From extravagant gestures ?

"Why was not this perfume sold three hundred pieces of silver and given to the poor ? .... Jesus said : Allow him to keep this for the day of my burial..." John 12. 4-7

"[Joseph of Arimathea] came and removed the body of Jesus. Nicodemus also, who in the beginning had gone to Jesus at night, brought a mixture of myrrh and aloe, of about one hundred pounds [30 Kg]. They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it in linen, with spices, as the Jews are used to bury." John 19. 38-40

Six days before Passover, Sunday for us, Jesus goes to Bethany, to the house where Lazarus lives, the man whom he raised. During the evening meal, Mary, Lazarus' sister, spreads a perfume of great value on the feet of the Lord without a word, and wipes them with her hair. Judas Iscariot (in the Gospel according to John), then some of the assistants (according to Mark), finally the disciples as a whole (according to Matthew) are indignant - so much so that the criticism is contagious. What a waste, when there are so great needs among the poor who surround them ! And the Master lets it go !

But for Mary, nothing was too precious to give to Jesus who had captivated his heart ! The anointing was usually a sign of rejoicing, but here it announces the burial of Jesus. That is why Jesus magnified the gesture of Mary, the only one to understand what he was going to face : death on the cross.

Joseph of Arimathea was a rich man and an important member of the Sanhedrin ; but he had never dared to say that he was a disciple of Jesus. At the death of Jesus, however, he finds the courage to go to Pilate to ask for the body of the Lord. Against all odds, Pilate grants him his request.

Nicodemus, another member of the Sanhedrin - the only one who ever intervened on behalf of Jesus (John 7. 50-52) - joins Joseph in Golgotha. He brings a mixture of about 30 kg of myrrh and aloe, a real fortune, to embalm the body of Jesus. Together, they put his body in a tomb that had never been used before.

For them, as for Mary, nothing is too expensive, nothing is too precious to show their attachment to him whom they have recognized as the Son of God.

Lord, I want to be able to show my attachment to you in all circumstances !

Source (Pleasing the Lord)