AT THE FEET of JESUS
Luke 10:38-42
Introduction:
Have you ever met a person that just seemed to have God all over them? It seemed that they possessed a walk with the Lord that was head and shoulders above anything you have ever experienced yourself, and you wondered how they get that. Well, I know people like that! I belive the answer lies in what they have discovered. It just seems to me that some people have learned to live at the feet of Jesus as they go through life and this turns into peace, power and purpose before God.
I don't know about you but, I want that kind of life for my Wife / my Childern / my parents/ Al and myself ! How about you? I would like to be constantly filled with the Spirit of God and I would like to be found at the feet of Jesus.
The Gospels mention a woman named Mary. She was the sister of Lazarus and Martha and she in mentioned 3 times in the Gospels. Every time Mary is mentioned, she is always found at the feet of Jesus.
Her experiences there can teach us all some valuable lessons about our own walk with the Lord. This morning, I want us to take a few minutes and join Mary "At The Feet Of Jesus."
STAND / READ (Luke 38-42) / PRAY
**At His feet in sorrow**
John 11:32 , “Then, when Mary came where Jesus was, and saw Him, she fell down at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”
Mary expressed her disappointment and lack of understanding. She said “Lord, if You had just shown up when we needed You, this wouldn’t have happened.”
If we’re honest / many of us have felt the same way:
-- “Lord, why didn’t You show up and save the day?”
-- “Why did You let my marriage fall apart?”
-- “Lord, why did you let my loved one die?”
-- "Lord, why did you let my business go under?”
Yet, by positioning herself at His feet, she expressed her continuing regard for Him as her Lord and Savior. There are times when we experience a crisis or a trial and we can look back on it later and see the reason for why it happened and what we gained from it.
But there are also trials in life that we have a hard time understanding on this side of glory:
1. “Why did my child have to die?’
2. “Why was I born with this condition or disease?”
3. “Why hasn’t the Lord healed me or taken me to Heaven?”
**Jesus shares our pain**
John 11:33–35 , “Therefore, when Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her weeping, He groaned in the spirit and was troubled. 34 And He said, “Where have you laid him?” They said to Him, “Lord, come and see.” 35 Jesus wept.”
In John 11:32 we find that Lazarus has died and Jesus has come to pay His respects to the family. When He arrives, He meets Martha and calls for Mary to come to Him. Once again, she is found at His feet looking into His face for the help she needs. What she finds during this encounter can help us all when we face the difficultiles of life.
I find it interesting that, although Lazarus’ death had been God’s will -- and even though Jesus knew that He was getting ready to raise him from the dead… He still cried at the tomb.
Why? ...
I believe He was moved by the pain of those He loved.
Friends, there are times in our life when we face tragedy / loss of loved ones / disappointments / and heartaches. We pray for a situation to end one way and it becomes clear that God had something else in mind. Or someone else refuses to cooperate with God’s will and your life is affected. But don’t EVER think that God is oblivious or insensitive to our pain! I believe that we serve a God that still mourns with His children in times of pain and longs to comfort us and pull us close until the storm passes! AMEN!
"Let me just say that Every child of God needs to understand that Jesus cares about our need. He is interested in what we are experiencing, Never think for one second that God does not care about you. That is the devil's lie! Jesus is highly interested in everything about you and everything you are facing in life"
Psalm 34:18-19 , “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.”
God brings healing and comfort to those who sit at His feet in their time of need. I’m just wondering / if there is someone here today who is hurting from a loss and tired of trying to manage life in your own.
Jesus says in Matthew 11:28 , “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”
I’m just wondering if there’s someone today who is broken-hearted and wounded by someone else. Psalm 147:3 , “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” Come and sit at the feet of Jesus and let Him put the pieces of your life back together. Let Him guide you down the paths of Hope and Peace
**At His feet enjoying His presence**
LUKE 10:38-42 - Our featured text this morning.
Martha opened her home to Jesus and did her best to be a good hostess. Mary, on the other hand, opened her heart to Jesus and tried her best just to love the Lord. sometimes we get all caught up in the RELIGION and we miss the joy of the RELATIONSHIP.
