0802. At His Feet in Anticipation

At His Feet in Anticipation

"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 odour of the ointment" (Joh_12:3).

A day mingled with sunshine and with shadows had come to a home in Bethany. It was the home of Martha and of Mary and of Lazarus. The scene follows the resurrection of Lazarus, so it must have been a scene of joy. The scene, however, precedes the week of the Lord's passion and so to Him at least and to one besides, it was a scene of shadow.

The twelve were there. They sat, therefore, at supper and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the table with Him. "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 odour of the ointment."

This act of Mary's as she bent low and placed her precious ointment upon His feet and wiped them with her hair means two things to us.

1. It was an appreciation of what the Lord had done. Had not her brother been dead and was he not brought back to life; had not her heart been broken with grief and was she not glad?

To be sure the ointment was very costly, but how could she better show her appreciation of what the Lord had done. Did she want to bring to the Lord the sick or the halt or the lame or the blind? That is what Israel offered. Did she want to offer unto God that which had cost her nothing? No, she would bring her very best. The ointment, which she had bought against the day of her own burial, as she broke it over her Master's feet, in its fragrance seemed to bear record to an undying and appreciative love.

Oh! children of God! what have we done for Him Who did so much for us? We have forgotten Him for days without number.

2. It was in anticipation of what the Lord was about to do. No sooner was the precious ointment spilled than Judas Iscariot said, "Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor?" How these words must have troubled the tender heart of sympathetic Mary, but Jesus said, "Let her alone; against the day of My burying hath she kept this."

From the words of Christ we take it that He discerns in Mary's unusual deed her anticipation of His coming death. Thus the same nard which gladly told of the resurrection of her brother sadly told of the decease of her Lord. How comforting to Christ must this have been? He went to the Cross alone and of the people there was none with Him. It seemed almost that no one was sympathetic with His coming anguish. He told them plainly enough that He must be crucified and killed and that the third day He would rise again, but their eyes were blinded and they could not understand. But Mary, who anointed His feet with precious nard, foresaw and foretold His death and in it all the Lord was comforted.

"At the feet of Jesus,

Pouring perfume rare,

Mary did her Saviour,

For the grave prepare:

And, from love the 'good work' done,

She her Lord's approval won.

"At the feet of Jesus is the place for me,

There in sweetest service would I ever be."

Autor: R.E. NEIGHBOUR