“HEART SERVICE"
MATTHEW 26:1-13
INTRO: Jesus said that the greatest commandment in the Law is this, " Thou
shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and
with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment." (Matthew
22:37-38). God desires His people to love Him with all their heart!
God wants "heart Service" not "head Service"! Someone has said,
"Service without devotion is rootless; devotion without service is
fruitless." (Albert M. Wells, Jr. Inspiring Quotations-Contemporary &
Classical. p. 33). Our love must express itself in service to God! And
that kind of service truly comes from the heart!
Jesus said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments." (John 14:15).
Love MUST BE the motivating factor in service! In one of Charles
Schultz's Peanuts cartoons: Linus announces to his cranky sister
Lucy, that he is going to be a doctor. "You a doctor?" She asks. "How
can you be a doctor?" "You don't love mankind?" Linus replies, "I do
love mankind. its people I can't stand." (David C. Enger. Our Daily
Bread. “Love is…”. Volume 37. Number 12. March 1993). Many of
God's people love that same way! When Paul wrote his hymn of love in
1 Corinthians 13, he was not speaking of abstract love, but concrete
love! In other words, love in action! Someone has noted, "Love is
service made visible .” (Albert M. Wells, Jr. Inspiring Quotations-
Contemporary & Classical. p. 185). That’s what ''heart service” is all
about!
In Matthew 26:1-13, we have an account which shows us what "heart
service" really is! It is two days before the Passover, just prior to
Christ's betrayal, arrest, and crucifixion. He and His disciples have
made their way to Bethany. All the "religious crowd"-the chief priests,
scribes, and elders of the people, have assembled to plan how to take
Jesus because of His popularity with the people. They decided not to
do it on the Feast day lest the people revolt. That very night, Jesus
has been invited to the home of Simon the Leper. As they are eating, a
woman, Mary of Bethany, according to John's gospel, comes and takes
an alabaster box of ointment, breaks its seal, and begins to anoint
Jesus' head. It is this act of devotion which we want to look at tonight.
HEART SERVICE:
(1) ALWAYS GIVES GOD ITS BEST
MATTHEW 26:6-7—“Now when Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of
Simon the leper, There came unto him a woman having an alabaster
box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at meat.”
A. THE PRICE OF THE GIFT. Alabaster, in N.T. times, was a popular
material making perfume vases and boxes for precious ointments. (Merrill
C. Tenney. Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dictionary. p. 28). According to John
12:3, "Mary took a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and
anointed Jesus..." This ointment came from the spikenard plant. It was
rose-red, and very fragrant, it was and still is transported in an alabaster
box to preserve its fragrance. Because it had to be imported from northern
India, it was extremely costly. (Merrill C. Tenney. Zondervan Pictorial Bible
Dictionary. p. 668). Such a use of anything so expensive could well have
represented the savings of her lifetime.
B. THE PURPOSE OF THE GIFT. There is nothing indicate that this family
was wealthy. So Mary may have greatly sacrificed in order to provide the
ointment of Spikenard with which she anointed our LORD. (Oliver B.
Greene. The Gospel According to John. p. 225). This shows that Mary's act
was one of devotion from her heart! All of our service should be of the
same manner, our best from the heart! (Proverbs 3:9). God wants our
best!
ILLUS: The legend is told of a desert wanderer who found a crystal spring
of unsurpassed freshness. The water was so pure he decided to
bring some to his king. Barely satisfying his own thirst, he filled a
leather bottle with the clear liquid and carried it many days
beneath the desert sun before he reached the palace. When he
finally laid his offering at the feet of his sovereign, the water had
become stale and rank due to the old container in which it had
been stored. But the king would not let his faithful subject even
imagine that it was unfit for use. He tasted it with expressions of
gratitude and delight, and sent away the loyal heart filled with
gladness. After he had gone, others sampled it and expressed
their surprise that the king had even pretended to enjoy it. "Ah!"
said he, "it was not the water he tasted, but the love that prompted
the offering." Many times our service is marked by multiplied
imperfections, but the Master looks at our motives and says "It is
good." (Bible Illustrator For Windows. Version 3.0f. Copyright 1990-
1998, by Parson’s Technology, Inc. All Rights Reserved).
(2) ALL GIVEN TO GOD SHOULD BE GIVEN OUT OF LOVE
JOHN 12:3—“Then took Mary a pound of ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair: and the house was filled with the odor of the ointment.”
A. LOVE’S ESTIMATION. Mary’s action proved that she thought that nothing
was too good for her LORD. He had been such a tremendous blessing to
her and her family. Her personal feelings for Jesus compelled her to do
anything and everything for Him, no matter how humble the task might be,
in order to show her devotion and bring comfort to him. (Oliver B.
Greene. The Gospel According to John. p. 224). God has been so good to
each of us that our devotion should be of the same caliber! The psalmist
wrote in Psalm 116:12-14, 17-18—“What shall I render unto the LORD for
all his benefits toward me? I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the
name of the LORD. I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the presence of
all his people… I will offer to thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call
upon the name of the LORD. I will pay my vows unto the LORD now in the
presence of all his people.”
