The Gospel According to Mark (Part 43)

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The Gospel According to Mark

(Part 43)

Good morning and welcome to Jesus Church

Last week: Finished up Chapter 13 – Cracked the code on Jesus return

• So now we know the exact day/time Jesus is coming back
  • Which is awesome because now we don’t have to do anything
  • Until maybe a week or two before he comes back
  • Heck why are we ever here???
• No… just kidding – That is actually exactly why Jesus doesn’t tell us
  • Jesus wants us to live everyday as if he’s coming back tomorrow
  • With a sense of urgency…
    • To – Tell others about Him
    • To – Walk into my assignments and opportunities

And Jesus ends Ch. 13 by speaking to you & me… he turns to the camera

Mk 13:37

What I say to you, I say to everyone: Watch!

• Now we enter Ch. 14 – We’ll follow Jesus thru the last day of his life
  • And it starts with a story of two people
    • One: Who sacrifices all they could give for Jesus
    • One: Who sacrifices Jesus for all they could get

Mk 14:1-11

Now the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread were only two days away, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were scheming to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him. But not during the festival, they said, or the people may riot.

While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head. Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, “Why this waste of perfume? It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.” And they rebuked her harshly. “Leave her alone” Jesus said, “Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial. Truly I tell you, where ever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”

The Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them. They were delighted to hear this and promised to give him money. So he watched for an opportunity to hand him over.

[PRAY]

Have you ever had a really bad nickname

Some names just prone to it… Some very unfortunately name combos

• My last name is long enough to be a first/last name
  • Phetteplace becomes
    • Aaron Fee Fee Face > Aaron Feta Cheese
    • Then I’m Aaron Fettuccini > Fettuccini Alfredo
    • Before I know it my name is just ALF (the alien)
• This story starts with a guy with a really unfortunately nickname
  • Jesus is at the home of a guy who had been healed of leprosy
  • Now they wouldn’t be there if Simon still had leprosy
  • So Jesus healed him… but he’s still known by what he use to be

But out of gratefulness for what God had freed him from

• He opened up his life to make room for Jesus
  • How many times do we have a past… and we live in that past
  • And we close our lives from Jesus because of our shame/anger
  • B/C we still identify by what we USE TO BE CALLED
    • And we’re embarrassed to have him in our house
    • And certainly couldn’t set a foot inside his house
• He might’ve been called “The Leper”… refused to live by that name
  • Some of us today need to stop living by the name we are called
  • And start living by the miracle Jesus has done in our lives

Mk 14:3

… a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.

This alabaster jar [Pic] – Disciples note that it was worth a years wages

• The jar would have been made of marble
  • Extremely hard to break… it was only to be used once
  • Nard was a root from the Himalayan mountains
  • When broken it would fill the entire house with its fragrance
• Now I think we love to shake our heads at the disciples
  • Honestly I’m glad I wasn’t there… I’d probably think same thing
  • What in the world is this woman doing???
• Because in my mind… I want everything to make sense
  • But how many know that sacrifice doesn’t always make sense
  • And the moment your heart wants to have faith
  • Your mind will try to stand against it

I remember once I was interning in our church… Pastor just had 1^st baby

• He had been gone for a week – came in to see all us interns
  • Was talking about how amazing it was to have a son
  • How it changes everything… from motivation to perspective
• He said something I’ll never forget… but totally understand now
  • Said we live in a world where value is measured by what u gain
    • Jobs are valued by how much we make
    • Relationships valued by how someone makes you feel
    • Possessions are valued by the status they give you
  • And by that measurement babies don’t make sense
    • A baby needs you to feed them
    • A baby needs you to change them
    • A baby needs to be picked up, burped, transport, watched
  • But once you experience becoming a dad/mom
    • You understand why you’ll sacrifice everything 4 that child
    • Why you’ll take spit up to the face… clean up a blow out
• But until you experience it… you can’t understand it
  • Until u experience Jesus – Sacrifice of praise don’t make sense
    • Why in the world are they lifting their hands?
    • Are they smiling talking about a God they can’t see?
    • And is that person crying… who cries in a group of people
  • Until u experience Jesus – Sacrifice of time don’t make sense
    • Because Sunday’s should be about football & grilling
    • I don’t have time for a life group (actually know people)

[TAG] But once you REALLY experience him – You get it

Mk 14:4

Some of those present said indignantly “Why this waste of perfume?”

