John 12: 1-8
12 Six days before the Passover celebration began, Jesus arrived in Bethany, the home of Lazarus—the man he had raised from the dead. 2 A dinner was prepared in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, and Lazarus was among those who ate[a] with him. 3 Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance. 4 But Judas Iscariot, the disciple who would soon betray him, said, 5 “That perfume was worth a year’s wages. It should have been sold and the money given to the poor.” 6 Not that he cared for the poor—he was a thief, and since he was in charge of the disciples’ money, he often stole some for himself. 7 Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. She did this in preparation for my burial. 8 You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”
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This makes me think of the quote by Martin Luther King, Jr., “The time is always right to do what is right.” In our lives, we have choice. We can choose to do what is right, with God’s help. Lazarus did what was right—he fed and provided great hospitality to Jesus and his disciples. Martha did what was right. She used her skills to cook, to feed, and to serve Jesus and his followers. Mary did what was right. She wasn’t quite the worker bee that Martha was, so she honored Jesus with a powerful gift and her love of him as the Holy One. With God’s help, they all chose what was right.
Judas, however, seems to have never chosen what was right. He was a thief, a manipulator, and a betrayer. He stole from the money the disciples had. He tried to manipulate more money out of Mary and Lazarus’ house. And he betrayed Jesus to the authorities because of his greed. I don’t think Judas was inherently some arch villain of the Bible. He was a man who was selfish and greedy, and didn’t care who he had to sell out to get what he wanted.
There are those in life who fit both categories: who choose what is right and who seem to be consumed by selfishness, greed, and self importance to the point that the miss the whole point of Christ’s teaching. You and I have a similar choice. We can let God help us do what is right, or we can continue to turn a blind eye to the call of the Savior. Here’s a little guidance. The time is always right to do what is right.
Let us pray: Holy One, help us to break down our idols and those things that draw our attention away from you. Let us be guided and yielded to do what is right, and to follow your wise and holy leadership. In Christ, Amen.