A Noble Deed

Scripture Reading: 

Mark 14:1-9

[1] It was now two days before the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to arrest him by stealth and kill him, [2] for they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar from the people.” [3] And while he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head. [4] There were some who said to themselves indignantly, “Why was the ointment wasted like that? [5] For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.” And they scolded her. [6] But Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. [7] For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have me. [8] She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burial. [9] And truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.”

Mark 14:9 says, “And truly I say to you, Wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what this woman has done shall also be told as a memorial of her.” According to the Lord’s word here, wherever the gospel is preached, this story should be told immediately afterward. If the gospel is preached, but this story is not told, there is a great lack. Therefore, we have to speak of this story today.

What is the most significant point of this story? It is to “sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts” (1 Pet. 3:15). This story shows a practical way for the carrying out of this verse. It invokes men to do only one thing—to sanctify Christ as Lord. The Lord’s word, “Wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what this woman has done shall also be told as a memorial of her,” is an instruction to us that, after the preaching of the gospel, there must be this kind of fruit. This story unfolds to us the meaning of this kind of fruit.

“A woman [Mary—John 12:3] came, having an alabaster flask of ointment, of very costly pure nard” (Mark 14:3). Pure nard is precious enough, whereas a very costly, pure nard is unmatched in excellence. This very costly pure nard was in an alabaster flask. The alabaster flask was also very precious. Not only was Mary offering to the Lord a costly ointment, but the flask that contained the ointment was also very precious. We offer to the Lord only what is most precious.

“She broke the alabaster flask.” The alabaster flask could only be used once. For Mary, the only purpose for the flask was to anoint the Lord. Once she broke the flask for Him, it could not be used for anything else.

“And poured it over His head.” When she did this, the house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment (John 12:3). The house was filled with fragrance not only that day but even today. As we read this passage, we can sense the fragrance! This love and consecration to the Lord indeed is a fragrance that has lasted until now and will last until eternity.

She “anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair” (John 12:3). A woman’s hair is her glory (1 Cor. 11:15). She placed her glory at the feet of the Lord!

GIVING ALL TO THE LORD

At first she was only seen; now she could be smelled. She drew not only men’s criticism but their indignation. However, she ignored all of them. It did not cross her mind that this was the house of a leper. She did not consider her present family condition or her future hardships. She simply offered to the Lord in the way of risking all! We should be just as bold and willing as she was. “And the house was filled with the fragrance of the ointment.” This is absolute consecration.

There are two meanings to consecration. One is to offer something to the Lord, and the other is to be separated solely unto the Lord in a dedicated way. The ointment is for sanctification. The tabernacle with all its utensils was anointed. The words Christ and Messiah mean “the Anointed One.” We should sanctify this anointed Christ as Lord. We should anoint Him and own Him as Lord, even as our Lord. We should offer up everything to Him. We should not be afraid of following Him too foolishly or loving Him too fervently.

When a young Christian bade farewell to an older man, the latter said, “I have only one wish, that you be a fervent lover of Christ!” There cannot be a limit to our allegiance to the Lord or our loving Him, serving Him, and obeying Him. We can never overdo these things. The Lord loves to see us loving Him in a seemingly reckless way. To Him, the gospel should result in people being constrained by His death to love Him, to consecrate to Him, and to fully obey Him to the point that others would consider them extreme.

The degree that we offer ourselves to Him is dependent on the worth of the Lord to us. To those who believe, the Lord is precious (1 Pet. 2:7). Peter knew what this word meant. This is why he used the word precious many times in his epistles. He applied the word precious to the blood, the faith, the stone, the virtues, and so forth.

“LEAVE HER ALONE”

What did the disciples do when Mary acted this way? “But there were some who were indignantly commenting among themselves: Why has this waste of the ointment been made?” (Mark 14:4). They thought that this was a waste, but wasn’t the One being anointed worthy of the ointment? If this was a waste, it would mean that the Lord was not worthy of it. Can anything be called a waste when it is applied to the Lord? Those who have never loved the Lord with a single heart think that too much consecration and obedience is a waste. In man’s eyes, obeying the Lord, loving Him, and giving up everything for Him may be too much and a waste, but such criticism only shows the degree of love that the criticizing ones have.

“For this ointment could have been sold for over three hundred denarii and given to the poor” (v. 5). They had a better way of using the money, which was to give to the poor. They considered it too much to serve the Lord but not too much to serve men. Those who do not love Christ will surely replace loving the Lord with doing works for Him. Those who think that offering the best to the Lord is a waste will spend their best on men.

