An Extravagant Gift

John 12:1-8

We’re taking a brief detour into the Gospel of John today.  For those who are not aware I’m simply following daily readings from the Revised Common Lectionary.  Have you ever been on the receiving end of a major, extravagant and unexpected gift?  If you have, how it makes you feel is almost too hard to put into words.  You’re sort of just blown away.  I’ll never forget the day I graduated from college.  It was a great day.  I did the walk, got the diploma, and exchanged lots of hugs with friends I had been developing over the past four years.  Of course my parents were there too enjoying the whole celebration.  Caught off guard would be an understatement to describe my feelings when we went out to the parking lot for my parents to go home.  I noticed they had two cars instead of one.  Being a little slow on the uptake I asked my dad why they drove two cars up.  To which he responded “happy graduation son.” 

I was the proud new owner of a 1981 Ford Tempo.  It had plenty of miles on it already, but it was in good running condition, and the best part was a kickin aftermarket stereo system.  Finally those woofers and tweeters would be put to good use.  That was my first car.  I was one of those lucky ones who managed to go through all of college without owning a car.  I rarely even brought up the possibility of a car to my parents because I just didn’t think it was something they could afford, and all my summer work money went towards my tuition.  I was blown away by that gift.  I felt like my parents were exceptionally generous in giving it. 

Our passage today is another example of extreme generosity and extravagant gift giving as we hear about Mary anointing Jesus with perfume.  In so doing she was showing her adoration and devotion to her Savior.  Contrary to what Judas was saying, this was no waste at all.  Like saving a high quality expensive bottle of wine for a special occasion, in a way Mary was doing the same thing.  Just 6 days from that point Jesus would commence His journey toward the cross.  In a servant-like posture Mary gave her gift to Jesus pouring expensive Nard on His feet.  It was an extravagant gesture fitting for our Savior. 

Like Judas (although his motives were certainly not pure) some people get bogged down in thinking it was wasteful and could have been put to better use for the poor.  But the thing to remember is it’s not an “either or” kind of situation.  Mary could very well go out and help the poor the very next day and do it in Jesus name, but that day, her gift to Christ was honored.  The same is true for us.  We should be doing things to help the poor on a regular basis.  In our church we take four special offerings each year that go to missions, disaster relief, and local charities to name a few.  We also regularly donate to our local food pantry and we also give out gas and grocery cards to those in need in our community.  In these ways and others we help the poor on a regular basis.  We also will someday soon need to buy new chairs for our sanctuary, and replace our roof and air conditioning system.  And we will do all that in addition to the things we are doing to help the poor. Good stewardship of our resources doesn’t’ focus on one or the other; it focuses on both.

I encourage you to find a way you can follow Mary’s example and be an extravagant gift giver, and I also encourage you to find ways to help the poor.  I’ve discovered one way to do both.  We’ve been encouraged lately to bring coffee to our local food pantry because it’s more of a special item they don’t often get.  So that’s what I’ve been doing; but instead of picking up a pound of Folgers I like to grab a bag of Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts.  I figure I wouldn’t be all that thrilled about the cheap coffee so why would anyone else?  It’s a small example I know, but it makes me happy to buy a nice bag of coffee to give away.  What can you do?

Prayer

Dear Lord I thank you for the wonderful example of devotion and worship you’ve given us through Mary.  Help us to represent You as extravagant gift givers to a world in need.  Amen.