Sermons on Matthew 26:6-13
The various sermons below interpret Matthew 26:6-13 through a shared lens of devotion and worship, each offering unique insights into the passage. They collectively emphasize the importance of giving one's best to God, as seen in the act of Mary pouring expensive perfume on Jesus. This act is universally interpreted as a symbol of wholehearted devotion and worship, illustrating the idea that true worship involves offering our best to God without reservation. The sermons also highlight the patience and openness of Jesus to acts of worship, contrasting this with the impatience often found in human nature. Additionally, the theme of redirecting emotions, such as anger, towards understanding eternal values is a common thread, encouraging believers to focus on what truly matters in the spiritual realm.
While the sermons share common themes, they also present distinct perspectives. A sermon from Menlo Church emphasizes stewardship, challenging believers to prioritize God in all aspects of life by managing resources as God's stewards. In contrast, a sermon from Greater Houston Church focuses on silent worship, where actions speak louder than words, highlighting Mary's devotion through her actions rather than her words. Meanwhile, a sermon from Westover Church explores the redirection of anger, using the disciples' reaction to Mary's act as a lesson in focusing on eternal values over temporal concerns. Lastly, a sermon from The Mount | Mt. Olivet Baptist Church contrasts acts of service with the importance of being in the presence of Jesus, suggesting that personal devotion and intimacy with Jesus should take precedence over mere actions or service.
Matthew 26:6-13 Interpretation:
Living Sacrificially: True Worship and Stewardship (Menlo Church) interprets Matthew 26:6-13 as a call to give God our best rather than what's left over. The sermon uses the analogy of a living sacrifice, contrasting it with the Old Testament sacrifices, to emphasize that true worship involves willingly offering our best to God. The sermon also highlights the patience of Jesus, who was willing to be interrupted by acts of worship, and contrasts this with the impatience we often feel in our daily lives.
Radical Worship: The Legacy of Mary of Bethany (Greater Houston Church) offers a unique perspective by distinguishing Mary of Bethany from the sinful woman in Luke 7, emphasizing that Mary's actions were not about her sinfulness but her devotion. The sermon highlights the cultural significance of hair and perfume, using these as metaphors for Mary's complete surrender and devotion to Jesus. The act of wiping Jesus' feet with her hair is seen as a relinquishing of her pride and social standing.
Redirecting Anger: Embracing Compassion and Eternal Values (Westover Church) interprets the passage by focusing on the disciples' anger and how it reflects unmet expectations. The sermon uses the analogy of taking one's ball and going home to illustrate how anger can lead to irrational decisions. It emphasizes the need to redirect anger towards understanding eternal values over temporal concerns.
Wholehearted Devotion: Embracing God's Good Work (The Mount | Mt. Olivet Baptist Church) interprets Matthew 26:6-13 by emphasizing the act of pouring the perfume as a symbol of wholehearted devotion and worship. The sermon highlights the significance of Mary breaking the alabaster jar and pouring all of its contents on Jesus, illustrating a complete and unreserved act of worship. This act is seen as a metaphor for how believers should pour out their lives in devotion to Jesus, not holding anything back. The sermon uses the analogy of expensive perfume to emphasize the value and cost of true worship, suggesting that true devotion to Jesus should be extravagant and without reservation.
Matthew 26:6-13 Theological Themes:
Living Sacrificially: True Worship and Stewardship (Menlo Church) presents the theme of stewardship, emphasizing that we are managers of God's resources, not owners. The sermon challenges the congregation to consider whether God gets their best or what's left, highlighting the importance of prioritizing God in all aspects of life.
Radical Worship: The Legacy of Mary of Bethany (Greater Houston Church) introduces the theme of silent worship, where actions speak louder than words. The sermon emphasizes that Mary's worship was about her actions and heart, not her words, encouraging believers to let their actions reflect their devotion to God.
Redirecting Anger: Embracing Compassion and Eternal Values (Westover Church) explores the theme of redirecting anger towards understanding eternal values. The sermon encourages believers to focus on what is eternal rather than temporal, using the example of Jesus redirecting the disciples' anger to see the beauty in Mary's act of worship.
