Workship

38 Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. 40 But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” 41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, 42 but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

Mary of Bethany is seen three times in the Gospel record, and on each occasion, she is in the same place: at the feet of Jesus.

She sat at His feet and listened to His Word. (Luke 10:39),

fell at His feet and shared her woe. (John 11:32),

and came to His feet and poured out her worship. (John 12:3).

Workship

Mary and Martha are often contrasted as though each believer must make a choice: be a worker like Martha or a worshiper like Mary.

Certainly our personalities and gifts are different, but that does not mean that the Christian life is an either/or situation.

Charles Welsey said it perfectly in one of his hymns:

Faithful to my Lord’s commands, I still would choose the better part; Serve with careful Martha’s hands, And loving Mary’s heart.

It seems evident that the Lord wants each of us to imitate Mary in our worship and Martha in our work.

Blessed are the balanced!

And in tis balace it goes as follows:

We cannot work right is our worship if off, so worship comes first. However proper worship always result in good works, so works always come next!

Consider Martha’s situation.

She received Jesus into her home and then neglected Him as she prepared an elaborate meal that He did not need!

Certainly a meal was in order, but what we do with Christ is far more important than what we do for Christ.

Again, it is not an either/or situation; it is a matter of balance.

Mary had done her share of the work in the kitchen and then had gone to “feed” on the Lord’s teachings.

Martha felt neglected after Mary left the kitchen, and she began to complain and to suggest that neither the Lord nor Mary really cared!

All Work and No Worship Makes Martha a Dull Servant

Few things are as damaging to the Christian life as trying to work for Christ without taking time to commune with Christ.

John 15:5 ESV

5 I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.

Mary chose the better part, the part that could not be taken from her.

She knew that she could not live “by bread alone”.

Matthew 4:4 ESV

4 But he answered, “It is written, “ ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”

Whenever we criticize others and pity ourselves because we feel overworked, we had better take time to examine our lives.

Perhaps in all of our busyness, we have been ignoring the Lord.

Martha’s problem was not that she had too much work to do, but that she allowed her work to distract her and pull her apart.

She was trying to serve two masters!

If serving Christ makes us difficult to live with, then something is terribly wrong with our service!

The key is to have the right priorities:

Jesus Christ first, Family Second, Ministry Third.

This is why Paul says:

1 Corinthians 7:32–34 ESV

32 I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord. 33 But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife, 34 and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband.

Those devided intention are NOT evil. It is simply the added burden of the married. I am not married to this church, i am married to my wife, and i need to balance her needs and the churches - however her needs come first because:

1 Timothy 3:4–5 ESV

4 He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, 5 for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church?

So back to the topic: Our relationship with God comes before anything else.

It is vitally important that we spend time “at the feet of Jesus” every single day, letting Him share His Word with us.

The most important part of the Christian life is the part that only God sees.

Unless we meet Christ personally and privately each day, we will soon end up like Martha: busy but not blessed.

Learning to Sit at the Feet of Jesus

Often in my pastoral ministry, I have asked people with serious problems, “Tell me about your devotional life.”

The usual response has been an embarrassed look, a bowed head, and the quiet confession, “I stopped reading my Bible and praying a long time ago.” And they wondered why they had problems!

John 12:1–2 ESV

1 Six days before the Passover, Jesus therefore came to Bethany, where Lazarus was, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 So they gave a dinner for him there. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those reclining with him at table.

According to John 12:1–2, Martha must have learned her lesson, for she prepared a feast for Jesus, the Twelve, and her brother and sister—that’s fifteen people—and did not utter one word of complaint!

She had God’s peace in her heart because she had learned to sit at the feet of Jesus.

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