But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.”
And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”
Luke 10:38-42
In the above 5 verses Jesus is sharing a very powerful truth with us! Most of us probably know the story very well. At least for me, I simply thought it was about us needing to spend time with Jesus everyday, to take time out from our busy schedules and be in communion with Him. Although I was not entirely wrong, my perspective back then was still about what I needed to do instead of seeing what the Lord has done for me!!
Once again, as with every passage in the bible, we must always see the person of Jesus unveiled and in this instant, it was reli about knowing the heart of the Lord and how he delights in giving to us :)
Imagine the scenario: Jesus turns up at Martha's doorstep and rings her doorbell. Martha opens the door and exclaims,"OMG!!!" She slams the door, rushes to clear the sofa of clothing, places everything neatly and does some last minute housekeeping, all the while shouting at her sister Mary to help her. Minutes later, she opens the door again with a sheepish smile and welcomes the Lord into the house, her mind already thinking about what she should prepare for this most distinguished guest.
Once Jesus sits down, Martha rushes into the kitchen and goes into a frenzy of preparations, hoping that the food she makes would be "worthy" for Jesus. Mary on the other hand, takes on a totally different attitude which seems rude; it almost seems like she doesnt see any need to serve the Lord anything at all but rather she just sits at His feet and feeds on every word that He says.
What's actually happening here? At the end of the story we know that Jesus defended Mary when Martha became cross with her sister. But why u may ask? Wasnt Martha just trying to serve a guest with all her efforts?
The answer is simple. Martha saw Jesus in the flesh as someone tired and needing her ministry. Mary, on the other hand, saw Jesus as a fullness to draw from, knowing that this was the Son of God Himself. And this is exactly the point why Jesus came to their house. He wanted to minister to them!!! He wanted them to know that He is a giver, that God is a giver and He delights in giving to us! In his presence, we need to let Him take His place as a giver and we juz humbly take our place as a receiver! :) Let Him minister to us, wash us again with His Word, comfort us, teach us, correct us! In short, we juz take and take some more from Him! 'Cos when u have been in the presence of Jesus, u can never leave the same again! You will always be enriched by Him!!!
Notice that Jesus didnt rebuke Martha for her cooking, but rather He said that she was 'worried and troubled about many things'. Then He drops the bomb by saying that only ONE thing is needful, and Mary has chosen it. The only thing that is needed every single day is to satisfy ur soul by feeding on His love! When your inner man is flowing with righteousness, peace and joy, everything outside will be an overflow of what is boiling up on the inside!! :D
The problem is that we dont really believe what Jesus says; one thing is needful. Had he said a few things were needed we prob might have believed Him. Cos' every day there are juz so many things screaming for our attention, demanding our time and energy, and yet He says only one thing is needed???
But this is precisely what we need to do every day! Just this one thing! And it will never be taken away from us! That's His promise! Our battle every day is to fight to enter His rest by doing that ONE thing - feeding on the person of Jesus and His finished work. Reminding ourselves how God bankrupt heaven when He spared not His own Son, so that when we receive Christ into our lives, we receive EVERY good thing that came along with Him!!! Know that we are more than conquerors because Jesus Himself conquered death the last enemy at the Cross! As a post-Cross believer, we have to be aware of the grace and blessings that are abundantly available to us!!!
But this is precisely what we need to do every day! Just this one thing! And it will never be taken away from us! That's His promise! Our battle every day is to fight to enter His rest by doing that ONE thing - feeding on the person of Jesus and His finished work. Reminding ourselves how God bankrupt heaven when He spared not His own Son, so that when we receive Christ into our lives, we receive EVERY good thing that came along with Him!!! Know that we are more than conquerors because Jesus Himself conquered death the last enemy at the Cross! As a post-Cross believer, we have to be aware of the grace and blessings that are abundantly available to us!!!
I promise you, when you embark on that one thing, you will not be worried and troubled about many things. Although you may know the story well, but ask yourself today if u r worried and troubled abt many things. If you are, and I admit many a times I am, then remember the one thing that Jesus said. For the ways of God are seemingly simple and yet powerful! Doing that one thing will ensure that you are not worried about many things, and you will live a carefree and restful life!! :)
