1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,000 Amen. 2 00:00:30,000 --> 00:00:31,000 Amen. 3 00:00:31,000 --> 00:00:32,000 Amen. 4 00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:29,000 Good morning. We are glad to be able to gather to worship together this morning. 5 00:01:29,000 --> 00:01:58,000 We are going to begin with a word of prayer. Father in heaven, I thank you for your people. I thank you for your church. I thank you for your word. I just ask that as we gather for worship this morning that you would bless our time together, that you would direct us to your goodness and to your grace, that we would be encouraged and strengthened and transformed. So be with us as we 6 00:01:58,000 --> 00:02:27,000 sing. Be with us as we pray together. Be with us as we gather together around the table. May you remind us of our anchor that holds us in the midst of the strongest storms. Be with us as we open your word and study it together and as we fellowship together that we would be encouraged in the good news of the gospel and that we would encourage one another with the hope that we have in you. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 7 00:02:27,000 --> 00:02:39,000 We're going to begin this morning by reading from the 96th Psalm. So if you would go ahead and be standing with me as we read this together. 8 00:02:56,000 --> 00:03:17,000 This is the word of the Lord. And so as we sing, we sing to declare God's goodness, to declare our thankfulness and our joy and what he has done. So we're going to begin by singing, "This is our God." 9 00:03:17,000 --> 00:03:46,000 Remember those walls that we caught sin and shame? They were like prisons that we couldn't escape. But he came, and he died, and he rose. Those walls are rubble now. 10 00:03:46,000 --> 00:04:15,000 Remember those giants we call death and grave? They were like mountains that stood in our way. But he came, and he died, and he rose. Those giants are dead now. 11 00:04:15,000 --> 00:04:37,000 This is our God. This is who he is. He loves us. This is our God. This is what he does. He saves us. He bore the cross, beat the grave. Let heaven and earth proclaim. This is our God, King Jesus. 12 00:04:37,000 --> 00:04:52,000 Remember that fear that took our breath away? Faith so weak that we could barely pray. But he heard every word, every whisper. 13 00:04:52,000 --> 00:05:05,000 Now those altars in the wilderness tell the story of his faithfulness. 14 00:05:05,000 --> 00:05:13,000 Never once did he fail, and he never will. 15 00:05:13,000 --> 00:05:25,000 This is our God, who he is, he loves us. This is our God, this is what he does, he saves us. 16 00:05:25,000 --> 00:05:33,000 He bore the cross, beat the grave, let heaven and earth proclaim. This is our God, 17 00:05:33,000 --> 00:06:01,000 King Jesus. Who pulled me out of that pit? He did, he did. Who paid for all of our sin? Nobody but Jesus. Who pulled me out of that pit? He did, he did. Who paid for all of our sin? Nobody but Jesus. 18 00:06:01,000 --> 00:06:24,000 Who rescued me from that grave? Yahweh, Yahweh. Who gets the glory and praise? Nobody but Jesus. Who rescued me from that grave? Yahweh, Yahweh. Who gets the glory and praise? Nobody but Him. 19 00:06:24,000 --> 00:06:47,000 This is our God. This is who He is. He loves us. This is our God. This is what He does. He saves us. He bore the cross, beat the grave. Let heaven and earth proclaim. This is our God, King Jesus. 20 00:06:47,000 --> 00:06:57,000 He bore the cross, beat the grave. Let heaven and earth proclaim. This is our God, King Jesus. 21 00:07:17,000 --> 00:07:44,000 The work on which I stand when everything around me is shaken. I've never been more glad that I put my faith in Jesus, 'cause He's never let me down. He's faithful through generations. 22 00:07:45,000 --> 00:08:13,000 So why would He fail now? He won't. He won't. I've still got joy in chaos. I've got people that make no sense. So I won't be going under. 23 00:08:13,000 --> 00:08:41,000 I'm not held by my own strength, 'cause I've built my life on Jesus. He's never let me down. He's faithful in every season. So why would He fail now? He won't. 24 00:08:41,000 --> 00:09:09,000 He won't. He won't fail. He won't fail. Rain came, wind blew, but my house was built on you. I'm safe with you. 25 00:09:09,000 --> 00:09:37,000 I'm gonna make it through. Rain came, wind blew, but my house was built on you. I'm safe with you. I'm gonna make it through. Yeah, I'm gonna make it through. 26 00:09:37,000 --> 00:10:05,000 Cause I'm standing strong on you. Oh, I'm gonna make it through. Cause my house is built on you. Christ is my firm foundation. The rock on which I stand. When everything around me is shaken. 27 00:10:05,000 --> 00:10:33,000 I've never been more glad. I put my faith in Jesus. Cause He's never let me down. He's faithful through generations. So why would He fail now? He won't. 28 00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:54,000 He won't. He won't fail. He won't fail. He won't. 29 00:11:03,000 --> 00:11:10,000 God bless you. 30 00:11:33,000 --> 00:11:35,000 God bless you. 31 00:12:03,000 --> 00:12:05,000 God bless you. 32 00:16:03,000 --> 00:16:32,980 God bless you, God bless you. 33 00:16:33,000 --> 00:17:02,980 God bless you. 34 00:17:03,000 --> 00:17:32,980 God bless you. 35 00:17:33,000 --> 00:18:02,980 God bless you. 36 00:20:33,000 --> 00:20:51,220 We are continually implanting in your minds by playing it right before our service starts for the last several Sundays. And at the end of Hebrews chapter 6, there is this beautiful promise. We'll talk about it a little bit more in a minute, but it says this, 37 00:20:51,220 --> 00:21:16,100 "We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain." And so, if this song is new to us, you're welcome to sort of listen and pick it up as you go, to sing along, just meditate on the words. However, we all learn songs differently, but we're going to go ahead and sing together, "Christ, Our Sure and Steady Anchor." 