Worship is a Way of Life
Devotions for Growing Christians
Worship is a Way of Life
Mark 14:6 - "She has done a beautifiul thing for Me."
Read Mark 14:3-9.
Read also the parallel accounts of Matthew 26:6-13 and John 12:1-8.
Some Christians have the idea that worship is only possible in the sanctuary of a church, through worship music, or flowery words, and when beautiful warm feelings flood the soul. Well, maybe your concepts of worship are not quite that unbiblical, but unfortunately many Christians have warped ideas of what worship is all about.
What is worship, anyway? When we look at all the Scriptures touching on worship, we can sum it up simply in the following way: ”Worship is the acknowledgement of Who God is, and what God does, directed to God Himself.” This acknowledgement must be from the heart, because worship of God without love is inconceivable. True worship is not just outward religious motions.
The acknowledgement may be by lip or by life. That is, worship may be expressed by verbal praises and thanks to God for Who He is and what He does, or it may be expressed in non-verbal deeds or lifestyle. For example, a Christian student who, in spite of ridicule and solicitation, refuses to lower his or her moral standards, is worshiping the Lord. By lifestyle, the student is acknowledging to God His standards of holiness. A Christian who, without anger or bitterness, accepts as from God what others label as tragedy is also worshiping the Lord. He or she is acknowledging to God His sovereignty and His claims over life and death.
Non-verbal worship is far more acceptable in God's sight than simply "mouthing" prayers and praises on Sunday morning. This is especially true if our Sunday “worship” is accompanied by compromised lives or complaining lips (Isaiah 1:10-17). The ideal, of course, is to have worship characterize all our words and actions - in the crucible of life, as well as in a church setting. Worship is not just one of several categories in the "Christian life.” The worship of the Lord is the sum total of living as a Christian.
Various aspects of worship are included in a woman anointing the Lord Jesus in Mark 14:3-9. Because of the parallel account in John 12:1-8, we believe that the woman was Mary of Bethany - the woman who sat and learned the Word of God "at the feet of our Lord" (Luke 10:39). Theres a lot for us to learn from Mary's act of worship.
Worship involves sacrifice
This aspect of worship is emphasized by what it cost Mary to anoint the Lord. Pure nard was a very expensive perfume, imported all the way from India. Three hundred denarii was about a year's wages for the average working man in those days (v5). A lot of hard work and sacrifice went into Mary's worship. Does my worship of God cost me something? Or is my worship just "cheap perfume," involving no sacrifice?
Mary's action of pouring perfume on the Lord’s head wasn’t improper or strange. In that dry and dusty climate, it was the common practice for guests to have their feet washed and their heads anointed with oil. What was unusual was that Mary didn’t use the common anointing oil - she used very costly perfume.
Mary's action was extraordinary. Think of what she could have done with 300 denarii! Yet in one act she sacrificed it all, out of love for her Lord. Think of what we could enjoy with a year's salary! Are we willing to sacrifice that much at one time for our Lord? Whether by lip or by life, worship involves sacrifice (Hebrews 13:15-16; Romans 12:1). How much does our worship of God cost us?
Worship does not hold back; it goes all out
This is one step further than sacrifice. It is possible to sacrifice some, but still only "go half way.” This is not the way of true worship. Look again at Mary's action. The Lord was a dinner guest at the home of Simon the leper. (Perhaps Simon had been healed by the Lord.) In that culture the people would lie on short backless couches around a low dinner table. They ate with one hand while propping themselves up on the other elbow. This is what "reclining at table" means in (v3). It seems that Mary, her brother Lazarus and her sister Martha were also guests.
In the course of the meal, Mary came up to the Lord's couch, broke open the seal on the alabaster flask, and poured out the entire contents of expensive perfume on the Lord. (Alabaster is a white translucent fine-textured stone.) John 12:3 tells us that it was an entire pound. That's a lot of perfume! Incidentally, spikenard ointment was not an oily substance that would have to be cleaned up. Pure nard was a very light and volatile liquid perfume. It would quickly evaporate and leave no mess. No wonder "the house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment" (John 12:3).
The point here, however, is that Mary did not hold back in her act of worship. She didn’t anoint the Lord with only a few drops of her precious possession. She didn’t use only half the perfume and keep the rest. She gave the whole thing! This is worship at its highest.
The Lord said, "She has done what she could" (v8) The full force of this statement is lost in English translation. It sounds as if Jesus is saying, "Well, Mary couldn't do much, but she did the little bit she could." But the Lord was actually meant, “Mary did all that she could!” She went to the top limit of her ability!
She went all out! What about us? About our worship, does the Lord have to say that we have done a "few drops" of what we could, or half of what we could? Or can He say that we have done all that we possibly could do to honor Him? Am I holding anything back from God for just ME? Worship does not hold back. It goes all out.
Worship is not a waste of time and effort
Some of the dinner guests were angry with Mary's act of worship (John 12:4 and Matthew 26:8 say it was Judas and some other disciples.) They said it was wasteful, and that the money would have been better spent in relief efforts for the poor (vs4-5). Now that remark seems reasonable enough, doesn’t it? After all, a year's salary can go a long way in meeting the needs of the poor. Why waste the money on a flask of expensive perfume, when ordinary anointing oil would have been fine? They may have thought Mary was caught up in the emotion of the moment, and should have been more restrained! But that reasoning was squelched by our Lord. He defended Mary's action, and He commended it as well (v6). It was not a waste, but a “beautiful thing”!
Many people today find fault with Christians who (they say) waste their time praying and praising when the desperate needs of the world surround us. How can we justify "wasting time” celebrating the Lord's Supper, when children are starving in the city? How does the Scripture answer this question? Notice that the Lord Jesus didn’t tell the complainers to forget about the needs of the poor. Instead He encouraged them to make a constant effort to meet those constant needs (v7).
In fact, meeting the needs of the poor in the name of Christ is worship! It is acknowledging to God His care and concern for His creatures. But - only caring for the poor without an expressed love for Christ is not worship. Some Christians tend to become unbalanced - in either direction - at this point. Proper integration is to constantly give thanks to the Lord for everything, and to let that constant praise ripple out in our actions that benefit of others.
The depth of Mary's worship is further brought out in verse 8. What did the Lord mean when He said, "She has anointed My body beforehand for the burial"? Mary seems to have understood our Lord's teaching about His death and resurrection far more than the other believers - even more than the disciples (Mark 8:31-33 & 9:31-32). She knew that the Lord was about to give up His life.
The normal procedure after death was to anoint a body with spices (John 19:40). Mary realized that the Lord would soon be taken from them, so she anointed His body for burial while she had the chance. (Notice that John 12:3 makes clear that the anointing of the body was not just confined to the head.)
So Mary's act was more than just the common custom of anointing the head of a dinner guest. There was a depth of worship here that went far beyond what appeared on the surface. The other guests saw only an apparent waste of expensive perfume. They read Mary's act as a spur-of-the-moment emotional extravaganza. But the Lord Jesus knew that it was a well-thought-out and reasonable act of worship.
It is this depth of worship that was commended by our Lord, and pronounced unforgettable (v9). Mary's deed was not a waste of time and effort - it had eternal value! The anointing of Jesus by Mary of Bethany is remembered wherever the gospel message has spread throughout the whole world! And it will be remembered forever!
This is true of your worship, too. The worship you direct to God, in whatever job or ministry or activity He gives you, will never be forgotten! Let our lips and lives acknowledge God in everything - in our workplace, our studies, our family and our social life.. Let worship be our way of life!
- Dave Reid