“The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him” (2 Chronicles 16:9). The Lord was watching as Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome came together while it was still dark with one purpose in mind, to minister to Jesus. They had been there at the cross doing the only thing they could, being present. They did not leave until they had seen where Jesus’s body had been placed.
They had rested and wept on the Sabbath. The aroma of their worship had reached the very throne of God as they gathered the spices with which they planned to anoint Jesus’s body. As the sun began to rise, their silence was broken by the question, “Who will roll away the stone from the entrance to the tomb for us” (Mark 16:3)? But their love and devotion and desire for one last act of service was greater than any obstacle that stood in their way.
What does true worship look like? The God of the universe invites us to have a relationship with Him. Jesus is the image of the invisible God. By Him everything in heaven and on earth was created. “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made” (John 1:3). The almighty God who spoke the world into being became flesh. Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome had been invited to have a relationship with Jesus by caring for His earthly needs. Their last act of worship would be to anoint His body which they had seen buried in the tomb.
The privilege of anointing Jesus’s body for burial, however, had not been given to these three women. It had been given to Mary of Bethany. When Mary had been criticized for breaking the alabaster jar and pouring its content of nard--worth almost a year’s wages--Jesus had come to her defense. He told them to leave her alone; that she had done what she could. He went on to say that she anointed His body for burial ahead of time. These women, like Mary of Bethany, had a heart of worship. They were doing what they could to express their love for Jesus.
Often our acts of worship meet with obstacles. For Mary of Bethany it was the disapproval of those who considered her worship wasteful. For the three women on the way to the tomb it was the large stone that blocked their entrance. However, the eyes of the Lord see our heart. Jesus saw Mary’s heart and told those who wanted to shame her that wherever the gospel was preached what she had done would also be told in memory of her. When the three women arrived at the tomb the large stone was already rolled away, and they were the first to receive the good news of Jesus’s resurrection.
No comments:
Post a Comment