Gratitude & Devotion (John 12:1-26)

Welcome to Garden City! Eric, one of the pastors.^[1] Last week, Jesus gave us one of the clearest proofs of his identity by raising Lazarus from the grave. This puts the religious leaders on edge because they fear the power Jesus displays will give people the courage to revolt and eventually be squashed by Rome.  

So they’re all-in. We gotta stop Jesus at all costs. On the flipside, Mary and Martha just saw Jesus raise their dead brother to life. He wasn’t partially dead or nearly dead. He was all the way dead. They’re thinking about going all-in for Jesus in an entirely different way.  

But how do you thank someone who’s gifted you with something money could never buy? Well, at the very least, you should feed them.  

If you have a Bible, pick up with me in John 12 (also on the screen): 

[v. 1] – Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table. 3 Mary therefore took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. 

Mary, Martha, and Lazarus wanted to honor Jesus with a feast. Matthew tells us it was held at the house of Simon the Leper.² Normally, you’d never step foot in a leper’s home—they were contagious and untouchable. But Simon isn’t a leper anymore, and there was no cure for leprosy back then, which means Jesus healed him. 

Do you see the picture? Around Jesus are healed lepers and formerly dead people he’s raised to life. And they’re overflowing with gratitude because he’s radically changed them. Honestly, that’s what the church is—not polished religious people, but broken sinners who’ve been forever changed by grace. 

When you invite Jesus into the darkest and most sinful places of your life, he doesn’t just give you a program to manage your sin. He breaks chains, he heals the incurable, he raises the dead. And when that happens, you can’t stay the same. 

This morning, I want us to look at how gratitude for Jesus leads us into unwavering devotion.  

Mary, Martha, and Lazarus all have different interactions with Jesus at the party. Martha serves. She uses her gifts in service to Jesus because he’s worthy of it. Lazarus reclines with Jesus. He enjoys being close to him, as we all should. It reminds us that following Jesus is deeply personal. But Mary does the unthinkable, and when talking about devoting ourselves to Jesus, I want us to learn why what she does makes perfect sense. 

I’ve mentioned this story before, but when I first decided to follow Jesus, it was like God pulled the veil from my eyes, and for the first time, I could see that Jesus died for me. He owed me nothing but gave up everything so that I could live. And when I looked at Jesus on the Cross, I realized I owed my life to him. 

But what I don’t usually mention is that night I wept because I was so overwhelmed by the generosity of God toward me. I didn’t have words for it at the time, but it was like God washed away my unworthiness by his own worthiness. And I pray it will never be lost on me just how unworthy I was and how worthy he is, and yet he says, “I love you.”  

What Mary does is totally unexpected and even divisive. She anoints Jesus’s feet. But you have to keep in mind that Jesus didn’t just raise her brother. Jesus showed her he’s the resurrection and the life.  

And when you get into that headspace, her over-the-top devotion to Jesus sounds completely appropriate. And if you saw Jesus for who he is, you might be compelled to do something just as crazy.  

Mary shows us what it means to be all-in for Jesus. See, people who’ve been changed by grace are overwhelmed with gratitude and marked with devotion. Let me show you three things Mary teaches us about being devoted to Jesus. Devotion to Jesus means:  

1. There’s nothing I wouldn’t give up for him. 

In [v. 3] Mary takes a pound of expensive perfume and pours it all out on Jesus’s feet. Now, if I saw you take a bottle of expensive perfume and pour it out on someone’s feet, I’d mostly think that’s strange because feet are gross and you don’t really put perfume on feet.  

But then again, I’ve started coaching soccer recently, and with the combination of sweat and rain, my shoes stink. Sarah’s even told me my shoes aren’t allowed in our home. I’d been trying to hide them away in a back room for the sake of guests and neighbors, but she shut that down real quick. I probably need to invest in some Febreze.  

But, in those days, feet were no less gross, and products like Febreze and deodorant weren’t a thing yet. And whatever you consider best practices for personal hygiene probably looked different. That’s why, at a feast like this, it wasn’t uncommon for the host to pull out the spices and perfume to make the home smell nice. 

The hostess might dab ointment on the heads of her party guests to give off a pleasing aroma. But when Mary sees Jesus, she doesn’t just dab his head. She breaks the jar and pours the whole thing out.  

The smell of the perfume literally filled the house. But you don’t really get a sense of the full picture until a few verses later. [v. 4] – But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (he who was about to betray him), said, 5 “Why was this ointment not sold for three hundred denarii and given to the poor?”

The expensive perfume Mary just poured out was worth a small fortune. 300 denarii was basically an entire year’s salary. Think about your entire income for 2025 and imagine giving all of it away.  

Now you could factor in inflation. You can try to figure out the exact numbers, but the point isn’t just the amount. Mary basically just took her family’s entire savings, which had probably accumulated and been passed down for generations, and poured it out on the feet of Jesus. 

