#11 Some people come into
our lives; There's something intriguing, mysterious, exciting about art. Not just looking at it, but getting into the act yourself, in some way: drawing, painting, creating, designing. There's a thrill, a sense of accomplishment in creating something of your own. During the last century a relatively new form of art was introduced, and it has captured the attention of many people. It's called "collage." Little bits and pieces of paper and other things put together either with glue, or even by welding to make up some type of picture, or some type of statue. Wild and weird contrivances and creations. Back at the turn of the century, art was still very much idealistic and visionary. It tended to deal with things as we wish they were rather than the facts as they are. Well, a gentleman by the name of Kurt Switters suddenly turned away from this kind of idealistic art – painting things so prosy and pretty and perfect – and he began what we call the humanization of art: making it more human, realistic. He turned to the scrap heaps, the junk piles. He picked up things in the scraps of old iron, broken watch works, bazaar and absurd materials which even a junk man would have discarded, and he used them in the fabrication of his masterpieces of art. This then is the "collage." From these scraps, these bits and pieces rejected by everyone else, Switters would fashion a collage. And many of these sold for $10,000 or more even while the artist was still alive. But the most skillful and the most successful collage artist of all was Jesus, the one we call the Christ. It was Jesus who took man from the visionary and idealistic and got down to the little bits of real life. He didn't just take the best of man. He took the worst of man, the refuse of society. Individuals society had thrown away, cast off, said were no good, valueless – worse than that, they were evil. But how many times Jesus reached out and reclaimed from the scrap heaps of human life, torn, twisted bits of flesh and spirit, and creatively put them together into some of the most amazing designs. And magnificent masterpieces of life were the result. Jesus the Artist. This morning I would like to unveil for you one of Christ's amazing collage masterpieces composed of the sordid parts of a human life. From the mutilated fragments, we shall see the delicate features of a woman's face appear. We will watch the expression change on that face as it is tenderly and skillfully fashioned until at last it reflects the loving character of the Master Artist Himself. The name of this woman, strangely enough, is the same as Jesus' own mother – Mary. But the fragments don't fit, you see, because this is not the Mary of Nazareth that we have heard so much about, but Mary from the town of Magdala. We often speak of her as Mary Magdalene. SCENE I (A Haunted Face) From the Scriptures and Bible commentators the little bits and pieces of her life can be glued together with what we know of the culture and the time in which she lived ... and we see this woman begin to take form, and we see how Jesus related to her. You see, it’s possible Mary Magdalene actually wasn't from the town of Magdala at all. Obviously she lived there for a time, but this wasn't her home. Her real home was in Bethany. She was a suburbanite. She lived in this very fashionable Beverly Hills community on the outskirts of Jerusalem where many of the elders and leaders of the people lived and commuted every day. She was one of three children as far as we know, and they lived together: She had an older brother named Lazarus and an older sister by the name of Martha. So she was the youngest child, very lovely, intelligent, and highly sensitive. I don't know exactly what Martha and her brother did for a living, but we do know that there were times that Martha apparently catered feasts. We find her often cooking in the Bible. And apparently she used her younger sister to help in the catering. Often when many of the dignitaries in Jerusalem put on a feast, no doubt Martha was the one who did the catering for it. Probably at one of the feasts, a feast put on by Simon, Mary became acquainted with this sophisticated man of Israel. A handsome man, a man who had position, everything you'd want. He was a scholar, a great teacher in Israel. In fact, he was a Pharisee. And as this feast progressed, I can well see Simon looking at this young, beautiful, sensitive girl and he suddenly discovers in her one with a keen mind. (Now, only men were supposed to be educated in Jewish culture. Rarely did a woman have the opportunity to learn. But occasionally you'd find someone like Mary in whom they could spot great talent, and they would be given an education.) So I can almost see Simon saying, "My, what a beautiful girl, what an intelligent girl – you know, she needs an education." And maybe he talked with her brother and sister or maybe the parents (if they were still alive at this time, we don't know). Whatever the case, I wouldn't be at all surprised that he became kind of a private tutor. As time progressed, Simon was very attracted to Mary and apparently Mary to him. In fact, he said he loved her. There came a point where Simon became so interested in Mary that he seduced her and soon it became a full-blown affair – only they kept it hushed up between the two of them. Now Mary was not this kind of a girl. But she was a girl. And she had normal human responses. And when a person of this particular position took an interest in her, it was natural for her to