Luke 10:38-42 Pentecost 6 C
Pastor Ron Koehler
Grace—Tucson, AZ
July 17, 2022
Typically, when blueberry pancakes are made with the blueberries dropped on the top of the bubbling disc of batter on the griddle, that side of the pancake ends up more clearly showcasing the berries. I would contend that this side of the pancake is the most important side because although blueberries taste fantastic, I like the way they look too—and it’s important for food to be aesthetically pleasing because it enhances the experience—in this case, breakfast. Some might suggest that the two sides of a blueberry pancake are of equal value. But I think it’s pretty clear that the side of the pancake on which the blueberries predominate is the most important. I suspect, though, that not all of you care so much. That’s okay, we don’t need to fight about it. You can go about your breakfast being wrong if you wish. Just don’t go picking the wrong side when it comes to considering The Two Sides of Spiritual Service! We hear those being discussed by Jesus in the house of his friends Martha, Mary, and Lazarus just outside of Jerusalem. As we listen in, it becomes clear that both sides are good, and… 1. Us Serving Jesus is Important, but
2. Jesus Serving Us is Most Important
As I said—and you may know—Mary, Martha, and Lazarus were friends of Jesus and he had visited their home on any number of occasions. So, Jesus wasn’t some stranger to these people he found in a town that he was passing through. No. In fact, these siblings saw Jesus as the Savior and knew him well, which I think can be noticed here: You might see that in Martha’s desire to be a great host for him. And you can’t miss that she had no trouble telling Jesus how she saw things and what she expected him to do! You see it as Mary was hanging on Jesus’ every word. You can also sense a loving familiarity in the way Jesus got Martha’s full attention—“Martha, Martha.” So, this is a unique situation that we listen in on as Jesus teaches these sisters who were friends of his. When Jesus arrived, Martha was the most interested in playing host to Jesus, perhaps washing his feet as he entered her home, getting any number of things ready, prepping food. Those were good things! Hospitality was a priority in the culture, but how much more so when it came to a friend! And when that friend was the very Son of God, the Savior of the World, well…! See, this is why I want to defend Martha; she wanted to do her very best and give her very best for Jesus. But if you don’t pay close attention to all that is said here, you might think that Mary was sweet and innocent like Cinderella, and Martha was closer to the evil stepsister trying to make her do the chores!
But let’s do pay close attention! First of all, Martha is the one to welcome Jesus into the home. This is good. Typical hosting things—also good. And you know, Martha might very well have wanted to sit listening to Jesus also—clearly good. It’s possible that we have had this picture of Martha anxiously scurrying around without a thought about listening to Jesus. I’m not certain that’s accurate. I have for a long-time admired Martha for her clear confession about Jesus’ power and her certainty about the Day of Resurrection when she addressed Jesus after her brother’s death. I mention this because she was undoubtedly a godly woman with a great trust in Jesus. On this occasion, it says that she was distracted—the word literally means to be pulled away. She was pulled away from something and to something else. It may be that her heart wanted to listen like her sister, but her mind told her that all these other things needed to be done in order to serve Jesus. Whatever the case, this godly woman meant well as she served her Lord, but her priorities were mixed up. And what happened? She quickly developed a sour attitude toward her sister…and then questioned her Savior’s concern…and proceeded to command Jesus to take action with Mary. You’ve had bad days too, right?! Still, I find myself advocating for Martha in a way, that we see her in a better light than we may have before because serving Jesus is important and that’s what she was doing. But this was not Martha’s best moment for sure. Jesus said so. He saw that being pulled away by all that she felt needed to be done caused her to be worried and upset. You notice that he didn’t condemn the serving, but he did condemn her decision and attitude. We don’t want to forget that one important side of Spiritual Service is US SERVING JESUS. Jesus said this about serving him: If anyone serves me, let him follow me. And where I am, there my servant will be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him (John 12:26). Sounds pretty important, doesn’t it. Through the Apostle Paul, God charges us: Do not be lagging behind in zeal, but be fervent in spirit, as you continue to serve the Lord (Romans 12:11). And we could talk about the gifts God gives us with which to serve him. And we could talk about the Holy Spirit who moves our hearts to serve the Savior. There is more that we could say, but I think we know that serving Jesus is important. Serving properly is highlighted by what happened in the home of these sisters. Jesus makes the point that US SERVING HIM is important, but not as important as HIM SERVING US.
