Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Prayer Meeting Lesson Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/pm/pm19970326.htm

MARK: GOSPEL OF THE SERVICE OF CHRIST, GOD'S SERVANT
Part LII: Choices In Stewardship When All Our Biblical Financial Duties Have Been Met
(Mark 14:1-9)
  1. Introduction
    1. There has been much discussion over the years on what it means to have good stewardship with our financial resources. Obviously, we must use those resources to obey God's Word regarding meeting family needs, taxation requirements and other Biblical mandates.
    2. However, supposing all these requirements have been met, what should we do with our resources most to please the Lord? This question is answered in Mark 14:1-9:
  2. Choices In Stewardship When All Our Biblical Financial Duties Have Been Met, Mark 14:1-9.
    1. When Jesus entered Bethany, a group of people whose spiritual and earthly lives had been radically transformed by Jesus met at an emotion-packed dinner with Him in His honor, Jn. 12:1-2 with Mk. 14:3a:
      1. Jesus attended a dinner held in His honor in Bethany, Jn. 12:2a.
      2. Since the dinner was at the home of Simon the leper, Simon was honoring Jesus in response to his having been thankfully healed by Jesus from this vicious, socially debilitating disease, Mk. 14:3a.
      3. Since Lazarus who had been raised from the dead was at the dinner, along with his sisters Mary and Martha, Lazarus, Mary and Martha were also meeting in honor of the Lord, Jn. 12:1-2.
      4. Since Martha served the dinner, especially in light of her former complaint of working too hard at serving without Mary's help, and Jesus' following rebuke for her attitude (cf. Lk. 10:38-42), Martha was evidently delighted to be in her serving role and of a changed heart, Jn. 12:2b.
    2. To top it off, Mary, sister of Martha and Lazarus, was apparently the only mortal at the time who understood Jesus' many predictions of His death to believe that He was soon to die, cf. Ryrie St. Bib., KJV, ftn. to Matthew 26:12. Opportunities to express her worship and honor of Him were fleeting.
    3. Thus, in the midst of this emotion-packed meeting with so many thankful people in Jesus' presence, Mary, with full knowledge of her beloved Savior's impending death for the world, in an act of immense gratitude and worship, broke a sealed alabaster vial of spikenard which she had purchased with her life's savings and anointed Jesus' head with it. Then she wiped His feet dry with her hair, Mk. 14:3; Jn. 12:3.
    4. This act was criticized as poor stewardship by the ignorant disciples, Mk. 14:4-5 with Jn. 12:4-5.
      1. Judas Iscariot started the murmuring among the disciples that Mary's act was one of poor stewardship, that the vial's perfume could have been sold to feed many poor people, Jn. 12:4-5; Mk. 14:4-5.
      2. In reality, Judas, being the group's treasurer, often used to skim off moneys from the collections, and was upset at missing this great opportunity for some richer gleanings , Jn. 12:6.
    5. Jesus resisted this criticism on Mary's stewardship, defending her gift as good stewardship as follows:
      1. Christ came to the defense of Mary, questioning the disciples' criticism and defending her act, 14:6a.
      2. He revealed that the poor were always around for them to help, but that Jesus was not always around, and that since the time was limited to honor Him in His earthly presence, Mary's act was acceptable, 7.
      3. By additional implication, Jesus noted the depth of Mary's appreciation that was acceptable worship, 6b.
      4. Also, in light of His coming physical death, burial and resurrection to save men eternally, Mary's act was treated by God as the best act she could perform: it was vastly more superior in value than giving to keep the poor physically alive, Mk. 14:8. As a result, wherever the Gospel of Christ's death, burial and resurrection would be pro claimed for the saving of men's souls, this act by Mary would be spoken of as a memorial of her upright faith in Christ, Mk. 14:9. In other words, Jesus accepted a lifetime accumulation of savings being spent to His honor for things pertaining to the production of spiritual life ABOVE giving to the physical needs of the earth's poor!
Lesson: When it comes to stewardship, and we have met our other Biblical obligations in the management of our money, God values our using our extra money to (1) worship Himself with one's whole being above meeting the needs of our fellow man, cf . Mk. 12:30-31. (2) Also, God values one's opting to contribute to a worthy cause when the opportunity to do so is the least of several options, for the other options can always be met. (3) Also, God values one's using his resources for the eternal wel fare of men above man's temporal welfare, the salvation of Jesus through the cross over the poor.