Jesus tells His disciples that the Passover is coming and He will be delivered to be crucified. The chief priests and elders plot to kill Jesus but decide not to do it during Passover. Their plans aren’t going to matter. God uses their plotting, but He is ultimately in control. Jesus will die on time, at Passover and not according to man’s plans.

Man again shows lack of understanding at the things of God when the alabaster jar is broken and poured out, preparing Jesus’ body for burial. The Holy Spirit inspired her to do it and she suffers persecution from the disciples for it.

The disciples think God cares about the poor. He does. They aren’t the most important thing, though. Jesus is the most important thing. We don’t serve the poor. We serve Jesus.

Jesus says that whatever His disciples did to the least of these, they did to Him. We serve Him. We love Him.

That love can look like a lot of different things. We love whomever the Lord has put in front of us. We love whomever the Lord sends us to.

She loved who was before her, Jesus. Jesus should always be set before us.

Serving and loving God only is helpful. If we keep Him as the recipient of our actions, then we can serve without needing the thank you, the appreciation, the recognition. God sees what we are doing and He certainly owes us nothing. We owe Him so much; He does not owe a servant a thank you for just doing their job. We can, however, know we have pleased the Father in loving others selflessly as unto the Lord.

Judas is found in our next plotting scene. He goes to the chief priests. These priests and the elders are part of the Sadducees. They are the officials. They are in an appointed position. They have the authority. These were ruling families that kept power.

They pay Judas the same amount paid for Joseph when he was sold as a slave. I don’t know how the value of silver changed during that time, but it comes out the same. God was in control. He wasn’t controlling, but He knows how to influence and move men.

Put yourself into His hand to have His way. We’re told in Ephesians to be under the influence of the Holy Spirit. We want to be moved by God and caused to go where He wants us and to do and say the things He wants us to.