38 00:21:21,220 --> 00:21:31,220 "Christ, Our Sure and Steady Anchor" 39 00:21:31,220 --> 00:21:47,220 "In the fury of the storm, the winds of love double through me, and my sins have all been torn." 40 00:21:47,220 --> 00:22:01,220 "In the suffering, in the sorrow, when my singing hopes are few, I will hold this to you." 41 00:22:01,220 --> 00:22:07,220 "I'll never be alone." 42 00:22:13,220 --> 00:22:39,220 It's a sure and steady anchor, while the tempest rages on. When temptation claims the battle, and it seems the night is warm. Deeper still then goes the anchor, though I justly stand accused. 43 00:22:39,220 --> 00:22:49,220 I will hold her to the anger, it shall never be revealed. 44 00:23:07,220 --> 00:23:26,220 Christ ensured and steady anger through the floods of unbelief. Hopeless somehow, O my soul, now lift your eyes to Calvary. 45 00:23:26,220 --> 00:23:35,220 This my ballast of assurance sees love forever. 46 00:23:35,220 --> 00:23:51,220 I will hold fast to the anger, and it shall never be removed. 47 00:23:51,220 --> 00:24:03,220 Christ is sure and steady anger as we face the weight of death. When these trials 48 00:24:03,220 --> 00:24:17,220 give way to glory as we draw our final breath. We will cross that late horizon, clouds behind 49 00:24:17,220 --> 00:24:31,220 and life's secure. And the calm will be the bed for the storms that we reveal. Christ is sure 50 00:24:31,220 --> 00:24:51,220 of our salvation, ever faithful, ever true. He will hold fast to the anchor. It shall never be removed. 51 00:25:01,220 --> 00:25:22,220 The book of Hebrews, for us, is a wonderful book that, in its heart, directs us to an encouragement in the hope that is in Christ. 52 00:25:22,220 --> 00:25:29,220 It's written to a group of people who were struggling with external difficulties, people who were persecuting them, 53 00:25:29,220 --> 00:25:40,220 people who were causing them harm and struggle. And as a result, they were beginning to waver, and they were beginning to question their hope in Jesus. 54 00:25:40,220 --> 00:25:46,220 And they're saying, "Wouldn't it be easier just to act the way things used to be?" 55 00:25:46,220 --> 00:25:53,220 And so the writer of Hebrews writes this encouragement, and at the center of this is that we would look to Jesus, 56 00:25:53,220 --> 00:26:04,220 who is the word that comes better than the angels, better than Abraham, better than Moses. He's the better priest, the better king, the better sacrifice. 57 00:26:04,220 --> 00:26:13,220 He serves in a better temple, and the purpose of this epistle is to drive us to the anchor that is in Christ. 58 00:26:13,220 --> 00:26:19,220 And at the end of Hebrews chapter 6, as the writer is trying to instill in us this hope, 59 00:26:19,220 --> 00:26:29,220 he brings three parts of this anchor to our minds: God's word, that God has promised these things, 60 00:26:29,220 --> 00:26:39,220 brings to us God's character, that it is impossible for God to lie, and then he brings to us God's Son. 61 00:26:39,220 --> 00:26:47,220 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place, 62 00:26:47,220 --> 00:26:59,220 behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. 63 00:26:59,220 --> 00:27:07,220 And our hope and our encouragement is based on the work of Christ, who as our high priest, 64 00:27:07,220 --> 00:27:15,220 he has entered into a greater and more perfect tabernacle with his own blood, not with the blood of bulls and goats and 65 00:27:15,220 --> 00:27:25,220 calves, and he secures our redemption forever. And so the anchor throughout the history of the church 66 00:27:25,220 --> 00:27:33,220 has been a symbol of hope among Christians. And it is this metaphor that pictures both stability and security 67 00:27:33,220 --> 00:27:43,220 rooted in Christ as our hope. And if you look at different translations of this verse, it's very interesting because it rounds out the picture for us. In the NIV, 68 00:27:43,220 --> 00:27:53,220 this anchor is firm and secure. And in the English standard version, it's sure and steadfast. And in the New Living 69 00:27:53,220 --> 00:28:01,220 translation, it's strong and trustworthy. And this anchor allows us to remain fixed and unmoving regardless 70 00:28:01,220 --> 00:28:09,220 of the conditions of the sea that surround us. And this anchor keeps us from being what James says, like a wave 71 00:28:09,220 --> 00:28:19,220 of the sea blown and tossed by the wind. And so just as the anchor stops a ship from drifting with the winds and the currents, 72 00:28:19,220 --> 00:28:29,220 keeping our eyes on Jesus prevents our souls from wavering and wandering in times of pressure and turmoil. 73 00:28:29,220 --> 00:28:37,220 In 1 Peter, Peter says this, "God has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection 74 00:28:37,220 --> 00:28:45,220 of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, 75 00:28:45,220 --> 00:28:53,220 kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed at the last time. 76 00:28:53,220 --> 00:29:05,220 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials." Would you pray with me? 77 00:29:05,220 --> 00:29:20,220 Father in heaven, as we come to this bread and to this cup, remind us that our anchor is sure and it is solid, and it is found in your Son, 78 00:29:20,220 --> 00:29:33,220 who came as a man, who lived and who died and who rose again, who gave his body in our place for us. As we drink of this cup, 79 00:29:33,220 --> 00:29:44,220 may you remind us and encourage us and nourish us with this blood of the new covenant that takes away our sins and brings us to hope. 80 00:29:44,220 --> 00:29:56,220 So this morning, if we're struggling and we're storm-tossed, may you anchor us firmly. If we're proud and we're doing our goodness, may you direct us to Christ. 