Background:
Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead in John 11. We learn there that Mary and Martha are sisters of Lazarus. Now six days before the Passover, a dinner was held in honor of Jesus at the place where Lazarus lived with his sisters. Now the story unfolds beautifully.

Observations:
I asked myself what did Mary do?

Interpretations:
I asked myself what is the significance of mentioning 'Mary took a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume?'

To visualize a 'pint of pure nard', I thought about how much quantity there is in a pint of milk which is about 16 oz or two glasses of 8 oz milk. That's how much jar of perfume Mary took. It was not just any kind of perfume but an expensive perfume and 'It was worth a year's wages' (John 12:5b, NIV)

I asked myself what is the significance of knowing 'Mary poured it on Jesus' feet?'
Jesus walked a lot from place to place either bare footed or with sandals on which meant his feet got really dirty because the roads and sidewalks were probably made out of dirt. The amount of traveling Jesus did with his disciples made Jesus have dirty feet. The feet were not just dirty but they could have been stinky too because of all the manure on the ground including people's sweat, etc where people walked. Now it is into this scenario that Mary enters and sits at the feet of Jesus after everyone including Jesus ate dinner at Lazarus, Martha, and Mary's home. The dinner itself was prepared in Jesus' honor. (John 12:2)

Now, right in front of everyone including her brother Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead (rf John 11) and her sister Martha, whom Jesus told that it is more better to be in His presence than doings things for Him (rf Luke 10), Mary took the initiative to be at His feet again but this time to do something extraordinary by giving up a year's worth of wages by pouring the expensive perfume on Jesus' dirty/stinky feet. Here alone we see a complete surrender of a YEAR'S WORTH OF WAGES for Jesus' sake. A sacrifice was made by a family for their love of Jesus. This sacrifice was not made secretively but publicly. It makes sense for dirty/stinky feet to be washed but it is surprising to do a washing using a YEAR'S WORTH OF WAGES. Yet, this is what Mary did.

It shows her love and her family's love for Jesus in a tangible way. It shows their complete hospitality to Jesus too. Before that, the room must have been stinking with stinky feet but the bad odor evaporated with the POURING. Pouring expensive perfume alone was very touching and special for me to read about but Mary goes a step further which is evident by point 3: 'Mary wiped his feet with her hair' WOW!!!

I asked myself what is the significance of 'Mary wiped his feet with her hair?'
It is important to remember how stinky/dirty feet could have been in those days when you entered a house from the outside. The feet could have even had stains of manure sticking or the odor of it in addition to all the dirt, etc. Now Mary not only uses the EXPENSIVE perfume on Jesus' dirty/stinking feet but uses HER OWN HAIR to wipe Jesus' feet. Their is significance to a woman's hair and many woman cover it during worship. Mary, however let down her hair and used it as a cloth to wipe Jesus' dirty feet. By doing that she was letting Jesus know how much she loves Him and surrendering herself completely at the feet of Jesus. Not only that but Mary is completely surrendering her life over to the Lord regardless of what people around her would have thought. If Mary had done this act privately, it still would have been special but not as special as doing it publicly acknowledging her love and gratitude for Jesus which Mary and her family did.

These three actions of Mary showed her humility and attitude towards the Lord and her desire to do something special for Jesus even though it did not look pleasant on the outside. It makes it that much more special knowing that she was not even related to Jesus but does it to show her love for Jesus.

Reflecting on this story reminds me of the time that I walked right into a quagmire of mushy dirt that completely enveloped my boots and legs while visiting my precious wife Chandraleela in India while she waited on her visa. After that happened, my loving wife Leela, my sweet cousin Sujitha, and my caring aunt & uncle pulled me out of the dirt which was like quick sand. Later, all three of the ladies took it upon themselves to wash my boots and my feet. I did not want them to do that but in their love for me, they did it. I was really touched but nothing compares to what happened to Jesus' dirty/stinking feet by a woman named Mary. If I as a fallible human being can be touched by that act of kindness done to me how much more Jesus would have been touched by that act of surrender by Mary.

Also, there was a time at my church Oakland International Fellowship where I fell and sprained my ankle during a church cleanup. When that happened, it was very painful but Antonia, a sister studying medicine attended to me. She started to open my shoes when I suddenly abruptly said, 'Don't do that Antonia because my socks smell really bad and I have stinky feet' to which she responded, 'Don't worry, it's alright because I have smelled and seen all kinds of things, this is no bother to me'. I still was hesitant but she attended to my needs and bandaged my sprained ankle. I was so touched by her kindness that day. Yet, this compares nothing to what Mary did for Jesus. Yet, this still is touching to my heart even to this day. Now imagine how Jesus would have felt after what Mary did for Jesus' stinky/dirty feet.