We can be fully engrossed in “religious stuff” and not experience the joy that we are intended to have from a relationship with God. You can be on every ministry team the church has. You can be involved in Sunday school and small groups. You can be a deacon or You can be on staff as the youth director / children’s director / or associate pastor. But be so busy with the religious stuff that you neglect the RELATIONSHIP that fuels the passion for what you’re doing!
"In our zeal to serve the Lord, we wind up IGNORING Him!"
Religion without relationship over a period of time can and will result in…
-- Ministry burnout
-- Obedience out of GUILT, rather than GRATITUDE
-- ROUTINE and RITUAL, rather than JOY and PASSION
In this text, while Martha labored, Mary listened. She found a place of stillness at the feet of Jesus.
Today, I ask you (and I’m speaking especially to those who have walked with the Lord for many years now), I’m talking to deacons, staff members, ministry leaders, charter members, and folks that are here every time the doors of this church house are open.
QUESTION: How is your RELATIONSHIP?
How often do you just open the Word and spend time in prayer – merely to just sit at Jesus’ feet and enjoy His presence?
Are you a MARY? – Who loves to simply spend time in God’s presence...
Or are you a MARTHA? – So distracted by the urgency of life and secondary things that you neglect that which is most important?
Poem - The Longer I praise Him, The Sweeter He Grows
The more I praise Him the sweeter He grows,
The more that I love Him, more love He bestows;
Each day is like Heaven, my heart overflows.
The longer I praise Him the sweeter He Grows.
"The more time one spends at His feet, the easier it is to make it a priority in life. The larger He gets in our eyes, the smaller other things in life seem to become seem to become."
Calvary Hill listen to me!, I want us all to experience the JOY of living life with the presence of the Holy Spirit as our daily guide / companion / provider / protector and friend. But we have to Sit at His feet in quiet moments, not out of guilt or obligation, but out of thanksgiving / love / amazement / awe and wonder.
**At His feet in worship**
John 12:1–8 , “Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead. 2 There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him. 3 Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil. 4 But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, who would betray Him, said, 5 “Why was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denari and given to the poor?” 6 This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it. 7 But Jesus said, “Let her alone; she has kept this for the day of My burial. 8 For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always.”
"Mary is so overcome with her love for Jesus in raising Lazarus from the dead that she is willing to pay whatever price is necessary to serve Him and be a blessing."
Let me take a moment to set the scene for you. It’s interesting to note that Lazarus was seated at the table with Jesus. This is the same Lazarus that Jesus had raised from the dead.
Wouldn’t you have loved to have been able to sit at that table and a part of that conversation?
Martha was, doing what she does best, serving and doing all she could do to make the occasion special. There were others present as well. Judas is one of the disciples mentioned by name. I belive that other disciples, if not all 12 were present.
And Mary was there taking it all in. Perhaps she was watching Jesus talk to Lazarus and her mind goes back to that day when Jesus called into the tomb and raised His friend back to life. / Perhaps she was reflecting upon the truths He had taught her and modeled them so perfectly in His own life. / Perhaps the thought hit her that, in that VERY ROOM was the Son of God, the Promised Messiah, the king of king's and Lord of Lord's! / Perhaps she thought, I must do SOMETHING MORE than merely saying, “Thanks,” or saying, “I love you. I must make an OFFERING to SHOW Him how I feel.”
I like to imagine that she immediately knew what to do – the jar! I picture Mary quietly getting up from her seat and slipping out of the room. She returns with an alabaster jar. Inside that jar was a pound of very expensive oil called spikenard. it was very valuable and most of it was imported from the Himalayan region of India. (This was no Stetson or Old Spice in this jar!) It has been estimated that, in today’s money, the contents of the jar would have been worth between 15 - 20 THOUSAND dollars! That could have easily been a YEAR’S WAGES in that bottle!
Perhaps the contents of that jar represented everything she once thought was important. / Perhaps she bought that jar as an investment / planning to sell it one day for a higher price and make a profit. But now / in the midst of her Savior’s presence, the only logical thing to do with it was to pour it out as an offering.