81 00:29:56,220 --> 00:30:01,220 May you encourage our hearts. May you convict us of sin. 82 00:30:01,220 --> 00:30:05,220 May you strengthen us for the work that you have for us. 83 00:30:05,220 --> 00:30:10,220 But most of all, may you nourish us through the death, burial, and resurrection of your Son. 84 00:30:10,220 --> 00:30:17,220 I ask that you bless this bread and this cup. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 85 00:30:17,220 --> 00:30:29,220 If you would, take the bread with me, as Jesus shared with his disciples, saying to them, "This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." 86 00:30:29,220 --> 00:30:44,220 In the same way, as they finish supper, Jesus takes the cup and says, "This is the new covenant in my blood. Let's partake together." 87 00:30:44,220 --> 00:30:57,220 Father in heaven, I'm so thankful that you feed us so deeply and so wonderfully in a way that is beyond anything 88 00:30:57,220 --> 00:31:09,220 we could have asked or ever imagined. So root us and ground us and anchor us in your Son this morning. It's in his name we pray. Amen. 89 00:31:09,220 --> 00:31:21,220 We're going to be in the Gospel of John, chapter 12. I'm going to go ahead and read through our text to sort of help us get a view 90 00:31:21,220 --> 00:31:31,220 of what is happening, and then we'll spend just a little bit of time unpacking where we're going. And so let's begin with reading through this text together. 91 00:31:31,220 --> 00:31:40,220 "Six days before the Passover, Jesus, therefore, came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 92 00:31:40,220 --> 00:31:48,220 So they gave a dinner for him there, and Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at the table. 93 00:31:48,220 --> 00:31:56,220 Mary, therefore, took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. 94 00:31:56,220 --> 00:32:06,220 The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples, he who was about to betray him, said, 95 00:32:06,220 --> 00:32:13,220 "Why was this ointment not sold for 300 denarii and given to the poor?" 96 00:32:13,220 --> 00:32:18,220 But he said, and he said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief. 97 00:32:18,220 --> 00:32:23,220 And having charged the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it. 98 00:32:23,220 --> 00:32:28,220 And Jesus said, "Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial. 99 00:32:28,220 --> 00:32:34,220 For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me." This is God's Word. 100 00:32:34,220 --> 00:32:42,220 Let's pray, and we'll dive right into it. Father in heaven, be with us this morning in this text that is 101 00:32:42,220 --> 00:32:55,220 surprisingly wonderful. It points us to such a wonderful promise, but it also calls our hearts to evaluate our worship. 102 00:32:55,220 --> 00:33:02,220 And so this morning, help us to see that there is one place to hope, and that is in you. Be with us. 103 00:33:02,220 --> 00:33:06,220 It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 104 00:33:06,220 --> 00:33:16,220 So we're going to walk through sort of the details of this text, leading us to what this teaches us and how this changes us and transforms us. 105 00:33:16,220 --> 00:33:23,220 And in John chapter 12, in verse 1, it says, "Six days before Passover." 106 00:33:23,220 --> 00:33:29,220 Now, Passover for God's people is a very sacred time, and it's very, very important. 107 00:33:29,220 --> 00:33:37,220 And people would have traveled from all over the world to come to Jerusalem and to be and to celebrate Passover. 108 00:33:37,220 --> 00:33:48,220 And Passover, just in its simplest definition, is a Jewish feast that celebrates the reminder of God bringing his people out of slavery in Egypt. 109 00:33:48,220 --> 00:33:54,220 And in very specific ways, it reminds God's people of how God accomplished that salvation. 110 00:33:54,220 --> 00:34:00,220 As you go through plagues one through nine, Passover, and the heart of it pictures the tenth plague. 111 00:34:00,220 --> 00:34:08,220 Where God comes through the land and strikes down all of the firstborn children, with the exception of the Israelites, 112 00:34:08,220 --> 00:34:14,220 who have sacrificed a lamb, have painted the doorpost of their house with the blood of the lamb. 113 00:34:14,220 --> 00:34:23,220 And anywhere there was the blood of the lamb, the angel of the Lord passes over those places. 114 00:34:23,220 --> 00:34:35,220 And so it is a Jewish feast that remembers the salvation of God. And what I love about the Passover meal is that it is designed to be very participatory. 115 00:34:35,220 --> 00:34:43,220 It's designed to teach and designed to help. And if you've ever joined us in the past where we've done sort of a symbolic Passover meal 116 00:34:43,220 --> 00:34:49,220 and walked through some of the Old Testament pictures and how they find their hope in Jesus in the New Testament, 117 00:34:49,220 --> 00:34:57,220 one of the things you do is you dip some leaves into salt water to remind yourself of the saltiness of the tears and the slavery. 118 00:34:57,220 --> 00:35:03,220 And you dip some stuff into some horseradish, the bitter herbs to remind yourself of the bitterness of slavery. 119 00:35:03,220 --> 00:35:10,220 And then with the apples and the cinnamon and the honey, you replace that with the sweetness and the joy of freedom. 120 00:35:10,220 --> 00:35:17,220 And so the Passover meal for God's people was not just sort of something they went through as a special meal, 121 00:35:17,220 --> 00:35:23,220 but it's really a taking a journey through participation of God's deliverance. 