Wholehearted Devotion: Embracing God's Good Work (The Mount | Mt. Olivet Baptist Church) presents the theme of being versus doing. The sermon contrasts acts of service with the importance of being in the presence of Jesus, suggesting that while acts of service are important, the primary focus should be on being with Jesus and experiencing intimacy with Him. This theme is presented as a call to prioritize personal devotion and relationship with Jesus over mere actions or service.
Matthew 26:6-13 Historical and Contextual Insights:
Living Sacrificially: True Worship and Stewardship (Menlo Church) provides insight into the cultural practice of reclining at meals in a partially covered courtyard, explaining how this setting allowed for interruptions and public acts of worship.
Radical Worship: The Legacy of Mary of Bethany (Greater Houston Church) explains the cultural significance of hair and perfume in the first century, highlighting how hair was tied to self-worth and social standing. The sermon also clarifies the distinction between Mary of Bethany and the sinful woman in Luke 7, providing historical context for their actions.
Redirecting Anger: Embracing Compassion and Eternal Values (Westover Church) discusses the cultural context of leprosy and how Jesus' interaction with Simon the leper reflects his willingness to embrace outcasts, highlighting the transformative power of Jesus' ministry.
Experiencing the Transformative Power of Jesus' Anointing (Five Rivers Church) provides historical context by discussing the different accounts of Jesus' anointing in the Gospels. The sermon explains that while Matthew and Mark place the event two days before Passover at Simon the Leper's house, Luke and John have different timelines and settings. This insight helps to understand the cultural and historical context of the anointing event and the possible reasons for the variations in the Gospel accounts.
Matthew 26:6-13 Cross-References in the Bible:
Living Sacrificially: True Worship and Stewardship (Menlo Church) references Romans 12:1, where Paul urges believers to present their bodies as living sacrifices, connecting this to the idea of giving God our best. The sermon also mentions John 12, where Judas' motives are revealed, providing context for the disciples' reaction.
Radical Worship: The Legacy of Mary of Bethany (Greater Houston Church) references Mark 14:8, where Jesus acknowledges Mary's act as preparation for his burial, emphasizing the prophetic nature of her actions. The sermon also mentions 1 Corinthians 11:15, discussing the cultural significance of hair as a woman's glory.
Redirecting Anger: Embracing Compassion and Eternal Values (Westover Church) references John 12, where Judas' motives are revealed, highlighting the contrast between his anger and Mary's devotion. The sermon also mentions Ephesians 4:26, where Paul advises believers to be angry but not sin, providing guidance on managing anger.
Wholehearted Devotion: Embracing God's Good Work (The Mount | Mt. Olivet Baptist Church) references Psalm 23:5, which speaks of God preparing a table in the presence of enemies and anointing the head with oil. This cross-reference is used to draw a parallel between the anointing of Jesus and the intimate relationship believers can have with God, where they are protected and blessed even in the presence of adversaries. The sermon also references Romans 8:28 to emphasize that God works all things together for good, connecting this idea to the theme of being God's good work.
Matthew 26:6-13 Christian References outside the Bible:
Living Sacrificially: True Worship and Stewardship (Menlo Church) references Charles Spurgeon, who emphasized the duty and privilege of exhausting our lives for Jesus, reinforcing the sermon's call to give God our best.
Matthew 26:6-13 Illustrations from Secular Sources:
Living Sacrificially: True Worship and Stewardship (Menlo Church) uses the example of Harriet Tubman, who risked her life to free others, as an analogy for sacrificial living and trusting God with significant decisions. The sermon also uses a personal story about dining at a fancy restaurant with a baby to illustrate the theme of interruptions and patience.
Radical Worship: The Legacy of Mary of Bethany (Greater Houston Church) uses the modern hair industry as an analogy to emphasize the cultural significance of hair and how Mary's act of wiping Jesus' feet with her hair represented a profound sacrifice of pride and social standing.
Redirecting Anger: Embracing Compassion and Eternal Values (Westover Church) uses a personal story about kicking a milk jug filled with concrete to illustrate how anger can lead to irrational actions. The sermon also references Malcolm Gladwell's "The Tipping Point" to explain how anger can spread like wildfire in a group setting.