Please turn to the end of John chapter 11.
And we're looking at John 11.55 to chapter 12, verse 11.
!
The first half is all action.
Jesus does miracles.
He does signs.
He turns water into wine.
He heals a man's son from a great distance.
He heals a man who's been paralysed for 38 years.
He feeds 5,000 people with a packed lunch.
He heals a blind man.
He raises the dead, chapter 11.
In the second half of Mark's gospel from chapter 13,
he goes away from the public.
He gathers his followers, his disciples, into an upper room
and he talks to them about his death.
And chapter 13 onwards is all about his passion, all about his death.
Chapter 12 is the hinge between those two halves.
And in chapter 12, Jesus says his last public words.
He does his last public actions.
And he explains why he's going to die.
The heart of the chapter, the key that unlocks the chapter, is verse 23.
Jesus answered them,
The hour has come.
Now is the time for the Son of Man to be glorified.
Truly, truly, I say to you,
unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone.
But if it dies, it bears much fruit.
Do you notice that word glory?
It's one of John's key words.
It's one of the words that Christians use.
We use it for big things that we can't really describe.
Glory.
And what Jesus is saying here is that the glory of God
cannot be separated from the death of the Lord Jesus.
The glory of God cannot be separated from his brutal, violent execution on the cross.
And that is strange.
Glory is not just majesty, dignity and power.
Glory has to do with suffering and sacrifice
and with pain and with his giving of his life.
And that's why Jesus says,
And the hour has now come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
The glory of God, the heart of God,
has an eternal connection between suffering and love, sacrifice and honour.
Between expensive giving and love.
Chapter 12, verse 1, Jesus comes back to Bethany,
to the very, very happy home of Mary and Martha and Lazarus.
Why are they so happy?
Well, verse 1, this is Lazarus,
whom Jesus had raised from the dead in the last chapter.
Verse 9, there is Lazarus.
The crowds are coming to see him.
Lazarus, whom Jesus had raised from the dead.
It's just a little throwaway line in the story.
Twice we are told, Lazarus is standing there.
He's a very popular boy.
He is exhibit A.
Everybody wants to get a piece of Lazarus.
You can see down in verse 10 and 11 that.
I'm guessing there would be movie offers if he was living today.
Big interviews with Piers Morgan and Lorraine Kelly.
And I think the question would be,
what would you want to ask Lazarus?
What would you want to ask Lazarus?
What would you ask him?
Anyone want to shout out?
What would you ask him?
Anyone?
I think you did.
What were you going to say, John?
What was it like being dead, isn't it?
Isn't that the question?
Surely.
The question I would want to ask Lazarus is,
what was it like?
What was it like going through death
and then coming back again?
I think that Lazarus might actually have been a bit disappointed,
don't you?
Coming back into this life, don't you?
It's just my theory.
We're not told.
And I think we're not told because that isn't the point of the passage.
Here's the point.
At the centre of this first episode in John chapter 12,
Mary,
Lazarus' sister,
anoints Jesus for his burial.
It's about Jesus' death.
The story is framed with references to Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead.
Do you remember in chapter 11,
he is the one who marched to the tomb
and he said,
Lazarus, come out,
even though he'd been dead for days,
he turned to Mary and Martha
and he said,
I am the resurrection and the life,
which is not something you do, is it?
Unless you're able to raise the dead.
And I think the shocking thing that we hear in John 12
is that Jesus,
the resurrection and the life,
Jesus,
the eternal word of God,
is going to die.
It's absolutely impossible.
Absolutely impossible.
The eternal word
who was made flesh
at the beginning of the gospel
who says,
I am the source of all life.
Who tells us,
I am the bread of life.
I am the resurrection and the life.
I am the way, the truth,
and the life.
How can he die?
What would possess him
to do such a thing?
And the answer is in verse 1.
Six days before the Passover,
Jesus therefore came to Bethany.
The Passover is the trigger
for Jesus to go up to Bethany.
Look back in chapter 11 and verse 47.
The chief priests and Pharisees,
they gathered to the council together
and they said,
what are we to do?
For this man performs many signs
if we let him go on like this.
Everyone will believe in him.
The Romans will come.
They'll take away our place
and our nation.
