Matthew 26:1-16
26: When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, 2 “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.”
3 Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, 4 and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him. 5 But they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.”
6 Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, 7 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. 8 And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? 9 For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.” 10 But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me. 11 For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me. 12 In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. 13 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.”
14 Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. 16 And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.
Reflection
Matthew paints a stark contrast between two very different people. On the one hand, we see a woman who pours out her “very expensive ointment” on Jesus (Matt. 26:7), demonstrating that she finds him to be more valuable than her personal property or financial security (cf. 13:44–46). On the other hand, we see the corruption of Judas, whose greed drove him to betray Jesus for thirty pieces of silver (26:15–16). The book of John explains that Judas thought this woman’s generous gift was a “waste” (John 12:4–5). Given the choice between serving God or money, Judas had chosen money. He proved the truth of Jesus’ teaching that the person who tries to serve two masters “will hate the one and love the other” (Matt. 6:24). We cannot serve both God and money, and the true condition of our heart will reveal itself in our actions.
1 Corinthians 7:36-40
36 If anyone thinks that he is not behaving properly toward his betrothed, if his passions are strong, and it has to be, let him do as he wishes: let them marry—it is no sin. 37 But whoever is firmly established in his heart, being under no necessity but having his desire under control, and has determined this in his heart, to keep her as his betrothed, he will do well. 38 So then he who marries his betrothed does well, and he who refrains from marriage will do even better.
39 A wife is bound to her husband as long as he lives. But if her husband dies, she is free to be married to whom she wishes, only in the Lord. 40 Yet in my judgment she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think that I too have the Spirit of God.
Reflection
The chapter ends with Paul’s support of both marriage and singleness as valid options for the Christian (1 Cor. 7:36–38). Though he has used the entire chapter to argue that neither option is spiritually superior, he personally prefers singleness, for practical reasons (v. 38; see also v. 28).
Ultimately, chapter 7 reminds us of Christ coming to our world. In him we see the perfect combination of involvement in the world without dependence on the world. Jesus lived a genuinely human life, bearing with all the difficulties and temptations of life in a fallen world. Yet he never let sinful priorities govern his mind-set or lifestyle. His coming has broken the power of this world (v. 31), so that as we await his return (“the appointed time”; v. 29), we too are able to live faithfully before God.
Psalm 111:10
10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!
Life in our physical world is neither to be avoided nor sinfully indulged in as though it were unrelated to our spiritual purity. Ask God to provide you with the wisdom to live in the world without living for the world.