Mary Was Merry And Martha Was Contrary!  Luke 10:38-42 (NLT)

As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.”  But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

A preacher was invited into the homes of one of his parishioners for dinner one evening.  The table was elegantly set and oh, the food.  There was a wide variety and as they say, the presentation made it look even more delicious.  It looked like a page out of Southern Living magazine.  The mother invited everyone to sit and asked the preacher if he would say the blessing.  But he suggested maybe her 7 year old son might would like to bless the food.  The little boy looked at his mother and asked what he should say.  His mother replied, “Why not just say what you’ve heard me pray.”  So he clasped his hands, everyone bowed their heads and closed their eyes.  His blessing sounded something like this:  “Oh, Lord, why did I ever invite that preacher to dinner?”

Sometimes we can get so busy doing something right, and even necessary, that we lose sight of something that is far better.  We lose sight of the beauty and grandeur of the forest because our focus is locked in on the trees.  Such is the case in today’s passage.  Jesus is on the way to Jerusalem and he makes a stop in the little village of Bethany.  And in Bethany, he knows there is a place where he can step out of the lime-light.  It’s at the home of Martha, her sister Mary and her brother Lazarus.  I think it’s a place that is special for Jesus.  First, it gives Him some quality time to teach the disciples in a smaller setting—giving them the attention they need.  Second, I think it’s special to Jesus because Martha, Mary and Lazarus are very good friends.  They are believers in Jesus and His message for certain; but they are also friends with Jesus.  And when you’ve been out on the road day after day, being presented with so many needs, I think Jesus is glad to have a place like their home simply to get away and if nothing else, to have a good time with good friends.  And on this day, Jesus is there in the home of Martha, Mary and Lazarus.  I would imagine Martha loves it when Jesus comes for a visit.  So when He gets there, she gets busy.  There’s a meal to prepare.  No cold cuts and chips.  This is Jesus and nothing but the best for Him!

She doesn’t have to worry about the good silver needing polishing.  Martha knows that is a task that is to be done BEFORE company comes.  She’s getting her good china out.  She’s got her menu and she’s busy cooking.  Martha is concerned about herself.  How does HER house look?  How will HER food taste?  How will HER wines be served?  Martha is busy thinking about Martha.  She’s so busy thinking about herself that suddenly she hears the lentils boiling over the top of the pot.  Oh no!  She hopes they haven’t stuck to the bottom of the pot.  She realizes her bread is ready to get out of the oven.  Doesn’t take the time to grab a potholder and burns her fingers.  She’s so busy thinking about herself.  But suddenly she remembers Mary!  Where is that sister?  Doesn’t she know she needs to be helping me in the kitchen?  Doesn’t she know that she is supposed to do what Martha wants?  She starts looking for her.

And there she is—in the living room.  She’s not dusting or sweeping.  She’s not filling the coffee cups and offering hors devours.  “Why, look at her!  Just look at her!  Here I am sweating and slaving in the kitchen and there she is, just sitting on the floor.  Mind you, she’s not scrubbing the floor, just sitting there.  I got 13 extra mouths to feed, and of all things, Mary is just listening to Jesus.  There is too much to do to just listen to Jesus.”  And Martha, the adult morphs in Martha the whining child.  “Jesus, make Martha get up from that floor and get in the kitchen and help me.  It’s not fair!”  And Jesus senses the frustration and anger of Martha.  But Jesus will not cave in to whiney Martha, but neither will He harshly chastise her.  The wisdom of the ages speaks for the sake of Martha.  “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details!  There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

That particular day Martha was being a control freak.  Allow me to give you this definition of a control freak.  Control Freaks Are People Who Care More Than You Do About Something And Won't Stop Being Pushy Until They Get Their Way.  Martha, and those with the Martha attitude, genuinely believe that they are being helpful.  A control freak also believes that if they don’t take the lead and tell others how to do it, it won’t be done right.  And in the church, they sincerely believe that God has ordained them to a particular task to be done a certain way and their job is to tell how it’s to be done.  Control freaks are micro-managers—and they believe they are the only ones who really know what needs to be done.  Martha was seeking to control the situation.  But the truth is, Martha couldn’t control the situation because she was out of control.  Everything was about her. 

