Costly perfume... an extravagant act... a meal. These elements in John 12:1-8 foreshadow Jesus' impending death.

Passover is six days away (12:1), and the final journey to Jerusalem is imminent (John 12:12). Jesus' "hour" is at hand. The gospel writer's use of the word "hour" (or "time") appeared earlier (2:4; 7:30; 8:20) and will be reintroduced in 13:1. It is a symbolic reference to the hour of Jesus' glorification - his death, resurrection, and ascension.

Jesus has returned to Bethany, having come from a town called Ephraim in the Judean wilderness. Prior to traveling to Ephraim with his disciples, he had been in Bethany where he raised Lazarus to life (11:1-44). Inserted in between the two accounts of Jesus in Bethany, the gospel writer alerts his hearers/readers that there is a plot to kill Jesus (11:45-57).

Upon arriving at the home of Lazarus, Martha, and Mary, a dinner awaits Jesus. Martha serves, Lazarus and Jesus are seated at the table (with others), and Mary positions herself at Jesus' feet where she proceeds to anoint his feet with expensive perfume and dry his feet with her hair. [In the synoptic gospels, two other accounts of an anointing are associated with events surrounding Jesus' passion (Matthew 26:1-13; Mark 14:3-9). Both of these accounts are often referred to as "The Anointing at Bethany." The venue is the home of Simon, a leper; an unnamed woman pours a costly ointment on Jesus' head. In Luke's account of a similar anointing (7:36-50), Jesus is at the home of a Pharisee named Simon; a woman described as "a sinner" bathes Jesus' feet with her tears, drying them with her hair, while anointing them with a precious ointment.]

The text from John's Gospel seems to mirror Luke's account of Jesus' visit to the home of his friends in Bethany (7:38-42). Martha is described as the one who welcomed Jesus into her home and attended to the household tasks, whereas Mary is at the Lord's feet, attending to Jesus' words. In John's account, the primary focus is on Mary's lavish act of love and devotion which prompted Judas Iscariot's rebuking remark; a reference to Martha's serving her guest with a meal appears to be given short shrift (12:2). (To be sure, if Jesus and his disciples are just returning from the wilderness, they are probably famished!) Yet, both actions - one that is extraordinary and extravagant and one that is ordinary and everyday - demonstrate the love and devotion the sisters had for Jesus and their response to discipleship. Both actions also point to John 13 where Jesus illustrates the meaning of true humility by hosting a meal for his disciples and washing their feet.

During the season of Lent, we are called to reflect on the cost of discipleship. Loving acts of humble service define us as followers of the One who "came not be served, but to serve" (Mark 10:45, NRSV); a lavish act reveals that we are ready to follow and not count the cost in responding to Jesus' extravagant love for us.