Unbelievers reserve everything for themselves. Christians know that it is wrong to be selfish, so the question is, on whom should the three hundred denarii be spent? Either it is spent on Christ, or it is spent on men. What a pity that many believers today are like the disciples of that day. They do not have a heart single for Christ. They do not have the purity and the fervent love for Christ. Instead, they try to fill this inward lack with outward works.

“And they were infuriated with her” (v. 5). At the beginning they were only criticizing. Later they became infuriated with the woman, but Mary could not take back the ointment just because they were infuriated. The flask was broken and the ointment had flowed out. No sacrifice can be retrieved from the altar. Mary dared to do this out of love to the Lord. She did not care about others’ criticism and fury.

The Lord said, “Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her?” (v. 6). What He meant was that it was all right for her to love Him and obey Him too much. There was no need to criticize her. To criticize her this way was to trouble her. It would be wonderful if they would love Him as Mary did, but if they couldn’t, they should not stop others from loving Him this way. We should not hinder those who love the Lord, nor should we bother them.

In the eyes of man, Mary’s act was indeed a waste and was too much. To the natural mind, it was enough to use ordinary ointment. There was no need to use pure nard. And even if pure nard was used, there was no need to have it in an alabaster flask. Even if one used an alabaster flask, there was no need to spend three hundred denarii on it. They could not keep themselves from criticizing and even becoming infuriated. To the Lord, however, this act was permissible and was not to be criticized.

At that time, three hundred denarii was enough money to buy a slave. It was enough to hire a few laborers for a few months. When the Lord went to Bethany and stayed at the house of Mary, Martha was busy serving (Luke 10:38–42). This shows that they were not rich, for Martha did not have any slave to help her. Mary did not care for her own ease and comfort but spent her all on the Lord. We cannot love the Lord or serve Him too much. It is not a waste to spend everything on the Lord.

“She has done a noble deed on Me” (v. 6). The Lord contradicted the disciples’ concept, who thought that such an anointing and consecration to Him was a waste. The Lord said that it was a noble deed and not a waste. It is a noble deed to love Him too much, to obey Him too much, and to be spent on Him too much. It is a noble deed to love Him to the extent that we ignore the criticism of those who are older in the Lord. It is a noble deed to love Him to the extent that we pour everything on Him. This is not a waste.

The Lord’s thought is that we can never be too much in the way we treat Him. Our love to Him can never be too much. Our obedience to Him can never be too much. No matter how man sees it, and no matter how those who serve together criticize, the Lord says that this is a noble deed. The result of the preaching of the gospel is not just to save sinners but to make every saved person a lover of Christ. This is why the Scripture says, “If anyone does not love the Lord, let him be accursed!” (1 Cor. 16:22).

TODAY IS THE DAY TO OFFER

All the Marys should be satisfied with this word from the Lord. If we are looking for approval from our fellow disciples, we will have to live according to the worldly wisdom, and we cannot consecrate according to what is on the Lord’s heart. We should be satisfied with the Lord’s approval and not be concerned about men’s criticism.

The Lord was not opposed to the idea of giving to the poor. He was only opposed to their remark that this was too much and that it was a waste to pour out the ointment on the Lord. He told them, “For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you do not always have Me” (Mark 14:7). The Lord meant that there would be many more opportunities for them to give to the poor, but the time was short for them to serve Him.

“She has done what she could” (v. 8). The question here is not how much was spent on the Lord but how much was withheld. For the rich to give a little to the Lord is not difficult, but it is difficult for the poor to offer up all they have to the Lord. “She has done what she could.” She did not save anything for herself but gave all that she could.

Without giving all, there is no love. If we love God, we have to love with all our heart, all our soul, all our strength, and all our mind. Many times our attitude toward the Lord is no better than our attitude toward a taxi driver. Sometimes we give a few coins to the taxi driver, but we think it is a waste to give even a few coins to the Lord. What a pity this is!

Why did Mary do this? “She has anointed My body beforehand for the burial” (v. 8). In another two days the Lord would die. In the Gospel according to Matthew, the Lord mentioned four times to the disciples that He was going to die, but they did not understand. Only Mary understood. She understood that the Lord was going to die for her to deliver her from the punishment of hell. She loved the Lord, and she had to anoint Him. The real power of love to the Lord comes from His death. Those who do not understand the Lord’s death cannot truly love Him.