But one of them,
Caiaphas, the high priest that year,
that's how high priests
are supposed to talk.
He says,
you know nothing at all.
You're absolutely clueless.
Don't you understand?
It's better that one man die
for the people
and not that the whole nation should die.
So verse 53,
from that day on,
they make plans to put him to death.
In verse 54,
Jesus goes into hiding.
In verse 55,
now the Passover of the Jews
was at hand
and many went up from the country
to Jerusalem
before the Passover
to purify themselves.
In chapter 12,
it opens with the Passover.
The Passover was the messiest festival
in the Jewish calendar.
thousands upon thousands
of sheep and oxen
are slaughtered.
The historical records tell us
that Jerusalem,
the streets ran with blood.
The stench would have been incredible.
This is the great event
in the Jewish year
because it celebrated
the great redemption
of the Old Testament
when God rescued his people
out of slavery and Egypt
and when God sent
the angel of death
into Egypt
and the angel of death
passed over every house
that was marked
by the blood of the Lamb
and everyone
whose house was marked
by the blood of the Lamb
was safe.
And the Passover comes
and Jesus says,
now is the hour
for the Son of Man
to be glorified.
We've gone through
John's Gospel
right from the start
and we remember
in chapter 1
when John the Baptist
saw Jesus walking
towards his baptism
and John says,
behold the Lamb of God
who takes away
the sin of the world.
And here he is.
Here is the one
to whom all the Old Testament
has been pointing.
And it's such an irony,
isn't it?
It's an irony
that the Jews
are going up to Jerusalem
to have their sins
purified by ceremonies
and in the midst of them
is the one,
the Eternal One,
the Lamb of God
who's going to take away
the sins of the world.
The great rescue
is about to come.
The interesting thing,
believe it or not,
we're still in the introduction,
the interesting thing is
in this first story
of John 12,
Jesus is not
the main character.
Verse 3,
we meet Martha
and she is serving,
serving,
serving.
She's going on serving.
And then Mary
does this extravagant action
and Jesus is passive.
It's one of those occasions
in the Gospel
where Jesus is not
the main actor.
And what Mary does
is she takes a pound
of extraordinarily
expensive ointment,
pure and hard,
and she pours it
over Jesus' feet.
And then she undoes
her hair,
which as a Jewish woman
had been bound up
and she wipes
his feet with his hair,
with her hair.
Everyone present
is shocked.
It is a shocking thing
to do.
It would be the same
sort of thing
if someone did that
in your home today.
And John is at pains
to tell you
how much it cost.
He says,
it is pure nard,
it's a pound of nard,
pound weight.
He tells us,
and Judas helpfully
fills in the details,
this thing that
she has just done
is worth a year's wage.
It is deeply personal,
creative,
extravagance.
And she takes
her life's wages,
she takes
a year's wages,
her life savings,
and she pours it
over Jesus.
It is great humility
and love.
And John tells us
this lovely little line
at the end of verse 3.
Can you see it?
In fact,
can you smell it?
The house was filled
with the fragrance
of the perfume.
You don't actually
know that
unless you were
an eyewitness
or a nose witness.
But it shocks
the disciples.
Look at Judas,
verse 4,
he's offended.
Why on earth
was this not sold
to the poor?
To poor?
It's said so aggressively
that he expects
everyone in the room
is going to agree with him.
It is a terrible waste.
And Judas asks
the most obvious question,
doesn't he?
Jesus responds
and says,
let her alone now.
Leave her alone,
verse 7,
that she may
keep it for the day
of my burial.
For the poor
you will always
have with you,
but you do not
always have me.
Here is something
that is socially awkward.
It is quite inappropriate,
to be honest,
in a way.
Jesus takes it
and he brings it
to the point
of his death,
his burial.
I am not sure
that Mary understood
all of what she did,
but by her extravagance
she moves close
to the heart of God.
And Jesus takes it
and he is honoured
by it
and pleased by it
and he says
this is an incredibly
precious thing
that she has done.
And incidentally,
I don't know
if you've had a debate
on this,
but in verse 8
when Jesus says
the poor you always
have with you
but me you don't,
Jesus is not saying
there don't worry
about the poor.
There are better things
to do with your money
than them.
I've heard some people
use the verse
in that way.