Judas calls her out, but Matthew and Mark say the whole dinner party had some harsh words for her. Have you ever seen someone do something so frustratingly stupid that, even though it has nothing to do with you, it makes you mad just on principle?  

That’s what’s going on here. How could Mary throw away her family’s fortune like that? And even if you were going to give it away, why not sell the perfume and give the money to the poor?  

But Jesus sees right through this. He’s probably known since he first called him that Judas doesn’t value Jesus the way he should. It makes you wonder how Jesus could continue to entertain someone in his closest company, like Judas. He knew Judas was a thief and a liar and that he was going to betray him. Which just goes to show that Jesus will love you to the end. 

But it’s also why Jesus says in [v. 7] – “Leave her alone, so that she may keep it for the day of my burial. 8 For the poor you always have with you, but you do not always have me.”

Look at the contrast between Mary and Judas. Mary hadn’t just heard the teachings of Jesus. She’d come to know him. He wasn’t just a Rabbi and a friend. And he wasn’t just some miracle worker who’d done her family a favor. He was God come to save her.  

Why’d she need savings when she’d found her ultimate security in Jesus? She devotes herself to him with such radical enthusiasm because she’s starting to see his worth. 

That’s what real devotion looks like: it flows from seeing how valuable Jesus is. Judas and Mary couldn’t be more different. Judas would sell Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. But Mary says, he’s more precious than life itself. There’s nothing I wouldn’t give away in service to him. 

2. There’s nothing he can’t ask of me. 

[LOYALTY]: Think about this: Mary pours out the ointment on Jesus’s feet. 

Feet are one of the dirtiest parts of the whole body. In the next chapter, Jesus is going to wash his disciples’ feet, and they’re going to object to it—not only because the Master shouldn’t serve the servants, but also because not even servants were expected to do something so low and demeaning. 

Before I got into the ministry, I worked at a Chick-fil-A. The owner of our store was the grandson of the CEO, so I jokingly called him the “prince of Chick-fil-A.” You can even find his picture in most stores. 

One time, I had two huge carts of cardboard to cram into an already overflowing dumpster. At Chick-fil-A, that’s about as low a job as it gets. Right as I pulled up with the second cart full, the owner pulled up in his luxury car, looked at the mess with me, and said, “Looks like we’ll have to climb in and jump on it.” 

He went from sitting in luxury to jumping into trash in a matter of seconds.  

I had a lot of great moments working at CFA. That one’s near the top. If there was ever a moment where I thought, ‘This is beneath me,’ his willingness to go low killed that in me. And what came to life wasn’t a begrudgingness. It was a willingness to do anything else.  

Back in John 1, if you remember, people were trying to figure out who John the Baptist was, and he said this: [v. 26] – “I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, 27 even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.”

John’s basically saying, Who cares who I am? Do you know who Jesus is? I’m not even worthy to hold his filthiest article of clothing. 

Mary anoints Jesus’ feet, and even that feels like an honor to her. For her, even the lowest, most demeaning act done for Christ is worthwhile. 

That’s what following Jesus looks like. When you see him for who he truly is, all the conditions disappear. Honestly, that’s one of the biggest differences between people who’ve been changed by grace and people who are religious.  

Religious people come asking, “What’s the bare minimum I have to do to be approved by Jesus? How little can I give, how little can I serve, how little do I need to sacrifice and still belong to him?” But Mary isn’t like that at all. She would lower herself even more if it meant honoring Jesus. Why? 

Because when you encounter the gospel, you realize someone has done the unthinkable for you. And because of that, there’s nothing Jesus could ask that you wouldn’t say yes to. Mary would gladly wash the feet of her Savior—not to prove her loyalty, but because she’s overwhelmed by who he is. 

Jesus owes me nothing, yet he’s given me everything. So, of course, he can have my life—he’s worthy of it. 

I saw this video that went viral years ago of Stephen Foster. He was a lawyer who later became a vicar in the Anglican church. In the video, he shares this story about someone asking him to join the coffee team at church. He thought, “Why would I ever do that? I already work 70 hours a week. I don’t need another ‘job.’” But he said yes anyway.

As he served coffee, something happened in him. He said his heart grew warm toward the people he was serving—even those who used to irritate him. Soon he was excited about it: We need better mugs, we need better beans—look at these amazing people we get to serve. He later said, “Serving coffee changed my life,” because it taught him to love the church of Jesus Christ.

What a gift, to fall in love with the very people Jesus gave his life for. Stephen almost missed it, thinking serving coffee was beneath him. But it turned out to be the greater gift.

So, what’s your “serving coffee” that Jesus is inviting you to do? There’s nothing he can’t ask of me.  

