MARY’S BEAUTIFUL DEED

Mark 14v6b; 8. She has done a beautiful thing to me. She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burial.

Beautiful/wonderful/good deeds may not reflect physical (lovely) appearance but they reveal and reflect someone’s thoughts and character for sure. They should of necessity be done in or out of love. For Christians, seeking opportunities for doing good to all as unto the Lord ought to be an unmistakable characteristic, Galatians 6v10; 1 Corinthians 10v24. We were “created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them”, the Apostle Paul tells us in Ephesians 2v10.

Now, Mary Magdalene sat at Jesus’ feet perhaps more than twice, learning, and being taught and trained as a disciple, Luke10v39-42. She loved her Lord for certain, such that she anointed him with the whole jar of her expensive oily perfume! Let us learn to love the Lord in deed and not just honour him with our lips. 

We also learn here that good deeds done by Christians are never in vain or a waste, 1Corinthians 15v58. However, let’s be careful not to do good so that we can be highly thought of or seek earthly reward or man’s approval instead of God’s. Now, could Mary have done that to anybody else? To her, it seems to have been the need of the moment not so obvious to others. Hence the reaction of scolding by those who thought it was a waste, Mark 14 v3-5. However, her mind and love were in action. Did she know that Jesus was headed for Calvary in a little while? I think so.

Look around you; are there any needs of the moment and what are you doing or will you do about it? I am reminded of the (good) deeds of the “sheep” and in Matthew 25v31-46.

That beautiful deed was the significant thing Mary could do for the significant Lord and saviour of her life. We are told that she did what she could; within her means. Look at her consistency as Jesus was dying and even after his burial. No wonder she saw and met a significant being from the spiritual real, an angelic messenger from her Lord! She was a consistent believer, no doubt also favoured among women, Matthew 27v61; 28v1-10; Mark 16v9-11. We too should be consistent, doing what we are capable.

But could we also be learning that we should be proactive as far as good deeds are concerned? We are told Mary anointed his body beforehand for burial. For example, we usually writing glowing tributes about people we know well or love when they are dead. Should we not give credit and show appreciation where it is due and the people are around? Well, from the passage we see that the good deed was actually appreciated, and I think good deeds should similarly be encouraged as seen from the Bible passages quoted the first paragraph. George H Morrison says that “appreciation is different from flattery and praise. Flattery is veiled insult, and praise may be condescension in disguise. Newman has said that people shrink from praise, because the right to praise implies the right to blame, and Scripture warns us with no uncertain voice against coveting the praise of man. But genuine appreciation is different from praise or flattery, and for it every heart is hungering.”

Lastly, if what we do or are doing is not out of love or motivated by love, then it is not good however big or costly it might be. Love never fails! 1Corinthians 13v1-8. Let us do good as long as God lends us breath.