Troubled by Many Things
In order to be a disciple, we need to know Jesus personally. We must have a close relationship with Him. This can come only by spending time with Him. In our busy lives, with so many important things vying for our time, how easy it is to get caught up in things, even good and important things, and let our relationship with God slip.
Read Luke 10:38-42. How does this episode reveal how even good things can distract us from what is most important? What message for you can be found in the story of these two female "disciples"?
Mary heard His word. No one can be a true disciple who does not hear His word. The text said, too, that she sat at His feet. First-century teachers sat on high stools while their students sat at their feet on lower stools or the floor. To sit at one's feet means to adopt the posture of a disciple or learner. That she sat at Jesus' feet meant that she was His student (compare Acts 22:3).
In contrast was her sister, Martha. The Greek text says that she was "drawn away" by much serving. In one sense, this could be understandable. After all, the Master had come to their house, so it was their responsibility to tend to their guests' needs. At the same time, her plea that her sister help also echoed customary conventional values and expectations. Mary's place was in the kitchen—the part of the household designated for women—not in the dining area with the men.
Yet Jesus did not rebuke Mary; He chided Martha. He named her twice, perhaps showing concern. Martha's complaints were justified, but Jesus' rebuke reminds us there are issues more important than other necessary things. We all need to take heed, for sometimes we allow the urgent to crowd out the important, or the good to exclude the vital and necessary.
How can you find the proper balance in your own life between things that must be done and spending time at the feet of Jesus? What adjustments might you need to make? At the same time, can one ever be too much like Mary and not enough like Martha? If so, how?
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