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

 Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house.  And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word.  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

Yesterday we read that a certain lawyer stood up and tested Jesus, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"  He said to him, "What is written in the law?  What is your reading of it?"  So he answered and said, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.'"  And He said to him, "You have answered rightly; do this and you will live."  But he, wanting to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"  Then Jesus answered and said:  "A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.  Now by chance a certain priest came down that road.  And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.  Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side.  But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was.  And when he saw him, he had compassion.  So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him.  On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.'  So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among thieves?"  And he said, "He who showed mercy to him."  Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."

Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house.  And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word.  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."  In the stories of Martha and Mary, we find a great consistency in the depiction of their characters.  Both are essential to the story of Jesus and His ministry, both beloved by Christ as friends, along with their brother Lazarus.  It is Lazarus whom Jesus raised from the dead (John 11).  My study bible makes clear here that Martha isn't rebuked by Jesus for serving.  Rather He rebukes her for complaining and for being distracted, worried, and troubled.  In following Christ, my study bible tells us, we serve in order to facilitate the spread of the gospel (see Acts 6:1-4).

What can we make of Mary's act of sitting at Jesus' feet and hearing His word?  We suppose that she is sitting there along with the men who are Jesus' disciples and have come to hear the famous Teacher speak.  Her sister's complaint is that Mary has left Martha to do all the serving herself, in a busy household of a rather prominent family as we gather from the Gospels, who is hosting their friend Jesus.  We can read Psalm 99, and understand that Mary is in fact doing just as the Psalm proclaims we should do:  "Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at His footstool— He is holy" (verse 5).  In Luke chapter 9, we've read about the cost of discipleship:  nothing stands between the call to Christ and the gospel message, not even responsibilities to family.  Jesus says to one who wishes to go home and bury his father, "Let the dead bury their own dead."  He says to another who wishes to return home to say good-bye first, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."  The call to discipleship takes priority, and Mary is answering that call.  Both Mary and Martha are recorded in the Gospels are those who form a core group of women essential to the ministry of Jesus.  They form deep bonds with Jesus, who weeps with them when their brother dies.   We must recall also Mary's anointing of Jesus, which He says is in preparation for His burial (John 12:1-8).   Each of these stories that have been given to us illuminate something of the character and devotion of this woman, for whom His Person, His message, His ministry is clearly paramount, primary to whatever else is happening in her life.  The two sisters form a core set piece of the lives of women; the duties belonging to social and daily life are juxtaposed against a deep devotion to the word of God, the "good part" that Mary has chosen.  Both are necessary and good, but we may see in the story a parallel for women that is equal to the demands of discipleship as expressed to the men called by Christ to "Follow Me."  Luke gives us a depth of true devotion expressed by Mary, consistent with what we know of her character, and returned in the compassion and love of Christ for both sisters.  In a time when the roles of women and men were far more segregated than many of us understand now, the Gospels teach us, through these sisters and others, not only the essential roles of women in the society, but the deeply meaningful and compelling nature of faith for all.  We must pause, however, to consider that no matter what differences we may think there are between Mary and Martha's time and ours, we still take pride in and make a priority of hospitality and our homes -- at times to distraction, worry, and trouble.  That Mary has chosen "that good part," which engages her mind, body, and soul, elevates all of us to the role of disciple, on no uncertain terms.