You can tell that someone really gets the concept of worship when the sacrifices they make for the Lord are shockingly massive. Mary’s sacrifice was a jar of perfume worth a whole year’s wages. That’s the equivalent of tens of thousands of dollars. It may have been her prized possession, and yet she devoted it entirely to Jesus in an instant. And our gifts to God are so often only what we can comfortably lose! This story is a picture of worship at its most genuine.
Naturally, though, this is repulsive to some people. That perfume was an opportunity to give resources to those in need, they object. But isn’t this an honorable issue to bring up? Shouldn’t we as Christians be concerned with helping those in need? Yes we should. We are indeed on mission to bring God’s justice and God’s love to all the places in the world where it is lacking. We are responsible for caring for and loving even the lowliest, as we are all made in God’s image. And yet even our social activism should never be a higher priority than our worship of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Think of how big of a deal it is to say something like that! There are all kinds of good things for us to desire in the world. Perhaps on a low tier, there is personal pleasure; on a middle tier, there is success and flourishing; and on a high tier, there is charity and generosity, feeding the hungry, establishing peace, as the Lord has commanded us. And yet higher than all of those, highest of all, is bringing God glory. Jesus claimed that he himself is the greatest good for our hearts to desire and serve, greater even than any other good we could ever imagine. We are to love God and also love others, and yet if it had to only be one, we must prioritize our love for God!
We should be cautious that whatever excuses we may have for prioritizing something else is not actually a mask over some sinful desire, like it was for Judas. Our desire should be first and foremost for the Lord and his kingdom, and out of that should flow every other good desire. Without him our social activism is futile anyway; but the one hope of the world really is Jesus alone, and he will certainly restore all justice and peace, and above all, he will be glorified. So may we all turn our eyes first and foremost upon Christ Jesus!
