殺害耶穌的陰謀
（太26‧1－5；路22‧1－2；約11‧45－53）
1過兩天是逾越節，又是除酵節，祭司長和文士想法子怎麼用詭計捉拿耶穌，殺他。 2只是說：「當節的日子不可，恐怕百姓生亂。」
在伯大尼受膏
（太26‧6－13；約12‧1－8）
3耶穌在伯大尼長大痲瘋的西門家裏坐席的時候，有一個女人拿着一玉瓶至貴的真哪噠香膏來，打破玉瓶，把膏澆在耶穌的頭上。 4有幾個人心中很不喜悅，說：「何用這樣枉費香膏呢？ 5這香膏可以賣三十多兩銀子賙濟窮人。」他們就向那女人生氣。 6耶穌說：「由她吧！為甚麼難為她呢？她在我身上做的是一件美事。 7因為常有窮人和你們同在，要向他們行善隨時都可以；只是你們不常有我。 8她所做的，是盡她所能的；她是為我安葬的事把香膏預先澆在我身上。 9我實在告訴你們，普天之下，無論在甚麼地方傳這福音，也要述說這女人所做的，以為記念。」
猶大出賣耶穌
（太26‧14－16；路22‧3－6）
10十二門徒之中，有一個加略人猶大去見祭司長，要把耶穌交給他們。 11他們聽見就歡喜，又應許給他銀子；他就尋思如何得便把耶穌交給他們。
各位平安，今天我們讀的是一段有趣的故事，有兩個部分。這段故事發生在馬可福音14章，耶穌在逾越節前，到了西門的家裡。
馬可以巧妙的方式，把這兩個故事放在一起，做了一個直接的比較。
當我們講這個故事時，如果稍微戲劇化一點，效果可能會更好。我們看到耶穌在休息的時候，有一個女人前來。這段故事也出現在馬太福音和約翰福音中。在約翰福音中，提到這位女人是瑪麗亞，是拉撒路的姐姐，也是馬大的妹妹。她帶來了一瓶非常珍貴的香膏，價值30兩銀子，相當於普通工人一年的薪水。這瓶香膏被形容為非常昂貴，你可以想像它的價值，即使在今天也是一筆可觀的費用。這樣一瓶小小的香膏，你可能會想到市面上最昂貴的香水，可能一年只會使用幾次，只在特別節日使用。
然而，馬利亞竟然將所有的香水都倒在耶穌的身上，使整個房間充滿了香膏的香氣。你可以想像一下，將你最愛、最昂貴的香水一瓶都倒在耶穌身上的情景。
我認為許多人可能很難想像這件事情，或者無法做到。因此，周圍的人本能都覺得這樣做實在太浪費了。這麼昂貴的香水，怎麼可能用在這種方式上呢？這樣的舉動讓周圍的人都感到不高興，尤其是在馬太福音中，記載了門徒對此感到不滿，約翰福音中指名道姓地說加略人猶大也表達了不滿。我分享這段故事的時候，我通常都會會問正在聽的弟兄姊妹，一定會有人說，這樣使用香水我看了也會不高興，真的很浪費。
接下來，我們所看到的是猶大跑去見祭司長，想把耶穌交給他們。同樣地，我們也知道猶大把耶穌賣了，正好也是30兩銀子。我每一次分享這一段的時候，我都會問正在聆聽的弟兄姊妹，幾乎一定會有人說，猶大這樣太不對了，怎麼可能把耶穌只賣三十兩銀子？
我們一同來看看這兩段，我們本能性的反應和話語。
在第一個段落中，許多人都不認為這30兩銀子該這樣花在耶穌身上；然而，在第二個段落中，卻有人覺得耶穌怎麼可能只值30兩銀子。
這兩種反應同時出現，我覺得相當值得玩味和思考。
你覺得馬利亞為耶穌付出過多了嗎？這筆錢可以用在別處嗎？你會發現一件事情，當我們還是在用金錢去評論付出的時候，我們就還是有所保留，我們就還是有所猶豫。我們還是在計算著多少是付出多，多少事付出少。
付出的時候，馬利亞付出三十兩銀子的香水太多了。猶大賣耶穌的時候，三十兩太少了。
30兩銀子少了。但是呢？有人卻可以為了300兩、3000兩，就把耶穌給賣了，好像只是價格問題，只要價格夠了，耶穌就可以賣了。30兩太少，但是三千兩我可以賣了，是這樣嗎？在某件工作事情上，只要我稍微模糊一點，我就可以做到一件生意，賺很多錢的事情，這個時候我可以先不要那麼堅持聖經的原則，我可以跟這個世界一樣做一個聰明的決定，配合一下別人的要求，讓我能夠把這個合約先拿下來。
馬利亞所使用的這瓶香膏是她自己的，她百分之百擁有，沒有偷，也沒有借。她有絕對的權柄去使用它。然而，當她決定把這些香膏全部倒在耶穌身上時，為什麼別人要去對她的付出品頭論足呢？而且英文還說的是，強烈批判她的行為。相比之下，猶大因為30兩銀子就出賣了耶穌，我們卻要批評他這樣做是不對的。在這段故事裡，同時彰顯了人性的兩面。甚至我們可以檢視一下自己的內心，我們心中在計價嗎？我們是否把福音當成一個商品，把耶穌當成一個可以用金錢來衡量價值的商品呢？
這兩件事情都不是臨時起意做的，而是刻意去行動的。馬利亞當然知道她的香膏是非常高貴的，非常難買到的。她也很清楚這瓶香膏的價值非常高，但是她毅然決然地把它用在了耶穌身上，抓住了耶穌生命中在地上最後的時間。因此，她也因此永遠被紀念。主說他在我身上做的是一件美事。這裡的「美」不僅僅是指美善，還包含了美妙的意思。做美善的事情可能有時會很辛苦、很疲倦，需要付出勞力和辛苦。但是美妙的事情卻是能夠讓人不斷地讚美、欣賞的，馬利亞膏抹耶穌，是一件持續永遠感動著人心的事情。而耶穌在這裡所說的就包含了美善和美妙的含義。
猶大同樣處心積慮地要把耶穌賣掉。他刻意地去找了祭司長，跟他們議價，看他們要出多少錢。一旦他得到了他心滿意足的價錢，他就與他們商議好，決定要把這件事情完成，把耶穌賣給他們。因此，這也不是一個臨時性的動議，而是他處心積慮地要完成的事情。這樣我們看到彼得的背叛也是一種背叛，但彼得是被肉體的軟弱和心中的害怕所臨時驅使，沒有堅持住，因為恐懼本能地去否定耶穌。然而，猶大卻是刻意地處心積慮、有計劃地去把耶穌賣給他的敵人。這兩者在本質上是不同的。
