Scripture

Mary took a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she wiped it on Jesus’ feet, and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

Observation

Lazarus, Mary and Martha hold a feast in honour of Jesus. During the meal, Mary takes a pint of expensive perfume and pours it on Jesus’ feet. The fragrance fills the house.

Judas asks why the perfume wasn’t sold to give to the poor. Jesus tells him to leave Mary alone.

Meanwhile a large crowd gathers to see both Jesus and Lazarus. The chief priest make plans to kill Lazarus as well as Jesus.

Application

In a sacrificial act of worship, Mary poured out expensive perfume on Jesus’ feet, and the fragrance of it filled the house.

True worship will always be costly. It may carry a financial cost as we sow into God’s kingdom. A bottle of perfume worth a year’s wages is an extravagant act of worship.

Mary’s worship was costly in terms of her reputation and people’s opinions of her. She didn’t care about that. She poured out her love for Jesus in a way that seemed excessive to all who did not have a heart for worship.

Worship is about honouring Jesus. The whole feast was about Jesus, not the quality of the food or the living standards of the hosts. When we allow our adoration of Jesus to be side-stepped by the choice of songs or the noise of children, we have missed the point. We must focus on Jesus.

There is a fragrance about sincere, heart-felt worship. It fills the house, even the city, and it transform the neighbourhood. It can do nothing less.

Judas was not impressed. He didn’t see that Jesus, the Son of God, was worthy of honour. He found self-righteous reasons to justify his lack of worship, but he missed the point because his heart was not right.

Prayer

Lord, teach me to worship you extravagantly all my life. Amen.

Scripture

“My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”

Observation

At the Feast of Dedication, the Jewish leaders again confront Jesus. They demand that Jesus tell them plainly that He is the Christ.

Jesus replies that He has already said plainly that He is the Christ, and that His miracles confirm this. The problem is that they do not hear His voice because they are not His sheep.

The Jews try to seize Jesus to stone Him, but He evades them and goes back to the Jordan, where many believe in Him.

Application

To be a follower or a sheep of Jesus means that we recognise His voice. There are several ways of doing this:

1. Through the Bible. The Bible is God’s word to us. It reveals His nature, His desire to set us free from sin, and His will for the way we should live.

2. Through the preaching of the Word and the worship of the community of faith. The local church is a great focal point for seeing how God’s people live, and also for pointing out the blind spots in our understanding.

3. The Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit dwells in the heart of every true believer. He is the voice of Christ inside us, guiding us into righteousness, convicting us of sin, and raising our consciousness of our ability and opportunities to serve Christ.

4. The extraordinary gifts of the Holy Spirit such as prophecy and words of knowledge. The Holy Spirit speaks to us in the “still, small voice”, speaking directly into specific situations. Sometimes other people will bring to us a word that confirms what God has already been saying to us, or perhaps sparking something new about the direction we should take.

In all of these ways, the Lord never contradicts Himself, and our main check should be the Scriptures. God will never tell you to commit adultery or to steal; but He will give you insights into loving Him and the people around you more.

Prayer

Thank you Lord that you speak often to us. Help me to recognise your voice. Amen

Scripture

“Ever since the world began, no one has ever been able to open the eyes of someone born blind. If this man were not from God, he couldn’t have done it.”

Observation

Jesus comes across a man who was born blind. His disciples ask who sinned to cause this to happen. Jesus replies that it is for God’s glory, and proceeds to restore the man’s sight.

There is some doubt about whether this man is the same beggar, but he keeps testifying “I am the one.”

The Pharisees get involved. They conclude that Jesus could not have done this because He is a sinner. The man responds by saying, “God doesn’t listen to sinners, yet Jesus healed my sight. He couldn’t have done this if He were not from God.”

Application

The healing of someone born blind was a miracle that people believed only the Messiah could perform. In the investigation into this matter, every alternative explanation is explored. Even when it is clear that the man born blind is healed, the Pharisees could not accept that Jesus is the Messiah because they had already labelled Him a sinner.

The man’s testimony is vital in this narrative. Nobody has healed a man born blind, and certainly a sinner could not do this. Jesus must be who He claims to be, even if the Pharisees don’t like it.

God often comes to us in ways that are surprising or that defy our understanding. Maybe we don’t like the person who prays for healing for us. Maybe a prophetic word is delivered in a way we find offensive.

Sometimes God answers prayer in a way that we don’t expect, and we find it hard to see how this could be His work.

Always we need to look beyond circumstances and past our prejudices. God appears to us in surprising ways because He is bigger and smarter than we are!

Prayer

Lord, thank you for every answered prayer and every God encounter, even when they don’t look the way I expect. Amen.

Scripture

Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teaching. You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Observation

Jesus continues to teach the crowds at the Temple. He tells them that because they are from below and belong to this world, they will die in their sins.

The people do not understand who Jesus is or what He is saying to them. He tells them that when they see Him lifted up on the cross, then they will know that He is the one sent by the Father.

Everyone who sins is a slave to sin, and many of those who claim to be children of Abraham are in fact children of the devil.

