As Jesus and the
disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village
where a woman named Martha welcomed them into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet,
listening to what he taught. 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.” But the Lord said to
her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over
all these details! There is only
one thing worth being concerned about. Mary
has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke
10:38 - 42 (NLT)
For Christians spiritual growth is so vitally
important it cannot be underestimated. As
with all living things we are either growing or dying!
The plain truth is that more of the church’s
woes are the product of spiritual immaturity than any attacks from “the
outside”. By the outside I mean
government interference, satanic influence and lack of resources. It is what and who are on the “inside” that
gives the church most of its problems.
Someone once remarked that when Satan has done his best to wreck the
church and can’t get the job done, he will join the church and get on a
committee. I think I’ve had coffee with
him at some meetings.
When we really want to know answers the Bible
does not lack for examples that teach us the truth. Mary and Martha are the poster children for
spiritual maturity and childish immaturity.
Let’s study them closely (there’s a test at the end of today’s sermon)!
Consider Martha’s lack of
focus on Spiritual Growth
1. Martha was
distracted
Luke tells us that when Jesus showed up it must
have been dinnertime and the preparations were underway. Martha was manning the kitchen, worrying[1]
- perhaps she was concerned they weren’t going to have enough for everyone, or
that the table wasn’t set properly. But
Martha’s sister, Mary just sat at Jesus feet and listened to him teach about
God’s kingdom.
Martha certainly could have been distracted by
the fact that she was doing all the “work” while her lazy sister just chewed
the fat with the men. Martha failed to
see Mary wasn’t being lazy; she was hard at work learning from the Master. Poor distracted Martha!
2. Martha was
Disapproving and Demanding
Luke says Martha “came” to Jesus. The force of this word indicates she didn’t
just stroll into Jesus’ presence; it means she rushed-up with an
attitude. Martha was about to pitch a hissy fit!
“It’s just not fair” is what Martha said to
Jesus. And where has any parent heard
this before? Faultfinding (Martha
pointed a finger at her flesh and blood) is the mark of a critical spirit
unchecked.
Martha continues: “Lord, tell her…” We miss the force of this in English. Martha wasn’t asking, she was instructing,
demanding that Jesus set Mary straight.
Have you ever prayed like that?
You’ve never made a demand that God set someone straight, have you?
Martha was distracted, disapproving and
demanding, and the result was that…
3. Martha made
herself Depressed
Jesus said[2],
“My dear Martha, you are so upset….” The Lord told the distraught sister that her
worrying on the inside had worked its way to the outside…her inner turmoil
became an outer melt-down.
Martha’s problem was obviously that she had
focused so much on the physical preparations without any consideration for the
spiritual opportunities that had walked in the front door.
Food and a nice table-set are not bad; I rather
recommend both. But in this case Martha
had allowed something good (the physical food) to
become the enemy of the best (learning from Jesus).
Now, I ask you to help me out here – what in
the world can a spiritually-immature, over-worked, disapproving, demanding and
depressed church member possibly do to hurt a church’s ministry?
OK – no brainer there – but let’s not throw
Martha out with the bath water. Let’s
bring Mary in to be an influence on her sister.
Consider Mary’s love of
Spiritual Growth
1. Mary was
Discerning
Jesus told Martha there was but one
thing that was impossible for a disciple of His to be without. Of course he was referring to sitting at
Jesus’ feet to learn how to be a disciple.
It’s that way with all disciplines.
If you want to be a plumber you’ve got to learn how to “plumb”. If you’re going to do heart surgery on me I
do hope you have been to med school (and paid close attention!).
That’s what Mary was doing…paying close
attention to the Master.
2. Mary was
Devoted
Mary had discovered that “one necessary thing”
Jesus talked about, and she was doing something about it.
Mary’s choice was better than Martha’s because
she developed her ability to follow Jesus.
She developed her sensitivity to Jesus’ ways and, because she stayed
close to Jesus, her love for him increased.
With that formula in place Mary’s ability to surrender to God’s will
increased far above what Martha could even imagine.
In John 12 we find Mary anointing Jesus with
costly perfume. This was for his burial,
and helps us see that loving Jesus will open our understanding. Mary understood Jesus’ mission long before
Peter and John. That’s spiritual
maturity!
The question for this hour
|
The Martha Test
·
When life gets busy, time with God tends to get pushed aside
·
When you try to focus on something, you find yourself easily distracted
·
Overall, you (or others) say you tend to be a worrier
·
You at times feel sorry for yourself
·
At times you are easily angered by others
·
It’s easy for you to see others faults
·
You find yourself questioning if God really cares about you
|
Take the Martha test and then, for each time
you had to be honest with a “yes” answer, take a deep breath and say – Lord,
that’s too much like Martha.
Then spend some time in prayer asking God to
help you be more like Mary.
That’s the prescription for a Martha who wants
to be Mary – sit at His feet; learn and love.
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