For the past three years, Pastor Mike, Pastor Josh, Pastor Bucknell, Pastor Ridge, Pastor Terrence, Elder Calvin and the members of Oakland International Fellowship would wash the feet of the people who came to the Good Friday service. I was really touched by that act to imitate what Jesus as a servant-leader had done for the 12 disciples before his trial and crucifixion. What Mary did for Jesus, Jesus did for the disciples to set an example of how true love and servanthood looks like. It is interesting that Jesus did not ask the disciples to wash his feet but washed their feet. If there were any objections, Jesus told them the reason in John 13.

IMPLICATIONS:
I asked myself what are the important implications for my own life?
I need to be willing to wash other people's feet in an act of humility but more than that I need to remember if I want to serve Jesus and surrender my life over to Him, it will not be an easy road but filled with difficulties. Yet, for the sake of the Lord Jesus and what He did for me at the cross of Calvary, I need to deny myself and pickup my cross to follow Jesus. This means a total surrender of my life, all that I am and all that I want to do, I need to give it to Jesus whether it is in my calling as a husband, daddy, son, son-in-law, brother, brother-in-law, my calling to do ministry, etc all to Jesus and doing things with Jesus

Especially, I need to make a sacrifice for the sake of the Lord Jesus remembering to offer my body as a living sacrifice to the Lord, Holy the kind He can accept. When I think about all He has done for me especially saving me from the path I was going, to the path He wants to take me by sacrificing His life for me and coming back to life on the third day to save, this is not too much to ask. Thank you Jesus!

Wiping dirty/stinky feet with her hair may  not have been appealing to Mary from a fleshly viewpoint but because of her love for Jesus, it became a joyous act done with joy. In the same way, what I feel I should do for Jesus may not necessarily seem appealing to me in the flesh but for Jesus' sake and His Kingdom's sake, if my love for Jesus is strong than I can do it joyously. Thank you Jesus!

Now as we look back, what Mary did for Jesus was based on an act of gratitude and love of Jesus for raising her brother Lazarus from the dead.

We too should have that same gratitude because we have been raised from the dead ourselves but in a much more powerful way. Thank you Jesus!

We have been given eternal life and been ransomed from the deadly virus known as sin. Sin had us in its grasp and made us dead but Jesus Christ intervened by washing us not with perfume for no amount of perfume can wash away the odor of sin. Instead, Jesus POURED OUT HIS PRECIOUS BLOOD FOR US AND WASHED US WITH HIS PRECIOUS CLEANSING BLOOD SHED ON THE CROSS TO RESCUE US. Thank you Jesus!

If nothing else seems to be happening that alone should give us so much joy that the Creator of the Universe came down to earth to rescue you and me by sacrificing His life for us. It was not WORTH JUST ONE YEARS WAGES' but 33 YEARS OF LIFE. Jesus gave that up for you and me to raise us from the deadly consequences of sin when we turn to Him and accept the vaccine for our lives. But the Good News is that the Lord Jesus reigns forever more because He came back to life on the Third Day to save us. Now our gratitude and love for the Lord Jesus for what He has done for us should be infinite. Thank you so much Jesus! Help us Lord!

I ask you now dear friend, why reflect, what happened to Jesus' dirty/stinky feet one day?
Dear friend, Jesus' dirty/stinky feet were met by a woman who loved Jesus so much that she spent ONE YEARS WORTH OF WAGES for a one time cleaning of the dirty/stinky feet with EXPENSIVE PERFUME. The cleaning of the dirty/stinky feet was not done with a cloth or towel but HER OWN HAIR WAS USED TO WIPE JESUS' FEET.

Mary took all the stench of smell and dirt on to her hair and make Jesus' feet clean. Jesus allowed that because it was to foreshadow what Jesus would do for Mary and all of us SEVEN days later.

Friend, Jesus' feet were dirty and stinky and Mary used HER CLEAN HAIR and EXPENSIVE PERFUME to do the CLEANSING.

In the same way, you and I are dirty/stinky to the core but no human being can clean us because our stink and dirt is inside all of us. It is caused by a three letter word called sin, which is sickness of the soul, as Andrea and Jason of Pitt- Asian InterVarsity reminded their students. This sickness of the soul happens because no one does good, not one; all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Even when we think we are doing good, our good is like filthy rags to the Lord. In biblical times, filthy rags was used to describe a women's menstruation cycle. That is how what we think as good is described as.

Now, our sin filled lives make the stench of sin unbearable for God to allow us to enter His presence because God in His Holiness cannot allow sin in His presence. So, we are lost and condemned to death. But, God in His love for humanity knew that was the case and God intervened in humanity as Jesus, God-incarnate to redeem humanity.

Jesus Christ used HIS OWN BODY and HIS OWN BLOOD to do the CLEANSING.