Let’s look at that other side of Spiritual Service—the service that is most important: JESUS SERVING US. (This is the blueberries on top side!). When we think of Jesus serving us, most likely, we think of his life lived for us. We think of his death died for us. We think of his resurrection and the promise of ours because of it. This is the atoning work of Jesus, his redeeming work. This is him stepping in and succeeding where we fail our heavenly Father and then giving us the credit for all of it. We should think of this first! But Jesus still serves us today! The way he does that is through his Word. This is how he keeps us in faith and teaches us what is pleasing to him. It’s how he reminds us of his love and care and forgiveness. HE SERVES US through his Word. We find Mary silent as her Savior serves her. The rest of what needed to be done could wait. It was not as important as hearing what Jesus had to say to her. We know that not simply from her silence or the description of her sitting there and listening, we know it because we hear Jesus say it to Martha. “One thing is needed. In fact, Mary has chosen that better part, which will not be taken away from her.” He could see into Mary’s heart, just as he had with Martha. And in that moment, he saw a difference. One had the desire to have Jesus serve her but let her desire to serve Jesus override that. That was a mistake. The other, no doubt, had the desire to serve Jesus but her overriding desire was to have Jesus serve her. This was the better thing. Please notice that what Jesus said indicates that Martha’s service and her desire to serve were good. It was merely her choice to do that instead of spending that time with Jesus that was the problem. Mary’s choice was not the only good choice, but it was the better choice at that time. There are two reasons why this was the better choice. The first is found in the words of Jesus—one thing is needed and it will not be taken away from her. The choice to listen to Jesus and have him teach you when you have the opportunity is the most important thing. That feeds your faith. That keeps you spiritually alive. That prepares you for heaven where you will see and hear Jesus for eternity. So, when you get the chance to go to worship and hear Jesus, you push things aside to get there. When opportunities come up to gather with your pastors and other Christians to have Jesus teach you, you take them. When you’re at home and your Bible is sitting there, you read it. This is Mary-like behavior. But it’s not just the behavior that is important, it is the desire to do these things. Jesus looks past the outward and sees what is within us. He looks straight at the motives and desires of our heart.
And sometimes he sees a problem. We don’t have the desire to listen and learn, to have Jesus serve us. We might be more willing and feel more strongly about serving in some way than we do about sitting at Jesus’ feet and having him teach us. That’s a problem, and it points out the other reason why Mary’s choice is the better choice for us to make—we aren’t properly prepared to serve Jesus unless he has spoken to us and touched our hearts. Without continually listening and learning from Jesus, we can easily show that we are distracted, pulled away, and concerned with maybe good, but lesser things. What sinful attitudes follow those poor decisions? Martha shows us. We get whiny. We complain. We upset that others aren’t serving. We think that what we want takes priority, and that others should think like we think and do what we are doing. All of this is upsetting to us even while we are “slaving away” for Jesus. God can still use our service in these instances just like I’m sure he ate the food Martha prepared, but that doesn’t mean he’s happy with us. We need to repent for things like this. Do you know that all of this is why at Grace we expect that people who serve in highlighted roles to be regular in worship and prioritize Bible study as well? Spiritually-strengthened Christians are properly prepared to serve Jesus. Serving Jesus is important and expected by him, so you really need to be thinking about this. We don’t just sit here on Sundays and listen to stories. We listen and take Jesus’ words to heart so that we can learn and make changes where necessary. It might be time to make some changes in our hearts, to take studying Jesus’ words more seriously, to watch the attitudes of our heart as we serve…to really focus on the MOST IMPORTANT thing—JESUS SERVING US. I’m confident—and you should be too—that as we do that, we’ll find forgiveness from Jesus, and that the Holy Spirit will help our hearts to find the right motivation and the right balance of listening and serving. You see, SPIRITUAL SERVICE IS A TWO-SIDED thing. Like a blueberry pancake, one side is excellent and the other side is even better. Amen. Now the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.