One has to be on time to anoint the Lord. After the Lord resurrected, it was too late to anoint Him. Mary Magdalene bought some ointment and went early on the first day of the week to anoint the Lord’s body, but she could not anoint Him (Luke 24:1; Matt.28:1). The Lord had resurrected, and it was too late. “Anointed My body beforehand.” Today is the time for us to consecrate ourselves to the Lord. If we wait, it may be too late!

After the Lord resurrected, it was too late to anoint Him. After we have resurrected, it will be too late to consecrate ourselves to Him and love Him single-heartedly. At the time of the resurrection, even if there were a thousand worlds, we would gladly give them all up to love the Lord Jesus. We need to have now the fullness of love that we will have for Him after the resurrection. Now is the time for us to love the Lord.

Related Messages:

God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.[1 John 4:16b]

Praise the Lord, He is love! Nothing is better than abiding in love! It is true in the human realm as well as in the spiritual realm. Why does the condition of an orphan strike us as so sad? It is because they lack love. Our happiest moments are when we are filled with love. Childhood is the happiest time in human life, but children don’t know how to appreciate it. The next happiest is when we fall in love and get married. At this time, many know how to appreciate love, and many write songs and poems to praise the experience. However, the highest eternal love is the love of Christ! His love is poured out in our hearts. When we touch Him and come close to Him, His love makes us so satisfied. We may weep and soften our stony hearts, which then become hearts of flesh. We begin to have so many feelings toward the things of God. Why? It is because of love. When we have such love, we can tell the Lord, “Lord, I enjoy Your presence. I’d like to live for You!”

I want to encourage you to enjoy the Spirit as life in these three ways, so that love may operate in you. When love operates, you must tell the Lord how much you love Him. I am seventy years old. I still tell the Lord, “Lord, I do love You. No one is more lovely than You.” 

You need to tell the Lord how you love Him. You should tell Him, “Lord, I love You!” all the time. You should tell Him,“O Lord, I love You, I really love You. Although I don’t grow much, I do love You.” When you dwell in His love and speak a word of love to Him, you will be very close to Him. You need to tell Him everything and remind Him, “I love You. I read the Bible because I love You. I come to the meeting because I love You. I got some help today but I still tell You I love You.” When you fall, you need to tell Him, “Lord, I fell, but I love You. I failed, but I love You. I am surprised that You love a fallen man like me, and I am amazed that I can still tell You that I love You!”

(Excerpted from "Come to the Presence of the Lord" by Titus Chu - "He is Love" Chapter 5)

Enjoy the Hymns:

《你的灵岂非已见祂过》生命诗歌329首；选本诗歌169首

《无限无价的你》生命诗歌 683首

《亲爱主，宝贝主》生命诗歌679首；选本诗歌179首

Questions:

1.What should we offer to the Lord?

2.Can we offer too much to the Lord?

3.When is the right time to consecrate ourselves to the Lord?

Prayer:

Dear Lord, You are so precious, and You deserve my best. Even if I offered everything I have to You, I would still feel shameful. What are all these things compared to the glorious and holy Lord? Because You are so valuable to me, I am willing to break the alabaster flask and pour out the ointment upon You. There is no waste in giving all to You. Lord, I praise You! You deserve my highest consecration, so I ask that You would encourage me, Lord, to give myself to You today.

Application and Practice:

In the morning, spend 20 minutes to sing a hymn or pray a few words, saying to the Lord, I love you, and I consecrate myself to the Lord!

የመጽሐፍ ቅዱስ ንባብ፡- ማርቆስ 14፡1-9

ማርቆስ 14፡9 “ እውነት እላችኋለሁ፥ ይህ ወንጌል በዓለሙ ሁሉ በሚሰበክበት በማናቸውም ስፍራ፥ እርስዋ ያደረገችው ደግሞ ለእርስዋ መታሰቢያ ሊሆን ይነገራል።" ይላል።

 እዚህ ላይ እንደ ጌታ ቃል፣ ወንጌል በተሰበከበት ቦታ ሁሉ፣ ይህ ታሪክ ወዲያው መነገር አለበት።  ወንጌል ተሰብኮ ነገር ግን ይህ ታሪክ ካልተነገረ ትልቅ ጉድለት አለ።  ስለዚህ ዛሬ ይህንን ታሪክ መናገር አ

