The poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always

 And the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went from the country up to Jerusalem before the Passover, to purify themselves.  Then they sought Jesus, and spoke among themselves as they stood in the temple, "What do you think -- that He will not come to the feast?"  Now both the chief priests and the Pharisees had given a command, that if anyone knew where He was, he should report it, that they might seize Him.

Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom he had raised from the dead.  There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him.  Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair.  And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.  But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, who would betray Him, said, "Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?"  This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it.  But Jesus said, "Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial.  For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always."

- John 11:55-12:8

On Saturday, we read that many of those who had come to Mary from Jerusalem, and had seen the things Jesus did, believed in Him.  [For the story of the raising of Lazarus, see the readings of Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.]  But some of them went away to the Pharisees and told them the things Jesus did.  Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, "What shall we do?  For this Man works many signs.  If we let Him alone like this, everyone will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation."  And one of them, Caiaphas, being high priest that year, said to them, "You know nothing at all, nor do you consider that it is expedient for us that one man should die for the people, and not that the whole nation should perish."  Now this he did not say on his own authority; but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus would die for the nation, and not for that nation only, but also that He would gather together in one the children of God who were scattered abroad.  Then, from that day on, they plotted to put Him to death.  Therefore Jesus no longer walked openly among the Jews, but went from there into the country near the wilderness, to a city called Ephraim, and there remained with His disciples.

 And the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went from the country up to Jerusalem before the Passover, to purify themselves.  Then they sought Jesus, and spoke among themselves as they stood in the temple, "What do you think -- that He will not come to the feast?"  Now both the chief priests and the Pharisees had given a command, that if anyone knew where He was, he should report it, that they might seize Him.  My study bible says that because Jesus is the Lamb of God, the connection between the Passover, when  lambs were slaughtered to save the Jews from death (Exodus 12:1-13), and the death of Jesus, which saved mankind from sin and death, is continually emphasized.  And yet again, John's Gospel gives us the controversy surrounding Jesus, the differing opinions among the people, and the fear provoked by religious authorities.

Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom he had raised from the dead.  This is the third Passover spoken of in John's Gospel.  (For the earlier Passover years, see 2:13, 6:4.)   This Passover is the setting for the last week of the earthly ministry of Christ, and it is narrated in careful detail.  My study bible says that Jesus had already been glorified through His signs and words.  Now it is time for Him to be glorified through His death and Resurrection.

There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him.  Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair.  And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.  But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, who would betray Him, said, "Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?"  This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it.  But Jesus said, "Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial.  For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always."   My study bible here speaks of Judas.  It points out that the other disciples said the same thing he did, but with a very different motive (see Matthew 26:6-13).  John tells us that Judas spoke from greed.  My study bible says the fact that Jesus put a thief in charge of the money shows that by every means He attempted to save Judas:  He fulfilled Judas' lust for money; He allowed Judas to exercise apostolic authority (6:11; see also Mark 6:7); He washed Judas' feet with the other disciples (13:5); and He allowed him to partake at the table of the Mystical Supper (13:26).  Yet Judas could not overcome his greed.

It's striking the contrast of attitudes and details here in today's reading.  There is first of all the astonishing fact that Lazarus, a man brought back from the dead, is sitting here at this table with Jesus. One might possibly imagine people tempted at least to stare at him, or to look for signs of this experience in his face and manner.  And then there is the second fact of Mary's anointing of Christ.  Not only is the act itself something unusual and astonishing, but it is greatly remarked upon.  What is striking is John's detail, that the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.  One can't help but think about the vivid and strong picture we're given here, of not one but two extraordinary things happening, and a whole house filled with the scent of this extremely expensive fragrance.   Not only would the scent have been powerfully present and remarkable to the apostles (most of whom did not come from backgrounds where they would have been frequently exposed to anything like this costly beautiful ointment), but the oil was fragrant enough so that it fills the entire house.   We know the power of scent as something that can be potent and overwhelming, stunning to the senses.  But despite all this that is going on, there is one thing in Judas' mind:  and that is the cost of this fragrant oil.  He clearly sees it as a "waste."  John tells us that Judas is a thief, and he cares for the money that could have come into the funds of the apostles, from which he used to steal.  But there is just so much more here that is missing from Judas' perspective.  There is the tremendous love expressed by this woman for Christ.  This story appears in all four Gospels, but it's not clear if we are talking about the same woman in each.  Certainly it's not clear that each incident involves Mary of Bethany.  In Luke's Gospel (Luke 7:36-50) this woman is called a great sinner by the Pharisee who hosts the dinner.  But in the accounts of Mark and Matthew, Jesus says that she is anointing Him for burial, and that "wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her" (see Mark 14:8-9, Matthew 26:12).   So that we understand a true impulse to help the poor is important and good, Jesus says, "For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always."  But again, this statement goes to emphasize the importance of her act of love and care.   And love and care must be the root of what we are motivated to do.  In Matthew 9:13, Jesus quotes Hosea 6:6:  "Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance."  If we look closely, it seems to me that Judas is self-righteously speaking of (someone else's) sacrifice, while the woman is responding to her own deep sense of love and mercy.  And it's in this contrast between mercy and sacrifice that we understand Jesus and what He's trying to say, and what the Gospel story is teaching us.  One is a kind of duty, even detached from oneself, something done to fulfill a rule, possibly even calculated through an intellectual understanding of what seems to be required from oneself.  But the other is an act of love, motivated from compassion, a depth of response in the heart.  That is not to imply or invoke a kind of sentimentality.  Rather it is a depth of genuine response in the fullness of ourselves.  This woman senses a true need, and she responds with love.  The world -- and all of the men and women who are His followers -- are about to suffer a tremendous loss.   Mary of Bethany is the one to whom Jesus responded in her suffering at the loss of her brother by weeping Himself.  There's no doubt about the depth of feeling between Jesus and the family of Lazarus and his sisters Mary and Martha.  Mary is also the one who sat at his feet, and earned praise from Jesus for doing so when her sister complained that she was not being helpful (Luke 10:38:-42).  He said on that occasion, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things.  But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her."  Let us consider what it means for the Lord to desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the depth of fullness in us that asks.  When we are capable of truly responding with the one thing necessary, that good part, then perhaps we also will truly understand as she did.