We come now to our last section in chapter 10 where we will meet Mary and Martha for the first time in the Gospel according to Luke. Of course most people know of the raising of Lazarus their brother that you can read in John 11:1-46. But here in Luke this will be the only time we encounter these two woman. This moment is at a time when Jesus is moving along throughout the Judean region ministering and preaching. We can not be certain of whether or not Jesus had visited Mary and Martha up to this point because we do not see that in the text. I think we have some keys within this section of Scripture showing us that this is the first time they had met Jesus. Maybe they had heard of Jesus, maybe they had known of what He could do but the reality is that they grew to be true followers of Him over time.
In this study we will notice that Jesus teaches a lesson here on prioritizing what is necessary. What I mean by this is that there are many things that must be done in a day whether it is at your home, your job or in ministry. For us we must focus primarily on what God has tasked us to do. We must be doing what we do with the right attitude and for the right reason. I hope as we look at this final section in chapter 10 that all of this will be more clear for all of us. Let’s look now at our first point for this study.
1.Martha shows HOSPITALITY to Jesus.
Look with me at Luke 10:38 that says Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home.
This section of Scripture does not really have any interpretive challenges nor do we see much in the way of heavy doctrine. The lesson will be very practical and something that I believe we need to see within this section. What we see first is that Jesus is continuing to travel along the Judean region. These villages and cities could be the very ones that the 70 were sent out too. Along this journey we see Jesus enter a village where a woman named Martha, her sister Mary and their brother Lazarus live. We do not see Lazarus mentioned in this passage of Scripture but we know this from John’s account of Jesus raising him from the dead.
In fact it is that account that we find out the name of this village. John 11:1 says Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha.
In the next verse we find out that Lazarus is their brother. This gives to us a location of where Jesus is during His travels. So we know that He enters the village of Bethany where Martha welcomed Him into her home.
This is not just some act of bringing them into the home but this is an act of hospitality. The original language explains that this is an act of personal care and responsibility. It was much more than just preparing a meal or inviting them in, this was an act of honoring the guest into the house like they were a part of the family. This was compassionate and loving. This is what Martha set out to do in bringing Jesus into their home.
But as we will see this is not the motivation of Martha’s sister, Mary. This is what we will look at now in our second point.
2.Mary HANGS ON to Jesus’ words.
Look with me at Luke 10:39 that says And she had a sister called Mary, who was also seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word.
Unlike her sister, Mary is not interested as much in showing the hospitality towards Jesus but rather we find her sitting at the Lord Jesus’ feet. I don’t know if it is so much that she did not have a desire to show the same type of hospitality as Martha did but I think that she realized that this was her opportunity to sit at the feet of the Lord. Again I do not think that Martha wasn’t interested in hearing Jesus’ words but that her priority was set in the wrong direction.
The fact that we see Mary seated at the Lord’s feet shows to us her attitude towards the Lord. It isn’t that she is just being lazy but this act of sitting at the feet of Jesus is the posture of a student with a teacher or Rabbi. This is also an indication of the posture of worship and adoration towards a deity. So we see there is more to this story than just someone sitting at Jesus’ feet to keep from having to do something in preparing for a meal. This was Mary’s focus and this too should be what we are focused on primarily.
We see that this is not just some passive action but that Mary was listening to His word. This was so much more than just hearing a sermon or hearing Jesus’ words, this is an act of taking in everything that He said. She was taking mental notes of what Jesus was speaking on. Now we do not have the contents of what Jesus was speaking about here but we know that He was always preaching about the Kingdom of God, always preaching and sharing the news that He was sent from God the Father.
I believe it is these things that they hear because in the encounter with both Martha and Mary after the death of their brother Lazarus, Martha expressed her belief that Jesus is the Lord, the Christ, the Son of God. Then Mary goes to Jesus in that account and falls at Jesus’ feet calling Him Lord. They believed that He is the Lord and they believed that Jesus would raise their brother Lazarus from the dead.
So we see Martha serving and Mary listening to Jesus but this does not sit well with Martha as we will see in our next point.
3.Martha’s HARASSED emotions.
Look with me at Luke 10:40 that says But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the preparations alone? Then tell her to help me.”