ለብን። የዚህ ታሪክ በጣም አስፈላጊው ነጥብ ምንድን ነው?  “ክርስቶስን ጌታ አድርጎ በልባችሁ ለመቀደስ” (1ጴጥ. 3፡15) ነው።  ይህ ታሪክ ይህንን ጥቅስ ለማስፈጸም የሚያስችል ተግባራዊ መንገድ ያሳያል።  ሰዎችን አንድ ነገር ብቻ እንዲያደርጉ ይጋብዛል—ክርስቶስን 

እንደ ጌታ ለመቀደስ።  “ወንጌል በዓለም ሁሉ በሚሰበክበት ሁሉ ይህች ሴት ያደረገችው ለእርስዋ መታሰቢያ ይሆን ዘንድ ይነገራል” የሚለው የጌታ ቃል ለእኛ ትዕዛዝ ነው። ከወንጌል ስብከት በኋላ እንዲህ ዓይነት ፍሬ መኖር አለበት። ይህ ታሪክ የዚህን አይነት ፍሬ ትርጉም ይገልጥልናል። 

 “አንዲት ሴት [ማርያም—ዮሐ 12:3] ''ማርያምም ዋጋው እጅግ ውድ የሆነ፣ ንጹሕ የናርዶስ ሽቱ '' ይዛ መጣች ።  ንፁህ ናርዶስ በበቂ ሁኔታ ውድ ነው፣ ነገር ግን በጣም ውድ እና ንፁህ ናርዶስ በላቀ ደረጃ ተወዳዳሪ የለውም።  ይህ በጣም ውድ የሆነ ንጹህ ናርዶስ በአልባስጥሮስ ብልቃጥ ውስጥ ነበር።  የአልባስጥሮስ ብልቃጥም በጣም ውድ ነበር።  ማርያም ለጌታ ያቀረበችው ውድ ሽቱ ብቻ ሳይሆን ሽቱ የያዘው ብልቃጥም በጣም ውድ ነበር።  ለጌታ የምናቀርበው እጅግ 

ውድ የሆነውን ብቻ ነው።"የአልባስጥሮሱን ብልቃጥ ሰበረችው።"  የአልባስጥሮስ ብልቃጥ አንድ ጊዜ ብቻ ጥቅም ላይ ሊውል ይችላል።  ለማርያም የጠርሙሱ አላማው ጌታን መቀባት ብቻ ነበር።  አንድ ጊዜ ብልቃጡን ከሰበረችለት፣ ለሌላ ነገር መጠቀም አይቻልም።"እናም በራሱ ላይ አፈሰሰችው።"  ይህንንም ባደረገች ጊዜ ቤቱን የሽቱ መዓዛ ሞላው (ዮሐ. 12፡3)።  ቤቱ በዚያ ቀን ብቻ ሳይሆን ዛሬም በሽቶ ይሞላል።  ይህንን ክፍል ስናነብ ሽታውን እናሸታለን!  ይህ ለጌታ ያለ ፍቅርና መሰጠት እስከ አሁን የኖረ እና እስከ ዘላለም የሚኖር መዓዛ ነው። እሷም “የኢየሱስን እግር ቀባች እግሩንም በጠጕርዋ አበሰች” (ዮሐ. 12፡3)።  የሴት ፀጉር ክብሯ ነው (1ቆሮ. 11፡15)።  ክብሯን በጌታ እግር ስር አስቀመጠች!

ሁሉን ለጌታ መስጠት

መጀመሪያ ላይ እሷ ብቻ ታየች። አሁን ግን እሷ መሽተት ትችላለች። የወንዶችን ትችት ብቻ ሳይሆን ቁጣቸውን ሳበች።  ሆኖም ግን ሁሉንም ችላ ብላቸዋለች።  ይህ የለምፃም ቤት እንደሆነ አላሰበችም።  አሁን ያላትን የቤተሰቧን ሁኔታም ሆነ ወደፊት ሊገጥማት የሚችለውን ችግር አላሰበችም። ሁሉንም ለአደጋ በማጋለጥ በቀላሉ ለጌታ አቀረበች! 

