On a Wednesday night last month, I joined my friend, Janet's women group from her church. She invited me to attend and I accepted. The meeting was through Zoom. After we worshipped together and next, the leaders shared some announcement, then we got into a Bible Study on Martha and Mary, two sisters who lived in Bethany and a little bit of Lazarus, their brother. The message I got was to be more like Martha. It doesn't fit me. I'm more like a Mary. I believe in a balanced life with the help from my Lord. God has created us uniquely with our own gifts and talents. It's how we use them. Do we use them to glorify ourselves or to God? Do we use them to serve our God in ways that help others?
First, we can learn so much from Martha and Mary. I can write a different blog entry on Lazarus since that's another story and lesson to learn for another day. Who are these sisters? Why were they so important that they were mentioned in the New Testaments of the Bible? From the Gospels, we get a glimpse that Martha, Mary and Lazarus who were wealthy. They had a nice house with a spacious courtyard to be able to invite big groups of people for lavish meals. They had servants to assist in taking care of their home and property as well as hospitality duties. They had money to be clothed well and luxury items to own and use. The siblings lived in Bethany, a village just outside Jerusalem.
They were followers of Jesus which they developed a close relationship with their Lord. (They didn't literally follow Jesus. When he was in the area, they probably seek him and listened in public places. They believed in him. We don't see in the Gospels of them following Jesus from place to place. Eventually, Martha invited Jesus to their home, more a private setting, where he taught them and where his friendship with the three siblings were developed further.) Jesus loved these siblings dearly. From the Gospels, Jesus visited their homes at least three times that we know of, and probably many more. It sounds like they were able to create a restful place for Jesus to visit where he found nourishment and friendship. Remember, the Messiah was busy traveling for his ministry to spread the Good News and healing people as well as teach his disciples, preparing for the time when he would leave them.
Let's read Luke 10:38-42 :
First, we can learn so much from Martha and Mary. I can write a different blog entry on Lazarus since that's another story and lesson to learn for another day. Who are these sisters? Why were they so important that they were mentioned in the New Testaments of the Bible? From the Gospels, we get a glimpse that Martha, Mary and Lazarus who were wealthy. They had a nice house with a spacious courtyard to be able to invite big groups of people for lavish meals. They had servants to assist in taking care of their home and property as well as hospitality duties. They had money to be clothed well and luxury items to own and use. The siblings lived in Bethany, a village just outside Jerusalem.
They were followers of Jesus which they developed a close relationship with their Lord. (They didn't literally follow Jesus. When he was in the area, they probably seek him and listened in public places. They believed in him. We don't see in the Gospels of them following Jesus from place to place. Eventually, Martha invited Jesus to their home, more a private setting, where he taught them and where his friendship with the three siblings were developed further.) Jesus loved these siblings dearly. From the Gospels, Jesus visited their homes at least three times that we know of, and probably many more. It sounds like they were able to create a restful place for Jesus to visit where he found nourishment and friendship. Remember, the Messiah was busy traveling for his ministry to spread the Good News and healing people as well as teach his disciples, preparing for the time when he would leave them.
Let's read Luke 10:38-42 :
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!”
41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
Like many sisters, Martha and Mary had quite different personalities, and we can see the difference clearly in how they related to Jesus. What can we learn from these sisters? Is serving more important than seeking? Could we find a balance between seeking God and serving others?
From the passage, we can see that Martha was so busy serving and letting her worries of her hospitality duties which distracts her from time spent with Jesus. Her younger sister, Mary's ways would annoyed her sometimes; Martha showed more obsessive concern about getting things done. "Duty first" was Martha's motto. She served Jesus by preparing meals and doing the work of hosting.
Mary didn't let things distract her; she was able to drop everything and go to Jesus, sitting at his feet. She was open to listen and learn from him. When he called, she answered immediately. She showed her love for him in extravagant ways, once lavishing a huge amount of expensive perfume on his feet (John 12:3). For Mary, everything stopped when Jesus was present.
When Jesus responded to Martha with, "My dear Martha, you're so worried and upset about many things. But there few things needed, actually more like one thing. Mary has chosen what is better; and it will not be taken away from her," why do you think Jesus preferred Mary's way? Jesus cares enough that you study the Word to feed yourselves spiritually than serving Him while feeling spiritually empty and having a distractful mind full of worries.
Here are some reflective questions to ponder and help you grow:
*Are you more like Mary or like Martha?
*Am I ready to serve? Am I letting my worries take away the joy of serving?
*Am I serving while feeling empty? How can I fix this?
*Am I seeking God today? What steps do I need to make to spend quality time (aka quiet time) with Jesus?
Finally, my concluding thoughts is finding a balance in your daily life between serving and seeking God. When we study His Word, we feed our spirits and grow in knowledge; we become wise leading to to make better choices in life. When we rely on God, we can serve with a genuine heart.
From the passage, we can see that Martha was so busy serving and letting her worries of her hospitality duties which distracts her from time spent with Jesus. Her younger sister, Mary's ways would annoyed her sometimes; Martha showed more obsessive concern about getting things done. "Duty first" was Martha's motto. She served Jesus by preparing meals and doing the work of hosting.
Mary didn't let things distract her; she was able to drop everything and go to Jesus, sitting at his feet. She was open to listen and learn from him. When he called, she answered immediately. She showed her love for him in extravagant ways, once lavishing a huge amount of expensive perfume on his feet (John 12:3). For Mary, everything stopped when Jesus was present.
When Jesus responded to Martha with, "My dear Martha, you're so worried and upset about many things. But there few things needed, actually more like one thing. Mary has chosen what is better; and it will not be taken away from her," why do you think Jesus preferred Mary's way? Jesus cares enough that you study the Word to feed yourselves spiritually than serving Him while feeling spiritually empty and having a distractful mind full of worries.
Here are some reflective questions to ponder and help you grow:
*Are you more like Mary or like Martha?
*Am I ready to serve? Am I letting my worries take away the joy of serving?
*Am I serving while feeling empty? How can I fix this?
*Am I seeking God today? What steps do I need to make to spend quality time (aka quiet time) with Jesus?
Finally, my concluding thoughts is finding a balance in your daily life between serving and seeking God. When we study His Word, we feed our spirits and grow in knowledge; we become wise leading to to make better choices in life. When we rely on God, we can serve with a genuine heart.