But actually
Jesus is quoting,
and this shocked me
this week,
Jesus is quoting
Deuteronomy 15.
In Deuteronomy
chapter 15
God is speaking
to the people
of Israel
and in Deuteronomy
15
God is taking away
the excuse
of the people
of Israel
and he says
do not be greedy
and he is saying
in Deuteronomy 15
you have to care
for those who are
among you
who are poor.
That's the duty
of the people of God.
Let me quote you
one or two verses
from Deuteronomy 15.
It says
you shall give
to him freely
that's the poor
and your heart
shall not be grudging
when you give to him
because for this
the Lord your God
will bless you
in all your work
and in all
that you undertake.
Then he says
there will always
be poor in the land
for there will never
cease to be poor
in the land.
Therefore I command you
you shall open
wide your hand
to your brother
to the needy
to the poor
in your land.
Jesus takes
that quote
and he reminds them
you've got an obligation
to the poor
but he says
there's something
more important here.
that his death
is more important
than all the world's poor
and that is shocking
particularly as he quotes
the verse
where God says
I stand with the poor.
It would have been
wouldn't it
a very good thing
if Mary had taken
this ointment
and sold it
and given the proceeds away
that would have been
a good thing
but Jesus says
actually she's doing
something better
and the fragrance
of what she does
fills the house
and continues
to fill the house.
Now the question is
what are we to do
with this contrast
between Mary
and Judas?
What is behind it?
And I think
what we're meant to see
in the rest of the time
we have tonight
is the contrast
of faith.
The contrast
of believing
and unbelief.
Verse 11
if you just look
at the end
of the story
John tells us
that everyone
is going away
and believing
in Jesus.
Everyone is going
over to Jesus.
It's the thing
the authorities
are most afraid of
and if you go
to the end
of the gospel
that is where
the gospel
is going.
John writes
all these words
this book
so that you might
believe in Jesus
and have life
in his name
and the contrast
between Mary
and Judas
is a contrast
between belief
and unbelief
between faith
and unfaith.
We Christians
speak a lot
about faith
don't we?
We've said it
already
in our services
that I confess
that Jesus
is
we did it
this morning
I believe
in God
Father Almighty
and here is
a concrete example
of what
true faith
looks like
and John
brings this out
by showing
true faith
and unfaith
there's three
contrasts
I'll be brief
three contrasts
the first contrast
is a contrast
of values
real faith
demonstrates
itself
in a contrast
of values
what Mary
does
is socially
inappropriate
but it's a
perfect demonstration
of real faith
John
drives this home
in verse
three
the word
there
pure
nard
the word
there is
literally
the word
pure
there is
literally
faith
it's
slightly
odd
it is
literally
faith
nard
it's the
same word
as
belief
that's there
in verse
11
exactly
the same
word
in other
words
what Mary
is doing
comes out
of her
faith
Mary
values
Jesus
above
everything
else
above
even
her
financial
security
whereas
Judas
is a man
of unbelief
what motivates
Judas
is money
and greed
he values
what the
culture
values
I was on
an excruciating
long journey
on a train
last year
for four
hours
and there
were two
young men
who were
opposite me
sitting at a
table
who were
with me
the whole
journey
and they
talked for
the whole
time about
one thing
quite loudly
about money
it was
amazing to
me
they talked
about how
they were
going to
make it
they talked
about what
they were
going to
do with
it
and they
talked
about how
much
they liked
it
it was
remarkable
I took
notes
no I
didn't
I should
have
taken
notes
the
absolute
unquestioned
assumption
of their
conversation
is that
money was
the ultimate
good
the primary
good
that's
the way
unbelief
works
it looks
as if
this world
is a
place
of
permanence
and meaning
and I
think if
you take
Jesus out
of the
equation
Judas'
arguments
make sense
it's very
straightforward
what he
says
you can
hear what
he says
surely
he says
if we'd
have sold
this ointment
it would
have benefited
far more
people
it's a
waste
