Pursuing What is Best
Luke 10:38-42
©May
16, 2010 by Rev Bruce Goettsche SERIES: Walking with Jesus
We all
know what it is like to come home from vacation or a long business trip. There
is something comforting about familiar surroundings. We love being able to sit
in our own chair surrounded by people who know us and love us.
Think
for a minute about the life of Jesus. He was constantly going from town to
town. His life was forever, it seemed, lived out of suitcase. Imagine how
exhausting that would have been. In his travels I suspect there were some
places that were more like home than others. Perhaps Peter’s home was a
frequent resting place when Jesus was in Galilee. The one home we know was a
lot like home when Jesus was in Jerusalem was the home of Martha, Mary and
their brother Lazarus. They lived in Bethany about two miles outside of
Jerusalem. Whenever Jesus was in the area it appeared he stayed with them.
In our
text this morning from Luke 10 we are privy to one of these visits to Bethany.
38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he
came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She
had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said.
40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be
made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left
me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”
Martha
and Mary were both followers of Jesus. They both were devoted to the Lord. We
know this from the various accounts of Jesus with these women. Martha comes
across in kind of a bad light in this text but she was trying to do a good
thing. She wanted things to be special for Jesus. She welcomed Him into her home
and wanted to make His stay as pleasant and renewing as possible. Martha had a
gift of hospitality. She served her Lord by cooking and entertaining. She loved
doing things for Jesus.
The
text tells us that Mary, Martha’s sister sat the Lord’s feet listening to what
he said. This is significant because it was unheard of for a rabbi to allow a
woman to sit at his feet. Jesus did not support the subjugation of women that
was so common in the day.
Mary’s
posture was such that demonstrated that she had a desire to learn all she could
from the Master. She listened intently to the Word of God through the lips of
Jesus.
Martha’s Irritation
I
suspect Martha was fine with Mary sitting with Jesus . . . at first. We are told that while Mary
sat at the feet of Jesus Martha was in the kitchen working. Perhaps Martha
would have liked to have been able to sit at the feet of Jesus too. However,
she had rolls to bake, potatoes to mash, and a table to set. There was much to
do. As she worked in the kitchen she began to feel OVER-whelmed and UNDER-appreciated.
She started to feel upset that Mary did not recognize that she wanted help.
We have
all, at one time or another, been where Martha was so we don’t have any trouble
imagining what was going on. You can imagine Martha thinking “Here I am in the
kitchen slaving away over a meal these people will eat in just a matter of
minutes and everyone else is out their having a good time with Jesus. Don’t
they understand how much work is involved?”
Can you
hear Martha starting to “sigh” loudly. When no one noticed I can imagine pans
and plates being placed on the kitchen counter with a little more force than
normal. Martha felt like a martyr and wanted everyone to know of her sacrifice.
For all we know someone may have said, “Martha, can we do anything to help?”
And Martha probably responded (with a noticeable edge to her voice . . . it was
meant to be noticeable), “O no, I’m fine, you just continue with your visit.”
Martha
had started out trying to do something nice for Jesus but her attitude had
taken a wrong turn. Her service was no longer about Jesus . . . it was now about
Martha. We are told Martha was distracted. When we start feeling sorry for
ourselves we begin to view everything and everybody through a negative lens.
Our stomach is tied in knots, our heart races, we attribute the worst possible
motives to everyone and we start to feel like a victim. At this point, we may strike
out at anyone and everyone who comes near.
Martha finally
had enough. She came out to Jesus and said, ““Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by
myself? Tell her to help me!” (40) I suspect if looks could kill there would
have been mass casualties. Martha is frustrated and that frustration came out
as anger toward Mary at not helping her and even at Jesus for not noticing her
sacrifice and making Mary go to the kitchen.
Isn’t it easy to end up where we find Martha? We
become so involved in what we are doing that we feel everyone else should be
equally as concerned about our pursuits as we are. We can become so distracted
that we lose our focus. We can become so obsessed with the things going on in
our life that we can’t see beyond our activity. This is what happened to
Martha.
Jesus’ Insight
Jesus
turned to Martha and simply said,
41
“Martha,
Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42
but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will
not be taken away from her.”
I
imagine Jesus looking Martha right in the eye and speaking with a touch of
sadness, “You are worried and upset about many things”. Jesus identified her
problem. With the next phrase He gave her the solution to the problem, “but
only one thing is needed”.
