Martha, Martha Luke 10:38-42 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO
The cares of this world will choke the words of God whether you’re saved or not
- Your anxiety or worry is directly related to the place the words of God occupy in your heart. Great peace have they which love thy law and nothing shall offend them.
- Martha is not hearing the words of God and is “stressed out”.
Beware of much serving if you haven’t sat at Jesus’ feet (vss 39-40)
- Be careful of service apart from fellowship with Jesus Christ
- Consequences of service without your own personal fellowship with the Lord are several
- Ignorance – you will miss things from the Lord that you need to hear. Daniel spends personal time with the Lord in Daniel 2 and gets exactly what he needs to answer the king that day. What happens if he fails to spend time with the Lord? He just like we miss the things we need for the day.
- Resentment – hath left me to serve alone? I’m the only one who does anything around here! If you begin to think that first of all it’s not true. Second of all, if you think that way, your motivation is wrong for service.
- Burn out – that will lead to burn out because you trying to accomplish things for the Lord in your own power. Eventually the wheels will come off and the train wreck will be manmade.
- Bitterness toward the Lord – Lord dost thou not care?! There is the trouble! Your closeness to the Lord has grown distant and now its easy to see Him in the wrong light.
Duty is not a substitute for devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ (vs 40)
- Duty is the motivation of Martha. Duty is how backslidden king Solomon described obedience to God and fear of the Lord in Ecclesiastes.
- If brutal obligation is all you have to motivate you to service then go with that until you learn to love the Lord Jesus Christ.
- Jesus Christ asked Peter, Lovest thou me Peter? He didn’t put the yoke on him because you owe me.
- Martha, Martha. A few times in the New Testament Jesus Christ speaks like this. He says Jerusalem, Jerusalem; Simon, Simon; Saul, Saul. Each time he’s speaking out of pity. Be careful that your service is not a grief to the Holy Spirit of God because it will become a grief to you as well.
Everything is trouble when the one, needful thing is neglected (vss 41-42)
- Don’t show me what you do, show me what you leave undone and I’ll show you what kind of Christian you are. Joshua left nothing undone of all that God commanded Moses. He left many things undone – he said “No” to many things being a leader of several million people, but he didn’t leave the commandments of God undone.
- It may not be wrong to be doing what you’re doing, but it may be in the wrong order. Keep your priorities in order.
- One thing versus the many things – Martha is divided and consequently is busy missing the most important time with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Change your attitude about fellowship with God (vs 42)
- One thing is needful…
- Time spent with Jesus Christ is NOT keeping you from doing the things you need to do.
- Fellowship with Jesus Christ is not a distraction I have to fit into my day. If fellowship with Jesus Christ is an inconvenience then you’re looking at it from the wrong angle. You have Martha’s view and you need Mary’s.
- Martha is trying to fit God in the “To Do” list of day to day activity, but Mary understands that there is no life apart from Jesus Christ. He that hath the Son hath life; I am the way the truth and the life; In him was life – Jesus Christ is LIFE! And apart from Him you can do NOTHING!
You will have to do the right thing on purpose (vs 42)
- Mary hath chosen that good part…There are many things Mary could be doing. You are where you are as a result of the decisions you’ve made.
- You don’t have more or less time than anyone else.
- God’s commands never demand your time. Notice it’s always something else that demands your time. Consequently, the things you ought to do have to be done on purpose.