3. There’s nothing I need to hide from him.

[LOVE]: This is a matter of love. If you look back at verse 3, Mary pours everything out for Jesus. She does the most demeaning task. And then she lets her hair down, which would’ve been awkward and inappropriate. 

See, head coverings aren’t just an Islamic thing; it’s a Near Eastern thing. Women in those days would’ve only let their hair down in social settings where they were completely safe and surrounded by their closest loved ones.  

I’m sure a million thoughts were going through people’s minds when they saw Mary. What she’s doing is shameful and scandalous. I can’t believe she would do something like that. But Jesus says there’s nothing shameful about what she’s doing. In fact, if you understood who I am and what I’ve come to do, you’d think what she’s doing is modest.  

I don’t even know if Mary fully understood what she was doing. But at the very least, we can say, she knew she was an unworthy sinner. She knew that Jesus was worthy of all that she had and was. And she knew that she was completely dependent on him in life and death. 

Judas sees Mary giving the best things away to Jesus and thinks she’s a fool. But Mary’s come to see Jesus for who he is, which makes sense of everything that’s about to happen next.  

And we’re just like Judas if we think giving ourselves away to Jesus means that we have to begrudgingly give away what’s most precious to us.  

This is crucial to understanding the gospel. Here you have the most worthy man who ever lived–because he’s God in the flesh–partying with people whose sin makes them dirtier than the sandals on his feet. And one of them pours out everything she has to offer and then lets her hair down, as if to say, I give you all of me. And I know that means you don’t just take me at my absolute best, but also at my unfiltered worst.  

Letting your hair down is a way of showing intimacy and love that should only happen around family members. But Mary’s welcoming Jesus in. She’s letting him into the most personal and intimate parts of her life. She’s signaling to Jesus, “My life if yours. I’m building everything I have on you.” 

See, all her iniquities and insecurities, she’s giving them all to him. Religion wants you to tighten up and hide those things away. Better to look good on the outside than to show the ugly truth. But Jesus makes us clean on the inside. 

Maybe the issue you have with giving yourself away to Jesus isn’t that he demands the best things from you. It’s that you haven’t experienced what it’s like to surrender the dirtiest things about you, too.  

We think we have to get ourselves right first before coming to Jesus. We have to make ourselves look good. Or we have to bury our sin and shame. But that just shows you haven’t understood the gospel yet.  

For Mary, coming to Jesus meant putting it all out there. Jesus saw her and accepted her. It meant realizing there’s nothing I need to hide from him because I’m perfectly safe in his love. And the only way for him to heal me and set me free is to surrender, even the most shameful things to him, and learn to walk in his light.  

Maybe that means for you, your life has been filled with anger. And I get it. There’s a lot to be angry about in this broken world. There’s so much fear and pain, I’m surprised we’re not angrier than we are. But maybe that’s because you hide it well in public.  

But behind closed doors, you constantly lash out at your spouse or kids. 

You can’t control your tongue or your emotions.  

But Jesus says, ‘Give it to me.’ Lay your anger at his feet.  

Or maybe you can’t escape the sin of pride. It’s not always apparent to others around you, but if others knew what was really going on in your heart, they wouldn’t even want to look at you.  

How little you think of others and how highly you think of yourself. Maybe you’re unhappy in your job right now because you’re not getting the recognition you think you deserve, and you don’t realize just how puffed up you’ve become.  

But Jesus wants you to take the mask off. He wants you to let your hair down with him because he can heal your pride.   

Or maybe the stress of life gives way to so many unhealthy thoughts you know you shouldn’t entertain. Sometimes lustful thoughts come uninvited, but you know you linger there too long…to the point that you start to think you need these things to ease the stress and pain, but they don’t. They destroy your life, not prosper it.  

But Jesus says to give it to him. Lay your sin at his feet. He’ll take all of it upon himself.  

We think if we expose the dark things about us, it’ll put us to shame. But later, Jesus says it’s the only way for us to live. [v. 25] Jesus says,  Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

Tim Keller once told a story about a man whose boat capsized while he was rafting over a dam. He ended up getting caught in a whirlpool at the base, and no matter how hard he swam, he couldn’t escape the current.  

Unfortunately, the water at the base of the dam was freezing, so eventually, the man died of hypothermia. And the moment he had no strength left to fight, his body was sucked under the water—and within seconds popped up downstream, free from the current. If he had just let himself go under, the very current he feared would kill him would’ve carried him to safety. 

See, in trying to save his life, he lost it, and Jesus is saying our battle with sin is no different. The problem is that the way to life feels counterintuitive to us because sometimes following Jesus feels counterintuitive to us.   

Think about this: Jesus is saying the way to know life and to be fruitful comes through dying. The way to save your life is to lose it. The way to be free is to become a servant. And maybe he most counterintuitive part of all is that the one worthy of your life and devotion says, “To follow me, I must die.”  