 እኛ እንደ እሷ ደፋር እና ፈቃደኛ መሆን አለብን።  " ቤቱም በቅባቱ መዓዛ ተሞልቶ ነበር ።"  ይህ ፍጹም መሰጠት ነው። መሰጠት ሁለት ትርጉሞች አሉት።  አንደኛው አንድን ነገር ለጌታ ማቅረብ ሲሆን ሁለተኛው ደግሞ ለጌታ ብቻ በተሰጠ ማንነት መለየት ማለት ነው። ቅባቱ ለመቀደስ ነው።  የማደሪያው ድንኳን ከነሙሉ 

ዕቃው የተቀባ ነበር።  ክርስቶስ እና መሲህ የሚሉት ቃላት “የተቀባው” የሚል ትርጉም አላቸው።  ይህንን የተቀባውን ክርስቶስን ጌታ አድርገን ልንቀድሰው ይገባል።  ልንቀባው እና ጌታ አድርገን ልንይዘው ይገባናል፣ እንደ ጌታችንም ጭምር።  ሁሉንም ነገር ለእርሱ ማቅረብ አለብን።  እርሱን በጣም በሞኝነት ለመከተል ወይም እሱን አጥብቀን ለመውደድ መፍራት የለብንም።አንድ ወጣት ክርስቲያን አንድን አረጋዊ ሰው ሲሰናበተው የኋለኛው “ምኞቴ አንድ ብቻ ነው፤ አንተ ክርስቶስን የምትወድ እንድትሆን ምኞቴ  ነው!” አለው።  ለጌታ ለምናሳየው ታማኝነት ወይም ለመውደድ፣ እሱን ለማገልገል እና እሱን ለመታዘዝ ገደብ ሊኖረን አይችልም።  እነዚህን ነገሮች ከልክ በላይ አደረግናቸው ልንል አንችልም።  ጌታ በግዴለሽነት በሚመስለው መንገድ እሱን ስንወደው ለማየት ይወዳል።  

ለእርሱ፣የወንጌል ውጤት ሰዎች በሞቱ እንዲገደዱ ሌሎች እንደ ጽንፈኛ እስከሚቆጥሯቸው ድረስ እሱን እንዲወዱት፣ ለእርሱ የተሰጡ እና ሙሉ በሙሉ እንዲታዘዙት  እንዲያደርጋቸው  ይፈልጋል።

 እራሳችንን ለእርሱ የምናቀርብበት ደረጃ፤ ጌታ በእኛ ዘንድ ያለው ዋጋ ላይ ይወሰናል። ለሚያምኑት ጌታ እጅግ ውድ ነው(1ጴጥ.2፡7)።  ጴጥሮስ ይህ ቃል ምን ማለት እንደሆነ ያውቅ ነበር።  በመልእክቶቹ ውስጥ ብዙ ጊዜ እጅግ ውድ የሚለውን ቃል የተጠቀመበት ለዚህ ነው።  እጅግ ውድ የሚለውን ቃል በደም፣ በእምነት፣ በድንጋይ፣ በመልካም ምግባር እና በመሳሰሉት ስራ ላይ አውሎታል።

ብቻዋን ተውኣት

ማርያም እንዲህ ባደረገች ጊዜ ደቀ መዛሙርቱ ምን አደረጉ?“ በዚያ ከነበሩት አንዳንዶቹ በድርጊቱ ተቈጥተው እንዲህ ይባባሉ ነበር፤ ሽቱው ለምን በከንቱ ይባክናል? ''ማርቆስ 14:4 

 ይህ ከንቱ መስሏቸው ነበር፣ ነገር ግን የተቀባው ቅባት የሚገባው አልነበረም?  ይህ በከንቱ ከሆነ፣ ጌታ አይገባውም ነበር ማለት ነው።  ለጌታ ተደርጎ ሊባክን የሚችል ነገር አለ?  በሙሉ ልብ ጌታን ወደው የማያውቁ ሰዎች ከመጠን በላይ መሰጠትንና መታዘዝን ከንቱ ማባከን እንደሆነ ያስባሉ።  በሰው ዓይን ጌታን መታዘዝ፣ እርሱን መውደድ እና ሁሉን ነገር ለእርሱ አሳልፎ መስጠት ብዙ እና ከንቱ ሊሆን ይችላል፣ ነገር ግን እንዲህ ያለው ትችት የሚያሳየው ተቺዎች ያላቸውን የፍቅር ደረጃ 

ብቻ ነው።  

''ከሦስት መቶ ዲናር በላይ ተሸጦ፣ ገንዘቡን ለድኾች መስጠት ይቻል ነበር። ሴትዮዋንም ነቀፏት።''ማርቆስ 14:5

 ገንዘብን ለመጠቀም የተሻለ መንገድ ነበራቸው፣ እሱም ለድሆች መስጠት ነበር። ጌታን ለማገልገል በጣም በዛ ይላሉ ነገር ግን ሰዎችን ለማገልገል ብዙ አይደለም።  ክርስቶስን የማይወዱ ሁሉ ጌታን መውደድን ለእርሱ በመሥራት ይተካሉ።  ለጌታ ምርጡን ማድረግን ማባከን ነው ብለው የሚያስቡ ሰዎች ምርጡን ለሰዎች ያደርጋሉ።

