I love biographies. A good biography is both inspirational, it makes you want to do more for the Lord, it makes you want to pray more, it makes you want to serve the Lord more.
But there's another element, isn't there, in a good biography, you wonder how on earth did they get it all done?
And when it comes to people who are heroes, I think there's a really fine line between inspiration and encouragement.
People can be deeply inspiring, but they can also leave us mere mortals feeling a little discouraged, can't they?
Why aren't we more like them?
And what I often feel about heroes is often how I feel when I read about this woman in Matthew 26.
She is a woman who pays a terribly high price to honour Jesus.
She too is devoted to Jesus in an outstanding, super-Christian kind of way.
She too is prepared to make huge sacrifices in order to serve Jesus.
And I wonder how you react to her.
Does she inspire you?
Or does she just leave you feeling discouraged at the weakness of your own faith and your love for Christ?
And that's what I want us to explore this morning.
Now, before we get to the woman,
first we hear Jesus reminding us that he is going to die.
Firstly, that he is going to pay the price.
So look with me at Matthew 26 and verse 1.
Jesus is bringing his public teaching in Matthew's gospel to a close.
And now the attention moves to preparing his disciples for what is about to take place.
And he says to them,
Jesus has predicted his death, hasn't he, on several occasions.
But now he adds a crucial detail.
He tells them when.
He tells them when he will be handed over to be crucified during the Passover.
The Passover, we know, was that Jewish festival,
which recalled the exodus from Egypt.
That great moment when God brought his people out of Egypt.
When he sent that plague on the firstborn son of the Egyptians,
but he literally passed over the firstborn son of the Israelites.
And those Israelite houses were distinguished, weren't they,
by the blood of the lamb on the door.
And so there was this annual reminder of God's kindness and deliverance,
secured by the blood of the lamb.
And here you find Jesus telling his disciples that it's during that time,
the time of the Passover,
that he will give his life, he will pay the price.
He's beginning to suggest to them, isn't he,
that he is the new Passover lamb.
He is the new way to be safe in the face of death.
His blood will protect them.
Jesus dropped the hint, doesn't he?
In a couple of days, during that first Lord's Supper,
he'll explain it further.
But at this point, Matthew doesn't stop to explain it.
He just simply tells us what Jesus is predicting.
And what Jesus is predicting is exactly what the Jewish leaders are plotting.
It's striking, isn't it?
In verse 3, he uses the word then.
If this was a film,
I think we'd have a scene where Jesus tells his disciples
he's about to be crucified,
and then we'd cut straight to the palace of the high priest.
And the camera would zoom in on this conversation taking place.
And we'd hear them planning and plotting Jesus' arrest and crucifixion.
It's a stunning reminder to you and I, I think,
that Jesus is not going to be caught by surprise.
What is about to happen is about to happen
because God has planned it,
and Jesus foreknows it.
The chief priests and the elders,
they're in their headquarters.
They no doubt think that they are in the process
of taking control of the situation.
But they're not, are they?
Jesus is in control of it.
And what they are planning is exactly what Jesus has predicted.
And ironically, I think Matthew tells us they are in the palace.
They're behaving as if they've got some kind of sovereignty.
But in reality, Jesus is sovereign here.
And we see this even in what they said.
Look at verses 4 and 5.
And they plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him.
But they said, not during the feast,
lest there should be an uproar among the people.
They wanted to avoid killing Jesus during the Passover
because they didn't want to stir up trouble
for themselves among Jesus' followers.
The population of Jerusalem,
it swelled enormously during the Passover festival.
So politics is always a little bit more risky around that time.
But of course, Jesus already told us, isn't it,
that he would be killed during the Passover time.
It was then he would be handed over.
And so it proved to be that Jewish leaders are not in control.
They can't even do what they propose to do.
The events that are about to unfold will unfold exactly as God wants
and exactly as Jesus predicts.
But having reminded us so explicitly of the price that Jesus is soon to pay,
Matthew then chooses to tell us of the price this nameless woman pays.
Look at verse 6.
Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper,
a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask,
a very expensive ointment,
and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table.
It is nothing if not extravagant.
And Matthew tells us, doesn't he,
that it was very expensive.
Expert reckon it was some kind of heirloom,
an alabaster jar that had been handed down.
People say that it was the equivalent to a year's wages.
And so whichever way you look at it,
this wasn't some bottle of perfume that you pick up at the chemist.
It was an extremely generous gesture.
You notice that's how the disciples saw it.
They thought it was a waste.
And they take the moral high ground by pointing out
what could have been done with the money.
Look at verse 8.
And when the disciples saw it,
they were indignant, saying,
why this waste?
For this could have been sold for a large sum
and given to the poor.
They think the woman's actions are bizarre and unnecessary,
even frivolous.
And it's hard for you and I
not to sympathize with the disciples.
It's a pretty strange thing for this woman to do.
If someone spends a lot of money
buying a present for me,
I'd prefer if it was something that I could use,
wouldn't you?
And I reckon that is how the disciples felt
about this gift to Jesus.
It's not as if Jesus was any richer
walking away from this moment.
But nevertheless, the money has been spent, as it were.
And you can't help thinking,
they've made a good point, haven't they?
About how the poor may well have benefited
from the equivalent in cash.
But Jesus thinks they're missing the point.
They call it a waste.
He calls it beautiful.
Verse 10.
But Jesus, aware of this,
aware of what they were thinking,
said to them,
why do you trouble the woman?
For she has done a beautiful thing to me.
And verse 13.
Truly, I say to you,
wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world,
what she has done
will be told in memory of her.
Jesus is honoured
by the actions of this woman.
He's honoured by the extravagance of her action.
And it says something about how much she values Jesus.
What she thinks that Jesus is worth.
What he deserves.
It is not economically rational,
but it is something that transcends economics.
But I hasten to add,
it doesn't transcend reason.
This is a thoughtful and well-judged action,
even if it is extravagant.
And the woman believes in her heart
that Jesus' presence is a rare jewel.
And this moment of history,
and this moment of her life and his life,
honouring him,
is actually more important than giving to the poor.
And amazingly, Jesus agrees.
And that's why he says,
what she has done
will be told in her memory.
She has honoured him.
And now he says,
I will honour her.
She too will be honoured.
And indeed,
the fact that we are reading about her today,
as literally millions have done so throughout history,
is evidence Jesus was right.
And it's fascinating that Jesus honours her
in this way.
When you think of all the people
down throughout history,
all the people in the New Year's honours list
that you can't remember who they are,
all the great titles,
and all the great achievements,
and all the letters after their name,
and many of them have been completely forgotten.
And she is known.
This woman,
who in Matthew's account
doesn't even have a name,
she is remembered by every generation
who reads these words.
Known and remembered
for what she did to Jesus.
And that is why I think
she is nameless here.
Because what Jesus wants to honour
is not who she is,
but what she's done.
Because what she did
gives honour to Jesus.
It alerts us to Jesus' worth.
It tells us that Jesus
is someone
worth paying a very high price for indeed.
And that is why Jesus sees
her extravagant act of devotion
as a thing of beauty.
But Jesus sees, doesn't he,
an even deeper significance
in her actions.
Possibly a significance
that the woman
didn't even grasp herself.
Look at verse 12.
In pouring this ointment on my body,
she has done it
to prepare me for burial.
Jesus sees her act of anointing
as a special kind of anointing,
the kind of anointing
that dead bodies were given.
The pouring out of the perfume
was like Jesus being embalmed.
And Jesus sees this
beautiful moment
as a step
in his preparation
for that moment
to which his whole life
has been heading.
The moment when he would
pay the price,
when he would lay down his life
for his people.
And in a way,
she couldn't have understood that
at this point.
that even this woman
would be saved
by the death
that her anointing
prepared him for.
The last three verses
of our passage,
Matthew brings
into the foreground
this issue
that has been in the shadows
for this whole section.