respond to an extent. So as Simon continued to tutor her or whatever else he may have done ... there came a point where he said, "Look, Mary. Why not? Everybody does it. They don't say much about it publicly, but this is the way it is. I love you. How could anything so good be so bad? ... In other words, if I love you and nobody else is getting hurt – why not?" And it apparently sounded good to Mary and she became involved. Now the Scripture doesn't say exactly what happened after that, but the Bible gives us a little assistance to help us read between the lines. In the Jewish culture this kind of activity was not looked upon favorably as a rule. If a young woman was involved to the place where she became pregnant, they found out who the man was and they stoned them both. For God had told the Hebrew people, "If you find two that are involved in immorality – stone them." Needless to say, this kept immorality down to a minimum most of the time! But in this particular case it wasn't a Hebrew culture in the fullest sense. The Romans were in charge. Now the Romans didn't look on immorality like the Jews. Therefore, the Romans said it was absolutely illegal to stone anybody for a simple thing like that. (Immorality was common practice in Rome.) So at this time there were more than the average number of young ladies who found themselves in this delicate position. When a girl found herself in this situation, about the best thing she could do to save her family from utter disgrace by this terrible thing, was to go away. And one of my Bible Commentaries indicates that the reason Mary of Bethany became Mary of Magdala was because she had to leave home! I'm highly suspicious we have a pregnancy on our hands. And as we continue with these bits and pieces, you'll see that this fits together. I can imagine the day came when perhaps she discovered that this was the case. I can see her going over to Simon's house. She has mixed feelings. It isn't good to be in this position without being married, that's obvious. But in a sense they had been talking about marriage, and maybe this would just hurry things up a little bit. Can't you see her going in and saying, "Simon, I've got something to tell you. I have some good news." "Oh, what is that?" he says. She says, "I'm going to have a baby." And he looks at her coldly, "So, what else is new?" And she says, "But Simon, I'm pregnant, it's your child!" "Drop dead. I'm a man in Israel. Look at how they respect me. Why should I be bothered with you? You're just a girl. Get lost." And let me tell you, Mary came alive and fast. She suddenly learned that there are people in this world that love you for what they can get out of you and that's all. "How can you say this?" she says to Simon. "I love you with all my heart, my mind. I've loved you with all my body and you say to me you don't want me?" "Honey, it's not a question of not wanting – how could I possibly take you? People still can count, you know. And when they figure out what the problem is I'll lose my position in town. Now look, girl, the best thing is to get lost so that your family won't be embarrassed, so you won't be embarrassed, and so I won't either." [And no doubt he was the one who persuaded her that she ought to go away. Go up to a relative in Magdala.] "What will I do with the baby?" she may have asked. "That's not my worry, kid, that's yours." And she learns another fact, that there are people who not only take advantage of you and use you as a thing to an end, but there are people who after doing all this and leaving you in tragedy, they have no sympathy and they don't care. 7 DEVILS #1: RATIONALIZATION #2: GUILT And so after Mary had been engaged in these activities with Simon, the GUILT came. It began to eat away at the very core of her personality. #3: FEAR #4: ESCAPE #5: TRAGEDY Or does she take the child to a foster home? And act like she has no child, but sneaks out on the side to see it, and when she does her heart breaks, tears her apart because she wants it for her own and can't have it. Or does she give it up and someone adopts it. And down in the depths of her mind for the rest of her life wonder if the child is all right ... and wonder where? What does she do? I imagine Mary took the course that many take today – I can't be a fit mother, the child needs a father, the best thing to do is to give up the child. #6: TENSION #7: HATRED She's half insane, and the fear and the shame and the tension and the hatred only intensifies her guilt as this chain reaction mushrooms. At last she says, "I'm terrible, I admit it. I'm bad. I'm the worst. And if I'm this bad, nothing can help me. I might as well keep right on going ... I might as well make a business of it. At least I can eat." So she became a prostitute. And every last time she looked into the eyes of a man, all of the horrible tragedy would come back to her mind until finally she couldn't take it anymore. The guilt had reached unbearable proportions, and she was possessed by seven devils – perfectly hopeless despair. There is no way out. That spark of life grew so tense, the stress so great, the worry and hatred and fear so intense that her mind snaps and the flickering flame at last goes out in that sensitive mind. Darkness settles in and the life merges into that halfway haunted nightmare world of the mentally sick where she is now more dead than she is alive. This is where we find her – the emptiness in her face. There she is ... When suddenly out of the darkness of her mental disease – a voice, "Mary." She