Jesus
may have been talking about the meal. He may have been saying, “Martha, you are
worried about getting so many things ready for us . . . only one thing is
needed. You are trying to put on a feast (and getting all worked up as you do
so) when all we need is a simple bite to eat.” However, it is more likely that Jesus
was telling Martha that she was upset about many things but was really missing
the one thing that she needed most. He wasn’t going to scold Mary because Mary
was seeking the thing she needed most: a message from God and a relationship
with His Son.
Jesus
was not telling Martha that it is bad to show hospitality to someone else.
Martha was not wrong to want to be a good hostess. She took a good thing too
far and it took her away from something far better. Martha’s priorities had
become skewed.
Principles to Remember
I want
to take the majority of our time this morning trying to apply this account to
our lives. This story was not recorded because Luke wanted us to meet Mary and
Martha. It’s not here for an anecdotal purpose. The Holy Spirit had Luke tell us the story
because it illustrates something important for those who follow Christ.
Notice
first that People Have Different
Personalities. Some enjoy reading,
some enjoy watching television. Some people like country music; some like rock
music. Some people like to camp out; others like hotels. People have different
tastes. There are always going to be some people who always need to be doing
something. They love to solve problems and meet needs. They are like the
Energizer Bunny and always on the go. There are others who love to ponder deep
truths. These people love curling up with a good book. They love taking classes
and soaking up new information. They are always ready to talk about something
new they have learned. They are happiest when their minds are engaged in
learning.
None of
these personality types is better than the other. We need balance in our lives.
The lawn mower repair guy who knows how to fix every lawnmower but never gets
around to fixing any lawnmowers is worthless.
By the same token the guy who is always taking apart lawnmowers but
never stops to learn how to do it correctly will be always busy but will never
finish the job. Likewise the person who has all kinds of theological knowledge
who never does anything with that knowledge is useless. And the person who is
always running and who never stops to “fill up their tank” at the feet of Jesus
is running fast but often in the wrong direction. It is not about personality
type, it’s about balance.
We Can be so Involved in Doing Ministry that
we Neglect Developing a Relationship with God. This is especially a
danger for the “Type A” driven personality. We see this danger with Pastors,
youth leaders, Christian counselors and people working in the mission field. It
happens to those who have a passion for the work of the church. We are so eager
to see the church grow, the poor helped, and the kids cared for but what
happens is we can neglect to tend to the fire of our own relationship with
Christ. The work becomes their God. The
focus shifts from the Lord to ME.
We can see
this played out in a marriage sometimes. A couple is so active in their
organizations and the things their kids are doing that they never take time to
nurture their relationship. They are so driven in the task of providing a nice
home and good life that they have no energy remaining for their spouse. When
one spouse says, “You don’t have time for me anymore” the other can’t believe
that their spouse could be so “selfish”. Don’t they see all that you are doing?
Eventually this couple can drift away from each other and decide that they no
longer love each other and it is simply because they have neglected to attend
to their relationship.
It is
easy for this to happen in other areas. We get so busy (often in good things!) that
we neglect our relationship with Him. We drift apart, and our act of service
becomes an obsession that takes the place of God in our lives.
The
warning here is that we must always keep hungering for the Word of Christ. We
have to watch our “God time” so it doesn’t get consumed with other activity
(even good activity). I am convinced that one of Satan’s most effective tactics
is to keep us so busy that we don’t have any time to build our relationship
with Christ.
I have
learned that I must discipline myself to read the Bible devotionally. I have to
listen not for what I can “preach on” but I need to let God talk to me about
me. I need to read good Christian books and listen to good solid teaching from
others. I need to be a student as well as a teacher. If we are constantly
working to feed the hungry but we never stop to nourish ourselves we will
eventually die.
Warren
Wiersbe wrote,
Often in my pastoral
ministry, I have asked people with serious problems, “Tell me about your
devotional life.” The usual response has been an embarrassed look, a bowed
head, and the quiet confession, “I stopped reading my Bible and praying a long
time ago.” And they wondered why they had problems![1]
Spiritual
problems begin when we begin cheating our time with the Lord. Is this happening
to you? Here are some warning signs
· You don’t have time
to read your Bible or when you read you find yourself distracted by other
things (so in effect you aren’t really reading the Bible)
· You have trouble concentrating
in prayer because there is so much going on in your head.
· Your praying focused
on your activities and no time is spent talking to God about your relationship
with Him.
· You find one excuse
after another for your absence with the people of God in worship.
· You become upset with
Christian friends who ask if you are “alright”
If you
see these signs it is likely that you need to spend a little less time doing
stuff and a little more time sitting at the feet of Jesus.