He tells us,
matter of factly,
that Judas was one of
Jesus' 12 disciples.
And Judas goes
to the Jewish leaders
and he offers
to hand Jesus
over to them.
And the question
that he asks
in verse 15
gets to the heart
of the point
of this section.
Do you see what he asks?
What will you give me
if I deliver
him over to you?
What is Jesus worth
to you?
What is his cost?
He asks.
And their answer,
if you look at it,
is 30 silver coins.
So what a slave
was worth
in the Old Testament
is what shepherds
were paid.
Either way,
it's not a lot of money.
But Judas agrees
with the sum.
And so Judas
plays the part
of the economic realist.
Except that his act
is not really
rational at all.
Because in agreeing
with the sum,
he agrees
with the chief priests.
What was Jesus worth?
Not very much.
And of course,
this is what
the disciples
were struggling with
in verse 8,
weren't they?
They were not convinced
that Jesus was worth
what the women did.
The whole section
is about people
who undervalue Jesus.
The disciples
who thought
that the woman's
beautiful extravagance
was a waste.
Judas,
who would rather
profit
from Jesus' death
than prevent it.
And the Jewish leaders
who were
not only willing,
who were only willing
to part with
some loose change
to get what they wanted
all along.
In their own way,
all these characters
undervalue
Jesus.
And so together,
they provide the backdrop,
don't they?
The contrast
to this nameless woman.
That she alone,
of all the key players
in the story,
values Jesus
for what he's really worth.
She alone
sees Jesus
for who he truly is.
She alone
seems eager
that Jesus
gets what he deserves.
She is extravagant
while all the others
around her
are stingy
or worse.
And worst of all
is Judas.
He was one of the twelve,
one of Jesus'
closest friends,
those he confided in.
And yet,
he decides
that following
a so-called king
who was only
going to surrender
his life,
well,
it wasn't worth it.
Thirty pieces
of silver
would be worth
more than that.
And in verse two,
do you just notice
Jesus predicted
the words?
He says,
he would be handed
over to be crucified.
And at that point,
we didn't know
who by,
but by the time
we come to verse 16,
we make the discovery,
don't we,
that Jesus
will be handed
over,
will betray him.
You notice,
Matthew,
the ESV
doesn't bring this out,
but the words
should be there again
that sought
to hand him
over.
It turns out
that Judas
is the handover man.
And so,
the chain of events
has been started
that will lead
to Jesus' death,
the fulfillment
of his prediction.
And we see
something else
that these three
short sections
have in common.
Not only is Jesus
worth being debated,
but Jesus' death
is on view
at every point.
So,
verse four,
the Jewish leaders
are plotting
Jesus' death.
And then you have
the woman
with the alabaster jar
who is preparing
Jesus for death.
And then we see
Judas receiving money
to bring about
Jesus' death.
each in their own way.
These people
are participating.
But only one
had any hint
that Jesus' death
was part of what
Jesus made
Jesus worthy.
And only one
would benefit
from Jesus' death
and one would be
enriched far more
generously than she
had been generous
to him.
And it really is
the difference
between this nameless
woman and everyone
else in the story
that I think is at the
heart of this section
of Matthew.
Surrounded by people
who are participating
in killing Jesus,
this woman lovingly
prepares his body
for what he says
he must undergo.
And surrounded by people
who undervalue Jesus,
she sees his true worth
and she treats him
accordingly.
And so it is her action
that shines like a floodlight
against the dark backdrop
that these other
characters provide.
But as I said
at the start
of this sermon,
I am in danger
of finding this woman's
act more discouraging
than inspiring.
I'm left wondering
to myself,
what would I have done
if I'd have been
at that dinner party?
I'm left feeling
it's pretty unlikely
I would have done
what the woman did.
I'm left feeling
that her devotion
is hard to match.
Maybe my faith
is weak by comparison.
My love for Christ
is paltry compared
to hers.
And though I feel
in my heart
I should be inspired
by her,
in actual fact,
I can walk away
from the sermon
feeling deflated
and discouraged.
