Love Beyond Compare

𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐂𝐇 𝟑𝟎, 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟔: 𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐃𝐀𝐘 𝐎𝐅 𝐇𝐎𝐋𝐘 𝐖𝐄𝐄𝐊

𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝟏: 𝐈𝐬𝐚 𝟒𝟐:𝟏-𝟕

𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐏𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐦: 𝐏𝐬𝐚 𝟐𝟕:𝟏-𝟑, 𝟏𝟑-𝟏𝟒 “𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐢𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐚𝐥𝐯𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.”

𝐆𝐎𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐋: 𝐉𝐍 𝟏𝟐:𝟏-𝟏𝟏

𝐊𝐞𝐲 𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞: “𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐟𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞

𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐮𝐦𝐞.” (𝐯.𝟑) 

         There are two words that seem to mean the same thing. These are love and compassion. But do they really mean the same thing? They may be but not entirely. In my own humble viewpoint, love is something you feel for a person or someone else like your love for your parents, siblings, friends or fiancé. Compassion is the act of doing something beyond what love is.

         Take for example your personal relationships. Would you be willing to put in an extra effort when you’re doing something for someone you love and care for?  Are you willing to go the extra mile for the one you love like your spouse, children, siblings, relatives or friends? Don’t parents stay up late just to wait for their children to come home? Don’t spouses do the same for one another? Don’t wives keep the soup warm for their husbands when they come home?

         This is a story of love and compassion that I don’t get tired narrating. This is about a story of a couple who loved each other and would do everything out of love. This is a short story written by O. Henry about the love a couple had for each other. In that short story titled “The Gift of the Magi,” O. Henry wrote about Della and Jim who though poor were very much in love and each have a prized possession.

         Della was proud of her hair that could practically cover her body when she lets her hair down while Jim was the proud owner of a vintage gold watch that was handed down to him by his father who inherited it from his grandfather.

         Christmas was just around the corner and though Della and Jim were struggling to keep themselves afloat on a day-to-day basis both are desirous to give each one a gift on Christmas. While Jim was out to work, Della went to a salon and sold her hair for $20.00 and used the money to buy a fob chain for Jim’s watch.

         When Jim came home from work, he was stupefied to find Della’s hair had been trimmed. As Della explained what had happened, he also gave her his gift – a set of combs with jeweled rims for her hair. As it turned out, Jim had sold his vintage watch to buy the expensive set of combs that Della saw in a store window that she longed to have.

         Both Della and Jim gave their most precious possession to make the other happy. This was the kind of love that Mary had for Jesus as she took out her expensive perfume to anoint the feet of Jesus, a move criticized by Judas who said the perfume could have been sold and the proceeds given to the poor.

           It was not that Judas loved the poor but as the treasurer of the group Judas would often dip into the coffers and Jesus knew this (𝐯.𝟔) but he did nothing to stop it.

          This is the same way with how Jesus relates to us. When we choose the way to sin, God will not stop us, but it doesn’t mean He is tolerating our actions. As was in the case of Judas, what we deserve on account of our sinfulness will come and it will come.

          When Mary brought out her prized possession, Jesus gave what was to be a premonition of his impending death when he said: “𝐈𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐬𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐮𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐛𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥. 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐦𝐞.” (𝐯𝐯.𝟕-𝟖).

         It seems that it was Mary rather than the Apostles who understood what it was to do that one last thing before Jesus was taken away from her midst and the uncalculated love she showed when she wiped the feed of Jesus with her hair instead of a towel.

         This was the height of unparalleled love because no respectable woman in those days would let their hair down in public. It was immoral for any woman to do so but Mary never gave it a thought as she loved Jesus so much that she didn’t care what others thought.

         Genuine love is when you can swim against the current of public opinion to do what you think is right. Real love as what Mary showed is when you set aside your own interests for that of others such that you regard others as more important than you do.

         Many of us procrastinate as we tend to put off what we can do today. We don’t seize the moment when an opportunity comes. In fact, we have become seasonal even in the practice of our Christian faith. We choose when and where to serve, and we become selective even in the matter of giving. 

         Mary went the extra mile when she used a very expensive perfume to anoint the feet of Jesus and wiped it with her hair and so is Jesus who on Good Friday will show us the extravagance and uncalculated love that he has for all of us when he gives the best that he can give by pouring out his own blood for our sake and anointing us with his Holy Spirit.

         “𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐧𝐨 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐲 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬.” (𝐉𝐧 𝟏𝟓:𝟏𝟑) Such unbridled love Jesus has for us that he will sacrifice his life and die on the cross as a ransom for us. In fact, the whole life of Jesus was one of sacrifice beginning with his incarnation when he chose to divest himself of his divinity and too the form of a servant (𝐏𝐡𝐢 𝟐:𝟕).

         He gave up his free will and became obedient to his heavenly Father unto death, even death on the cross (𝐏𝐡𝐢 𝟐:𝟖). During his ministry, he even refused to eat as when he met with the Samaritan woman and his disciples told him to eat saying: “𝐌𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐢𝐦 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐦𝐞, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤.” (𝐉𝐧 𝟒:𝟑𝟒)

         The life that he lived should serve as an example for us in the way we are to live. We can probably hold back in helping the poor because this is something that we could do anytime. But we cannot defer our worship of Jesus as this is something we cannot put off.

         To worship Jesus by knowing him, loving him, serving him is something we must do right now for the chance may never come again and our failure to do so especially our failure to express our love for him would bring disastrous results.

         Judas and the other disciples saw the use of an expensive perfume to anoint the feet of Jesus as waste, but Jesus saw in it as an act of pure worship. Our Lord gave us time, talent and treasure for us to use these to worship him.

        In fact, this is what God expects from us that we all must bear fruit and we can only do by remaining in him. If we are to really dwell deeply on the Word of God, we will conclude that we don’t have much choice because it was God himself who chose us and appointed us to go and bear fruit – fruit that will last (𝐉𝐧 𝟏𝟓:𝟏𝟔).

         It would be a waste if we do not. Carpe Diem! Seize the moment. It might be too late if we will put it off for tomorrow for tomorrow may never come. And when we have made a choice to follow and worship Jesus, let us go the extra mile like Mary for the reward of an eternal life is something that we cannot pass up.

        We can put more meaning to our observance of Holy Week by making a commitment to also die on the cross with Jesus for it is only in dying that we are brought back to life. (𝘌𝘥 𝘔𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘺 - 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 30, 2026)