Recently, I was honored to take part in the Expositors Collective, a seminar designed to train and mentor young preachers in the skill of expository Bible teaching. My dear friend Mike Neglia taught a session on Christ-centered preaching, which he opened by highlighting the difference between a moralistic sermon and a Christ-centered sermon by first teaching a sample moralistic sermonette on Matthew 26:6-16, followed by me giving a sample Christocentric sermon on the same text. What follows is the transcript of my 10-minute Christ-centered sermon; perhaps it will be helpful for our Bible-teaching readers.

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Matthew 26:6-16:

Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table. And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.” But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.

The Text

I would like to invite you to jump in to this story with me. We find ourselves with Jesus on His way to Jerusalem, almost there in Bethany. He is having dinner in the home of Simon the Leper.

Pause for a moment. It is so important as we read through scripture that we do not allow familiarity to rob us of the shock factor. A meal in the home of a leper! Do you remember the Levitical law about lepers? They were unclean; they could not live among anyone other than other lepers, if someone came near them, they would have to shout, “UNCLEAN!”

They were more marginalized than just about anyone in our society. Lepers did not have dinner parties. Yet Jesus and His followers were there at his house, reclining at the table, enjoying dinner. The only way this was possible was if Jesus had already healed Simon and made him clean. Jesus had not only healed Simon, but had brought him from isolation to community once again.

The opening scene of this story is one of redemption! Then we are introduced to an unnamed woman, who we know from John 12 is Mary, sister of Lazarus and Martha. Mary comes out while everyone is still at the table holding an alabaster jar. It would have been recognized by those present as the vessel to hold expensive perfume. She walks up to Jesus and the suspicions are confirmed as the overpowering scent of pure nard fills the room when she pours every drop of the oil over Christ’s head.

There is a gasp! That much nard was unfathomably valuable. (Estimated at almost $20K). The response in the room was from shock to outrage with some turning to her in rebuke. “Imagine the poor that could be fed with that much money!” Then Jesus speaks up: “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”

Jesus affirms her actions, all the while pointing forward to the cross and the Gospel. Then our focus is brought to Judas. Undoubtably, as the treasurer of the group (who we are told was scraping off the top of the purse), Judas was the most offended by the financial foolishness. For him this was the last straw; he had lost faith in this Jesus that he had dedicated the last few years of his life to. He would cut his losses and turn Him over for thirty pieces of silver.

The Application

This is a dramatic story, but what does it teach us? Many things, but today I would like to focus on just three things it shows us about Jesus.

1) Jesus is in the business of redeeming, healing, cleansing and restoring.

As I mentioned, our opening scene sets the tone already for who Jesus is and what HE does. Simon the Leper was brought from isolation to community, from being unclean to being clean, from sick to well, marginalized to accepted. Why? Because He was with Jesus.

This is what Jesus does. We see it in His very mission statement quoting Isaiah 61 in Luke 4:18-19, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” This is what He has done in many of our lives, and this is what He will do for many more as they turn to Him.

2) Jesus is more valuable than any earthy thing, and Jesus is worthy of our worship.

It is worth noting that Jesus did not rebuke Mary for pouring out her life savings and her financial security on Him in a moment. He did not rebuke her for this act of worshipful adornment. Rather He affirmed her! Why? Because He is the God of creation that is worthy of all honor and glory and praise. Also, because trusting Him is more valuable than anything that this world has to offer!

As He said back in Matthew 6:19-21, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

3) And finally, though Mary’s sacrifice and offering to Jesus was great, Jesus’ sacrifice and offering for each of us is infinitely greater!

Mary may have poured out her oil for Jesus, but Jesus poured out His very blood for Mary, and for you, and for me. Jesus, instituting the Lord’s supper, took the cup and said, “For this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28). Mary may have surrendered her earthly riches for Jesus, but Jesus surrendered His heavenly riches for Mary, and for you, and for me.

“For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9).

Mary may have been shamed and rebuked for her apparent foolishness for Jesus, but Jesus was scorned and rejected, mocked, tortured and killed for Mary, for you, and for me. “Looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2).

So what should our response to this be?

Should we be like Mary? Yes. But how and why? Because of who Jesus is, and what He has done for you. If Jesus was willing to sacrifice and give so much for you and I, to bring us forgiveness, liberty and hope, it is a small thing to lay down our temporal comfort, possessions or agenda. We love Him because He first loved us.

Many church leaders I talk with complain that they do not have enough time for all the demands of the ministry and communicate this to me along these lines: They often find their day is actually run for them by the tyranny of the urgent in three basic categories: problems, people and processes.