if Jesus
is about
to die
I mean
how can
you
justify
taking
something
that's
worth
a whole
year's
wages
and
wasting
it
on
Jesus
do you
know what
we could
have done
with that
money
we could
have set
up a
community
loan
scheme
we could
have
funded
the food
bank
for over
a year
we could
have
given it
to an
orphanage
we could
have
funded
the
night
shelter
and paid
for a
worker
amongst
the
homeless
for over
a year
and Judas
could say
well
devotion to
Jesus
is all
well and
good
I'm all
for
devotion
but this
is unqualified
extravagance
it is socially
awkward
it is
inappropriate
and Judas
looks at
Mary
and what
she does
is utterly
bewildering
to him
he can't
get his
head around
it
it is
utterly
bewildering
what a
waste
and that's
always
the way
belief
looks
to those
who don't
believe
if you
are
a believer
if you
are a
follower
of the
Lord
Jesus
Christ
that will
always
be
bewildering
to those
who are
unbelievers
and then
in verse
6
John
reaches
out
and he
flicks
off
Judas
mask
see
verse
6
you find
out
this
grubby
grasping
dried up
deceptive
little
heart
is because
he's a
thief
he keeps
the money
bags
for himself
so he
can help
himself
he doesn't
care about
the poor
it's a
devastating
picture of
Judas
but what
Judas has
done
is he
has learned
to describe
disguise
his greed
as compassion
isn't that
devastating
he's learned
to disguise
his grubby
grasping
materialistic
heart
in terms
of
social
justice
and it's
because his
eyes are
closed
to the
glory of
Jesus
and he
clings to
his own
self
indulgence
and his
own
emptiness
because of
unbelief
and that
is the
contrast
here between
belief
and unbelief
that is the
value system
the second
contrast
is a
contrast
of
audience
a
contrast
of
audience
I think
we get
an indication
of how
inappropriate
and awkward
and appalling
a thing it is
that Mary's
just done
in the very
next chapter
I preached
on this
passage
on this
incident
a number
of times
but I've
not really
made this
connection
before
that in
chapter 13
do you
remember
you've got
the really
famous
incident
where
Jesus
washes
the
disciples
feet
and
they're
completely
stupefied
that anyone
would do
something
so menial
I don't
know why
we think
Jesus'
feet
must have
just been
wonderfully
clean
in chapter
12
there is
tremendous
self-forgetfulness
in what
Mary does
she doesn't
stop and
calculate
what the
public is
going to
think
with what
she does
and she's
not doing
this for the
benefit of
an audience
except one
alone
Jesus Christ
and that's
what faith
does
she wipes
his dirty
stinking
feet
with her
hair
and it
doesn't
matter
how
socially
awkward
that is
what matters
to her
is that
she is
personally
involved
with the
Lord Jesus
Christ
and her
humility
is genuine
because it
arises out
of a
devotion
to the
Lord Jesus
she doesn't
think about
the financial
cost
she doesn't
think about
how other
people are
going to
look at
her
but she
realises
if he
has come
from God
and if he
has come
to bring
us to
God
then there
is no
gift
too great
no action
too extravagant
for him
that if he
is the
Lord of
life
who is
able to
conquer
death
as she's
seen in
the chapter
before
nothing
that she
can do
is too
much
and Mary
does what
is beautiful
and right
and that
is the
way of
true faith
of believing
in Jesus
to love
Jesus
more than
all things
and it
will make
you do
things that
look rash
and extravagant
and wasteful
to our
culture
and so
why on
earth would
you give
10% of
your income
to the
church
are you
kidding
in a
city like
London
that's so
expensive
why would
you give
generously
to the
work of
Christchurch
when you
haven't even
paid off
your mortgage
or your
loans
why would
you volunteer
your precious
precious
holidays
to serve
a holiday
bible club
or a young
people's
camp
that's
crazy
why would
you not
play sport
on a
Sunday
because it's
the Lord's
day
how ridiculous
but if you
see the
Lord Jesus
Christ as
the one
who is
most
important
who is
ultimately
important
you'll
see that
that's
no
sacrifice
at all
will you
you see
real faith
will show
itself
in a way
that is
dangerously
out of
step
with our
culture
in a way
that is
dangerously
out of
step
with what
normal
people
think
because real
faith looks