After Jesus raised Lazarus, the religious leaders decided it was time to put an end to Jesus. We need to do everything within our power to end his movement before he leads the people down a path that destroys our nation. 

That’s why [v. 9] – When the large crowd of the Jews learned that Jesus was [at Bethany], they came, not only on account of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. 10 So the chief priests made plans to put Lazarus to death as well, 11 because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and believing in Jesus.

Poor Lazarus can’t even get a book deal to write his death-to-life experience before the chief priests want to come after him. And the reason they want Lazarus dead is because his testimony is another proof that’s convinced people to believe and follow Jesus.  

Now, the Passover’s about to happen, which means everyone’s heading up to Jerusalem, and people in Jerusalem aren’t really expecting Jesus because why would anyone come to a place where the people in charge want you dead? 

But all throughout the gospel, Jesus is never motivated to play it safe. His motivation is to do the will of his Father who sent him. And central to Jesus’s mission is saving sinners by dying in their place, which would eventually require laying down his life. And not even death was too demeaning a task for him.   

[v. 12] –  The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. 13 So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” 14 And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,

15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your king is coming,     sitting on a donkey’s colt!”

At a time in Jesus’s public ministry when he is most under threat, he doesn’t hide away. No, he leans into the danger because he came to lay down his life to save us. 

The crowds of people are praising him. This is supposed to be his coronation. They think Jesus is about to give them victory over Rome when what they really need is victory over sin and death. They think he’s coming to conquer their oppressors, but really he’s coming to die in their place. 

Not even his disciples understand what’s really going on. You know how I know that? [v. 16] – His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.  

At this point, the religious leaders think their plans were a complete failure. They were just trying to stop the Jews from making Jesus their king because it would cause all kinds of political problems. But now Jesus rides in on a donkey, the crowds are praising him as Israel’s King, and even Greek-speaking outsiders are seeking him. 

That’s why they say in [v. 19] that they’ve gained nothing because the world has gone after him. And I think they’re referring to what’s going on in… 

[v. 20] – Now among those who went up to worship at the feast were some Greeks. 21 So these came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and asked him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” 22 Philip went and told Andrew; Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. 23 And Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.  

Some Greeks come asking Philip if they can meet with Jesus because they want to see what he’s all about. And Philip’s like, I don’t know. So he asks Andrew. And Andrew’s like. I don’t know either. So they both go tell Jesus that some Greek-speakers want to meet you.  

And it seems like Jesus has shifted gears, and he wants his disciples to do the same. He tells them the hour has come for him to be glorified. And I think what he’s trying to say is, there’s a time to debate who I am, but it’s not the time for that right now because the hour’s come for me to lay down my life for the world. And everything we need to know about following him will make sense in light of his death. So the question he puts before us is: Are you ready to devote your life to Jesus?  

Devotion to Jesus means there’s nothing I wouldn’t give up for him, there’s nothing he can’t ask of me, and there’s nothing I need to hide from him. And the motivation and freedom behind all of that is the joy in knowing that what he requires of me, he first does himself.  

[v. 24] – Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit. 25 Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. 26 If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

Jesus owed us nothing, yet gave us everything. So when we lay down our lives, we don’t do it from a place of scarcity but as people who’ve been given the kingdom. And whatever we give to Jesus, he always gives back more. 

So the question is—what are you building your life on? Temporary things, or eternal ones? Jesus calls us to build our lives on him, to see Christ formed in us and in others, and he promises joy on the other side of it. 

Just think back to Mary. She poured out her expensive perfume, and everyone got upset with her. But in [v.7] Jesus said, “Leave her alone so that she may keep it for the day of my burial.” Keep what? She just poured it all out.  

But I don’t think he’s talking about the ointment. I think he’s talking about her joy. And there are thousands of sorrows in this life that will try to rob you of your joy. But Jesus won’t let the world steal your joy of serving him. Not even his death on the Cross will take that joy away. Mary sacrificed greatly for him because she understood who Jesus is and decided there’s no one else she’d rather build her life on. Jesus is a sure and steady foundation. 

See, oils and spices were used to cover the smell of death in burial, but eventually the spices would give way to decay. But Mary reverses the order. She anointed Jesus while he was still alive, as if to say, the stench of his death will be here for a moment, but the sweet aroma of his resurrection will last forever. 

That’s why we build our lives on Jesus and join in building his church. It doesn’t mean you don’t care about your job, family, or other responsibilities. Be the best employee, the best parent, build the best business—but do it with devotion to Jesus and leverage it for his kingdom. Because the reward is always greater than the sacrifice. 

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^[1] Works Consulted:  

–     The Gospel According to John – Carson; “Following Christ” – Keller; “Dying to Live” – Keller; “Leave Her Alone Judas, This is for My Burial” – Piper; “Extravagant Gratitude” – Martin ² Matthew 26:6