Brown's Daily Word 3-31-10

Good morning,
Praise the Lord for this Wednesday of Holy Week. We will gather for mid-week service withe meal at 6 PM, followed by Bible study and prayer at 6:30 PM. Praise the Lord for His abiding Love and for His faithfulness. Our dear brother Rodney Haines will be retiring from his job this week. Rodney and I share our birthday. We were born on the same day of the same month in the same year -- just different mothers. Rodney shared with me that the Lord has Drafted him to cook for Wednesday gatherings every Wednesday. We are so blessed. Rodney is a winsome Cook. Those of you live in the area join us every Wednesday. "God be with you 'til we eat again". We stay energized and firm and young by serving Christ with zeal and passion. It is always a matter of heart.
This week, we are working our way toward the cross. On Monday Jesus cleared the temple of the moneychangers. On Tuesday the religious officials challenged him with one trick question after another. Most Bible scholars think Wednesday was a quiet day for Jesus. He did not go into Jerusalem, but stayed in Bethany. While Jesus rested there, his enemies and one of his own began their plot of unspeakable treachery.
Matthew and Mark both give the story of Judas an interesting twist. In the middle of explaining what Judas did, they told the story of a dinner party in Bethany. The interesting part is that this didn't happen on Wednesday. John tells us it happened the previous Saturday, the day before the triumphal entry. However, Matthew and Mark both connect it with Judas. They want us to see Judas’ despicable act in contrast with Mary’s act of devotion. Set side by side, these two events are revealed as stories of two treasures, two hearts, two lives headed in two totally different directions. We may notice our own story as well.
First, consider the similarities between the two central characters, Mary and Judas. Both were followers of Jesus. The Mary mentioned here was the sister of Lazarus, the man Jesus had raised from the dead. Jesus had stayed in their home many times. In all likelihood, Mary and her sister Martha had fixed dinner for the disciples more times than you could count. On one occasion, Jesus commended Mary for her desire to listen to his teachings. The dinner right before Palm Sunday took place at the home of a neighbor, Simon the Leper. Mary and Martha are probably there to help with the meal, and the Scripture indicates that Martha was serving the meal.
Judas Iscariot had been one of Jesus’ disciples from the beginning. He had heard the same teachings as the other disciples. He, like Mary, had witnessed Jesus’ miraculous power. He had preached Jesus' message to others. Judas was more than just one of the twelve; he was the treasurer of the group. Judas was among the best and the brightest. Both Mary and Judas had walked, talked, and served with Jesus. Both were at Simon’s dinner party on that Saturday before the journey to the Cross. On the surface, both had much in common, but in matters of the heart the two couldn’t have been any more different.
As recorded in the four Gospels, Mary poured a vial of expensive lotion or ointment over Jesus’ feet and then wiped it away with her hair. John tells us that the bottle of nard was worth a year’s wages. That could easily translate into $15,000 - $20,000 in today’s economy. Scholars speculate that this may have been Mary’s dowry or an inheritance. In a society without a banking system, people often preserved wealth in such commodities.
Then the disciples, especially Judas, began to complain, “Look at that waste of money! If she didn’t want the stuff, we could have sold it and given the money to the poor.” John wrote, “He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it” (John 12:6). When the men scolded Mary for waste, Jesus silenced them.
Note here that Mary was a giver, while Judas was a taker. Giving is not about the purse or wallet. It has nothing to do with whether a person is rich or poor. It is a matter of the heart. Some hearts are closed and tight. Others are open and generous. Money given generously is an expression of the generosity of the spirit.
Thievery and stinginess grow from the same root. Both start with pride, and both doubt God’s ability to provide. Both know little of gratitude. The disciples, according to Mark, “rebuked her harshly.” One of the words used was the term that generally was used for the snorting of a horse. They were indignant. They snorted in ridicule of her wasteful behavior, but Jesus cut them off, telling them to leave her alone. He added, “she did what she could.” This is the standard in giving, serving, and worshipping. What others do or should do does not matter. Mary did what she could! Under the same principle Jesus insisted that the widow’s mite - such a very small gift - was worth more than all the treasures of the rich put together.
Mary gave extravagantly, a gift of no small worth. Judas, if he had given at all, would have done so begrudgingly. However, as stated before, Judas was more likely to take than to give. A stingy heart doesn’t understand extravagant, overflowing worship. In his objection, Judas cited how the treasure could have been used for the poor. It was his very pious-sounding excuse. If someone had actually suggested giving money to the poor, he certainly would have found other grounds for objection.
The biggest contrast of all between Mary and Judas is that Mary honored Jesus, while Judas betrayed him. She anointed Jesus for his burial, while Judas set in motion the plot that would lead to Jesus’ death.
Like Mary’s, William Borden’s life story offers an alternative. (This is a true story). You all know his family name. William was heir to the great Borden’s milk estate. When he graduated high school in 1904, he was already a millionaire. Everyone expected he would someday head the family company. He surprised his family by announcing that he planned to be a missionary. Some people said, “What a waste!” William Borden recorded the commitment and wrote two words in the back of his Bible: "No Reserves."
As a freshman at Yale, Borden displayed a rare spiritual passion. He organized student Bible studies and prayer meetings. The movement spread across the campus. He started an outreach ministry to the poor in nearby communities. The work touched thousands. Borden never forgot his missions plans. After graduation, he turned down high paying job offers. He was going to China and work with Muslims, he told his family. “What a waste,” some of his professors said. William Borden wrote two more words in his Bible: “No retreats.”
William Borden went on to Princeton Seminary to complete his preparation for the mission field. When he finished his studies, he sailed for China just as he promised. He stopped first in Egypt to study Arabic, a necessary tool for working with Muslims. While in Egypt, he contracted spinal meningitis. Within a month, William Borden was dead. He was twenty-five years old.
His family, his classmates, and prayer partners around the world mourned his death. What a waste, nearly everyone said. Everyone except William Borden! Prior to his death, Borden had written two more words in his Bible. Underneath the words "No Reserves" and "No Retreats," he had written, "No Regrets."
Short or long, rich or poor, every life deserves to end with “no regrets.” When it does, it is never about the money. It is always a matter of the heart.

In Christ,
Brown

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMrAafe7Mns