Truly I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be spoken of in memory of her.”
By typing these words I am, in part, fulfilling the promise of Jesus in this verse. Such was the significance of her act, that Jesus spoke of it and the gospel writers wrote of it in remarkable terms.
So the question is, what did she do?
The woman in question was likely a woman of questionable reputation, a sinner in the words of the gospel of Luke. She came to Jesus and began to bathe him in expensive anointing oil. Predictably, this created some sort of reaction from the disciples who were feeling uncomfortable at what was going on.
You can hear the disciples thinking ticking over:
- Why was Jesus letting this woman (and her reputation) so close to Him?
- Why is anointing him with so much oil?
- Where did she get the money to by the perfume in the first place?
- Hang on, we could use the money from that for something more worthy, and less controversial, than this!
But Jesus stopped them in their tracks. He tells them to stop bothering her because what she does is “good” (Matthew 26:10). Jesus understood what the disciples did not. This was an act of extravagant worship, a demonstration of love that moved the heart of God.
What does this tell us? It tells us something incredibly powerful. It tells us that Jesus is looking for extravagant worshippers, people who will count the cost and pour out their love for God without regard to what people think.
1) Extravagant Worship Costs. This woman’s worship was sacrificial in nature. Her worship cost her the price of an exceedingly expensive jar of anointing perfume. She counted the cost and paid it.
2) Extravagant Worship can be Misunderstood. This woman had to overcome the fear of what people thought of her. She was judged wrongly by the disciples who mistook her motives, when Jesus did not. Extravagant worship will attract judgement from people who don’t understand.
3) Extravagant Worship is for All. This woman was not a religious person. She had a damaged reputation. She was not perhaps from the right side of the tracks, with the right education and background. But she knew Jesus. And that is the qualification she needed to worship extravagantly.
4) Extravagant Worship has the Highest Value in the Kingdom of God. Giving to the poor is good (v11). But the best is giving extravagantly to Jesus in our worship, love and adoration of who He is. For that there is no comparison.
It is because she embodied this great kingdom value of extravagant worship that her story is told today. May be take her story on board with us and follow her example in our worship of the King today.
PRAYER: Father, thank you for giving me this reminder today that you truly deserve the highest praise and most extravagant worship. Thank you for the opportunity to love you deeply today Father, I love you! Amen.