Martha’s Choice
Luke 10:38-41
The story of Martha and Mary in this Bible passage is a very good illustration of the importance and implication of the choices and decisions we make on a regular basis. We are constantly making choices and taking decisions with outcomes and consequences we do not fully understand. The danger here is that some of those choices are so nuanced and the results seemingly innocuous that we do not give the thought they require before choosing.
Here is a case of two sisters in the same situation with two different choices, none of which is a bad choice on its own. But we know by ‘revelation’ that one choice is better than the other. We now know that Mary’s was a better choice because Jesus explained it to us, otherwise Martha’s looks like a more noble choice. Martha for one, believed she made the better choice and thought that should be obvious to all.
Noble Martha. Self-seeking Mary?
Was Mary not being self-centred and uncaring? She did not give a thought to the need of her guests, even such an important guest as The Lord Himself. She sat down and relaxed listening to Jesus.
Martha, on the other hand, a good example of Christian virtue: 1. she cared for The Lord and served as best as she could. 2. She was respectful, she recognised and called Him Lord. 3. She was prayerful, she made her request known to the Lord. Yet, she did not get the answer she wanted
What mattered – What is needful
“Jesus said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”
There are often things we care about, cry about, worry about, even fast and pray about that are not needful eventually. Sometimes we stress and fuss so much about such things, but that does not make them any more needful.
WE need Godly wisdom to know what is needful and make the right choices consistently.
Martha saw Mary’s attitude as the problem here. But the issue is that Martha was doing the right things based on the wrong choice.
The most needful thing is to hear what The Lord is saying – always
Even when Martha approached Jesus, she was talking to Him, telling Him what to do, she was not listening.
We can often accomplish a lot more if we take time to sit still and listen to The Lord than being all over the place “doing our best”
The big question is when is that time? After all, the Bible said, “there is time for everything” My answer to that is that the time to hear God is before you act or react.
Conclusion
We are constantly making choices and taking decisions often based on what we know and what we expect. But some of these choices and their consequences are not as simple and straight forward as they appear on the face of it. So we do need discernment, we need Godly wisdom. Therefore, get wisdom, with all your getting get understanding.
Listen to The Lord – first always.
