family to get ahead at work. 00:19:22.259 --> 00:19:24.940 We go without food to save for a dream holiday. 00:19:25.300 --> 00:19:28.820 We disown loyal friends for new friends and a new reputation. 00:19:29.500 --> 00:19:31.600 It's not that we're scared of sacrifice, is it? 00:19:31.599 --> 00:19:37.699 It's that we perpetually sacrifice to things that don't care and can't help. 00:19:38.159 --> 00:19:44.039 And we don't recognize that Jesus is the one who poured out his blood for us. 00:19:44.039 --> 00:19:51.139 The one who faced God's righteous judgment for our sin endured hell that we might enter glory. 00:19:52.119 --> 00:19:56.759 And if we'd see that like Mary did, we would willingly pour out our treasure on his feet. 00:19:58.339 --> 00:20:00.740 Of course, that's not just how the Christian life starts, is it? 00:20:00.759 --> 00:20:04.299 It's not just that you recognize the brilliance of Jesus once at the beginning, 00:20:04.359 --> 00:20:05.639 and then you're just going to get on with life. 00:20:06.059 --> 00:20:08.019 No, this is the Christian life over and over. 00:20:08.019 --> 00:20:13.960 Remember, the Westminster divines in the 1640s meeting in Westminster Abbey, 00:20:14.279 --> 00:20:19.859 trying to kind of write down the core doctrines that would be the shape of the Church of England for the years to come. 00:20:20.259 --> 00:20:23.139 They said, what should a Christian do when they witness baptism? 00:20:23.819 --> 00:20:26.579 They said they should improve on their baptism. 00:20:27.519 --> 00:20:28.639 Now, what does that mean? 00:20:28.879 --> 00:20:30.200 Well, it doesn't mean by doing it again. 00:20:30.299 --> 00:20:31.839 That would be total chaos, wouldn't it? 00:20:31.839 --> 00:20:38.779 But what they mean is that in seeing it, you should see again who Jesus is and what he's done for you. 00:20:39.079 --> 00:20:43.699 You should see again that Jesus is the one who poured out himself to wash away your sin. 00:20:44.220 --> 00:20:51.159 And you should again sacrifice yourself for him, giving up the treasures of your life that you might follow him. 00:20:51.819 --> 00:20:56.339 And it's not that we don't have cars or have careers or have reputations or families, 00:20:56.339 --> 00:21:02.259 and it's not that those things aren't important to us, but rather we see that those things are not true treasure 00:21:02.259 --> 00:21:05.939 in a world where God the Son gave his life for me. 00:21:07.699 --> 00:21:10.619 But there's another reason here why Jesus is worth following. 00:21:10.720 --> 00:21:16.179 Not only did Jesus die for you, the story is also really very clear that Jesus gives resurrection life to you. 00:21:17.699 --> 00:21:19.279 Again, this comes up multiple times. 00:21:19.399 --> 00:21:20.419 Look down at verse 1. 00:21:20.919 --> 00:21:24.839 Lazarus is introduced as the one whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 00:21:24.839 --> 00:21:27.919 It's exactly the same phrase in verse 9. 00:21:28.019 --> 00:21:32.279 And I don't imagine that John thinks you've forgotten that between verse 1 and verse 9. 00:21:32.599 --> 00:21:37.639 It's really just that you can't mention Lazarus' name without now mentioning what Jesus has done for him. 00:21:38.439 --> 00:21:42.959 The whole dinner, you're told, in verse 2 is given in honour of Jesus Christ, 00:21:43.339 --> 00:21:46.359 in honour of the one who has the power to raise the dead. 00:21:47.359 --> 00:21:53.259 It's an attempt to hide Jesus' resurrection power that lies behind the priest's desire to kill Lazarus in verse 10. 00:21:53.259 --> 00:22:00.799 You see, if the first thing that John wants you to notice is that Jesus is the Lamb of God who pours out his life for you, 00:22:01.660 --> 00:22:09.019 Jesus is not just that, but he is greater treasure also because he can give you life beyond the grave. 00:22:10.180 --> 00:22:12.019 So this is what he wants you to notice. 00:22:12.879 --> 00:22:17.980 Jesus died, and Jesus will rise, and Jesus does give resurrection life. 00:22:17.980 --> 00:22:23.200 John says, Jesus is the one whose power is not stopped by death. 00:22:23.980 --> 00:22:26.299 He alone has keys to life beyond the grave. 00:22:27.880 --> 00:22:31.680 To die is not to lose Jesus, but to gain the life he promised. 00:22:32.960 --> 00:22:35.160 Of course, that revolutionises everything, doesn't it? 00:22:35.440 --> 00:22:38.579 Because not only did Nard not die for Mary, 00:22:39.279 --> 00:22:44.059 but also for Mary to die would be for her to leave her Nard behind. 