We stand at the threshold of December, where flashy decorations hang on every street and carols ring out. We hope to spend this period leading up to Christmas as a 'holy season of deep meditation,' focusing on the coming of Jesus and awaiting the return of Jesus more deeply than anyone else. In this time of waiting, we must ask ourselves:
“Am I demonstrating devotion by offering perfume to Jesus, or am I holding a calculator, hesitating over rationality and justification?”
In John chapter 12, two completely different scenes of welcoming Jesus Christ, the King who came to this earth, appear. One was in the noisy plaza of Jerusalem, and the other was in a quiet house in Bethany. The crowds in Jerusalem waved palm branches and shouted, "Hosanna!" They expected a 'a Problem Solving King' who would fulfill their desires. The palm branches in their hands were symbols of victory and conquest, but quietly calculating inside, 'How much will this benefit me?' However, Jesus came riding on a humble young donkey instead of a white horse. Seeing Jesus walk the path of the cross, contrary to their expectations, their cheers quickly turned into the shout, ‘Crucify Him!’" within just a few days. Faith trapped by calculation and profit betrays Jesus the moment expectations fail.
On the other hand, Mary of Bethany approached Jesus with sincere love. She did not hesitate over the huge sum of 300 denarii, equivalent to a laborer's annual wage. Culturally, for a woman to let down her hair in public was considered an act of discarding dignity. Furthermore, washing feet was the task reserved for the lowliest servant in the house. Mary disregarded all this, pouring her most precious alabaster jar and wiping Jesus’ feet with her hair. She laid down her dignity, honor, and the value of money, expressing absolute love and devotion.
Thus, Mary's dedication filled the entire house with the fragrance of life. Yet, Judas Iscariot outwardly proposed a 'rational calculation' for the poor, but his inner motive reeked of the 'stench of a thief' filled with greed. One person offered the most precious thing out of pure love, while the other, despite being a disciple of Jesus, attempted to steal even Mary's precious devotion due to calculating greed. To which of these two attitudes does our faith lean?
Beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, the sound of the crowd's "Hosanna" vanished into emptiness, but the fragrance of the perfume Mary broke still strongly emanates as the scent of the church, even 2,000 years later.
This Christmas, what will you hold as you stand before Jesus? Is it a calculator, measuring everything you have and questioning, 'Is this enough?' Or is it the pure nard perfume you are willing to pour out wholeheartedly for the Lord?
Put down the calculator. Put down vain expectations. Offering our most precious hearts and lives before the Humble King who came to lay down His life for us! And this—this—is the most beautiful posture. We believe that this is the most beautiful posture of a Christian welcoming the King who will come again.
May we all live lives filled with the fragrance of devotion. God bless you.
Dr. Jaeyun Lee