122 00:35:23,220 --> 00:35:28,220 And there are four promises that are at the heart of Passover. 123 00:35:28,220 --> 00:35:31,220 And I'm going to read from Exodus chapter 6, 6 and 7. 124 00:35:31,220 --> 00:35:38,220 And when you hear these words, "I will," they symbolize the promises of God. 125 00:35:38,220 --> 00:35:46,220 "Say therefore to the people of Israel, 'I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burden of the Egyptians.' 126 00:35:46,220 --> 00:35:49,220 And I will deliver you from slavery to them. 127 00:35:49,220 --> 00:35:54,220 I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. 128 00:35:54,220 --> 00:35:58,220 And I will take you to be my people, and I will be my God. 129 00:35:58,220 --> 00:36:05,220 And you shall know that I am the Lord your God who has brought you out from under the burden of the Egyptians." 130 00:36:05,220 --> 00:36:14,220 And during Passover, you would drink from your cup four times, one each to remember these promises of God. 131 00:36:14,220 --> 00:36:22,220 And in fact, the Lord's Supper, which finds its beginning in Passover, was with the cup that was after supper, 132 00:36:22,220 --> 00:36:30,220 remembering that promise, "I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment." 133 00:36:30,220 --> 00:36:34,220 Now, not to spoil the rest of the Bible for you if you haven't read the story, 134 00:36:34,220 --> 00:36:39,220 but the Passover isn't just about looking back to Egypt, right? 135 00:36:39,220 --> 00:36:51,220 It's about us, in the same situation, crushed under the burden of our sins, in slavery to that sin, nowhere to go and nowhere to run. 136 00:36:51,220 --> 00:37:04,220 And then God sends another lamb, a true and better lamb, and He stretches out His arms, and He faces the great act of judgment. 137 00:37:04,220 --> 00:37:12,220 And because of this lamb, we can be the people of God through the sacrifice of Jesus. 138 00:37:12,220 --> 00:37:17,220 You're brought out, delivered from slavery, redeemed, and taken to be His people. 139 00:37:17,220 --> 00:37:23,220 And I want you just to think for a minute, as Jesus, on that Thursday before He goes to the cross on Friday, 140 00:37:23,220 --> 00:37:29,220 celebrates and institutes the Lord's Supper with His people, and they drink of that cup that says, 141 00:37:29,220 --> 00:37:34,220 "I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment." 142 00:37:34,220 --> 00:37:46,220 Jesus is about to fulfill that redemption by stretching out His arms and becoming the object of judgment in our place. 143 00:37:46,220 --> 00:37:56,220 And so the Passover lamb, Paul tells us, is Jesus. And it is this specific Passover, the one before the cross, 144 00:37:56,220 --> 00:38:04,220 the Passover that Jesus is six days from in our text, that all of the Old Testament is leading up to. 145 00:38:04,220 --> 00:38:16,220 When the Passover is introduced in Exodus, it's all ultimately pointing to the Passover that Jesus is about to celebrate. 146 00:38:16,220 --> 00:38:24,220 Everything from then moves forward. And so, six days before the Passover, 147 00:38:24,220 --> 00:38:33,220 Jesus arrives in Bethany, and our text directs us to the day that He arrives. So, either He arrives immediately six days, 148 00:38:33,220 --> 00:38:38,220 which would have been Friday night, and they immediately have this feast, or He gets there Friday night, 149 00:38:38,220 --> 00:38:45,220 they have this feast on Saturday night, because John will say the next day He enters into Jerusalem. 150 00:38:45,220 --> 00:38:55,220 But this is the days before the triumphal entry. And this is a dangerous time for Jesus. 151 00:38:55,220 --> 00:39:01,220 Opposition has been growing. People are jealous to His popularity. He's recently made a quick trip to this area, 152 00:39:01,220 --> 00:39:08,220 and when He told His disciples He was going to Bethany, Thomas goes, "Well, let's go with Him so we can die too." 153 00:39:08,220 --> 00:39:15,220 Right? There's not a positive outlook for what will happen with Jesus. 154 00:39:15,220 --> 00:39:25,220 But the time in this text is also so important because it is in this moment that Judas decides to betray Jesus. 155 00:39:25,220 --> 00:39:31,220 I don't know if you've ever watched a movie and maybe it begins with a bunch of exciting events and everything's happening, 156 00:39:31,220 --> 00:39:36,220 there's explosions, and then all of a sudden it sort of stops and it's like, "How did we get here?" 157 00:39:36,220 --> 00:39:44,220 And it flashes back to the events that lead up to this point in the story. 158 00:39:44,220 --> 00:39:52,220 When Matthew and Mark both record this specific moment, this specific meal with Jesus, 159 00:39:52,220 --> 00:39:59,220 they write almost as if this, that two days before Jesus celebrates the Passover, 160 00:39:59,220 --> 00:40:05,220 the leaders get together and they begin to plot against Jesus, and then he flashes back. 161 00:40:05,220 --> 00:40:15,220 To this meal that Jesus eats in Bethany with Mary, Martha, Lazarus, Simon the leper, 162 00:40:15,220 --> 00:40:23,220 and where Judas gets so mad about the money, and then it talks about how Judas goes to betray. 163 00:40:23,220 --> 00:40:34,220 Matthew and Mark both bring to the focus that this meal, I think, is sort of the final straw for Judas. That Judas moves into a moment 164 00:40:34,220 --> 00:40:43,220 that he can't take back. The next thing we see about this text is that this is a special dinner. 165 00:40:43,220 --> 00:40:49,220 Now, this is not the first dinner with Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, and it's not the first time that Jesus had dinner 166 00:40:49,220 --> 00:40:56,220 with them that is sort of embroiled in some kind of conflict or controversy. If you remember the last recorded 167 00:40:56,220 --> 00:41:02,220 meal with Mary, Martha, and Lazarus, you have two sisters fighting. Mary's sitting in there listening to Jesus. 