እማያምኑ ሰዎች ሁሉን ነገር ለራሳቸው ያስቀምጣሉ።  ክርስቲያኖች ራስ ወዳድ መሆን ስህተት መሆኑን ያውቃሉ። ስለዚህ ጥያቄው ሦስት መቶ ዲናር ለማን መዋል አለበት የሚለው ነው።  ወይ ለክርስቶስ ይውላል ወይ 

ለሰዎች ይውላል።  ዛሬ ብዙ አማኞች በዚያን ዘመን እንደነበሩት ደቀመዛሙርት መሆናቸው እንዴት ያሳዝናል።  ለክርስቶስ አንድ ልብ የላቸውም።  ለክርስቶስ ንጽህና እና የጋለ ፍቅር የላቸውም።  ይልቁንም ይህንን ውስጣዊ ጉድለት በውጫዊ ስራዎች ለመሙላት ይሞክራሉ። "በእሷም ተቆጡ" (ቁ.5).  መጀመሪያ ላይ ትችት ብቻ ነበር፤በኋላ ግን በሴቲቱ ተናደዱ፣ ማርያም ግን ስለ ተናደዱ ብቻ ሽቱን መልሳ አልወሰደችውም።

ብልቃጡ ተሰበረ እና ቅባቱ ፈሰሰ።  ከመሠዊያው ምንም አይነት መስዋዕትነት መመለስ አይቻልም።  ማርያም ይህን ለማድረግ የደፈረችው ለጌታ ስላላት ፍቅር ነው።  ለሌሎች ትችት እና ቁጣ ደንታ አልነበራትም።

ኢየሱስ ግን እንዲህ አላቸው፤ “ተዉአት፣ ለምን 

ታስቸግሯታላችሁ? መልካም ነገር አድርጋልኛለች።''ማርቆስ 14:6

እሱ ለማለት የፈለገው እሱን መውደድ እና እሱን ከልክ በላይ መታዘዝ ለእርሷ ምንም አይደለም ለማለት ነው።  እሷን መተቸት አያስፈልግም ነበር።  እሷን በዚህ መንገድ መንቀፍ እሷን ማስጨነቅ ነው።  እንደ ማርያም ቢወዱት ጥሩ ነበር ነገር ግን ካልቻሉ ሌሎችን በዚህ መንገድ እንዳይወዱት መከልከል የለባቸውም።  ጌታን የሚወዱ ሰዎችን ማደናቀፍ የለብንም፤ ልናስቸግራቸውም አይገባም። በሰው ፊት የማርያም ተግባር በእርግጥም ከንቱ እና እጅግ የበዛ ነበር።  ለተፈጥሮ አእምሮ, ተራ ቅባት መጠቀም በቂ ነበር፤  ንጹህ ናርዶስ መጠቀም አያስፈልግም ነበር፤ንጹህ ናርዶስ ጥቅም ላይ የዋለ ቢሆንም፣ አልባስጥሮስ ብልቃጡ አያስፈልግም ነበር።  አንድ ሰው የአልባስጥሮስ ብልቃጥ ቢጠቀምም በላዩ 

ላይ ሦስት መቶ ዲናር ማውጣት አያስፈልግም ነበር።  ራሳቸውን ከመተቸት አልፎ ተርፎም ከመናደድ መቆጠብ አልቻሉም።  በጌታ ዘንድ ግን ይህ ድርጊት ተፈቅዶ ነበር እና ሊነቅፍ አልቻለም።በዚያን ጊዜ ባሪያ ለመግዛት ሦስት መቶ ዲናር በቂ ገንዘብ ነበር።  ለጥቂት ወራት ጥቂት ሠራተኞችን ለመቅጠር ገንዘቡ በቂ ነበር።  ጌታ ወደ ቢታንያ ሄዶ በማርያም ቤት በተቀመጠ ጊዜ፣ ማርታ በማገልገል ላይ ነበረች (ሉቃስ 10፡38–42)።  ይህ የሚያሳየው እነሱ ሀብታም እንዳልሆኑ ነው፣ ምክንያቱም ማርታ የሚረዳት ባሪያ አልነበራትም።  ማርያም ለራሷ ምቾት ደንታ አልነበራትም ነገር ግን ሁሉንም ከጌታ ጋር አሳልፋለች። ጌታን ለመውደድ ወይም ለማገልገል አሁንስ በዛ ልንል አንችልም።  ሁሉን ነገር በጌታ ላይ ማውጣት በከንቱ አይደለም "በእኔ ላይ መልካም ሥራ ሠርታለች"(ቁ.6)  

