His Encouragement #52

Happy Thursday! I am blessed to be a part of a group of bloggers who feel led to share a bit of encouragement each week from the Bible. We recognize our daily need for Christ and we aim to share that with our readers. Plus, when Thursday comes around, we can all use a little encouragement right? I hope that this post blesses you and that you find comfort, strength, and peace in the Lord today ❤

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⁶ While Jesus was in Bethany in the home of Simon the Leper, ⁷ a woman came to him with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, which she poured on his head as he was reclining at the table.

⁸ When the disciples saw this, they were indignant. “Why this waste?” they asked. ⁹ “This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.”

¹⁰ Aware of this, Jesus said to them, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful thing to me. ¹¹ The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me. ¹² When she poured this perfume on my body, she did it to prepare me for burial.¹³ Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”

~Matt 26:6-13 (NIV)

As we head into Easter weekend this passage has been on my mind for the past few days. Two things have stuck out to me:

1. The value of the perfume
2. The value of Jesus

What’s interesting is that the disciples themselves are the ones who complain about the woman “wasting” the perfume. They are the ones who you would expect to recognize the value of Jesus over anything material. I think back to the beginning of Luke 21, where the widow woman placed 2 coins in the offering compared to the larger sums of others. What’s interesting is Jesus’ response:

“Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”

~Luke 21:3-4

The woman who poured out the alabaster jar onto Jesus recognized his value. She gave all that she had to worship at his feet. Sure, it could have been sold to help the poor (although she was most likely part of the poor herself), but just as Jesus said: “the poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me.” 

For those of us living today, we don’t understand what it’s like to walk this world in the presence of Jesus as a man. I can’t help but wonder what it would have been like to see him face-to-face, but just like everyone else who is a believer I have to wait until heaven. Would I have been able to recognize his value in the time? Would I have poured out my alabaster on him? Or would I have clung to it myself or used it on other things? Even though we don’t have alabaster jars anymore, we can still look at this story through the other items that have value in our lives.

This week I’m ending with the song Alabaster Jar which I don’t believe I’ve heard before. I happened to stumble upon it when I started googling alabaster jars. It definitely fit well with what was going through my mind for this passage, so I thought it was perfect to share. I hope you take a moment to listen before you move on with the rest of your day. Have a blessed rest of the week and a happy Resurrection Sunday!

Now, it’s your turn!

What Biblical verse is encouraging you today?

And, check out more Thursday Encouragement from my fellow blogger friends:

Nicole @ Christian Fiction Girl

Trisha @ Joy of Reading

Jacquelyn @ A Heavenly Home

Jessica @ A Baker’s Perspective

Gina @ Stories By Gina

Rebecca @Rev. Rebecca Writes

If you would like to join us: please contact Trisha or Nicole