168 00:41:02,220 --> 00:41:08,220 I'm doing all the work, right? And just like two sisters who are mad about what the other one is doing, 169 00:41:08,220 --> 00:41:16,220 they began to argue and fight. And so Jesus has eaten with this family before. He loves this family. 170 00:41:16,220 --> 00:41:23,220 And it's interesting, over the next week leading up to the cross, Jesus is going to stay in Bethany. 171 00:41:23,220 --> 00:41:29,220 So I want you to think about a special dinner for us. When we talk about a special dinner, it might be 172 00:41:29,220 --> 00:41:35,220 a special type of food that we like. And so you say, "Well, we're having a special dinner." 173 00:41:35,220 --> 00:41:38,220 And you say, "What do you mean?" And you talk about the special food we're having. 174 00:41:38,220 --> 00:41:42,220 So in our house, generally on Sunday night, we do what's called appetizer night, right? 175 00:41:42,220 --> 00:41:47,220 We get a bunch of appetizers, make them up. We go watch an old movie. Everybody sort of picks the appetizers we like, 176 00:41:47,220 --> 00:41:55,220 and it's a special meal because it's a special kind of food. You don't eat appetizers for dinner. 177 00:41:55,220 --> 00:42:02,220 But sometimes our special dinner can be we're going to a special place, or maybe we're gathering for a special purpose, right? 178 00:42:02,220 --> 00:42:09,220 We're going to eat spaghetti in a fire hall to raise money for a good cause or to help somebody out. 179 00:42:09,220 --> 00:42:23,220 This special meal is because there are two families in this text that have been deeply impacted by Jesus. 180 00:42:23,220 --> 00:42:30,220 And so John 12:2 says, "They gave a dinner for him." That's Jesus there. 181 00:42:30,220 --> 00:42:38,220 And this is not like, "Oh, we've got to have the pastor over for dinner." This is somebody who they have a close relationship. 182 00:42:38,220 --> 00:42:45,220 Jesus is very close to two families, and you say, "Well, in John's account I only see Mary, Martha, and Lazarus." 183 00:42:45,220 --> 00:42:55,220 What's interesting, in Matthew and Mark, they record that this happens at the house of a man by the name of Simon the leper. 184 00:42:55,220 --> 00:43:03,220 Now, if you're going for a nickname, Simon the leper is really not the way to go. It's like introducing yourself and going, "Hi, I'm Steve Ebola." 185 00:43:03,220 --> 00:43:11,220 Everybody's like, "I don't want to be anywhere near you." But the fact they're at his house is telling us that he has been healed from this leprosy. 186 00:43:11,220 --> 00:43:20,220 So this is a guy who has gone from having no hope in his medical diagnosis, here's a guy whose life and body are literally breaking and falling apart, 187 00:43:20,220 --> 00:43:30,220 who has to declare with his own voice that he's unclean and unworthy to keep people away from him, has somehow been healed. 188 00:43:30,220 --> 00:43:36,220 You say, "Well, how is he healed?" Well, it's probably the guy who's eating dinner in his house, Jesus. 189 00:43:36,220 --> 00:43:44,220 And it's likely, in fact, a lot of commentators think that there's a time Jesus heals a leper very near to Bethany. 190 00:43:44,220 --> 00:43:49,220 After he finishes the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew chapter 8, he heals a man with leprosy. 191 00:43:49,220 --> 00:43:53,220 A lot of people think, "Hey, it's the right area, right time, right place." 192 00:43:53,220 --> 00:44:03,220 So he comes to this house where, if we don't know if it's the guy, but Jesus has transformed this man's life. 193 00:44:03,220 --> 00:44:10,220 The second family we see consists of Mary and Martha and Lazarus, and we've seen Jesus with them before. 194 00:44:10,220 --> 00:44:17,220 Controversial sibling rivalry, but more recently he's been to town, and John reminds us of this. 195 00:44:17,220 --> 00:44:26,220 "Six days before Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead." 196 00:44:26,220 --> 00:44:32,220 So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served. Lazarus was one of those reclining at the table. 197 00:44:32,220 --> 00:44:37,220 And it was one of the most heartbreaking moments for this family, Mary and Martha. 198 00:44:37,220 --> 00:44:47,220 Jesus arrives, makes this declaration that he is the resurrection and the life, and then confirms it by raising Lazarus from the dead. 199 00:44:47,220 --> 00:44:55,220 And so these are two families: the family of Simon the leper, and the family of Mary and Martha and Lazarus. 200 00:44:55,220 --> 00:45:08,220 Jesus has profoundly impacted them, but he is also a close friend with them. He's going to stay in their town until he is crucified. 201 00:45:08,220 --> 00:45:15,220 And so it's not just at this time of Passover, declaring Jesus the Passover lamb, 202 00:45:15,220 --> 00:45:21,220 but it's the one that reminds us that Jesus is the one who brings salvation. 203 00:45:21,220 --> 00:45:25,220 We've seen Jesus do that in the lives of these families. 204 00:45:25,220 --> 00:45:29,220 So let's pick up with this gift in John chapter 3. It's an expensive gift. 205 00:45:29,220 --> 00:45:36,220 "Mary, therefore, took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard and anointed the feet of Jesus 206 00:45:36,220 --> 00:45:41,220 and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume." 207 00:45:41,220 --> 00:45:46,220 Now, this is an expensive bottle of perfume, and the way it was made, 208 00:45:46,220 --> 00:45:53,220 Matthew and Mark both record that it's an alabaster jar, which is a jar that is carved out of stone, 209 00:45:53,220 --> 00:46:00,220 filled with this perfumed ointment made with a plant that is harvested in India. 