38As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. 40But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” 41“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her” (Luke 10:38-42).
Mary comes across as a person passionate about the things that matter. When Jesus visited, she knew she was expected to help Martha with the food and drinks, but how often does the God of the universe stop by for tea and crumpets (or whatever they had that day)? She was eager to hear answers to her questions about the Scriptures. Wild horses couldn't drag her from the room! She consciously ignored the unwritten rules, obligations, and expectations to assist Martha in the kitchen. There are higher priorities than setting the table and pouring drinks. I am sure Mary had questions stored in her heart. She was waiting for Jesus' words to nourish her soul. Mary was right to place the Word of God as her highest priority.
Martha strikes me as someone whose self-esteem is closely tied to her service to the Lord. She was a task-oriented person, and there’s nothing wrong with that. We need task-oriented people. God has gifted them in their inner DNA to be that way. It was her home, so she felt responsible for treating the Master well. After all, if the Lord Jesus were coming to your house, wouldn't you try to prepare a nice spread of food to be hospitable?
I can picture Martha banging the pots around, making plenty of noise to remind Mary of her duties in the kitchen. When Martha had her outburst at Jesus, she was as steamed up as her kitchen. Martha's irritability grew to the point where she began commanding the Lord to tell Mary what to do. Her focus shifted from trying to get Mary’s attention to blaming Jesus, accusing the Lord of not caring. She came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” (v. 40, emphasis added).
Martha wanted Jesus to redirect Mary; however, the Lord intended to redirect Martha! We must allow space for people to be different from us. We are all given different temperaments for a reason, namely, to learn to coexist with each other's moods. It wasn't that Martha was wrong and Mary was right. The lesson behind this passage in the Scriptures is to show us that we should imitate Mary in our worship and Martha in our work. To achieve balance in both, we must prioritize what’s most important.
Martha felt she was left to do everything and was let down because Mary wasn’t pulling her share of the load. She thought this was unfair. Have you ever felt like that before? Some of us have heard these words from our parents: “Life is unfair! Get used to it!” The Lord did not respond the way Martha wanted Him to, however. He got straight to the heart of the issue. “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her" (vs. 41-42). How tenderly He responded to her. These are not words of anger or disappointment directed at Martha, and repeating her name twice reflects deep emotion on His part.
When the Lord said that only one thing was needed, some suggest Christ was only after one item on Martha's menu instead of an elaborate meal. Bread and water would have sufficed. It is more logical, however, to interpret the "one thing" as Mary's hungering attitude for Christ's presence. Time was short. The time of Jesus' crucifixion was approaching, and food was not a priority, but Martha and Mary were! They were His priority! The Lord did not stop by Martha's house for the food but primarily to spend time with them. What if Jesus were coming to your house today? Would you be too busy for Him, or are you a Mary and love to sit at His feet? Keith Thomas
Taken from study 26 in the Gospel of Luke entitled “Jesus, Martha, and Mary.”