A Word about being Worth the Cost

 

Today I want to share a word about being worth the cost, as I comment on John 12:1-8. This passage reads: 

Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus' feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.  But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, "Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?"  (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) Jesus said, "Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me."

A Confession:

Before we look at the passage for today, I have to make a confession. I know that. From time-to-time, I can be pedantic. Ok, so maybe more often than time-to-time, but I believe that words have meaning. So when I hear a ministry leader say that a particular ministry or ministry platform “is losing too much money,” it sets my teeth on edge.

To my way to thinking, ministries cannot lose money, because they are not intended to make money. A ministry might not be covering its costs, or a ministry may become too expensive for an organization to support, or a ministry might not be accomplishing what it is intended to accomplish, but a ministry cannot, and never will, lose money!

There, I said it! Now that my rant is over, let me expand more rationally on my thoughts on this matter.

Different Views of the Church and Ministry:

Over the centuries, the church of the Lord Jesus Christ has been envisioned as many different things. We have organized the church as a kingdom or an empire. We have been envisioned as an army, a school, a business, or even a multi-national corporation. It is none of those things. 

The church is the Body of Christ and the Bride of Christ. It is not intended to make money, conquer nations, or enhance human reputations. The church is intended to venerate God, love Jesus, obey His commandments, and be filled with the Spirit. Often it costs little financially to fulfill this mission. Prayer and devotion cost nothing, monetarily. You can spend as much as you want on a Bible, but they can also be had for little or no money. Saying a word of encouragement only costs us breath and intentionality.  All of us, rich and poor alike, can serve God.

Fulfilling the Mission can be Expensive:

At times, however, fulfilling our mission can be expensive. One of the primary roles of government is to protect its people. To do this, governments form police forces, staff courts, build prisons, and recruit and deploy military forces. All of this is expensive, often hideously so. The only thing more expensive than employing these means of protection, however, is not to employ them and  leaving the people vulnerable.

Don’t misunderstand me; I do believe in good stewardship. Churches and ministries must adopt and employ sound business practices, which is something I believe is inherent in Jesus’ counsel to us to be “as wise as serpents and as gentle as doves.” At the same time, we must not “bury our talent” either.

Whatever it Takes:

We must learn to do whatever it takes to worship and serve our Lord and our Savior. Mary did not spare any expense when it came to worshipping Jesus, because He was worth it to her. By some estimates, she spent nearly a year’s wages to anoint Jesus. If that figure it correct, it no wonder that Judas was jealous of that use of funds; yet, as we can see from the reaction of Jesus, it was the right thing for Mary to do.

How much is serving Jesus worth to you? To your family? To your church? None of us will ever spend a year’s wages to anoint the feet of Jesus, but it might mean devoting even more to the cause of serving Him. In Matthew 13:45-46 Jesus showed us the true value of following Him: 

 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls,  who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.”

Jesus gave His all to provide salvation for you and me. He thought it was worth the price. Do we have the same opinion of Him?

Every blessing,

Dr. Otis Corbitt