Can you smell it?

Monday, March 25                             John 12:1-8

Lydia Wingo Kane

In only eight verses, John’s gospel in chapter 12 draws us into a story that doesn’t exist without knowledge of what has happened in the past and what is to come. Jesus has a history and a connection with each of the four people around the table at the home of Lazarus. Martha is there. Lazarus, newly raised from the dead, is hosting. Mary is there with her costly perfume. And Judas is there, providing the conflict for the scene. Through this brief interaction we see so much, and are reminded of how present Jesus was to the physical world as he prepared for his death.

We enter the scene in verse 12:1 thinking of the miraculous story of Lazarus. Then we are introduced to Martha who is serving and quickly told that Mary uses expensive perfume to anoint Jesus’ feet. We are not left to dwell on that strange scene, except for the comment that the smell filled the house, but are pressed forward into Judas’ argument that Mary has wasted money that could have been spent on the poor. As I read these verses I struggled to pause to take in the sights and smells on the page, but felt compelled to keep reading to see how Jesus responded to Judas. There is a push and pull within these verses that overwhelms the senses and throws the mind off balance.

Think about it. What would it be like to have dinner with a man who had been dead? How would you react to seeing someone have their feet anointed? Would the smell have been so pungent that it was sickening? And in the midst of the senses being overwhelmed by the intensity of the perfume, Judas poses a question sure to create conflict.

Finally the situation is resolved in two verses. Jesus’ words are sobering. Mary has anointed him to prepare him for death. Judas is creating an argument with references to broad ideas and hypothetical situations. Jesus is thinking of being in relationship with the ones around him and his connection to the earth. He is thinking of his own burial.

This story draws my attention to the physical, human aspect of the Easter story. Can you smell the perfume? Can you see the well-known characters interacting? I hope that as we approach the time when we remember Passover as well as the Easter celebration we can remember what it meant for Jesus to be both fully human and fully divine as he prepared for death. We know and anticipate the joy that is to come, but we cannot forget the human journey Jesus participated in to get to resurrection.

Prayer: Help me to understand what it meant for you, Lord, to live in this world. Help me to find balance between the things of this world and the anticipation of your fulfilled promise for your kingdom. Amen.

Daily challenge: Think about the people, experiences, sights, and smells that form your memories and understanding of Lent and Easter.