It hit me—the irony of this whole situation:  Here Is Martha Trying To Take Control While In The Presence Of The Only One Who Is In Control Of Heaven And The Universe.  And Jesus, oh Jesus wants more than anything at that moment, for Martha to know that it’s not the fruits or the lamb or the bread or the lentils that really matters the most.  I can see Him look down at Mary.  And Mary?  I see her with a look of fear on her face.  “Oh, no!  I’ve really messed up.  Martha’s mad at me and Jesus is going to fuss on me.  He’s going to say, ‘What’s wrong with you?’  Sitting here while poor, poor Martha is working her fingers to the bone!”  But He doesn’t; He looks at Mary and smiles, then looks at Martha and says, “You’re worked up in a tizzy about stuff when there’s only one thing that matters.  Mary’s found it and I’m not about to take it away from her.”  And in these words, Jesus invites Martha to find the one thing.  And He invites you to find the one thing that really matters.  What really matters isn’t our busyness or skills or abilities.  Mary knew what really mattered and now, you can, too.  It’s Found Spending Time With Jesus.  Let me show you what it means to spend time with Jesus:

1.  We Listen To Jesus!

Martha was so focused on Martha, she couldn’t hear Jesus.  And just like Martha, we can get so busy with our agendas and itineraries and our stuff that we don’t take the time to listen.  Even our life at church can get so cluttered up with what WE think needs to be done, that we don’t take time to listen to Jesus.  This is something we need to do every day.  Oh, when we’re up against the wall, we try to listen to Jesus real carefully, to get us out of that jam.  But make it your habit to start every day by listening to Jesus.  Consciously Focus Your Heart And Mind On Jesus.  Start every day with your Bible.  And when you read, don’t think about what you already know about that passage.  Listen for what Jesus may say to you from it.  Then grab a devotional guide or a good book with the same attitude.  Play your favorite CD or mp3.  It’s about your focus!  God is speaking to you and you have to decide to listen.  Jesus is the Good Shepherd.  He said in John 10:4-5—After he has gathered his own flock, he walks ahead of them, and they follow him because they know his voice. They won’t follow a stranger; they will run from him because they don’t know his voice. 

2.  We Learn From Jesus!

It’s not just listening to Jesus, but learning from Jesus.  What Jesus says to us is about changing how we experience life and how we live our life.  Jesus put it this way in a parable in Matthew 7:24-25—Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.  The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. (NIV)  When facing temptation, Jesus will show us how to defeat it.  When someone close to us dies, Jesus shows us how to survive our grief.  When someone hurts us, Jesus shows us how to forgive them.  When we are afraid Jesus shows us how to overcome our fears.  And no matter how much we learn, or how long we have been learning, we never STOP learning.  At the feet of Jesus is where we learn how to face whatever life throws at us.

3.  We Share With Our World What We Learn From Jesus!

What we hear from Jesus, what we learn from Jesus is to be shared with others.  We Share What We Learn With Our Dispositions, Attitudes, Words And Actions.  When people see a calm, peaceful disposition in us, we are sharing with them what we learn from Jesus.  When we encourage someone who is going through a tough, desert time of life, we are sharing with them what we learn from Jesus.  When we tell others what Jesus has done and is doing in us, we are sharing with them what we learn from Jesus.  When we give kids school supplies and Christmas presents, when we give food to families, when we give money to someone who lost their home in a fire, when we help pay utility bills or help buy medicine, when we give clothes to those who have little or none we are sharing what we learn from Jesus.  When we sit down over a cup of coffee and simply chat with friends, we are sharing what we learn from Jesus.

And what we hear from Jesus, and what we learn from Jesus, and what we share with others is this:  God Is Love And Wants A Love Relationship With Us And With Everyone.  We are here today, in this place, because someone listened to Jesus, learned from Jesus, and shared with others what they learned from Jesus.  And the church, this church, will continue on until Jesus returns if we act more like Mary, and a whole lot less than Martha.  But if we act like Martha it will not be all that long until this place follows the way of the horse and buggy, the steam locomotive, and the Model T—it will become obsolete and nothing more than a museum piece—a reminder of how it used to be.