ጌታ የደቀመዛሙርቱን ሃሳብ ተቃርኖ ነበር፣ እነሱ ለእርሱ እንደዚህ ያለ ቅባት እና መሰጠት ጥፋት ነው ብለው ያስባሉ።  ጌታ የተከበረ ተግባር እንጂ ጥፋት አይደለም ብሏል።  እርሱን አብዝቶ መውደድ፣ እርሱን አብዝቶ መታዘዝ፣ ለእርሱም አብዝቶ መከፈል መልካም ሥራ ነው።  በጌታ በዕድሜ የገፉ ሰዎች የሚሰነዘሩትን ትችት ችላ እስከምንል ድረስ እርሱን መውደድ ታላቅ ተግባር ነው።  ሁሉን ነገር በእርሱ ላይ እስከምናፈስበት ድረስ እርሱን መውደድ ታላቅ ሥራ ነው።  ይህ ማባከን አይደለም የጌታ ሃሳብ እርሱን በምንይዝበት መንገድ በዛ ልንል አንችልም የሚል ነው።  ለእርሱ ያለን ፍቅር ፈጽሞ ሊበዛ አይችልም።  ለእርሱ መታዘዛችን ፈጽሞ ሊበዛ አይችልም።  ሰው ምንም ቢል እና አብረው የሚያገለግሉት ምንም ቢነቅፉ፣ ጌታ ይህ የተከበረ ተግባር ነው ይላል።  የወንጌል ስብከት ውጤት 

ኃጢአተኞችን ማዳን ብቻ ሳይሆን እያንዳንዱ የዳነ ሰው የክርስቶስ አፍቃሪ ማድረግ ነው።  ለዚህ ነው መፅሐፍ ቅዱስ “ጌታን የማይወድ ቢኖር የተረገመ ይሁን!” ያለው (1ኛ ቆሮ. 16፡22)።

ለመስጠት ዛሬ ቀኑ ነው

ሁሉም ማርያሞች በዚህ የጌታ ቃል ሊረኩ ይገባቸዋል።  ከደቀ መዛሙርቶቻችን ዘንድ ተቀባይነትን የምንፈልግ ከሆነ፣ እንደ ዓለማዊ ጥበብ መኖር አለብን፤ እናም በጌታ ልብ ባለው ነገር መሰጠት አንችልም።  በጌታ ይሁንታ መርካት እንጂ ለሰው ትችት መጨነቅ የለብንም።ጌታ ለድሆች የመስጠትን ሃሳብ አልተቃወመም።  ይህ በጣም ብዙ ነው እና በጌታ ላይ ቅባት ማፍሰስ ጥፋት ነው የሚለውን ንግግራቸውን ብቻ ተቃወመ።  

ድሆች ሁል ጊዜ ከእናንተ ጋር ይኖራሉና፥ በፈለጋችሁትም ጊዜ መልካም ልታደርጉላቸው ትችላላችሁ።  እናንተ ግን ሁልጊዜ ከእኔ ጋር አይደላችሁም” (ማርቆስ 14፡7)  ጌታ ለድሆች ለመስጠት ብዙ ተጨማሪ እድሎች ይኖራል ማለቱ ነበር፤ ነገር ግን እርሱን የሚያገለግሉበት ጊዜ አጭር ነበር::"የምትችለውን አድርጋለች"(ቁ.8)  እዚህ ላይ ጥያቄው ለጌታ ምን ያህል ወጪ እንደወጣ ሳይሆን ምን ያህል እንደተከለከለ ነው።  ለሀብታሞች ለጌታ ትንሽ መስጠት ከባድ አይደለም ለድሆች ግን ያላቸውን ሁሉ ለጌታ ማቅረብ ከባድ ነው።  "የምትችለውን አድርጋለች."  የምትችለውን ሁሉ ሰጠች እንጂ ለራሷ ምንም አላስቀረችም።

