Sermon for the Fifth Sunday in Lent

Sunday 28th March 2004

Preached by Rev Brian Parker


Honoured Friend

A dinner in honour of someone is a time to reflect on his or her life and times. Speeches of appreciation acknowledge significant achievements and memorable events and cover many facets of the special guest’s character.

So when they gathered in Bethany for ‘a dinner in honour of Jesus’ they did so in an atmosphere of celebration and gratitude. There is no record of the speeches but we can be sure that many took the opportunity to say ‘Thank You’ to Jesus for all that he had done for them.

The synoptic gospel accounts of this dinner name one of the guests as Simon the Leper – very likely a leper who was healed by Jesus. And of course there was Lazarus, miraculously brought back to life.

Yet this dinner would probably never have happened without people like Martha. John tells us simply: ‘Martha served’. In other words she did all the practical work. We see in her the type who likes to do things, who feels more comfortable behind the scenes – the one who says little but does much. And she does it for all the right reasons – for the honour of Jesus.

And then there’s Mary who grabs the headlines with her seemingly ‘extravagant’ gesture as she pours expensive perfume on the feet of Jesus. Not the traditional few drops but the whole jar!

We are told ‘the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume’.

Mary did it when she had the opportunity. It was an act that both expressed her love for Jesus and her faith in Him as the Messiah.

Yes it was very expensive perfume. The jar would have cost a workingman a year’s wages.

But in Mary’s love there is no calculation – love is not concerned to work out how little it can decently give. Love refuses to count the cost.

That’s the essence of what Mary was about.

It was a spontaneous act of kindness that lifted Jesus’ heart.

It speaks to us of the importance of making that loving gesture, saying that kind, reconciling word when we have the chance. It may be the last chance we will ever have on this earth.

Jesus described Mary’s gesture as ‘a beautiful thing’ – or as one Scottish Minister put it – ‘a bonnie thing’. We could say it symbolised the fragrance of the goodwill and kindness shown to Jesus that day in Bethany.

However Judas marred this gracious atmosphere. What a pity he was invited!

Yet Judas compels us to see the reality of the hostility and deceit and cynicism that Jesus confronted throughout his ministry.

The whole world is not singing the praises of Jesus.

Judas was there and that fact alone says something about Jesus – Jesus treated Judas with trust.

He gave Judas a responsible role expecting the best from him. He was willing him on to do better, to change for the better. But Judas in his response to Jesus was dishonest and dishonourable. Judas did not honour Jesus.

At that point a sense of inevitable sadness and suffering grips the friends of Jesus. It’s not hopeless resignation but rather an acceptance that this particular time is coming to an end. The shadow of the Cross has touched their hearts as Judas leaves to betray the Lord.

Jesus is now virtually ‘on the run’.

The plotting by the chief priests and Pharisees is intense. They want to arrest Jesus discreetly. But they need an ‘insider’ to help them. Judas arrives and gives them their chance.

So how do we respond to Jesus?

Do we honour him with a genuine gratitude? Do we honour him with a practical commitment in the service of others? Do we honour him with an extravagance of heart and mind that doesn’t count the cost?

As we approach the end of the 40 days of Lent we are challenged to examine ourselves and to honour the life and work of Jesus Christ.

For Martha nothing was too much trouble. For Mary now was the time to show love and kindness – beautiful things.

And in baptism the seed of such beauty comes alive in us. It is nurtured in Holy Communion with Christ, in prayer, in the love of family and in the fellowship of the Church. Indeed we are being baptised by the Holy Spirit every day of our lives.

This beauty the psalmist described as ‘the beauty of the Lord’ – the beauty of Lord within us.

Paul recognised it too when he encouraged the early church. ‘Finally brethren’, says Paul, ‘ whatsoever is true, whatsoever is honourable, whatsoever is just, whatsoever is pure, whatsoever is lovely, whatsoever is gracious – if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.’

These ‘beautiful things’ in our manner and way of life honour Jesus. The people of Bethany saw such things in the character and ministry of Jesus, so much so they honoured him with gratitude and love.