210 00:46:00,220 --> 00:46:07,220 Then it has to travel across to get to Israel, right? Not an easy or simple trip in the first century. 211 00:46:07,220 --> 00:46:14,220 It's placed in this insanely expensive alabaster jar, and the jar is sealed in such a way 212 00:46:14,220 --> 00:46:18,220 that it can only be opened by breaking the jar. 213 00:46:18,220 --> 00:46:22,220 That's right, you've got to use this all at once. 214 00:46:22,220 --> 00:46:26,220 And that's exactly what Mary does. 215 00:46:26,220 --> 00:46:34,220 And this would be worth close to a year's salary for an average person in this time. 216 00:46:34,220 --> 00:46:38,220 So imagine pouring out some perfume on someone at dinner, 217 00:46:38,220 --> 00:46:44,220 and it's not just like, "Oh, hey, that was 20 bucks at the checkout aisle at Kohl's." 218 00:46:44,220 --> 00:46:50,220 But we're talking literally thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars. 219 00:46:50,220 --> 00:46:54,220 And we'll get to the why in just a moment. 220 00:46:54,220 --> 00:46:57,220 And this precipitates an angry reaction. 221 00:46:57,220 --> 00:47:02,220 But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples, that's one of Jesus' disciples, 222 00:47:02,220 --> 00:47:09,220 he who was about to betray him, said, "Why was this ointment not sold for 300 denarii and given to the poor?" 223 00:47:09,220 --> 00:47:12,220 And he said this not because he cared about the poor, 224 00:47:12,220 --> 00:47:15,220 but because he was a thief having charged the money bag, 225 00:47:15,220 --> 00:47:18,220 and he used to help himself to what was put into it. 226 00:47:18,220 --> 00:47:23,220 And John is not pulling any punches in regard to the character of Judas. 227 00:47:23,220 --> 00:47:30,220 Judas is mad because he's not getting the money that this would have been put into the apostles' treasury. 228 00:47:30,220 --> 00:47:33,220 And as a result, he's about to betray Jesus. 229 00:47:33,220 --> 00:47:39,220 But notice this, he hides his anger behind a false righteousness and goodness. 230 00:47:39,220 --> 00:47:47,220 And while Mary is pouring out lavish worship, he's pouring out self-centered anger because he's not getting what he wants. 231 00:47:47,220 --> 00:47:54,220 And there is in the heart of this a picture of the fight that goes on in all of our lives. 232 00:47:54,220 --> 00:47:59,220 A fight between selfishness and worship. 233 00:47:59,220 --> 00:48:04,220 And the reality of our lives is that everyone is a worshiper. 234 00:48:04,220 --> 00:48:07,220 Let me explain this, what we mean when we talk about everybody is a worshiper. 235 00:48:07,220 --> 00:48:14,220 Worship, at the heart of it, is what you revere and adore at the center of our being. 236 00:48:14,220 --> 00:48:18,220 Another way of saying this is, what is most important to you? 237 00:48:18,220 --> 00:48:21,220 What do we lift up in our thoughts? What do we dream about? 238 00:48:21,220 --> 00:48:26,220 What is our desire? What were we willing to sacrifice for? 239 00:48:26,220 --> 00:48:32,220 What are we willing to evangelize about and talk to others about these things? 240 00:48:32,220 --> 00:48:38,220 You see, the worship of our actions flows from the worship of our heart. 241 00:48:38,220 --> 00:48:44,220 And what our heart reveres and adores will come out in our actions. 242 00:48:44,220 --> 00:48:51,220 And in this case, Mary reveres and adores Jesus above everything, and her actions demonstrate that. 243 00:48:51,220 --> 00:48:57,220 Her heart is visible through her choices and her behavior, but so is Judas's. 244 00:48:57,220 --> 00:49:06,220 He reveres and adores himself above everything, and his heart is visible through his choices and his behavior. 245 00:49:06,220 --> 00:49:13,220 Everybody worships. And the question is not, "Am I a worshiper, but what do I worship?" 246 00:49:13,220 --> 00:49:20,220 And if we aren't worshiping God, the second most likely deity is yourself. 247 00:49:20,220 --> 00:49:26,220 And so the question at this meal is, "What are you worshiping? Who are you worshiping?" 248 00:49:26,220 --> 00:49:30,220 And even us as Christians who worship and seek to follow God, 249 00:49:30,220 --> 00:49:37,220 there are times when we are distracted, where our affections are pulled in a different direction. 250 00:49:37,220 --> 00:49:43,220 And this question of our worship is not just the difference between Christian and non-Christian. 251 00:49:43,220 --> 00:49:51,220 It's a call to evaluate our heart for those things that are pulling us in different directions. 252 00:49:51,220 --> 00:49:57,220 And here's the remarkable thing about this: that our worship fills the area around us. 253 00:49:57,220 --> 00:50:04,220 In verse 3 it says, "Mary therefore took this pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, anointed the feet of Jesus, 254 00:50:04,220 --> 00:50:11,220 wiped his feet with her hair, and the house was filled with the fragrance of her perfume." 255 00:50:11,220 --> 00:50:19,220 Now, that's a literal event of what happens. The whole house smelled like perfume, and probably did for quite some time. 256 00:50:19,220 --> 00:50:26,220 But it's also a picture of her worship filling all that surrounds us. 257 00:50:26,220 --> 00:50:33,220 What's interesting is that what fills the house because of Judas is different. 258 00:50:33,220 --> 00:50:39,220 In the parallel accounts, there were some who said among themselves indignantly, 259 00:50:39,220 --> 00:50:48,220 "Why was the ointment wasted like this?" This ointment could have been sold for more than 300 denarii and given to the poor, and they scolded her. 260 00:50:48,220 --> 00:50:58,220 And we know from John that Judas is the center of this opposition, and it seems from Matthew and Mark that what Judas does is begin to grumble. 