Lessons from the Woman with the Alabaster Box

Lessons from the Woman with the Alabaster Box

12TH JUNE 2026

Christ for Youth International

“a woman came to him with a vase made of alabaster containing very expensive perfume. She poured it on Jesus’ head while he was sitting at dinner. This perfume could have been sold for a lot of money and given to the poor.” Matthew 26:7, 9 CEB

We can draw a few conclusions about the perfume from these verses. The first is that it was costly to purchase. It therefore follows that should it be sold, one would get a lot of money for it. The alabaster box along with the perfume it contained is estimated to have cost 300 denarii, which is equivalent to a full year’s wages of an ancient Roman worker (Mark 14:5, John 12:5). The modern-day financial equivalent of this is estimated to be around £35,000 or $55,000 as this is the average annual salary in the UK and US respectively. This means that what would have been someone’s annual salary spent over 12 months, 52 weeks, 365/6 days, this woman spent in one moment. It is no wonder the disciples were outraged at the “waste.” However, what was wasteful to some was worship to another (the one person whose opinion mattered). In that moment, the woman with the alabaster box had a better estimation of Jesus than the disciples did. She spent her money on what she knew to be of most value, at least to her! The woman knew that Jesus was worth every denarius and more. She knew that no sacrifice was too great for Him and that in honouring Jesus, cost did not matter. By giving her best or at least a gift that costly, the woman was revealing what was of most value to her. It was not her riches, her costly perfume, or the unique alabaster jar. All of those paled in comparison to her estimation of Jesus and the value she placed on Him.

This is the lesson we can draw from her story and apply to our lives. What you value most is what you give your best to. Your best is not only reflected in your monetary giving. It is first of all in giving your whole life to Jesus.

Giving our lives in surrender to God means that we are handing over the most valuable thing we have to the one who is most deserving of it.

Out of the sacrifice of our lives, all others become acceptable offerings on the altar. This includes our time, money, resources, relationships, our youth, our speech, conduct, sexuality, purity, etc. In honouring Jesus, we are called to let go of our selfish ambition and count anything competing for God’s place in our lives as “… dung, that we may win Christ” (Phil 3:8). The result of this honourable and selfless estimation of Jesus is that we will attract God’s favour.

Prayer: Father, thank You for teaching us what it means to have an honourable estimation of Your Son Jesus in whom the Godhead is pleased to dwell. Help us by Your Spirit to honour and value Jesus by giving our best to Him. In Jesus’ name.Amen.

Further Reading: Genesis 4:4 // Matthew 26:13

Bible in One Year: Psalm 99–102

[embed]- YouTube Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on…www.youtube.com