B. LOVE’S EXAMINATION. Serving the Lord out of love is not serving the
Lord out of a sense of duty, obligation, or because it is the thing we are
expected to do. As we think about serving the Lord out of love
there are two things we mean. Love implies:
Ø Humility (v3a). When Mary undid her hair (something Jewish women did not do in public), she humbled herself and laid her glory at His feet. (Warren W. Wiersbe. Be Alive: John 1-12. p. 145). James 4:10 tells us—“Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.”
Ø Heart-felt Service (v3b). “The beauty of this woman's act consisted in this, that it was all for Christ. All who were in the house could perceive and enjoy the perfume of the precious ointment; but the anointing was for Jesus only .” (Charles Spurgeon. Matthew: The King Has Come. p. 375). We are told in Colossians 3:23—“And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men.” Our word “heartily" is used here is translated from a Greek word that means "from the soul.” Half-hearted work is a poor testimony. The half-hearted unfaithful worker will be judged when Christ returns, so it behooves all of us to do our best for Jesus’ sake. (Warren W. Wiersbe. Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on The New Testament. p. 584).
HEART SERVICE: ALWAYS GIVES IT BEST and ALL GIVEN TO GOD SHOULD BE GIVEN OUT OF LOVE and let us see…
(3) ALL GIVEN TO GOD WILL FACE OPPOSITION
MATTHEW 26:7-9—“There came unto him a woman having an alabaster
box of very precious ointment, and poured it on his head, as he sat at
meat. But when his disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To
what purpose is this waste? For this ointment might have been sold
for much, and given to the poor.”
JOHN 12:4-6—“Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's
son, which should betray him, Why was not this ointment sold for
three hundred pence, and given to the poor? This he said, not that he
cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and
bare what was put therein.”
A. THE OBJECTION. You can mark it down, whenever we give ourselves in
service to God, holding nothing back, someone isn't going to like it! When
David came down to fight against Goliath he faced opposition from his own
family: “And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke unto the men;
and Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said, Why camest thou
down hither? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the
wilderness? I know thy pride, and the naughtiness of thine heart; for thou art
come down that thou mightest see the battle. And David said, What have I
now done? Is there not a cause?” (1 Samuel 17:28-29). “When you do the
best you can, from the purest motives, and your LORD accepts your
service, do not expect that your brethren will approve all your actions. If
you do, you will be greatly disappointed. There was never a more beautiful
proof of love for Christ than this anointing at Bethany; yet the disciples
found fault with it." (Warren W. Wiersbe. Be Alive: John 1-12. p. 375). (2
Timothy 3:12).
B. THE OBSTINATE. Judas asks in v5, "Why was not this ointment sold for
three hundred pence…” (about $60 in our money) (George Allen Turner &
Julius R. Mantley. The Evangelical Commentary: The Gospel According to
John. p. 245), which was almost a year's wages back then, showing its
costly essence. But Judas wasn't concerned for the poor, but he wanted to
steal from the bag (v6) . We know that he would later bargain with the chief
priests and Sanhedrin to sell the Son of God for thirty pieces of silver-about
one-third the value of the ointment Mary had poured on the LORD Jesus
Christ (Oliver B. Greene. The Gospel According To John. p. 227).
The same situation still exists today. If a person gives his best to the
LORD, people say, "He or she is doing it to buy a place in heaven or build
up their own name!”
HEART SERVICE: ALWAYS GIVES GOD ITS BEST, ALL GIVEN TO GOD SHOULD BE GIVEN OUT OF LOVE, ALL GIVEN TO GOD WILL FACE OPPOSITION and finally…
(4) ALL MUST BE DONE FOR THE GLORY OF GOD
MATTHEW 26:10-13—“ When Jesus understood it, he said unto them,
Why trouble ye the woman? for she hath wrought a good work upon
me. For ye have the poor always with you; but me ye have not
always. For in that she hath poured this ointment on my body, she
did it for my burial. Verily I say unto you, Wheresoever this gospel
shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this
woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her.”
A. THE GLORY. What was the purpose of Mary's anointing of Jesus? Love
for Him, and also that He might receive the glory! When we serve Him, as
Mary did, we bring honor and glory to His name! What is done for the Lord
is always a good work! David said in Psalm 29:2—“Give unto the LORD the
glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.”
B. THE GREED. Our LORD saw Judas' true motives, v10 says, "when Jesus
understood it," He knows all about us (Jeremiah 17:9-10)! He also knew
why Mary had anointed Him! V12 says, "She did it for my burial." Mary
may have not realized all the implications of her anointing of Jesus. She
did it to honor Him, nevertheless she had done it for His burial. What we
learn from Mary's action is this: If we are led by the Spirit, whatever we do
is for our good, and God's glory! (Oliver B. Greene. The Gospel According To
John. p. 232). As 1 Corinthians 10:31b tells us—“Whatever ye do, do all
to the glory of God!"
CLOSING: This woman's outburst of affection this simple-hearted act of love
to Christ himself, is one of those things which are to live as long as
the Gospel lives. The aroma of this loving deed is to abide as long
as the world itself abides. (Charles Spurgeon. Matthew: The king
HasCome. p. 376).
Friend, How is your service being offered to Him? Out of a sense of
duty or out of love? "Service can never become slavery to him that
loves!" Do WE love Him tonight, If so let us express our love by
whole-hearted service to Him!