馬可用了一個非常精彩的方法，將馬利亞膏耶穌的故事，和猶大賣主的故事放在一起。一件事情表達了完全的奉獻和愛心，而另一件事情則表達了可怕的背叛。這兩件事情也是我們每一天都可以選擇去做或者不做的事情。我們每天都可以選擇把我們的最好一切，我們自己的時間和我們自己的人生，奉獻給耶穌。在同樣的情況下，也可能選擇背叛，選擇出賣。這實際上不是他們兩個的選擇，而是我們每一天都可能做出的選項。
這真的是值得我們去思考和深入探討的一個故事。明天我們將繼續看耶穌所設立的聖餐。他在吃逾越節晚餐的時候還有一課要教導門徒，這個事情就是親自設立聖餐禮。這讓我們所有人都能夠紀念，並且以形象化的方式去了解他在十字架上為我們所做的事情。感謝各位的聆聽。
Jesus Anointed at Bethany
Now the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread were only two days away, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were scheming to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him.
“But not during the festival,” they said, “or the people may riot.”
While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.
Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, “Why this waste of perfume?
It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages and the money given to the poor.” And they rebuked her harshly.
“Leave her alone,”said Jesus. “Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me.
The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me.
She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial.
Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”
Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them.
They were delighted to hear this and promised to give him money. So he watched for an opportunity to hand him over.
Hello everyone, today we are reading an interesting story with two parts. This story takes place in Mark 14, where Jesus is at Simon's house before the Passover.
Mark cleverly juxtaposes these two stories together for a direct comparison.
When we tell this story, adding a bit of drama might enhance its effectiveness. We see a woman approaching Jesus while he is resting. This story also appears in Matthew and John. In John's Gospel, this woman is identified as Mary, the sister of Lazarus and Martha. She brought a very precious jar of perfume worth 300 denarii, equivalent to a year's wages for a common worker. This perfume is described as extremely expensive; you can imagine its value, even today it would be a significant cost. This small jar of perfume might bring to mind the most expensive perfumes on the market, perhaps only used a few times a year, especially on special occasions.
