Surrender it to Jesus

"“And being in Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as He sat at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard very precious; and she brake the box, and poured it on His head.”

Mark 14:3 (KJV)

I was playing with a toddler last week, and I offered him a shiny toy. His eyes lit up with excitement but then his face dropped as he stared at his full hands. Even though he wanted the newer, better toy I was offering, he couldn’t bear to let go of what he already had.

Sound familiar? Perhaps the dress in the shop flatters your figure, but is it worth several weeks of savings? Will that job offer be more rewarding (and less stressful) than the job I already have? Is it worth spending hours helping that person, at the expense of all the other items on my to-do list? In short, is what I or others could gain worth sacrificing what I already have?

Not everything we value is a material item. Sometimes our treasures are hopes, plans, relationships, comforts and emotions. The Bible says, “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matthew 6:21). Sometimes we can hold onto these things at the expense of our relationship with God. Romans 12:1 urges us, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” But surrendering can be a struggle. While a Christian can never lose their salvation, we can either take back areas we gave to Christ, or keep holding onto things we never surrendered. So today we’re looking at the Bible account of an unnamed woman who sacrificed something precious to worship the Lord. Her action was so important the Lord declared, “wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her” (Mark 14:9b).

In Mark 14:3-9 and Matthew 26:6-13, we read two almost identical accounts of the same incident. Jesus was having a meal in the house of Simon the leper, when “there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of spikenard very precious, and she brake the box, and poured it on His head” (Mark 14:3b). Spikenard was a prized perfume associated with romance and royalty (Song of Solomon 1:12), and imported from the mountains of China and India. One jar of liquid perfume was worth 300 pence (equivalent to 300 days of labour) (Mark 14:5), so it would have taken the woman years to save enough to buy this perfume. Maybe you have spent years pursuing your dream. Maybe you have invested so much emotional, physical and financial effort in that person, aim, thing or ministry? Does your life and identity revolve around that thing or person, rather than the Lord?

Some commentators suggest that the spikenard could have been part of the woman’s dowry. Dowries were gifts of economic value for the woman’s intended husband, but they were also financial security for the woman, with part set aside in the event of widowhood or a marriage breakdown. Regardless, spikenard was an asset the woman could sell if she encountered financial difficulties. Considering the woman followed Jesus despite hostile religious leaders and living in an occupied country, keeping the spikenard might seem like a smart financial decision. Keeping back some of your tithe, or doing extra work rather than attending church or prayer meeting, might also feel like a good financial decision to you. But robbing God financially will never be blessed (Malachi 3:8-9).

Maybe you don’t care overly much about future financial security. What about emotional security? You might look spiritual on the outside, but you know there is a part of your heart you’ve banned God from entering. Maybe you’re holding onto an unspiritual friendship or romantic crush because you’re concerned it will be the only opportunity you have. Maybe you’re afraid of what a relative, or all your relatives, will think if you do what God is telling you to do. Or maybe it’s not about you, but the future of those you love. Maybe, like many women, you are fiercely protective of others. A mother will stay up night after night with a sick child. A woman will make sure a guy does not mess with her female friend if she is around. Nothing and nobody is permitted to hurt those we love. And sometimes, our relationships with others become the most important things in the world to us–even more important than our relationship with God.

A few years ago, I was praying for the Lord to work in my life. But my family was hurting because of the actions of other people, and I had had enough of seeing them suffer. I decided that if I didn’t go too ‘out there’ for God, then maybe the devil would leave my family alone. I would do what God wanted, except for anything where my family might possibly suffer.

But “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24). Trying to simultaneously serve and reject God was an exhausting conflict of interest, and I was causing chaos in both my spiritual life and my household. I should have known God would not bless my rebellion. King Saul kept back what he should have destroyed in battle, and the prophet Samuel replied, “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, He hath also rejected thee from being king” (1 Samuel 15:23). Jesus tells us to surrender everything to Him, declaring, “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me” (Luke 9:23).

The woman broke the box and poured the contents on Jesus’ head. She couldn’t retract her gift. She didn’t even keep the box intact. Sometimes you’ll hear people say, I expect the Lord to give me a better guy as a reward for giving up this (wrong) relationship. Or, if I tithe, I’m expecting immediate financial blessings for myself. Or, I surrender my child’s future to you Lord, but just remember that I’m expecting them to become a celebrity pastor. Surrender is not a bargaining agreement. It’s giving it up completely and letting God decide your future.

Surrender brings blessing. God will guide and direct us. “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6). God will take care of our needs (Psalm 55:22), will give us rest (Matthew 11:28) and peace (Philippians 4:7). Our schemes often fail, but God’s promises are certain. When we surrender to God, He enables us to be part of His will here on earth. In Mark 14, it records, “And Jesus said… She hath done what she could: she is come aforehand to anoint my body to the burying… Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached throughout the whole world, this also that she hath done shall be spoken of for a memorial of her” (Mark 14:6, 8-9). This woman’s act of sacrificial worship continues to challenge and bless us thousands of years later.

Others will not necessarily know what you have surrendered to God. It might be something you have never admitted to anyone else. Others will not value your action. Consider how the disciples reacted to this woman’s actions. “But when His disciples saw it, they had indignation, saying, To what purpose is this waste?” (Matthew 26:8). Ouch. But surrender is not about others; it’s about doing what God wants. “Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven… but pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly” (Matthew 6:1, 6b).

What (or who) is holding you back from doing God’s will? Is there something you are holding onto, causing your Christian life to stagnate and God to feel distant? Bring it to Jesus, and pour it out unconditionally and completely as you worship Him.