Mary of Bethany as a Pattern for Worship

Many of the accounts in Scripture are patterns for worship. That is, often when the writers of Scripture recount an event, the Holy Spirit is revealing a deeper truth about how the Lord desires to be worshipped. This is the first in a series on patterns for worship in the Bible.

Shortly before Jesus entered Jerusalem to be crucified, He stopped at a familiar place called Bethany, which was the home of Mary and Martha. In John 12, we read of this account:

Six days before the Passover celebration began, Jesus arrived in Bethany… He had friends there. Bethany was a place where the Lord could share His heart and be loved and adored. It is only when our hearts have become a Bethany – a place of intimate friendship – that we can love Him well in corporate worship.

…the home of Lazarus – the man he had raised from the dead. Mary, Martha, and Lazarus saw what Jesus did for them, and they loved Him. Likewise, when we remember what He has done for us, our hearts respond in first love, and we desire to give Him praise and worship.

A dinner was prepared… Preparation shows honor. Yes, we must follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, but a lack of preparation communicates that the Lord is not worthy of our time and abilities. Prepare your setlists and practice your songs!

…in Jesus’ honor. There was one honored guest. Our worship is not for the multitudes but for Jesus alone.

Martha served, and Lazarus was among those who ate with him. There are those who serve and those who join in worship… but then there are those who give the Lord something extravagant, like Mary did.

Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping his feet with her hair. Nard was red, a color prophesying Jesus’ death and her love. As blood was streaming down His face just a few days later, perhaps He still wore on His body the stain of her love. The perfume was worth a year’s wages, but Jesus was worth every drop and more. Mary’s love was extravagant and costly. Is ours?

The house was filled with the fragrance. Our worship releases a fragrance to the Lord. It is no coincidence that incense is used throughout Scripture as a picture of worship and prayer.

But Judas Iscariot, the disciple who would soon betray him, said, “That perfume was worth a year’s wages. It should have been sold and the money given to the poor.” Extravagant worship invites criticism from those with critical hearts. But they are never the focus of our worship anyway, because we have eyes only for Jesus.

Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. She did this in preparation for my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.” What a privilege Mary had to touch Jesus and anoint Him with her love. While we cannot touch Him physically today, we can touch His heart. Our glorified Jesus still has scars in His hands, feet, and side, showing us that we can enter again into His sufferings. There is a depth of worship unknown to many but reserved for those with bridal love: to know the Lord intimately, to sit with Him in His past and present sufferings, and to minister to His heart.

Mary of Bethany loved Jesus well, and her worship is a pattern for us. Like her, let us love Him extravagantly and unreservedly because He is worthy of it all and so much more.

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.