00:22:44.059 --> 00:22:47.279 Of course, that's true for all of our treasures, isn't it? 00:22:48.000 --> 00:22:49.940 Whatever it is that you treasure now, 00:22:50.220 --> 00:22:52.919 whatever it is that you're trusting in to keep you safe, 00:22:53.399 --> 00:22:57.460 you will, I will, when we die, leave it behind. 00:22:58.339 --> 00:23:00.919 Our treasure is pathetic in the face of death. 00:23:02.379 --> 00:23:05.759 You know, if you've ever had the sad duty, like I have a couple of times, 00:23:05.839 --> 00:23:08.179 of clearing out someone's home when they've passed away, 00:23:08.700 --> 00:23:12.500 you'll have been struck, like me, that you just leave everything behind, don't you? 00:23:12.500 --> 00:23:16.799 Every scrap of paper, every piece of loose change, 00:23:16.900 --> 00:23:19.839 every treasure possession, every valuable item. 00:23:20.599 --> 00:23:25.759 The only thing you do not leave behind is Jesus Christ, if you trust in him. 00:23:26.279 --> 00:23:30.940 Because to die is not to lose him, but to go to him. 00:23:32.680 --> 00:23:34.359 And there's more to this too, isn't there? 00:23:34.400 --> 00:23:37.579 Because if that's right, if Jesus is the resurrection and the life 00:23:37.579 --> 00:23:40.299 that whoever believes in him will never die, 00:23:40.299 --> 00:23:44.039 then of course the only way to use treasure is for his glory. 00:23:45.000 --> 00:23:47.339 You know, Mary pours out the nard on the feet of Jesus, 00:23:47.759 --> 00:23:50.599 and Jesus says, no, this is the way you save nard. 00:23:50.680 --> 00:23:51.740 This is its purpose. 00:23:52.619 --> 00:23:53.240 How so? 00:23:53.559 --> 00:23:56.200 Well, because she's used it for the purpose of giving glory 00:23:56.200 --> 00:23:58.720 to the only one who deserves glory. 00:24:00.200 --> 00:24:02.879 Glory to the one who won't leave her or forsake her, 00:24:03.139 --> 00:24:04.279 even in the grain. 00:24:04.279 --> 00:24:08.519 Again, imagine that you could ask Mary this imaginary question. 00:24:08.619 --> 00:24:09.680 You could go to her and you say, listen, 00:24:10.240 --> 00:24:11.819 I wonder, Mary, could you just tell me, 00:24:12.539 --> 00:24:15.180 you know, that nard that you saved up so long for, 00:24:15.259 --> 00:24:17.039 that set you apart from all of your neighbors. 00:24:17.740 --> 00:24:20.539 When did that nard, when did it give you the most pleasure? 00:24:21.660 --> 00:24:23.440 When did you enjoy it the most? 00:24:24.259 --> 00:24:26.279 Was it when it was on your shelf and you got it down 00:24:26.279 --> 00:24:28.319 just to look at it every now and again? 00:24:29.259 --> 00:24:31.319 Was it when people said to you, wow, 00:24:31.319 --> 00:24:32.939 I can't believe that you managed to afford that? 00:24:33.000 --> 00:24:33.599 That's incredible. 00:24:34.740 --> 00:24:37.619 And I should say, that nard brought me the most pleasure 00:24:37.619 --> 00:24:40.879 when I broke it open on the feet of Jesus 00:24:40.879 --> 00:24:45.700 and poured it out on him who is the real treasure. 00:24:46.039 --> 00:24:47.939 That's when I enjoyed it most. 00:24:49.000 --> 00:24:50.460 And so it is for us. 00:24:50.980 --> 00:24:54.359 All of our treasures bring us some kind of temporary joy, 00:24:54.659 --> 00:24:56.720 but the only way to really enjoy them 00:24:56.720 --> 00:24:58.839 is to see that their great purpose 00:24:58.839 --> 00:25:01.500 is to bring glory to Jesus and not to you. 00:25:03.959 --> 00:25:05.859 The family that you're blessed with, 00:25:05.919 --> 00:25:07.740 the reputation that you enjoy, 00:25:07.839 --> 00:25:08.879 the gifts that you have, 00:25:08.919 --> 00:25:10.279 even the car that you drive, 00:25:10.399 --> 00:25:12.240 the marriage that you're hoping for, 00:25:12.299 --> 00:25:13.819 the career that you're working towards, 00:25:14.039 --> 00:25:16.500 all of those will bring you the most joy 00:25:16.500 --> 00:25:19.839 when you use them for the glory of Jesus, 00:25:20.759 --> 00:25:22.539 pouring them out on his feet and saying, 00:25:22.539 --> 00:25:24.859 nothing compares to you. 00:25:24.859 --> 00:25:27.240 All of these are temporary pleasures 00:25:27.240 --> 00:25:29.399 on my way to eternity with you, 00:25:29.479 --> 00:25:30.419 the King of Kings. 00:25:31.919 --> 00:25:32.879 In verse three, 00:25:32.979 --> 00:25:35.439 John tells you that the fragrance of the nard 00:25:35.439 --> 00:25:38.159 poured out fills the house. 