Application

The true disciple of Jesus is the one who remains faithful to His teachings. Saying a prayer or going to church will not save you. You must be born again in such a way that your life reflects the teachings and the lifestyle of Jesus.

A true disciple walks the walk as well as talking the talk.

As we grow in faithfulness to Jesus, we will increasingly know the truth that sets us free.

There are two aspects to this word truth.

Firstly there is truth in respect to doctrine and scripture. As we live out the path of discipleship, we will gain greater insight into who God is and what the Bible teaches.

Secondly, Jesus is the Truth. He says, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life.” So as we determine to walk with Jesus we get to know Him better, and He is the Truth.

The truth sets us free. True religion s about freedom from guilt and shame. True religion sets us free from meaningless rituals based on fear of an angry God. Jesus Christ has set us free from all guilt, shame and fear.

Prayer

Thank you Jesus, you are the truth that sets me free. Help me to walk in your ways every day so that the truth of who you are opens up in me. Amen.

Scripture

“I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness because you will have the light that leads to life.”

Observation

Jesus continues to teach the people. He says He is the light of the world, but the Pharisees say His testimony about Himself is not valid. Jesus says His Father testifies about Him also, so there are two witnesses- Jesus and the Father.

The Pharisees say they don’t know His Father, not realising that He is talking about God.

Application

Jesus is the light of the world. He brings knowledge of the grace of God to all who will receive it.

Light is the source of nearly all life on earth- without light there are no plants. Even people need exposure to sunlight to produce Vitamin D. Jesus came to bring abundant life to the world. Without Him, we live ghostly, miserable existences that lead to hell.

Light brings knowledge and interaction with our environment. We use sight as our main source of knowledge in the world. Jesus brings us true knowledge about eternity and salvation.

Light brings safety. Crime plummets in areas where there is adequate street lighting. The people of darkness don’t like the light to expose their deeds. Jesus protects us from the deeds of satan, the prince of darkness.

Light cleanses and purifies. Sunlight kills germs in clothing. Ultraviolet light is often used to purify drinking water. Jesus cleanses sin from our lives, removing the desire to sin as well as the results of sin.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, you are the light of the world. Come and light up my life, purify my heart and make me like you. Amen.

Scripture

“Anyone who is thirsty may come to me. Anyone who believes in me may come and drink. For the Scriptures declare: “Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.”

Observation

Jesus stands in front of the crowds and invites them to believe and drink. Rivers of living water flow from Him.

The crowd is divided, with some believing Jesus is the Messiah, others a prophet, still others saying He can’t be the Messiah.

The Pharisees deride the guards for failing to resist Jesus. When Nicodemus says they should not condemn Jesus without a trial, they turn on him also.

Application

Jesus is the source of living water, and He gives it freely to all who receive Him. The living water is, in fact, the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit brings:

• joy to the downcast
• hope to the hopeless
• salvation to the lost
• power to the weak
• comfort to the mourning
• healing to the sick

Whatever our need, Jesus is the one who fulfils the need thorough the Holy Spirit.

When you are in a dry and barren place, the only thing you can think of is the need for water. That is the priority, because without water you will soon die.

Many people are in spiritually dry places, but they don’t see their need for Jesus. There is a deception there that blocks their understanding. When they see a person who is full of the abundant life, the living water of the Holy Spirit, then the blindness can be removed.

The Holy Spirit is a gift that multiplies as it is given away. If we let the river of life flow through us to impact other people, they can be transformed too.

Prayer

Holy Spirit, Living Water, flow through me and fill me with your life, and flow on to others that they can also receive your life. Amen.

Scripture

Then Jesus told them, “I will be with you only a little while longer. Then I will return to the one who sent me. You cannot go where I am going.”

Observation

People are starting to discuss whether Jesus is the Messiah. Some people say that he can’t be the Messiah because they know where He was born, and the Messiah is supposed to just appear. Others say that Jesus must be the Messiah because of the number and types of miracles He has performed.

The Pharisees try to have Jesus arrested, but this cannot be done because it is not yet the right time. Jesus tells them He will be with them a little longer, and they cannot go where He is going.

Application

Jesus is warning the Jewish people that He will soon be leaving, and if they do not believe in Him they will not be able to follow Him.

He tells them straight out that He will return to the Father. They will not be able to follow Him there because they do not believe in Him.

It is puzzling that they take away from this the meaning that Jesus is going to a foreign land. They could not hear the message that Jesus would be going back to the one who sent Him.

There is a kind of blindness that comes from unbelief which twists the gospel around and skips over God’s grace. The words “You must be saved” get applied to other people. The statement that “All have sinned” must relate to that person over there, not to me.

We need Jesus to be the light that comes into our eyes so that we can understand and see the whole gospel.

Unbelief is dangerous because it not only prevents us from believing but also closes our eyes to the fact that we are not believing.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, be the light that opens my eyes to see your glory. Where I have fallen into unbelief, show me and give me faith to follow you. Amen.