Friend, Jesus loves you so much and wants to clean the stench of sin out of your life and heal your soul. Just as Jesus allowed Mary to POUR THE PERFUME on His dirty/stinky feet and WIPE IT ALL AWAY resulting in the effect of: 'And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume', you and I should accept the POURING OF JESUS' BLOOD on our DIRTY/STINKY SIN-FESTED LIVES so JESUS CAN WIPE AWAY ALL OUR SIN AND MAKE US CLEAN.

When we are CLEAN, it is not because we cleaned ourselves. We cannot clean ourselves because no matter how many indulgences we do, how many good things we are proud of, etc, it does not take away the bad we do.

I love the example that Andrea and Jason shared during an Evangelism Training seminar years ago regarding sin and good works which I am going to dramatize. Imagine you are given an 8 oz of milk to drink but right in front of you someone spits into it. Would you still drink it? More than likely not! You don't rationalize to yourself that 7.99 oz of milk is good and it is just that 0.001 oz or less of spit that is bad. On the contrary, you will avoid it even though there is 7.99 oz of milk that is good. Why do you do that? It is because you know that the milk has become polluted with the spit. That spit is analogous to sin. The good does not wipe away the sin. Yet, we want God to accept us because of the good we think we do.

Imagine you have to wear a white shirt to work  but accidentally your child puts a black mark that is visible on it. Would you still wear that white shirt? More than likely not! You don't rationalize to yourself thinking that 99.9% of the white shirt is good to wear but only 00.1% of it is bad because of the black mark. On the contrary, you will change the shirt even if 99.9% of it is good. Why do you do that? It is because you know that the white shirt has been polluted with the visibility of the black mark. That black mark is analogous to sin. The good does not wipe away the sin. Yet, we want God to accept us because of the good we think we do.

Imagine you are about to drink 7.99 oz of water but right in front of you someone puts a drop of cyanide into it. Would you still drink it? More than likely not! You don't rationalize to yourself that 7.99 oz of water is good and it is just that 0.01 oz of cyanide that is bad. On the contrary, you will avoid it even though there is 7.99 oz of water that is good. Why do you do that? It is because you know that the water has been polluted with the cyanide. That cyanide is analogous to sin. The good does not wipe away the sin.

This is the condition we are in so never deceive yourself. If fallible human beings would avoid a spit, a black mark, and drop of cyanide even though the rest of it all looks good, what makes us think that a perfect God will not avoid us because of our spit in the face of God, our black mark in the face of God, and our drop of cyanide in the face of God by our actions.  All these actions can be likened to sin.

Sin can never ever be erased by doing things we think are good.  There is no such thing as 'If I do one bad thing today, then I will do two good things to erase the bad thing'.

It does not work that way in God's sight. As mentioned before, all our good works are like filthy rags to Him. To describe it more graphically, 'filthy rags' refers to the rag used in a women's menstrual cycle. The Book of Leviticus addresses the menstrual cycle.

The good we think we do or the world thinks we do is not acceptable to God because of the bad we have done even if we did 1000 good things and 1 bad thing.  It is because the visibility of the black mark and the stench of sin in our lives overshadows the good. We are separated from God because of our sin. No matter what we do cannot make us reach God on our own. God knew that so He sent Jesus Christ into the world to bring redemption to humanity. We are part of the redeemed when we turn to Jesus.

At the dinner Jesus came to, the aroma of the dinner was overshadowed by stinky/dirty feet. Only when Mary poured the perfume and wiped Jesus' feet with her hair did fragrance fill the room.

In the same way, our lives can be a fragrance offering to the Lord only when we allow Jesus' blood to wipe away all our sins and cleanse us completely. Otherwise the stench of sin will overshadow everything else.

When we have Christ in our lives, the good we do now is a reflection of Christ working in us and through us by the power of the Holy Spirit. When God looks at us, He sees the righteousness of Christ covering over us.  Jesus wants to be our righteousness and John 12 gets the ball rolling. Thank you Jesus!

Won't you allow Jesus to WIPE YOU CLEAN WITH HIS PRECIOUS CLEANSING BLOOD?

Jesus went to the cross for you and me and made the way by taking the initiative. When Jesus did that and died for humanity, Jesus made a way for us to be ransomed. The ransom has been paid not with a YEARS WORTH OF WAGES but with ALL HIS 3.5 LITRE OF BLOOD.

Now is the time for you and I to accept the antidote so JESUS CAN WIPE AWAY ALL OUR SIN AND GIVE US NEW LIFE.

It is necessary so we can be ETERNALLY CLEAN in JESUS' EYES to get ENTRANCE TO HEAVEN by His BLOOD.

Friend in these days of the COVID-19 virus, how many of us are longing for a vaccine so we can go on with our lives without being in isolation. We desire for that so physical lives can be saved.