00:25:39.159 --> 00:25:40.740 The word that is used there 00:25:40.740 --> 00:25:43.000 is the same of the fragrant offering. 00:25:43.799 --> 00:25:45.559 The fragrant offering appears several times 00:25:45.559 --> 00:25:46.299 in the New Testament. 00:25:46.500 --> 00:25:49.000 It links back to the Old Testament temple. 00:25:49.779 --> 00:25:50.939 Literally, if I could put it like this, 00:25:50.940 --> 00:25:55.039 this is what it smells like when God is pleased. 00:25:56.100 --> 00:25:58.900 And that smells fills the house here. 00:26:00.299 --> 00:26:00.820 In other words, 00:26:01.460 --> 00:26:04.200 you could literally smell Mary's devotion to Jesus 00:26:04.200 --> 00:26:06.840 and it smelt beautiful. 00:26:08.559 --> 00:26:09.600 So what about you? 00:26:11.100 --> 00:26:12.120 What about me? 00:26:12.960 --> 00:26:16.000 Are we ready to make this room smell sweetly 00:26:16.000 --> 00:26:17.380 of love for the Lord Jesus? 00:26:18.000 --> 00:26:19.640 Sounds weird when you put it like that, doesn't it? 00:26:19.640 --> 00:26:20.940 But you know what I mean. 00:26:21.920 --> 00:26:25.020 Are we ready to take the great treasures of our lives 00:26:25.020 --> 00:26:28.320 and to see that their very purpose of existence 00:26:28.320 --> 00:26:30.560 is to pour them out on the feet of Jesus? 00:26:31.120 --> 00:26:34.960 The only one who gave himself in your place, 00:26:35.120 --> 00:26:37.500 on the cross, for your sin. 00:26:38.000 --> 00:26:40.380 And the only one with the power over death 00:26:40.380 --> 00:26:42.700 to raise us to new life. 00:26:43.940 --> 00:26:45.840 Well, listen, maybe for you this morning, 00:26:46.440 --> 00:26:48.880 this is the very first time that you'll do that. 00:26:49.760 --> 00:26:50.540 And you'll say, listen, 00:26:50.600 --> 00:26:51.760 I've played around with this before. 00:26:52.640 --> 00:26:54.040 I've kind of gone to church 00:26:54.040 --> 00:26:55.820 and I've said that I'm kind of interested in Jesus, 00:26:55.980 --> 00:26:57.360 but I've never done this before. 00:26:59.000 --> 00:27:00.300 Well, if that's you this morning, 00:27:01.000 --> 00:27:02.400 I'd love to speak to you afterwards. 00:27:02.520 --> 00:27:04.300 I'd love you to sign up to Christian to Explored. 00:27:04.620 --> 00:27:08.060 I've got some little leaflets here 00:27:08.060 --> 00:27:09.240 and I'd love to give you one of those 00:27:09.240 --> 00:27:10.680 so that you might take away and read it 00:27:10.680 --> 00:27:11.740 and think some more on it. 00:27:12.800 --> 00:27:14.480 But maybe you're a Christian here this morning. 00:27:14.480 --> 00:27:15.920 You've been a Christian for a long time. 00:27:16.599 --> 00:27:18.079 Can I say to you again, listen, 00:27:19.099 --> 00:27:21.920 today is a great day for you again 00:27:21.920 --> 00:27:23.779 to pour out your treasure on the feet of Jesus 00:27:23.779 --> 00:27:26.000 and to say, you alone are worthy. 00:27:26.920 --> 00:27:28.500 I trust in you alone. 00:27:29.339 --> 00:27:31.400 You get all the glory. 00:27:32.360 --> 00:27:34.099 Let me pray as I close. 00:27:34.099 --> 00:27:43.019 Heavenly Father, we thank you 00:27:43.019 --> 00:27:45.879 that Jesus is great treasure. 00:27:47.099 --> 00:27:48.639 Thank you that he is great treasure 00:27:48.639 --> 00:27:51.319 because he alone is the one who died for us. 00:27:52.039 --> 00:27:54.359 He alone is the one with resurrection power. 00:27:55.539 --> 00:27:56.639 And so we say this morning 00:27:56.639 --> 00:27:59.919 that all of the things that we are entertained by 00:27:59.919 --> 00:28:01.000 or interested in, 00:28:01.000 --> 00:28:04.160 we pour those out at the feet of Jesus 00:28:04.160 --> 00:28:06.240 and we say, no, Jesus is our treasure. 00:28:07.319 --> 00:28:10.400 He is the one that we love above all things. 00:28:11.160 --> 00:28:14.279 We turn to him and we trust in him. 00:28:15.200 --> 00:28:17.799 And Lord, we pray as we stand and sing 00:28:17.799 --> 00:28:19.140 and we sing these truths together, 00:28:19.240 --> 00:28:21.000 would we mean them from our hearts, we pray. 00:28:22.220 --> 00:28:25.599 Would you help us to bring glory to your name 00:28:25.599 --> 00:28:27.480 with the lives that you've given us. 00:28:27.900 --> 00:28:30.000 In Jesus' name, amen. 00:28:30.000 --> 00:28:30.200 Amen. 00:28:31.000 --> 00:28:31.700 Amen. 00:28:31.700 --> 00:28:31.700 00:28:31.700 --> 00:28:31.700 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