Mary brought in a pint of expensive perfume made of pure nard. She poured the perfume on Jesus’ feet. Then she wiped his feet with her hair. And the sweet smell from the perfume filled the whole house. Judas Iscariot, one of Jesus’ followers, was there—the one who would later hand Jesus over to his enemies. Judas said, “That perfume was worth a full year’s pay. It should have been sold, and the money should have been given to the poor people.”

John 12;3-5 (ERV)

True Christianity involves a life-changing encounter with Jesus that profoundly transforms us from the inside out, allowing us to be “wastefully” generous with God. Mary was such a person. Her lavish outpouring of love on Jesus demonstrates worship at its purest form. There was no hesitating or half-heartedness in her actions—everything she did was sincerely unrestrained. Her worship was so radical that it drew unwanted attention and criticism from Judas who will not follow in her footsteps.

The way we worship is the way we live our lives.

God is either at the centre of our being or He is not.

While Mary makes worship as an extravagant expression of love, Judas makes it an expense matter. Jesus was right when He says: “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” (Matthew 6:24)

We must not let affluence and wealth get in the way of our worship. When this happens, it is easy to lose sight of our relationship with God. Our hearts will grow cold and alienated from God. Then living a Christian life becomes difficult, burdensome and weighty.

We worship God, not because He needs it, but because He is worthy of all praise and glory. Every act of worship is initiated and sustained by love when we actively acknowledge God. It does not require any prompting or coercion. Rather, there is pure delight and awe in waiting on God and discovering again and again the length and breadth and height and depth of His love for us.