(During Holy Week we'll be reading through some of the events leading up to Jesus crucifixion; according to John's gospel.)
Read John 12:1-11
12 Six days before the Passover, Jesus went to
Bethany, the home of Lazarus, the man he had raised from death. 2They
prepared a dinner for him there, which Martha helped to serve; Lazarus was one
of those who were sitting at the table with Jesus. 3Then Mary took
half a litre of a very expensive perfume made of pure nard, poured it on Jesus’
feet, and wiped them with her hair. The sweet smell of the perfume filled the
whole house. 4One of Jesus’ disciples, Judas Iscariot—the one who
was going to betray him—said, 5“Why wasn’t this perfume sold for
three hundred silver coinsz and the money given to the poor?” 6He
said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief. He
carried the money bag and would help himself from it.
7 But
Jesus said, “Leave her alone! Let her keep what she has for the day of my
burial. 8You
will always have poor people with you, but you will not always have me.”
9 A
large number of people heard that Jesus was in Bethany, so they went there, not
only because of Jesus but also to see Lazarus, whom Jesus had raised from
death. 10So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus too, 11because
on his account many Jews were rejecting them and believing in Jesus.
Think
This passage happens before Jesus and his disciples make
their triumphal entry into Jerusalem. It
is a very tense time; the authorities had already begun to make plans to kill
Jesus – and now they plan to kill Lazarus too.
The raising of Lazarus was a sign that pointed to the fact
that Jesus was in fact who he said he was.
But the response was one of denial and destruction.
Pray
Lord, I’m not always that good at listening. I see myself in the authorities who plot to
destroy what they don’t understand. Open
my mind and my heart to hear what you are saying to me this Easter.
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