When we neglect What is Most Important the
Sweet Can Turn Sour Martha’s
heart had turned from a happy servant into a frazzled and angry person. She was
so preoccupied with her cooking and her “service” to others that somewhere
along the line it stopped being about the others and it started to be about
her. She wanted to look good, make a good impression, and be seen as a faithful
servant.
Jesus tells
us not to worry but to rest in Him. He warns us that in the world there will be
tribulation but He reminds us that in Him we can know peace even in the midst
of tribulation. Here’s a simple guideline for you: If you are churning and
worried you have drifted too far from the Lord. If you look in the mirror and
don’t like the person you are becoming don’t despair, don’t set out to do more .
. . come back and sit at the feet of Jesus. If you get your relationship right
with Him, other things will been seen with the proper perspective.
We need
to get this lesson. In the book of Galatians there is a stern warning,
7 Do not be deceived:
God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 The one who sows
to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one
who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
The
message here is simple: you cannot fool God. You can proclaim your
discipleship. You can talk about your desire to honor Him. But make no mistake,
God is not fooled. If you are not making any time for Him you are mocking Him.
If we are professing him but are not truly following Him in our lives we are
mocking Him. The warning is clear: what we sow is what we will reap.
· If we spend more
money than we have we should not be surprised when we have financial problems. We
are reaping what we have sown.
· If we give no time to
developing our relationship with God we should not be surprised when He seems
far away in the hard times. We are reaping what we have sown.
· If we do not give
priority to the spiritual training of our children we should not come running
to God (or the Pastor) when our children make bad choices in their lives. We
are reaping what we have sown.
· If we live our lives
“picking and choosing” what parts of the Bible we will embrace, we should not complain
to God when His promises don’t seem to come true in our life. We are reaping
what we have sown.
· If we spend all our
money on amusements and indulgences we should not be surprised when our life
feels empty and meaningless. We are reaping what we have sown.
· If we turn to drugs,
alcohol, or hyper activity to help us deal with stress we should not be
surprised when we cannot find the peace of God.
The
story of Martha and Mary is a warning for us to put first things first. We must
keep our priorities ordered rightly. If we do this we will also reap what we
have sown. Our families will grow strong. We will experience the Lord’s
blessing, His peace, His provision and His strength. We will be used by God in ways
that are more significant that anything we could do on our own.
There is Still Time to Change. So often when we read
the stories of people Jesus encountered we are left wondering what happened to
them. That’s not the case with Martha or Mary. We see them both later in the
gospels. They both became dynamic and faithful followers of Christ.
It
would appear that Martha listened to Jesus. She heard His warning. She adjusted
her life based on His counsel and she grew and developed. When Martha’s brother
Lazarus died Jesus came to see the sisters. We read this dialogue in the Gospel
of John,
“Lord,”
Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died.
But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” Jesus said to
her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha answered, “I know he will rise
again in the resurrection at the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the
resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he
dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe
this?” “Yes, Lord,” she told him, “I believe that you are the Christ, the Son
of God, who was to come into the world.” (John 11:21–27)
Martha
understood. She had listened. She pursued the greatest thing. As a result in
this time of crisis she had a faith that would not waver. She understood the
nature of Christ even when others did not. She changed, and so can you. It is
never too late to begin to do what is right.
So how do
we start?
1.
Make
sure that you have truly turned to Christ as the one who alone can rescue you
and as the one who will be the guide for your living. Make sure your commitment
is deep and extends to your life instead of being just a profession that is
superficial.
2.
Set
aside time every day for the Lord. Read His Word and spend some time reflecting
and praying on what you read. Write down commands you find and set out to do
what is said.
3.
Use
travel time and exercise time when you would normally listen to an iPod or mp3
player and listen to the Bible or Bible teachers or Christian Podcasts.
4.
Make
weekly worship a non-negotiable priority in your life
5.
Expose
yourself to instruction through Sunday School, youth group and special seminars
Read books that open up the Word of God to you.
6.
Build
quiet into your life. Make time when you can just enjoy God’s company . . .
even if you have to get up a little earlier.
7.
Find
some Christian friends and encourage each other in your pursuit of God.
Regularly ask each other about your devotional lives, your prayer time, and
your worship practices. Help each other grow.
It’s so
easy for any of us to get out of balance. Martha was a good woman and a
faithful woman. She lost sight of what was important and we she alerts us to
that same danger in our lives. Pay close attention to this story. Bring it to
your mind often. See yourself in the
story and heed the warning.
©May
16, 2010 by Rev Bruce Goettsche SERIES: Walking with Jesus