Yet, Mary poured all the perfume on Jesus, filling the whole room with its fragrance. Can you imagine pouring your most beloved, most expensive perfume on Jesus?
Many might find it difficult to imagine or achieve such an act. Therefore, those around her instinctively felt it was wasteful. How could such expensive perfume be used in this way? This action made those around her unhappy, especially in Matthew's Gospel, where the disciples express their dissatisfaction, and in John's Gospel, where Judas Iscariot is specifically mentioned as being displeased. When I share this story, I often ask those listening, someone will surely say, "I would also be unhappy to see the perfume used in this way; it's really wasteful."
Next, what we see is Judas running to see the chief priests, intending to hand Jesus over to them. Similarly, we also know that Judas betrayed Jesus for precisely thirty pieces of silver. Every time I share this passage, I always ask the brothers and sisters listening, and almost inevitably, someone will say, "Judas shouldn't have done that; how could he betray Jesus for only thirty pieces of silver?"
Let's take a closer look at these two segments, our instinctive reactions, and the words we speak.
In the first segment, many do not believe that these thirty pieces of silver should be spent on Jesus in this way. However, in the second segment, some wonder how Jesus could only be worth thirty pieces of silver.
These two reactions occur simultaneously, which I find quite intriguing and thought-provoking.
Do you think Mary gave too much to Jesus? Could that money have been used elsewhere? You'll find that when we are still using money to measure our giving, we still hold back, we still hesitate. We are still calculating how much is too much and how much is too little.
When giving, Mary giving thirty pieces of silver worth of perfume was too much. When Judas sold Jesus, thirty pieces of silver was too little.
Thirty pieces of silver was too little. But then, someone could sell Jesus for three hundred or three thousand pieces of silver, as if it were just a matter of price, as long as the price is right, Jesus can be sold. Thirty pieces of silver is too little, but three thousand pieces of silver, I could sell. Is that so? In a certain job or situation, if I blur my principles a bit, I could make a lot of money, I could make a smart decision like everyone else, and accommodate others' demands, so I can secure the deal.
Mary's use of the perfume was entirely her own; she owned it one hundred percent, without theft or borrowing. She had absolute authority to use it. Yet, when she decided to pour all of this perfume onto Jesus, why did others criticize her actions? Moreover, it was strongly criticized. In contrast, Judas betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver, and yet we criticize him for doing so. In this story, both sides of human nature are highlighted. We might even examine our own hearts; are we valuing things? Do we treat the Gospel as a commodity, and Jesus as something that can be measured in terms of monetary value?
Neither of these actions was spontaneous; both were deliberate. Mary knew very well that her perfume was extremely precious and hard to come by. She also knew the high value of this bottle of perfume, yet she decisively used it on Jesus, seizing the final moments of Jesus' earthly life. As a result, she is forever remembered. The Lord said that what she did to him was a beautiful act. Here, "beautiful" does not just mean goodness; it also carries the connotation of wonder. Doing good deeds may sometimes be hard work, tiresome, requiring effort and toil. But wonderful things are those that continuously inspire praise and admiration. Mary anointing Jesus is an act that forever touches hearts. Jesus' words here encompass both the notions of goodness and wonder.
Similarly, Judas was deliberate in selling Jesus. He deliberately sought out the chief priests, bargained with them, and determined how much money they would pay. Once he got the price he desired, he negotiated with them, deciding to go through with the transaction. Therefore, this was not a spontaneous decision; it was a calculated move on his part. Thus, we see that Peter's betrayal and Judas' betrayal are different in nature.
Mark brilliantly juxtaposes Mary anointing Jesus with the story of Judas betraying him. One act expresses complete devotion and love, while the other expresses a dreadful betrayal. These are actions we face every day, choices we can choose to make or not. Every day, we can choose to devote our best, our time, and our lives to Jesus. In the same situation, we may also choose betrayal, choose to sell out. It's not actually their choices, but the choices we might make every day.
This is truly a story worth pondering and delving into. Tomorrow, we will continue to explore the Last Supper that Jesus instituted. While eating the Passover meal, he still has a lesson to teach the disciples, namely, the establishment of the sacrament of communion. This allows all of us to remember and understand symbolically what he did for us on the cross. Thank you all for listening.
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