Alabaster Jar

Why do you trouble the woman, she has performed a good service for me.  Matthew 26:1-16  I remember the first time I gave away something of value. I thought to myself; “Am I doing the right thing, and what if I needed it later? Eventually, I managed to convince myself that I was in fact doing the right thing and the reality was that I really wouldn’t need later it because I had more of what I was giving away. I’d like to say that I made the decision that day to give the item away because the person receiving the gift needed it. However, I was far more conscious of the fact that I had more  – and one less wasn’t going to adversely affect my life. I was so naive about the blessings in my life, not to mention so lacking in my faith and understanding of God’s Kingdom. As she was making her way to the house of a leper, I wonder if the woman with the alabaster jar of costly ointment struggled with what she was about to do? Like the widow with the two copper coins, was that jar of ointment all she had or did she have plenty more where that came from? The fact that the woman in this story defied several Jewish laws is intriguing and yet quite powerful. The best news is that despite of her disobedience to the law, Jesus receives the gift and in fact welcomes it. He certainly didn’t need the oil, but his response in support of her act, gives rise to the significance of women of vision who daily choose to carry out the Gospel.