261 00:50:58,220 --> 00:51:06,220 And that grumbling, just like the smell of the perfume fills the room and the impact of Mary's worship, we'll see Jesus say, 262 00:51:06,220 --> 00:51:17,220 fills the proclamation of the Gospel, but Judas begins to fill the hearts of grumbling and anger and frustration. 263 00:51:17,220 --> 00:51:27,220 So his fragrance of self-centeredness and bitterness also fills the room. And so what you worship will fill the space for you. 264 00:51:27,220 --> 00:51:35,220 Whether that's in true worship of Jesus, or whether that's in bitterness or frustration or anger, 265 00:51:35,220 --> 00:51:45,220 what you find is that worship matters. Let's talk about worship. In Mark 14, Jesus says this, 266 00:51:45,220 --> 00:51:54,220 "Truly I say to you, wherever the Gospel is proclaimed, in the whole world what she has been done will be told in memory of her." 267 00:51:54,220 --> 00:52:04,220 That her worship doesn't just fill that room, but this testimony of the One who is selflessly, without regard for her 268 00:52:04,220 --> 00:52:13,220 appearance, or for propriety, or for her finances, was willing to lay everything and give it all to Jesus. 269 00:52:13,220 --> 00:52:18,220 It's a lasting testimony to her worship. And I want to talk about Mary for just a minute, because one of the things you find 270 00:52:18,220 --> 00:52:28,220 is that worship begins by listening to Jesus. And that's hard for us to listen sometimes. I find as I get older, 271 00:52:28,220 --> 00:52:33,220 especially when we're driving in a busy area, or where we haven't been before, or trying to find the turn, 272 00:52:33,220 --> 00:52:39,220 and we're not sure what's going on, and eventually I just have to say, "Hey, can everybody be quiet, right? 273 00:52:39,220 --> 00:52:47,220 I can't see the road, right? Because all the noise and distraction going around has caused me to be unable to see 274 00:52:47,220 --> 00:52:58,220 what is happening." And what do you find in this text is this picture that we live in a world full of distracting noises. 275 00:52:58,220 --> 00:53:05,220 There's things that are vying for our attention and for our hearts and for our hope. 276 00:53:05,220 --> 00:53:13,220 And there is a moment in the life of Mary and Martha where we see this very clearly in Luke chapter 10. 277 00:53:13,220 --> 00:53:18,220 They went their way. Jesus entered a village, and a woman named Martha welcomed him to her house. 278 00:53:18,220 --> 00:53:23,220 And she had a sister who called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. 279 00:53:23,220 --> 00:53:30,220 But Martha was distracted with much serving. 280 00:53:30,220 --> 00:53:35,220 And so Martha, oftentimes we kind of make fun of her, give her a bad rap. 281 00:53:35,220 --> 00:53:39,220 But the reality is most of us would probably be a lot like Martha. 282 00:53:39,220 --> 00:53:46,220 We're so busy serving, we forget the purpose of why we are serving. 283 00:53:46,220 --> 00:53:50,220 But here is Mary listening to Jesus. 284 00:53:50,220 --> 00:53:55,220 And one of the ways that we see Mary listening are found in the words of Jesus. 285 00:53:55,220 --> 00:54:01,220 In John 12:7, Jesus says, "Leave her alone so that she may keep it for the day of my burial." 286 00:54:01,220 --> 00:54:08,220 Jesus has repeated over and over to his disciples at least like six times directly, 287 00:54:08,220 --> 00:54:15,220 and a whole bunch more times indirectly that he's going to Jerusalem to die, and they haven't heard a thing. 288 00:54:15,220 --> 00:54:22,220 And Jesus says of Mary, "She's anointing me for my burial." 289 00:54:22,220 --> 00:54:28,220 Seems like Mary may have been the only one who truly listened to what Jesus was saying. 290 00:54:28,220 --> 00:54:38,220 You and I are moved to worship, not just when we listen, but when we see the true worth of our Savior. 291 00:54:38,220 --> 00:54:41,220 How do you see Jesus? 292 00:54:41,220 --> 00:54:45,220 There's two distinct answers to this question. 293 00:54:45,220 --> 00:54:50,220 Judas sees Jesus as a means to an end, getting more money. 294 00:54:50,220 --> 00:54:56,220 Mary sees Jesus as the sole object of worship. 295 00:54:56,220 --> 00:55:02,220 You see, Mary knows Jesus, not just in the closeness of friendship or as a good teacher, 296 00:55:02,220 --> 00:55:13,220 but because she has seen His power and His love, and it has moved her to worship Jesus above all else. 297 00:55:13,220 --> 00:55:23,220 You see, you and I are called this morning to hear Jesus, to focus, and to see the true worth of our Savior. 298 00:55:23,220 --> 00:55:31,220 To look at our lives and say, "What is it that my heart is chasing after other than Him?" 299 00:55:31,220 --> 00:55:36,220 Next Sunday, we are going to see Jesus come down a mountain with shouts of praise. 300 00:55:36,220 --> 00:55:42,220 And over the next week, we see Jesus moving from these shouts of praise to the cross. 301 00:55:42,220 --> 00:55:48,220 And what is revealed, one of the things that is so remarkably revealed in the last week of Jesus, 302 00:55:48,220 --> 00:55:56,220 is that so often our hearts are fixed on what we want rather than who Jesus truly is. 303 00:55:56,220 --> 00:56:02,220 So the two stories, the one of Mary and the one of Jesus, end in two very different ways. 304 00:56:02,220 --> 00:56:09,220 Mary gives this massive and gracious gift worth almost a full year's wages. 305 00:56:09,220 --> 00:56:15,220 Judas will betray Jesus, and in the result, he's going to get 30 silver coins, 306 00:56:15,220 --> 00:56:20,220 which in the currency of the day would have been worth about 120 days of work, 307 00:56:20,220 --> 00:56:27,220 about a third of what Mary has given to Jesus. 308 00:56:27,220 --> 00:56:30,220 But Judas doesn't even get to keep those coins, right? 