How much more is the spiritual life and soul important?

Since there is no guarantee how many people will live or die because of the COVID-19 virus, we cannot take any chances with our life. If you do not know Jesus as your Lord and Personal Savior, you can ask Him right here and now without waiting. Let Him give you new life in Christ so you can be guaranteed a seat in Heaven because Jesus already paid the reservation for you with His precious Blood as you accept His vaccine. Now is the time of Salvation. Don't wait.

It is appointed to man to die once and then the judgment! (Hebrews 9)

Friend, no matter what you have done, where you have been, what has happened to you, you are never out of His love and never out of His reach. I don't want you to think that Jesus cannot accept you. Jesus will accept you as you are! Jesus loves you so much that if you were the only one living, Jesus would have still died for you.

Jesus said, "It is the sick that need the doctor and not the healthy"

You and I have been sick with the stench of sin that will choke us if we allow it to continue. But thanks be to God for the intervention of Jesus Christ to rescue us so we can be freed. Take the rescue offered to you as we reflect on Jesus' sacrifice this Holy Week of 2020.

Come as you are and leave your life in the Savior's Hands. Jesus wants to be your loving Savior. As you come to Jesus for SAVING, He will work in your life that you will love to make Him LORD too. Mary understood Jesus as LORD as she experienced His love as SAVIOR. You can too! Now is the time of Salvation.

For your sake and mine, Jesus' stinky/dirty feet were nailed to the cross while he travelled via Dolarosa to the cross for you and me.

 It can only happen with Jesus Christ. Jesus will take our stinky/dirty sin infested lives and cover us with His precious blood so when others see us, the fragrance of Jesus' transformation in our lives will be smelled :)

May our lives be transformed remembering Jesus is there forever emancipating everyone truly! Amen!

"Forever Emmanuel Emancipates Truly!" (F.E.E.T)/"Why reflect what happened to Jesus' stinky/dirty F.E.E.T one day?"

If you would like to invite Jesus Christ into your heart and make Him a daily part of your life, you can this very moment. You will never be alone. You can claim God's promises for you in the Bible and see them come true, before your eyes, in His wonderful timing. You don't have to wait for a special time to come to the Lord. You can come right now as you pray this prayer, meaning it in your heart and finding your new identity in Christ Jesus.

Make this your prayer. Don’t let the enemy deceive you into thinking you need all the answers before coming to Christ. Let me just assure you though you may not have all the answers right now before coming to Jesus, He will answer them slowly. Yes, He will for I know our Redeemer will! Amen!

Prayer:
Dear Jesus, you allowed Mary to wash your dirty/stinking feet. Anything you do has a reason and you foreshadowed what you would do for us one day on the cross. You washed away all our sins with your precious cleansing blood on the cross. Your dirty/stinking feet were nailed to the cross for me as you walked the painful road via Dolarosa. Thank you so much Jesus. No matter what we have done or where we have been, we can know that you love us and paid the ransom to deliver us from the stench of sin. Thank you Jesus. I accept the antidote you offer and want you to wash me clean with your precious cleansing Blood so I can have new life. My sin I give it all to you so you can cover me with your righteousness. Help me Jesus. I don't want to live like I have been living. I don't want my life to smell because of the stinky/dirty sins of my life. I know you offer cleansing and washing so I come to you now and receive it. Thank you for forgiving me of all my sin when you paid the price on the cross for me which I accept now. Please give me new life Jesus. Come into my heart and make my heart your home. Live in me Jesus and I will live for you and help me to serve you the rest of the days of my life so I can say, "Lord Jesus, ANYTHING, ANYTIME, ANYWHERE, I am ready" as you strengthen me and walk with me and talk to me. I love you Jesus. I accept you as my Lord and Personal Savior. Please be my Lord and Personal Savior. Thank you for helping me learn about what Mary did for you and the implications for our own lives. Thank you for cleansing me and being my Lord and Personal Savior. Thank you for coming back to life on the third day to save me forever. Thank you that you have heard my prayer and answered me giving me new life. In Your Name I Pray Jesus! Amen!

You are my all in all. You are my Prince of Peace, Rock, Savior, and Friend. You are my Holy Father guiding me through to live a life of righteousness, holy righteousness. Oh God, I need you more than ever. I need to feel your hands around me holding me tight. I need your love to surround me so that you can glow in my life. Help me please Jesus. I desire in your presence. Thank you for guiding me to live a life of righteousness. Oh God you love me more than ever. You hear my voice when I cry out to you. When I seek your face, you fill me up. You are my all in all. Thank you Jesus so much for your help no matter what I face, your grace is available and you take my case. Thank you for hearing us and answering us. In Your Name I Pray Jesus! AMEN! (Most of the prayer is from a vineyard song called “All in All”

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