I picture everyone talking and laughing as Mary enters the room with her jar. But the conversation begins to quiten and heads turn in her direction as Mary kneels before Her Savior. “What is she doing?” they said. There is a holy hush in the room as Mary poured the oil upon the feet of Jesus in a beautiful act of worship. I bet you could have heard a pin drop as Mary poured out the ENTIRE CONTENTS upon Jesus feet.
In that moment, Judas could'nt stand it. He speaks up and yells! at Mary for “wasting” the entire contents / emptying the entire jar / when it could have been used for so many other things. But, instead of rebuking Mary, Jesus rebukes Judas. He then goes on to point out that Mary has discovered what is most important -- seizing the opportunities we have to worship at the feet of Jesus.
Can you imagine what that beautiful act of worship at the feet of Jesus must have been like…
As she poured the oil on the feet of her Savior, the aroma filled the entire room. The whole house was filled with the fragrance, not just the room in which they were seated. Her act of worship had an effect on everyone who was present.
"Likewise, when we give ourselves to Jesus / when we kneel at His feet the aroma is powerful."
When a congregation is made up of committed Christians who are willing to give everything they have to Jesus ! / the scent is inviting. That’s the power of corporate worship
letting aroma of our praise fill this room and community. That's why they call this place the "Thrill on the Hill"
And the bible say's that she dried His feet with her hair. So imagine that the aroma had a lingering effect upon both Jesus and Mary for days to come.
ILLUSTRATION:
Have you ever noticed that, after chopping onions, you can smell the onions on your hands even the next day /even after showering and washing your hands. / That's just like, the time we spend at the feet of Jesus in worship and surrender it has a lingering effect upon us / the aroma of His presence lingers.
** You see Mary was willing to give up this treasure because of her love for Jesus. Mary gave her best, she gave her all to the Lord Jesus who she loved. We should do no less! When we give less than our best to Jesus, we have made no sacrifice at all! It is not until we give our all and our best that we are truly displaying our love for Him. When we shortchange Jesus with our time / our tithes and our talents / we are not displaying our love for Him. His desire is that He be given our all. And not anything less! **
"Mary was willing to do the work of a common slave for the Lord Jesus."
ILLUSTRATION:
0. Henry's short story called "The Gift of the Magi." It is the story of a young couple named Della and Jim. They were a poor couple but they loved each other deeply. Each one had their own unique possession. Della's hair was her pride and joy. When she let her hair down it was like a robe on her back. Jim had a gold watch, which his father had given him.
On the day before Christmas, Della had exactly $1.87 with which to buy Jim a present. She wanted to get him something he would really like, but she knew that she could not get much with a $1.87. She did the only thing she could do. She went and sold her hair for $20.00. With the money she bought a platinum chain for Jim's precious watch.
Jim came home from work that night. When he saw that Della's hair was gone, he was left speechless. Slowly he handed her his gift. His gift was a set of expensive tortoise-shell combs with jeweled edges for her lovely hair. He had sold his gold watch to buy them for her. Each had given all he or she had to give.)
IN CLOSING:
**At His feet in need of salvation**
In order to have eternal life, we must all place ourselves at the feet of Jesus, and the foot of the cross.
When we as believers take the time to sit at His feet like we should, it too has a lingering effect. We are telling the world that Jesus is our lives. We are showing them that He is important to us and that we are not ashamed to be associated with Him. You see, sitting at Jesus feet will show on you! People will know when you spend time with Him,
Look at what Acts 4:13 says:
Acts 4:13 (NKJV)
13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus.
"Oh,By the way, It will also show on you when you do not take the time to sit at His feet."
And...
The last place Mary was sitting at feet of Jesus, was at the foot of the cross.
John 19:25 , “Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother's sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene
Conclusion:
Where do you find yourself this morning? Are you sitting at the feet of Jesus listening to Him, learning from Him and just loving Him? He is worthy of our total devotion. I challenge you to join me in coming to His feet this morning. Let's find our place there and be all that Jesus wants us to be. These alters are open do not leave this place till you find His feet and and leave all your burdens there.
CLOSING PRAYER