Now when we read… we know whats about to happen

• Its easy to explain why this woman does what she does…
  • B /C we know Jesus is about to go to the cross
  • But for the disciples… the cross hadn’t happened yet
• To them… its just Passover they’d done probably 20 or more times
  • But its interesting – Even Passover spoke to sacrifice
  • B/C they’re celebrating freedom from slavery 3000 years before
  • And the day Israel was allowed to leave Egypt and gain freedom
• How it happened was an Angel was bringing punishment to Egypt
  • And the first born son of every house was about to die
  • God said if u kill a lamb… show ur sacrifice of blood on doorpost
    • Then I will see your sacrifice and I will pass over ur home
    • I will not visit you with their punishment
• And if you’ve ever had God pass over a punishment you deserved
  • You might understand something about Sacrifice
  • This woman is at a dinner… but knows it isn’t business as usual
  • They are celebrating the Passover… Passover lamb is with them
    • And she somehow knew what was about to happen
    • Because Jesus says she is doing it for his burial
• And she must have been thinking if he can break his body for me
  • The least I could do is break a vase for him

I think this woman is amazing… but what’s her story

I don’t think she woke up with “I’ll use most valuable possession today”

• And Mark doesn’t tell us anything about this lady…
  • But if we knew what she’d been thru… understand her sacrifice
  • Cool part about the Bible… Mark doesn’t tell us – John does
  • So who is this lady – what happened to compel her to do this

Jn. 12:1-3

Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived whom Jesus had raised from the dead. Here a dinner was given in Jesus honor…

• We know this is the same story… just a few more details
  • And Mark tells us its at Simon’s house
  • But Lazarus and his sisters are cooking the food
• Jesus had changed all their lives
  • So they wanted to do something to honor Jesus

…Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume and she poured it on Jesus feed and wiped his feet with her hair.

Ok that makes much more sense… this woman is Mary

• The same Mary: Who saw her brother come back to life
  • The same Mary who told Jesus he was too late
  • The same Mary who sat at Jesus feet
• This makes sense b/c Mary had EXPERIENCED the power of God
  • When I choose to sacrifice 4 God – b/c I’ve experienced him
  • I don’t mind what I give up… b/c of what I’ve already gained
• Have you every heard of the term “House Money”
  • House money is when you make money on something
  • Put your original money back in the bank
  • And just use the money you made to try and make more money
    • And they call it house money… at that point u can’t lose
• Everything in your life (after saved by Jesus) is house money
  • Because it doesn’t matter how expensive that jar is
  • What you’ve gained will forever cover anything you could lose
    • If I lose my job b/c of Jesus… its house money
    • If I lose my friends b/c of Jesus… its house money
    • IF I LOSE MY LIFE BECAUSE OF JESUS…
      • B/C what is 100 years compared to eternity with God

I’m not gonna enjoy the celebration… and resist the sacrifice

• Because when you sacrifice for God – That’s never the end
  • Nothing you will ever surrender to God goes away
  • Doesma farmer have a funeral for the seed he’s planted
  • NO… why??? Because that seed is gonna reap a harvest
• This woman was with Jesus’ closes students…
  • They had all experienced his goodness
  • But she’s the one who shared in sacrifice
• And I think the question today is… have u ever broke a vase for God
  • Have you ever given up something you want… didn’t want to
    • But God called u to (lifestyle/way of making $/relationship)
    • And ur mind gives million reason why it don’t make sense
    • But brake the vase anyways

This story ends – With Judas betraying Jesus for 30 pieces of silver

• John says it was actually Judas who said what Mary did was waste
  • Mary wasted a years wages on the Son of God
  • Judas wasted the Son of God for 30 pieces of silver
• Now… b/c stories tied together – I wanna know how they compare
  • Mary’s Jar was worth 1 years wages (90 pieces of silver)
  • Mary’s sacrifice was worth 3x what Judas received
• But if I were to ask you this morning… which sacrifice was worth it
  • We all know the answer to that question
  • So here it is…
    • Do you want to sacrifice God for the world
    • Or do you want to sacrifice the world for God

[PRAY]