at Jesus
and sees
in Jesus
someone who
is more
important
than
more
important
than the
world's
poor
who's
more
important
than
the
world's
rich
who's
more
important
than
anything
that's
the second
contrast
contrast in
values
contrast in
audience
and then a
third
contrast
is a
contrast in
deaths
plural
I want to
do a little
bit more
work on
this but
a contrast
in deaths
again look at
the key
verse
24
unless
a grain
of wheat
falls into
the earth
and dies
it remains
alone
but if it
dies
it bears
much
fruit
and then it
says
whoever
loves
his life
loses
it
and whoever
hates
his life
in this
world
will keep
it for
eternal
life
as you read
through chapter 12
there's a
contrast of
deaths
there are
little
deaths
if I can put it
like that
and there are
big deaths
in this passage
I think it's
why Lazarus
is so heavily
relied on in this
first section
Lazarus death
was a little
death
it was little
because Jesus
brought him
back
but Jesus
death is
the big
death
because he is
the resurrection
and the life
it is a big
thing
for the resurrection
and the life
to go to death
in surrendering
to death
wonderfully
he will
destroy it
and real
believing
real faith
in Jesus
is a little
death
it is dying
to this
world
it is dying
to my
life
it is dying
to everything
that I hold
precious
and that is
why in verse
11
when the dudes
describe those
who believe
in Jesus
it says
can you see
what it says
it says
they are
going away
and believing
in Jesus
literally
they are
going over
they are
betraying us
they're going
over
they are betraying
us
and they're
believing in
Jesus
so here's
the shocking
thing
believing in
Jesus
is fundamentally
an act of
betrayal
here's the
great choice
in life
listen to this
the choice
is to
betray Christ
as Judas
did
or to
betray my
own life
as Mary
did
that's the
choice
the great
choice in
life
betray
Christ
like Judas
or betray
my own
life
like Mary
and so
believing in
Jesus
means
putting an
end
to loving
this life
it's a
little death
and Mary's
faith shows
a reckless
disregard
for everything
that was
expected
it's a
little death
when I was
a young
Christian
and I
suspect
I'm not
alone
in this
when I
was a
young
Christian
I used
to think
that God
might require
me someday
to offer
my body
as a
martyr
I often
used to
think
if a
gunman
came into
this church
I'd jump
in front
of the
take the
bullet
and if I
was called
to stand
for Christ
and give
my life
as a
martyr
I would
nobody
go
that's
what being
a
Christian
and I
think
many of
us
go
through
the
Christian
life
thinking
a bit
like that
we think
that if
there's
ever going
to be
a call
upon me
to make
a great
sacrifice
one day
I'm going
to make
it
but I've
come to
realise
like I hope
you have
that the
Christian
life is
actually
made up
of a
thousand
little
deaths
daily
and that's
what this
passage does
in a really
lovely
disconcerting
way
it
connects
our
little
deaths
with
his
big
death
it
makes
sense
of
our
little
deaths
it
says
that
through
his
big
death
the
death
of
the
Lord
Jesus
and
our
little
deaths
we
live
and
have
eternal
life
in
1672
just
before he
was
released
from
prison
John
Bunyan
who wrote
Pilgrim's
Progress
he'd
been in
prison
for
12
years
he'd
been
in
prison
for
12
years
for
preaching
without
a
license
and
just
before
he
was
released
he
was
very
conscious
as
a
pastor
of
a
congregation
how
he
suffered
was
important
he wrote
this
he quoted
from
2
Corinthians
1
which
says
we
felt
that
we
had
received
the
sentence
of
death
but
that
was
to
make
us
rely
not
on
ourselves
but
on
God
who
raises
the
dead
cast
the
sentence
of
death
upon
everything
that
can
properly
be
called
the
things
of
life
even
to
reckon
myself
my
wife
my
children
my
health
my
enjoyment
and
all
as
dead
to me
and
myself
as
dead
to
them
and
secondly
he said
to
live
upon
God
who
is
invisible
that's
it
that's
real
faith
it
sees
in
Jesus
it
sees
in
God
more
than
we
deserve
and
all
that
we
desire
and
in
his
death
the
great
death
our
salvation
and
his
glory
and
true
faith
looks
at
that
and
says
what
Christ
has
given
is
everything
and
what
Christ
deserves
from
us
is
everything
love
so
amazing
so
divine
demands
my soul
my life
my all
let's
pray