The first two points were short and provides for us the contextual understanding of the point that we are moving towards. Because we clearly saw that Martha was doing a good thing and so was Mary. Also what we will notice in the next point is that Martha is not rebuked or disciplined for what she was doing. The problem arises when Martha’s attitude changes from wanting to be hospitable to worried that she wasn’t getting help from her sister.
We can make this out to be some type of sibling rivalry but I do not believe that is the point here. I believe what we will see is something we all do when we think we are doing all the right things and never get any help or accolades for what we are doing. The problem starts out in Martha’s distraction of the things she was doing. Notice that Martha was distracted with all her preparations here at this moment.
Her focus was commendable, her actions were something that would bring great joy to the recipients of those that would receive what she was doing but the problem is that she was distracted. What was it that she was distracted from? I think when we look a little further into the text we clearly see that she was distracted with the preparations to make this a great welcoming feast when she really needed to slow down, listen to Jesus and learn from her greatest guest she would ever have.
People often invite others over and they want to make a great impression. They go all out, bringing out the best china or glasses and prepare food unlike their normal dinners. Martha seemed to be distracted with all of this and this led to her emotions being what drove her to say to Jesus, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the preparations alone? Then tell her to help me.”
She is so focused on her task that she questions Jesus’ compassion, His discernment to do what was right in the moment. She trusted the Lord when she brought Him into her home but now because her sister was not helping, she questions the Son of God on His motives. She allowed her emotions to drive her actions. I know that I have done this and I’m sure you have as well. Emotions can be a good thing but when we allow our negative emotions to drive what we say, what we do and what we think then we have failed to trust God.
Martha is so irritated that her sister is just sitting around listening to Jesus that she commands Jesus to tell her to help. This is brash and inconsiderate but don’t we do the same at times? Sometimes I can be so distracted with something that is of little importance that I miss the most important thing about what I am doing for the Lord. As we move on we will see that Jesus does not condemn her for doing what she is doing but He does show to her the sin that she has committed in allowing this to bother her. This will be what we see in our last point for this study.
4.Jesus explains the HIGH-PRIORITY that must be our focus.
Look with me at Luke 10:41-42 that says But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things, 42 but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”
I think often we can be doing good things for people, helping others financially or showing them kindness in some way and still have our priorities wrong. I think it is this thought that guides us to understand the point that Jesus teaches here. Martha was doing good by being a great host but it seems that she was doing some of this from the standpoint of selfish adoration. She was concerned with how everything was going instead of focusing on the priority at the moment. For us we can attend church, we can help out at a food drive or some community gathering but we must realize there is a time to slow down and listen to God’s Word.
Mary was sitting at the feet of Jesus as a student to learn of God’s Kingdom and salvation. There was nothing sinful in what she was doing. She was not seeking to leave everything for her sister to do but it only seems that Martha wanted things to get done and leave no time for fellowship and learning. Martha demanded that Jesus tell her sister to help and Jesus replies to her first by saying Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things.
Jesus knows much more about Martha’s issues than what she was showing at the time. Martha showed irritation over this situation but Jesus says that many things are worrying and bothering her. Both of these words show us that she is stressed internally and it’s showing outwardly as well. It wasn’t just this situation that is bothering her but that there were many things that she needed to realize was keeping her from sitting at the feet of Jesus as well. It wasn’t just all of the things she was doing but it was something internally that has her this way.
So Jesus shows to her that she needs to focus on what is causing this but also that what Mary is doing is not something against her but for her own good. Jesus says to her in Luke 10:42 but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.
At that moment, it seems that none of what Martha was doing was necessary. She was most likely trying to look like the best host. Jesus does not say that we never do other things but that at certain times we must choose the better over the good. Mary was commended here for the fact that she chose the good part instead of trying to be the best host. The good part here is referencing her sitting at the feet of Jesus, listening, taking in and learning about the salvation that will be provided through the Messiah.
So often we can be so distracted that we may go to church, we may teach, preach, serve and still miss what we needed and that is to sit at the feet of Jesus, worshipping Him, learning from His Word and growing in our faith. I hope that we see here that we must choose daily and probably many times throughout the day to listen to God’s Word in the Bible instead of doing other things that may be good but are not the better choice. Do not neglect the normal things of life but choose to saturate your mind and heart with the Bible, God’s Word.
Disciple's Direction 