But what I've come to see
as I've studied
this passage this week
is if I walk away
like that,
I've completely
missed the whole point.
Because Matthew
doesn't want me
to be discouraged
by this woman
and nor does he want
me to be inspired
by this woman.
He wants me,
he wants you
to see Jesus.
He wants you
and me to see
what she saw.
That is the secret.
That's what makes
this woman willing
to honour Jesus
so extravagantly.
What makes this woman
so willing
to pay such a high price
to serve Jesus?
She sees
what Jesus
is worth
and because she
sees Jesus
clearly,
what she does
is the most natural
thing to her
in the world.
And what I want
to impress upon you
today
is that it is
a massive mistake
to see something
like this
and see something
like this woman
does
and marvel
at her faith.
It's a mistake
because it falsely
assumes that what
makes this woman
different to me
and you
is that she has
more faith.
stronger faith
or something
like that
and that's the
very thing
that creates
discouragement
but in fact
if there is
a difference
between me
and her
it's simply
that she sees
Jesus more
clearly than I do.
That she has
seen Jesus
more clearly
than I do
and that is
the mistake
I think I make
with biographies
and heroes
of the faith
I think that
it's the amount
of faith they
had or the
strength of
their love
for Jesus
but in actual
fact
their lives
are simply
a product
of the fact
that they
have seen
Jesus
more clearly
and they
know deep
in their
soul
what Jesus
is worth
and that is
the way
with everyone
who pays a
great price
to serve
Jesus
and honour
him
extravagantly
there are
no
super
Christians
but there
is a
super
Christ
and there
are Christians
who see
that
who see
Jesus
for all
he's worth
and there
are Christians
whose vision
of Jesus
is blurred
and they
are therefore
pretty stingy
or worse
and what
would it
take
I wonder
for you
and I
to give
a year's
salary
to the
work of
the kingdom
of God
what would
it take
for you
and I
to surrender
a life
of comfort
and to
sacrifice
greatly
for Christ
church
what would
it take
for you
and I
to hand
over
our
biggest
fears
to Jesus
and to
go wherever
he wanted
and to
speak
in the way
that he
wants us
to
what would
it take
this
nameless
woman
would tell
us one
thing
this
morning
she
would
tell
us
to see
Jesus
to know
who he
is
to know
him as
the king
who died
who is
worthy
and when
you know
his true
worth
deep in
your soul
there'll
be nothing
you'd rather
hang on to
than him
and there'll
be nothing
at all
to fear
in surrendering
yourself
to him
come to think
of it
what would
it take
to just
give a
tenth of
your salary
to the
work of
the church
or simply
to pray
more
what would
it take
for us
to repent
of those
sins
that we
constantly
battle
with
what would
it take
for you
and I
to speak
more
enthusiastically
about Jesus
to family
and friends
what would
it take
for us
to love
more
graciously
those we
find it
really
difficult
to love
love
and this
nameless
woman
would say
the same
thing to us
this morning
see
Jesus
you see
this passage
isn't really
about the
woman
it's about
the man
whose head
she covers
with perfume
she is
nameless
he is not
and at the
end of the
day we
don't need
to know
her name
but we
do need
to know
what compels
her to act
in the way
that she
did
and what
this passage
keeps thrusting
before us
is what
is Jesus
worth
and the
answer
is that
Jesus
is worthy
of what
this woman
did for him
and much
much more
Jesus name
is a name
that we
do know
because at
the end
of the
day
we do
need to
know him
and the
more we
know him
the more
we are
more likely
we are
to see
that what
the world
regards
as a
total waste
being as
a Christian
living as
a Christian
Christian
priorities
even giving
of ourselves
to kingdom
ministry
the world
sees that
those things
are a waste
but actually
they are
beautiful
in the
sight of
God
more to
the point
the more
that we
know him
the more
likely we
are to
see
that what
we sometimes
regard as a
waste
is beautiful
to him
and I
want to
bring you
this message
today
because as
you seek
to share
the gospel
with those