looks up and she can see the form of a man. And all of the nightmare starts over again. Six times Jesus tried to heal Mary but couldn't. He could not break through to her. She would see just another man's face and back she would go. Well, He could have just said "forget it." But He never gave up. Oh, how He loved her. And finally the seventh time she hears it again, "Mary." She looks up and she now focuses into the eyes of Jesus. There's no sensuality there. She can't believe it. She hates men, but not this one. And for the first time in her adult life she looks into the face of a man that loved her for herself, not for what He could get out of her; who loved her as a person, not as a thing to play with. She found her sanity. She found herself when she found her God. And out of the depths of despair came a gratitude so deep that there has never been another person in Scripture as far as we know, that has ever loved like this woman loved. She who had been the rejected one, through Christ had the breakthrough. He could have extinguished every spark of hope in her soul, but He did not. His fathomless love lifted her from despair and ruin, and this woman became Mary, the beloved. SCENE II (The Face of
Interest) The women did. They ministered to Jesus' personal needs. As Jesus would come along, we usually picture it, first Jesus, then Peter, James, and John and then the other disciples. But No! No! No! That's not the way it was. It was Jesus, the three disciples, then the women (and the rest of the disciples.) And it says that the elders of the town would come out when they would hear that Jesus was coming and they would stand at the town gates: "Tsk, tsk, tsk – aw, look at the Messiah. Look at the kind of people – Birds of a feather flock together, you know! Prostitutes and mentally sick! What kind of a Messiah is this?" And they taunted Him at the gates with this. But Jesus loved too much to care. He would not separate Himself from those which He had helped like this. Mary could not have stood the separation. But one day Jesus said to her, "Mary, it's time to go home." "Bethany?" asked Mary. "Yes, back to Bethany. It's time for you to meet your family again." "Oh, I can't. I've disgraced them. Surely the word has gotten around." "Mary, it's time
to go home." "Mary, it's time to go home." And home they went. When they got there, Martha fixed a nice meal – where is Mary? At the feet of Jesus. The face of interest, Now. Martha finally comes out and barks at Jesus, "Why don't You tell my sister to come in and help me fix the meal?" Jesus made something very clear to her. "Now let's stop right there, Martha. You're a wonderful woman, and you're a terrific cook and I love to eat at your house. But your sister Mary has chosen something more important than all the food in the world. She's hanging onto every word I give her, My words of love to her. It's the heart that comes first, Martha. All the activity, even in the church, isn't going to save you. It's the love of the Father in heaven, and this alone. And that is what Mary has chosen. Let her alone." SCENE III (The Feast
at Simon’s) Now, Mary had heard Jesus tell that He was going to die. Not one single disciple had caught on, but she had. She went down to prepare for the funeral and had spent an entire year's salary to buy the most expensive embalming perfume there was – an alabaster box of Spikenard, from the mountains of the Himalayas. ($40-$50,000) She thought, as she saw these feet – soon they will no longer be walking the highways of Palestine ... Why wait to give it to Him at the funeral? "I'll give it to Him now." She ran back home, got the alabaster box, came back, broke it open, and began pouring it on the feet of Jesus. Now because of the way they were reclining, she avoided being noticed – she wasn't even seen. But Simon had a very good sense of smell and pretty soon he began to sniff this embalming fragrance and he wondered – who has died? And he looked around and sure enough: here is this lady at the feet of Jesus ... and Simon immediately recognized her. There she was – Mary! He was repulsed – shocked. He had often wondered what happened to her since the time he had humiliated her, and over the years he sort of kept track, hearing little bits and pieces of stories. But he had not heard about what Jesus had done for her. He only knew her to be an immoral outcast. And he was horrified to have her in his house at his feast. He said to himself in LUKE 7:39, <Luke 7:39> (KJV) And in vs. 40 it says Jesus understood his thoughts, turned over and sat up. <Luke 7:40> By this time the poor woman is caught in the act. She is weeping, half tears of joy for what Jesus had done for her. But now she's frightened – she's weeping because she's been discovered. And the tears are coming down on His feet, and what do you do? She hadn't even brought a towel. So kind of half consciously she lets down her long hair and wipes His feet with it. This horrified Simon even more, for in their culture it was a disgrace for a woman to let down her hair in public. And Jesus says to Simon, "Now let me ask you this, Simon. If there were two men and one had a bigger debt cancelled than the other, which one would love the most?" Simon says, "The one that had the biggest debt cancelled." And Jesus says (vs. 44-46), "That's right. You know what, Simon? I came into this house and according to the laws of our people, you were to wash my feet or have a servant do it. You did not, look – the dirt is still on My feet except where she has wept her tears. When I came into your house according to the laws and customs of our people, you were to take and embrace Me and kiss Me with a holy kiss. You never touched Me with your lips, yet she has never ceased to kiss My feet. And when I came here, you were to give Me tonic for My hair, dusty and windblown, that I might be ready for the feast. Did you do this? No." And by this time Mary is pouring some of the ointment on His hair. "Ah," says Jesus, "Simon, she has been forgiven much and she loves more deeply than you can ever understand." And He turns to the woman and says, "Your sins are forgiven, your faith has saved you, GO IN PEACE." SCENE IV (The Face of
