Hard work is a Christian ethic. But sometimes we need to just sit and listen, especially when the one doing the talking is Jesus. Let’s read the story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10:38-42.
Luke 10:38 As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home.
The certain village is elsewhere called Bethany. Martha seems to be the homeowner, possibly widowed, and thus the hostess. Her brother and sister also lived there, though Lazarus appears to be absent during this episode. Details may have been obscured due to potential persecution from religious leaders in nearby Jerusalem.
Luke 10:39 Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught.
Sitting at the feet of a teacher was the ancient practice and expression picturing a student. She kept on listening to what he taught.
Luke 10:40 But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.”
How many times have we been at a church service when a meal was planned for afterwards, only to find out that one or more ladies stayed in the kitchen the whole time preparing the food instead of sitting in the service worshipping and learning? Have you ever wondered why?
Luke 10:41 But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details!
Martha, Martha! I smile as I recall those words. She was certainly not the lazy sluggard of Proverbs 24:30-34. I can’t imagine she would have tolerated a yard overgrown with weeds or failed to maintain any garden walls. Her problem was not laziness but being an obsessive-compulsive work-a-holic.
It bothers me that in volunteer organizations some people want to dictate that others work more. It seems to me that only drives people away. Rather, ought we not be more thankful for the help we do get, and perhaps if we are more grateful, more would want to help.
Luke 10:42 There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”
Oh, how we get our priorities all mixed up in churches. Even missionaries come home and tell us about all the wells they dug, people they fed, houses they built, and all their wild and perhaps dangerous adventures, but sometimes not enough about people that were changed by Jesus Christ.
Standing in line for communion, a lady’s mobile phone went off. The pastor, having a little fun said, “Tell them that we don’t do takeout.” [1] Our lives are filled with distractions. Find time to sit at the feet of the Master. Turn off the media and listen to God.
[1] thanks to https://lectionarylab.com/
In the story of the Good Samaritan, the Priest and Levite were too busy loving God to love their neighbor. At Martha’s house, she was too busy loving her neighbor being the good host, to love God by listening to Jesus. We cannot neglect either loving God or loving neighbor.
We sit at Jesus’ feet when we hear Gospel preaching or read the Gospels at home. As we read the whole Bible at home, let’s make sure we regularly include something from the Gospels. Perhaps sometimes temporarily put aside our loving service to others and just sit at Jesus’ feet?
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
