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 the thieves?"  And he said, "He who showed mercy on 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."  My study Bible explains that Martha and Mary are the sisters of Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead (John 11).  It says that Martha is not rebuked for serving, but rather for complaining, and for being distracted, worried, and troubled.  

Martha and Mary are quite consistent in the Gospels.  In the stories we read of them (for example, in the story of the raising of Lazarus in John 11), as in today's story, it is Martha who is the most concerned and occupied with the duties of hospitality, while Mary more dutifully observes the rules of mourning, staying in the home.  In today's reading, Martha serves, and Mary is sitting at Jesus' feet listening to His word.  It's not that Martha is wrong; hospitality is an important aspect of Jesus' command of compassion, a form of charity to others.  But, as my study Bible points out, Jesus says that she is worried and troubled about many things -- but one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part.  Importantly, it will not be taken away from her by anything that may seem to supersede it in the immediate circumstances, be that the duties of hospitality, of the home, even of being a female member of the home.  While we know that Jesus had many women followers who supported His ministry (Luke 8:1-3, 23:55), we might imagine that Mary was there among many men who listened to Jesus in their home in Bethany.  Who is not familiar with the duties of hospitality when there are guests in the home?  Even today, for many people, it would still be somewhat of a challenge that Martha was sitting at the feet of Christ rather than helping her sister; the story still speaks to us.  But of course, Jesus would be the most honored guest in their home, and we know that He loves this family (John 11:5).  It's important to note that Jesus directs us to Martha's being worried and troubled about many things.  Again, many of us know the anxiety of having guests in the home and whether or not everything is in its place, our home is sufficiently clean, our hospitality is good, our guests are cared for.  This list could potentially be endless.  But Jesus is making a very clear delineation for all of us about what is the "one thing needed."  We need to put God first.  How often does one find in life that we wish we could control everything, and that includes the people around us?  We can't control everything, and we haven't control over other people, or the events of the world, or all kinds of problems that may arise in our lives.  But we can relinquish being "worried and troubled about many things" to come to terms not only with our nature as human beings vulnerable to all kinds of troubles, great and small, in a troubled world, but also with our nature as human beings who need God first.  In the story of Adam and Eve in the garden, it is the separation from God that actually brings the toil and pain of the world into manifestation as part of their existence.  The separation from God brings about sin and death, and the myriad other things we associate with evil, with a blight on the fullness of communion with God.  As the One who seeks to restore us to that fullness (for that is salvation), Christ teaching in the home of Martha and Mary and Lazarus becomes its center.  He is the place that draws all to Himself for healing and wholeness; therefore we can see Martha's distraction as distracting her from the "one thing needed," that "good part," and we can understand why, indeed, Mary shall not have that taken from her.  For this is the reality we always need to embrace, and it is instructive to us that the worries and cares of life can distract us from that focus, pull us away from the communion we really need.  Jesus will famously teach about distraction and anxiety, and worry about the material things we need in chapter 12 (Luke 12:22-34), and His great emphasis is on seeking first the kingdom of God, and that God knows the things we need.  It seems a great trick of the 'deceiver' that we are all so worried and troubled about many things, and distracted by all the duties we have in life, so that we forget the one thing that is needed, the place where we may take confidence in faith, and give up the impossible task of trying to control everything (including worrying about what everyone else thinks).  This is the power of Christ, to bring us to the one thing needed, to make our focus singular on His powerful presence, and to center us in the place where we can breathe and trust in the truth He gives us.