Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. -- John 12:3 (NKJV)
But Jesus said, “Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial. For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always.” - John 12:7-8 (NKJV)
Think for a moment, what is the most expensive, most costly, most treasured, most cherished item you own. Perhaps it is your grandmother’s wedding ring, or a Mickey Mantle autographed baseball. For me, I would have to say it is my wedding ring, or the ring I inherited from my mother when she passed on, or the antiques I have from my dad. Now, would you consider and be willing to give that most prized possession to your best friend, your next-door neighbor, or a total stranger?? I don’t think I would. Taking it a step further, and even more outside of our comfort zones, if you knew this person was going to die within the week, would you still give them your cherished possession?? Probably not!! But, why not??
That is precisely what Mary did in this passage, she gave her most costly, most treasured possession to Jesus when she poured this oil on His feet. Jesus was a beloved family friend who was over for dinner, and Mary anoints His feet. If we had a friend over for dinner and they started washing out feet, we would think they were weird. So, we may ask, why did she do that?? Because He is our Savior!!! Mary gave her best as an act of worship and to show her love towards Him. It was a powerful image of love in action. So, why not give Him her best possession?? Why don’t we give Him our best today??? Afterall, God gave us His most treasured item when He sent us His Son, Jesus Christ, to bring us redemption and salvation. Jesus gave us His most cherished possession, the ultimate sacrifice, His own life, when He died on the cross and rose again to bring us eternal life. He is worthy and deserves our very best.
Mary anointed Jesus’ feet with oil, then wiped His feet with her hair. A few days later, we see Jesus wash His disciples’ feet, and instructs them to do the same to others; to serve others, just as He served them. Did Mary, sister of Martha, foresee what was coming? Did she have a premonition of what was to come? Did she know Jesus was going to wash His disciples’ feet? Did she know it was only days before Jesus’ death? Probably not. How could she know? But Mary understood the assignment, she understood what Jesus’ had been preaching about, an understanding that His disciples could not comprehend, and she performed this act of service. This action was a foretelling of the events to come, and was confirmed by Jesus when He said she kept this oil for the day of His burial. Even then I don’t think His disciples were capable of fully grasping what was about to happen. Mary’s servanthood was an example to Jesus, which He then also demonstrated to us when he washed His disciples’ feet just a couple days later. We should not take this act of servanthood too lightly.
Now, I don’t think God is asking us to necessarily give up our treasured family heirlooms, or our own lives as His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ had done. But He is asking us to give Him our very best, just as He did. The disciples were focused only on the oil. We should not focus on the oil, but on the ministry to others. In that moment, Mary was ministering to Jesus. And when questioned, Jesus said the poor will be with you always, but I will not. He was trying to direct their attention to the ministry of service to others. He is asking us to live our lives in service to others, and to love one another as He loved us. As we go through this Holy Week, take time to really contemplate on your lives, and ask yourselves if you are really giving God your very best. What can you do this week to give Him your best, to be of service to others, and to show your love to those you encounter this week??
Jesus Christ is our Messiah, our Savior. Interestingly, the word Savior comes from the Hebrew word mashiach, which means “anointed one” or “chosen one”. Christ comes from the Greek word Christo, which also means “anointed one”. Jesus’ anointing was a pivotal act to illustrate to the world that He was God’s chosen one to save the world.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, You gave us Your best, Your “anointed one”, Your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior, to show us how to live and to love, and to bring us eternal life. May we also give You our best, to live our lives honoring Jesus by serving others and loving one another as Jesus taught us to do. May the way we live our daily lives be deserving of Your sacrifice. In His precious name we pray. Amen.
By: VelvetLee Elder, Northwest District UWFaith Spiritual Growth Officer
© 2026