around you
you and I
need to
remember that
what people
don't need
them need
us to tell
them is
kind of how
much faith
they ought
to have
they don't
really need
us to tell
them how
empty their
lives are
if they're not
Christians
they don't
primarily need
me to tell
them about
a Christian
worldview or
about a
Christian
ethical
standpoint
they don't
even need
I think a
kind of
basic set of
Christian
propositions
that we
want them
to believe
in
but what
they
primarily
need
and what
in fact
they
desperately
need you
to do
is to
introduce
them to
Jesus
and they
need you
to introduce
them to
Jesus
with all
the passion
and conviction
and earnestness
of those
who know
Jesus
well
and can
know about
how much
he is
worth
and so
you don't
need me
to primarily
tell you
how important
evangelism
is or
what method
you ought
to use
or how
to answer
all the
difficult
questions
that people
ask you
of course
those things
are important
but if we
get trained
in those
things without
pointing people
to Jesus
actually what
we produce
is more
discouragement
than inspiration
and what
you need
more than
anything else
is to
see Jesus
clearly
and to be
absolutely
gripped by
a compelling
sense of
what he is
worth
and that is
what I
most need
and what I
most need
is not
more time
not more
resources
not more
generous
donors
not more
ministry
partners
I need
all those
things
but what
will really
sustain me
for the
tiring
and responsible
work of
Christian service
what do
we need
more than
anything
you need
to see
Jesus
you need
to see
him for
what he's
worth
and at
the end
of the
day
I have
found
that the
only thing
that sustains
Christians
through trials
and temptations
and exhaustion
and exhilaration
of living
as a Christian
is a
worshipful
heart
and there's
only one
thing that
creates a
proper
worshipful
heart
and that
is
knowing
Jesus
because
when we
know him
we'll
appreciate
him
and we'll
value him
and we'll
pay great
costs
and we'll
make great
sacrifices
because we
know that
he is
worthy
of it
and we'll
pay small
costs
and we'll
take small
steps of
Christian
progress
for the
same
reason
and we
will
appreciate
Jesus
even when
we're not
doing
anything
it will
simply be
the settled
conviction
of our
souls
that there
is no
higher
privilege
and there
is no
greater
blessing
than
knowing
Jesus
and it'll
be a joy
that we're
absolutely
gripped by
and the
most faithful
Christians
are those
who've been
gripped by
the joy
of knowing
Jesus
and that
is because
those who
know
Jesus
best
are those
who know
the price
that he
has paid
the most
expensive
and the
most generous
price that
ever could
be paid
and those
who know
Jesus
best
know that
this
nameless
woman's
extravagance
towards him
was just
a shadow
of his
extravagance
towards us
and in the
light of that
nothing we
could ever
do for him
will ever
be too
high a
price
those who
know Jesus
best know
that there
is no
cost so
great that
they wouldn't
gladly pay
it
for he
was
and he
is
and he
always will
be worthy
of it
and as I
thought about
this story
this week
I think
it's become
a favourite
of mine
not because
this woman
inspires me
but because
this act
reminds me
of how
worthy
my Lord
is
and this
woman
reminds me
that every
sacrifice
that you
have made
for Christ
is utterly
sensible
and this
woman encourages
me to keep
surrendering to
Jesus
and she
does that
not by
pointing to
herself
but by
pointing to
Christ
God
and that
is a
very
different
kind of
inspiration
and I
don't know
about you
but I
know what
this woman
says to
me
she says
that I
need to
pray this
simple
prayer
that Jesus
would open
my eyes
so that
I
would see
him
more
clearly
when
Jesus
was at
Bethany
in the
house
of
Simon
the
leper
a woman
came up
to him
with an
alabaster
flask
of very
expensive
ointment
and she
poured it
on his
head
as he
reclined
at
table
and when
the
disciples
saw it
they were
indignant
saying
why this
waste
for this
could have
been sold
for a
large sum
and given
to the
poor
but Jesus
aware of
this
said to
them
why do
you trouble
the woman
for she
has done
a beautiful
thing to
me