309 00:56:30,220 --> 00:56:37,220 He throws them back into the temple and goes out and in hopelessness takes his own life. 310 00:56:37,220 --> 00:56:41,220 You see, what you worship truly matters. 311 00:56:41,220 --> 00:56:47,220 It will lead you to an overwhelming, constant fountain of worship, 312 00:56:47,220 --> 00:56:53,220 or it can lead you to brokenness, emptiness, and despair. 313 00:56:53,220 --> 00:56:58,220 And the call of this text is to hear Jesus and to fix our eyes on him, 314 00:56:58,220 --> 00:57:02,220 to see his goodness and his grace, to hear his teaching, 315 00:57:02,220 --> 00:57:06,220 not just in our minds, but in the depths of our heart, 316 00:57:06,220 --> 00:57:13,220 to see that he is truly the Son of God and to respond in worship. 317 00:57:13,220 --> 00:57:18,220 Father in heaven, forgive us for where our hearts stray. 318 00:57:18,220 --> 00:57:25,220 Forgive us when we chase all of those things that are constantly tempting our affections, 319 00:57:25,220 --> 00:57:30,220 and may you restore to us the joy of our salvation, 320 00:57:30,220 --> 00:57:34,220 that we would worship as Mary does. 321 00:57:34,220 --> 00:57:37,220 Help us to turn our eyes to Jesus. 322 00:57:37,220 --> 00:57:40,220 It's in his name we pray. Amen. 323 00:57:40,220 --> 00:57:45,220 We're going to stand and sing "Turn Your Eyes." 324 00:58:10,220 --> 00:58:40,200 Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will 325 00:58:40,200 --> 00:59:10,180 grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace. Turn your eyes to that hillside where justice and mercy embrace. 326 00:59:10,180 --> 00:59:40,160 The Son of God gave His life for us, and our measureless death was erased. Jesus, to You we lift our eyes. Jesus, our glory and our Christ. 327 00:59:40,160 --> 01:00:10,140 Behold You, our Savior ever true. Oh, Jesus, we turn our eyes to You. 328 01:00:10,140 --> 01:00:32,120 And see Christ the Lion away. What a glorious dawn. Fear of death is gone. For we carry His life in our veins. 329 01:00:32,120 --> 01:01:02,100 Jesus, to You we lift our eyes. Jesus, our glory and our prize. We adore You. Behold You. Our Savior ever true. Oh, Jesus, we turn our eyes to You. 330 01:01:02,100 --> 01:01:32,080 Turn your eyes to the heavens. Our King will return for His own. Every knee will bow. Every tongue will shout. All glory to Jesus. 331 01:01:32,080 --> 01:02:02,060 Jesus, to You He lifts our eyes. Jesus, our glory and our pride. We adore You, behold You, our Savior ever true. Oh, Jesus, we turn our eyes to You. 332 01:02:02,060 --> 01:02:32,040 Jesus, to You He lifts our eyes. Jesus, our glory and our pride. We adore You, behold You, our Savior ever true. Oh, Jesus, we turn our eyes to You. 333 01:02:32,040 --> 01:02:39,040 Jesus, we turn our eyes to You. 334 01:02:39,040 --> 01:03:02,020 All right, a few announcements. First of all, Tiffany would like the children to gather here promptly after we sing the doxology. 335 01:03:02,020 --> 01:03:13,020 So if we can get the kids here to practice for their Palm Sunday song, we would like them to do that, or we will bounty hunt them down right after we're done. 336 01:03:13,020 --> 01:03:24,020 So that's announcement number one. Secondly, our kids' church, children's church for April is the 13th and the 27th. 337 01:03:24,020 --> 01:03:32,000 Also, we're working on getting ready for VBS. I have a big stack of volunteer forms. We would love to have more volunteers. 338 01:03:32,000 --> 01:03:41,000 And so I have some blank forms downstairs that I would be happy to give you, or if you want me to, fill them out for you, or on your behalf. 339 01:03:41,000 --> 01:03:52,000 So go ahead, and if you would like to volunteer and help, it can be in any way. It doesn't have to be every day. We would love to have some more help with that. 340 01:03:52,000 --> 01:04:01,980 Also, our Wednesday night Bible study is at 6 p.m. this week. Next week, the week between Palm Sunday and Easter, we're going to do Wednesday night Bible study as well. 341 01:04:01,980 --> 01:04:19,980 We're going to do it a little bit differently, though. We're going to have kind of a small meal and spend some time talking about how Christ and Passover in the Old Testament points us to the good news about Jesus in the New Testament. 342 01:04:19,980 --> 01:04:31,960 So we'll have kind of a symbolic and partial Passover meal. And so that's on Wednesday, not this coming Wednesday, but the following Wednesday night and then the Sunday after that. 343 01:04:31,960 --> 01:04:43,960 Sunday is Easter. I'm going to go ahead and pray. We'll read from Jude, verse 24 and 25, and then we'll sing the doxology, and then the kids can meet up here in the front. 344 01:04:43,960 --> 01:04:53,960 Father in heaven, we thank you for your goodness. We thank you for your church. We ask that you would turn our eyes, both as individuals and a church, to you. 345 01:04:53,960 --> 01:05:01,940 That you would be our hope and that you would be the one that we worship with all of our hearts. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. 346 01:05:01,940 --> 01:05:31,920 Jude writing this to the church, "Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you blameless before the presence of His glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ the Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority before all time, now and forever." Amen. 347 01:05:31,920 --> 01:06:01,900 Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise Him, all creatures here below. Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. 348 01:06:01,900 --> 01:06:04,900 Praise God from whom all blessings flow. 349 01:06:04,900 --> 01:06:05,900 Amen. 350 01:06:05,900 --> 01:06:06,900 Amen. 351 01:06:06,900 --> 01:06:07,900 Amen.