1. You must take control, “Seize the Day” (Carpe Diem)!

“Redeem the time for the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:16). The life of Christian leadership is rarely easy.

Each day, when we go out the door to our ministry responsibilities, there is growling, foaming, Rottweiler of life and living – ministering and serving – that we must face. Either we control him, or he controls us; he backs us down, or we put him on the love leash and make him do what God wants.

We must Biblically seize the day to make time and circumstances work for us instead of against us. God already knows what that day holds and has a plan, but we need to lay hold of that plan through the Word, prayer and fellowship.

Read Psalm 139:6. We can expend a lot of energy on fear, self-pity and worry, but it’s a lot like being in a rocking chair––lots of effort but no meaningful forward motion.

Every day is a precious blessing given to us by God to use for His glory-seize, the one He has given you!!

2. Develop the full potential you have in Christ

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13). “…Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

God desires for us to attempt something great, something worthwhile, something eternally meaningful each day. So we should remember that we are uniquely, fearfully and wonderfully made for that purpose (Psalm 139:14; Ephesians 2:10).

We must not allow ourselves to be crippled by the lie of purposeless inferiority or inability. There is no inferiority in you since the “old man” has been transformed by Christ in you, into superiority, for now, “We can do all things through Him.”

We must learn to challenge the status quo occasionally; routines can get us into ruts and dull our spiritual senses. That means we need to get out of the daily routine once in awhile.

Focus on a new goal outside of that daily routine, some area of life or ministry where you will be challenged to rely on that new power you have in Him, accomplish it and then repeat the process. This develops and grows your leadership skills.

3. Prioritize your day

“This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it” (Psalm 118:24).

In our modern American society, we are especially susceptible to time wasters. Yet by our very nature in Christ, we are supposed to be caring, thoughtful and attentive to the needs of others around us. This is a volatile mix lots of needs, and we have been called to listen to them, but as Alan Redpath wisely said, ” A need does not constitute a call.” So to avoid simply saying yes to every need, try to organize your day into three basic categories.

1. In light of God’s plan for my life today
2. In light of God’s plan for my tomorrow
3. In light of God’s plan for eternity

Then as you determine what you are going to accomplish for the day, consider the options from this perspective, “What I do today is eternally important because I am paying one of God’s ordained days of my life for it, so what I accomplish must be worthwhile because the price is high.”

4. Associate with people who will help you grow every day.

“A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels” (Proverbs 1:15).

The only way to improve the quality of our walks is to continue to improve ourselves in Him as well. To this end, we need to be sure that we don’t grow spiritually stagnant.

I was at a basketball camp at UCLA in the early 1970s with coach extraordinaire John Wooden, and he said something that has stuck with me all these years:

“It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.”

Wooden recognized that the greatest obstacle to growth is not ignorance; it is knowledge. The more you learn, the greater the chance you will think you already know it all. So we must make the decision to remain teachable if we want to grow, if we do this, the logical next step is to consider from whom and where you are learning.

Seek out brothers and sisters in Christ–who live out the Word:

A. They will set high, Christ-like standards (Philippians 3:12-14).
B. They are reliable and consistent (2 Timothy 2:1-2).
C. They speak the truth-always (James 5:19-20).
D. They live balanced lives free from extremes (1 Corinthians 9:24-25).
E. They are disciplined and focused (1 Corinthians 9:25-27).

5. Set Reasonable Goals for the day-You are not actually a superhero!

Hebrews 12:1-2 “…And let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus…”

Here is an amazing truth—Jesus was and is God, and you and I are not. We must run with endurance, yes—but in stupidity, no! And any race that takes you away from Him and His Word is not of Him in the first place. If you don’t have time for family and fellowship, you are running in a race with the enemy of your soul.

Many Christians in leadership are guilty of setting goals that are built more on hyper- spiritual fantasy than Biblical reality. Which is often the result of spiritual pride, not the leading of the Spirit. Some set goals far beyond what they can expect to attain because they are not God’s goals at all, but their own based on the needs before them. We must patiently set reasonable goals based on the whole counsel of His Word, the leading of the Holy Spirit and the confirmation of His witnesses he has placed in our lives.

It is also important to set the right kind of goals:

Our goals should always include time in the Word, prayer and fellowship first, as those things are clearly ministry essentials in the Word. The first place these three areas of your walk will be tested is in managing your role as a Godly spouse, parent, employee and citizen, so we must set goals that have right motives behind them, ones reflecting God’s agenda before our own, and what is best for others before ourselves.

These five keys can help us manage our day, so that we can rejoice for, “This is the day the Lord has made…” and not be bummed because we have the day that simply happened because we got up!