Sorrow) She is weeping at His feet and her tears are running down His feet like the day at the feast – this time they're not mingled with perfume, but with the blood from the nails hammered thru them. She would never leave Him. She loved Him too much. "They can kill me, I will never leave Him." Then came Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. They take the body down, and she helps them quickly put some embalming materials around it and quickly get it into the grave because the Sabbath is coming on. And the stone is rolled across. Sunday morning. It's dark out there. "Peter, where are you? Peter?" "Shh! I'm over here. Don't talk too loud, they might find we're up here. Is that bar on the door?" "Yes." "Well, keep it there........Mary?" "She is not here." "Where is Mary?" "I don't know." Here in the early morning dusk, walking down to finish the job is Mary. And she is saying to herself, "I wonder who will roll back the stone for me, 'cause I'm going to give Him a decent burial." They were scared – not Mary. She arrives at the tomb. The stone is gone. And so is the body – somebody has stolen away His body. She runs back to the disciples. They scarcely will let her in. She tells them. They don't believe it. Finally John and Peter dare it and run to the tomb. Sure enough, it's true. "Peter, how could they do a thing like that? Robbing His very grave! They gave Him no peace in life, and they don't even give Him peace in death!" John puts his arm around Mary and says, "Mary, come with us back to the upper room where we last saw Him in peace." "No," she says, "I want to be where I saw Him last – here.” And they left. As she lingers there, she thinks how they have horribly desecrated Him even in death, and she bursts into tears again. She is kneeling, weeping, and she hears the sound of feet on gravel. She looks through her tears, sees His feet...It’s the Gardener. "Oh," she says, "Please, sir, tell me where they have put him. I will go and take Him away." That little woman take away the big Carpenter from Nazareth? How could she do it? I don't know, but that's what she wanted to do. And then in the darkness of her despair a voice: "Mary." The voice that had brought life to her once before. She looks up. ... It's Jesus! Resurrected and real! He's not dead – He's alive! She says, "He'll never get away from me now!" And she grabs Him and holds on to His legs. "I'm never going to let you go." Jesus says, "Mary, you must not. I've got to go back to My Father. So don't detain Me. But you, Mary, you go and tell the disciples I'm alive. Tell them that I will meet them where I promised to meet them." SCENE V (The Face of
Joy) Jesus had told His disciples, "the least among you – he shall be greatest. He that is last, shall be first." Dear friends, Mary had a depth of love that you find in no other follower of Jesus Christ in all the Bible. None. There is no one that can compare with her. And the Bible teaches that those who love God most will be nearest to Him in the kingdom. And I cannot help but wonder what her position will be in Heaven. Could I suggest the possibility? Who will be there on His right hand? Peter? Brave man, Peter. I doubt it. How about loving John? Maybe. When I get there, I won't be at all surprised to look and see the former mental patient from Magdala who made her living by prostitution. She shall stand by His side forever as the symbol of Christ's church and how He redeemed it from the depths of despair into the highest holy places of eternity. This, then, is the collage. In Mary we see the glorious collage masterpiece of Jesus, the Master Artist. But Jesus knows the circumstances of every soul. You may say, "I am sinful." I'm dishonest. I am a thief...a murderer...a liar...or I'm pregnant at 15, too, just like Mary – You may be, but the greater your mistake, the more you need Jesus. He won't turn you away, tell on you, or disappoint you. He'll forgive. Jesus the Master Collage Artist is walking this building today. The Master Collage artist is here, right this moment. He is ready to make a Masterpiece out of you. He is walking the highways and byways of your minds and hearts, searching for the odd bits and scraps that you have been hiding under the rug and in the closet for years. He wants to take these and put them together until He has fashioned out of you a beautiful Masterpiece of Himself, like He did with Mary. JESUS WANTS TO MAKE A
BEAUTIFUL MASTERPIECE OUT OF YOU But you say, "I don't like to see it, it depresses me." Uh-huh, me too. But I would like you today to open the closet, pick up the rug – let's get it out. The Master Collage Artist is going to take those little bits and scraps of nothingness and He's going to put them together into a great life. Take out the scraps and let Him take them. Let Him make something great out of you as we bow our heads and listen to this song.
|