The FaithOfJesus2 Daily Devotional

Focus:

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( FaithOfJesus thread begun by rRandyP )

Today's Verse:

kjv@Luke:10:38-42

kjv@Luke:10:38 @ Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.

kjv@Luke:10:39 @ And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word.

kjv@Luke:10:40 @ But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me.

kjv@Luke:10:41 @ And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:

kjv@Luke:10:42 @ But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.

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Today's notes:

Context:

• Before - Luke:10:25-37 The Parable of the Good Samaritan
  
• After - Luke:11:1-13 Jesus ' Teaching on Prayer
  

Study Resources:

dict:easton Martha

G4049 cumber/drag

G1247 serve/minister dict:tcr Minister G4878 help/cooperate

G3309 careful/anxious G5182 troubled/disturbed

Notes:

Please note that we are coming off the heels of a discussion of works and justification and transitioning into a discussion of service. It appears that even with the best of intentions we can be caught up in the performance of our intentions so as to not seek out/listen to the voice of Him we are attempting to serve.

Dost thou not care...? Bid her therefore...? Hath left me alone...? Not the words to use when addressing Christ. Me Me Me...You and her better do my expectation now! She has her point in this, many would agree, but so does Christ Jesus. What if this wasn't Christ being hosted? Would this remain His expectation? Let's consider.

There are a good many, you know of or might be the type, with the spirit similar to Martha's that are a ball of constant cumbersome anxiety and disturbance. It is almost that they seek out situations and opportunities to be put out by others (and others it seems are more than glad to fulfill as we sought of them). In the service of our Lord that is not to be the heart of the servant. It is an admirable thing to want to host the Lord and any that might come along, it is another to place one's own expectations and demands upon them in reciprocation. If Martha did not want to do this all herself then she should have planned the event differently so as to not involve herself as deeply. It was her expectation that everyone be fed and everyone be comforted. Everyone else was there, including her sister, with the expectation of meeting and hearing the Lord and Savior, just as they were originally invited to do by Martha. Essentially she is asking Jesus to make up for her misplaced expectations and over indulgence in planning. There is also the sense that Martha is taking all this extra on to prove herself to her Lord and therein disproving other's to herself.

Please also note: events seem to gather around Jesus quite organically without much planning or burden on their part; people even seem to get fed on some occasions without much preparation or clean up. The success of these events does not seem to be altered by the determination and resourcefulness of their hosts or their lack.

Let's now extrapolate this spirit a step further. Let's make Martha to be the spirit of a local church. Everyone else is part of her house and anyone under her house is going to abide by the rules of her house. In an effort to prove her own worth to her Lord she hosts weekly events where she can show to her Lord a host of other's made to abide by her rules. You see the difficulty here? She is superimposing her expectations on everyone else and drowning out the reception of her Lord's voice with her own.

On the other hand, there are people like Mary. Not all of these Marys are sitting at the feet of their Lord to hear Him out. They are there because it is the best place for them not to have to get up and work. Martha may know this Mary too well, but so then does Jesus. There is a discernment that has to be made between which type of Mary we are making further expectation of. There is an opportunity that has to be rendered that maybe this Mary has to hear the voice of our Savior before being inspired and equipped further to be the type of Lord's servant that she truly needs to be. This Martha would likely, if she had her way, block this Mary from becoming this better servant by her burdensome and constant tug.

Admirably Martha is later said to have been loved by Jesus kjv@John:11:5 in the same light as her brother Lazarus and sister Mary. There was much more they as siblings were to go through with Jesus. She continued serving later kjv@John:12:2 now within the liberation of a freed and loving heart. Sister Mary came to serve her Lord more lovingly as well kjv@John:12:3.

Key Messages:

Declaring Certainty

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Further Resources:

Comment Board:Luke:10:38-42
index:FAITHOFJESUSDEVOTION - Devotional Index
strkjv@Luke:10:38-42 rwp@Luke:10:38-42 mhcc@Luke:10:38-42
FaithOfJesus2 - Devotion Index

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