What Is The Wisest Way To Use Your Money? John 12:3

Is it wise to use a product that is worth a year's wages on a one-time act that only gives comfort and demonstrates devotion?

"Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume." John 12:3.

A LITTLE BACKGROUND
Mary came into the house with a gift for Jesus; it was a costly treasure, that when given is used up and can't be used again, once given it couldn't be undone.  Judas called Mary's giving and sacrifice a waste, he criticized the act saying there were better ways to use the gift, that it could have been sold and the money distributed to the needy, but Jesus said. "Leave her alone she has done a beautiful thing." Mark 14:6.

There will always be those who criticize our good actions; they may have good motives or like Judas, who stole from the money bag, have impure motives.

JESUS REACTION
The remarkable thing in the event was Jesus reaction to it.  He endorsed Mary's act of charity.  Jesus did not look at the bottom line or some matrix of resources versus need; instead, he looked at the heart of the giver.  What she did was done out of love and devotion to him and he praised her for it- a praise recorded for all time and speaks to us twenty-one centuries later.

THE OPPORTUNITY
Few of us will ever have the opportunity to give a year's wages to the Lord, Mary did and there is no record of her having any regrets about it.  If anyone had regrets in the incident it would have been Judas for having been rebuked by the Lord.

The opportunity to anoint Jesus' feet is not present today but there are other opportunities to use our resources for the Lord.

WISDOM
For Mary, it was an act of devotion and worship, an expression of a humble love that asks for nothing in return.  It may seem unwise to use your money or resources on something that is only an act of devotion but to the follower of Jesus if the praise of our Lord counts for anything then there is no wiser use of money or resources.

(c) Adron 4/18/15

What Are Good Guidelines for Giving?

Does the Bible say who I should give my charity money to, or is it up to me?

"For they went out for the sake of the name accepting no help from the pagans. Therefore we ought to support such men, so that we may be fellow workers in the truth." 3 John 1: 7-8.

BACKGROUND
This Bible verse is from a passage giving praise to Gaius for his charity and hospitality to the traveling ministers of the Gospel in the early church.

WHO THEY WERE
Those who were serving the Lord were doing it sacrificially at a cost to themselves. They did not ask for help from those who were not believers in the message but trusted the Lord to provide.

OBLIGATION
The apostle John was saying we have an obligation to support those who were serving; he says we ought to, and we must.

In the early days this support was risky business it meant giving shelter or refuge for those serving the Church. It meant giving some of your own food or some of the little money you had.

THE TEST
Those they were to support were the ones who...
     * "Went out." these people left something behind; they left home, careers, future, family etc.
     * "For the sake of the Name." They had a dedicated commitment to Jesus.
     * "Accepting no help from pagans." They were not in it for the money.
     * "Workers in the truth." they had integrity. They had a focused mission of spreading the Gospel.

GIVE WISELY
We should give out of our abundance and we should give even if all we have is a widow's mite. We should give wisely and test those we share our financial blessings with. Take time and research to make sure the person or organization is following a call to minister the gospel, serving in truth and are operating with integrity.

When you give to those who serve you are becoming a fellow worker with them in the Gospel.