 ሁሉን ሳንሰጥ ፍቅር የለም።  እግዚአብሔርን የምንወድ ከሆነ በፍጹም ልባችን በፍጹም ነፍሳችን በፍጹም ኃይላችን እና በፍጹም 

አእምሮአችን መውደድ አለብን።  ብዙ ጊዜ ለጌታ ያለን አመለካከት ለታክሲ ሹፌር ካለን አመለካከት አይሻልም።  አንዳንድ ጊዜ ለታክሲ ሹፌር ጥቂት ሳንቲሞች እንሰጣለን ነገር ግን ጥቂት ሳንቲሞችን ለጌታ መስጠት ኪሳራ ነው ብለን እናስባለን።  ይህ እንዴት የሚያሳዝን ነገር ነው! ማርያም ለምን ይህን አደረገች?“ለመቃብሬ እንዲሆን ሰውነቴን አስቀድማ ቀብታለች ''(ቁ.8) 

 ጌታ ይሞታል።  በማቴዎስ ወንጌል ውስጥ ጌታ እንደሚሞት ለደቀ መዛሙርቱ አራት ጊዜ ተናግሮ ነበር ነገር ግን አልተረዱም።  ማርያም ብቻ ተረድታለች።  ከገሃነም ቅጣት ሊያድናት ጌታ ሊሞትላት እንደሆነ ተረድታለች።  ጌታን ትወድ ነበር፣ እናም እርሱን መቀባት ነበረባት።  ለጌታ የሚኖረን እውነተኛ የፍቅር ኃይል የሚመጣው ከሞቱ ነው።  የጌታን ሞት ያልተረዱ በእውነት እሱን መውደድ 

አይችሉም።ጌታን ለመቀባት በሰዓቱ መገኘት አለብን።  ጌታ ከሞት ከተነሳ በኋላ እርሱን ለመቀባት አናገኘው፤ አርፍደናል።  መቅደላዊት ማርያም ሽቱ ገዝታ ከሳምንቱ በመጀመሪያው ቀን በማለዳ የጌታን ሥጋ ልትቀባው ሄደች ግን ልትቀባው አልቻለችም (ሉቃስ 24:1, ማቴ. 28:1).  ጌታ ከሞት ተነስቷል፣ እናም በጣም ረፍዶ ነበር።“አስቀድማ ሰውነቴን ቀባች።''  ዛሬ ራሳችንን ለጌታ የምንሰጥበት ጊዜ ነው።  ከቆየን በጣም ዘግይቶ ሊሆን ይችላል! ጌታ ከሞት ከተነሳ በኋላ እርሱን ለመቀባት ዘግይቶ ነበር።  ከሞት ከተነሳን በኋላ ራሳችንን ለእርሱ ለመስጠት እና እርሱን በአንድ ልብ ለመውደድ በጣም ይረፍዳል።  በትንሳኤው ጊዜ፣ ሺህ ዓለማት ቢኖሩም፣ ሁሉንም ጌታ ኢየሱስን እንድንወድ በደስታ እንሰጠዋለን። ከትንሣኤ በኋላ ለእርሱ የሚሆንልን የፍቅር ሙላት አሁን ሊኖረን ይገባል።  ጌታን የምንወድበት ጊዜ 

አሁን ነው።

ጥያቄዎች፡-

1. ለጌታ ምን ማቅረብ አለብን?

2. ለጌታ በጣም ብዙ ማቅረብ እንችላለን?

3. ራሳችንን ለጌታ የምንሰጥበት ትክክለኛው ጊዜ መቼ ነው?

ጸሎት፡- ጌታ ሆይ፣ አንተ በጣም ውድ ነህ፣ እናም ምርጤ ይገባሃል።  ያለኝን ሁሉ ባቀርብልህ እንኳ አሳፋሪ ሆኖ ይሰማኛል።  እነዚህ ሁሉ ነገሮች ከክብርና ከቅዱስ ጌታ ጋር ሲነጻጸሩ ምንድናቸው?  ለእኔ በጣም ውድ ስለሆንክ የአልባስጥሮሱን ብልቃጥ ሰብሬ ሽቱን ላፈስብህ ፈቃደኛ ነኝ።  ሁሉንም ለአንተ በመስጠት ምንም ብክነት የለም።  ጌታ ሆይ አመሰግንሃለሁ!  የእኔ በጣም መሰጠት ይገባሃል፣ ስለዚህ ጌታ ሆይ፣ ዛሬ ራሴን ለአንተ 

እንድሰጥ እንድታበረታኝ እለምንሃለሁ።