Mary, the Sister of Lazarus and Martha (John 12:1-11)
Rev. David French
03/09/22

Marie Kondo has written four books on organizing which collectively have sold over thirty million copies. They’ve been translated from Japanese into Korean, Chinese, French, German,English, and several other languages. Marie’s 2011 book, The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing has been published in more than thirty countries. It was a best seller in Japan, Europe, and the United States. And you may not remember, but in 2015 Marie Kondo was listed as one of Time’s “100 most influential people” in the world.

Marie has struck gold because she realized that people are surrounded by complexity and clutter! I like the story of the father who was teaching his three-year-old daughter the Lord’s Prayer. She would repeat the lines after him. Finally, she decided to go solo. He listened with pride as she carefully enunciated each word, right up to the end of the prayer. “Lead us not into temptation,” she prayed, “but deliver us from e-mail!” Yes! Deliver us from e-mail! Complexity and clutter!

Marie Kondo’s method of organizing is known as the Kon Mari method. It consists of gathering all your belongings, one category at a time, and then keeping only those things that bring you sparks of joy. Now I assume the idea of simplifying our lives sounds good to a lot of us. No doubt we can all do with a little less clutter, and who doesn’t want a few more sparks of joy?

As we continue to follow the apostle John on our Lenten journey, we are this evening introduced to the Marie Kondo of His gospel. “And who would that be?” you wonder. Well, Mary of course! Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus. The Mary who helps us to simplify and declutter our understanding of Christ’s Passion by offering us the key that opens our hearts to those eternal sparks of joy!

How does Mary do it? It’s simple or at least it sounds simple. Mary replaces “get” with “give.” That’s it. Replace “get” with “give.” Pretty simple, right? “Get” only clutters things. “Get” only confuses things. “Get” only makes us miserable! Get ahead. Get back. Get more. At a minimum, “get” even. But not Mary, she replaces get with give. Mary gives freely. Mary gives extravagantly. Mary gives joyfully. So if you’re stuck in an emotional rut, have lost your zeal, want to feel alive again or find those sparks of joy, then replace “get” with “give.”

Quick overview of where we’re at. In John 11, Lazarus dies; after four days, the smell of death is in the air. Jesus stands before of the tomb and weeps. He then shouts, “Lazarus, come out.” And Lazarus does, his death shroud still wrapped around him. For the Jewish leaders this was the last straw. By raising Lazarus from the dead, Jesus moves from the category of “manageable nuisance” to “serious threat.” As we read, “So from that day on they made plans to put Him to death” (John 11:53). That is, His days are now numbered!

As John 12 begins, Jesus and Lazarus are marked men. We read, “The chief priests made plans to put Lazarus to death as well because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus” (vs. 10–11). Somehow, they come to the conclusion that they had to destroy Jesus and all the evidence, that is, Lazarus as well. But at what cost? We read, “Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped His feet with her hair” (John 12:3). We’re told in John 12:5 that it was worth a year’s income. 

A year’s income! Can you imagine spending a year’s income on a bottle of perfume? I mean really whats this about? Well, this is about “get” being replaced with “give.” That means we have to pay attention to Mary. Remember, the chief priests’ plan for both Jesus and Lazarus is death. 

And so, we consider a comparison between the other two in our lesson, that is, Mary and Judas. Mary is extravagant. Mary is excessive. Mary’s gone way over the top. “And Judas Iscariot, one of His disciples (the one who was about to betray Him), says, ‘Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?’ He said this, not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief, and having charge of the moneybag he used to help himself to what was put into it” (John 12:4–6). 

Judas is threatened simply because Mary lives by one word—that is: give. The comparison couldn’t be more stark. Mary is a generous disciple. Judas is a greedy disciple. Mary gives freely. Judas is selfish. Mary sacrifices financially. Judas takes what is not his. Mary shows her faith with actions. Judas talks a good game “money for the poor,” but we know it’s a lie. Mary loves to give and Judas loves to get. Get more. Get ahead. Get on top. Eventually he will get what he deserves. 

“‘Leave her alone,’ Jesus replied, ‘so that she may keep it for the day of my burial’” (John 12:7). “The day of my burial.” You mean: Mary’s been listening and God has been working? That is she believes all that she’s heard? Things like John the Baptist saying, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” 

And Jesus teaching the crowds, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” or “as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up.” Mary’s actions indicate she believed it all and so she gives Jesus everything she has as she prepares Him to give everything He has. And the room is filled with the sweet smell of this costly perfume.

We, no doubt, have all experienced the power of the “sense of smell.” A scent that catches your nose can take you back in time to both wonderful or horrible events in your life. While words go to the thinking part of our brain, smells go to the emotional part. And that’s also true in Jesus’s case. Mary’s strong perfume lingers with Jesus throughout Holy Week as He makes His way to the cross. Even on Good Friday, the fragrance of Mary’s perfume still lingers. And then, maybe, just maybe, as Jesus gives Himself completely, He might have still been able to faintly smell the sweet fragrance. 

Both Matthew 26:13 and Mark 14:9 record, “Wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” Why is that? It’s because the kingdom of God isn’t about storing up or getting. The kingdom of God is and will always be about giving. You know: as I have given unto you so you must give? Then what? Sparks of joy! 

Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, shows us that the kingdom of God is about giving lavishly, giving generously, giving joyfully, and giving completely. “Wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” Jesus never says this about anyone else! Thanks to Mary, we can boil down life as a child of God to one simple word, give. 

In the name of Jesus who gave His life for us all, Amen.Â