Mary and Martha

I believe that there is a deeper meaning to the story of Mary and Martha in the Bible that many Christians miss. It's an important point that Jesus is getting across to those who profess to believe in Him. Let's take a look at the Bible verse about Martha and Mary.

Luke 10:38-42 ...'Now it came to pass, as they went, that He entered into a certain village: and a certain women named Martha received Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus feet, and heard His word. But Martha was cumbered about with 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. And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things, but one thing is needful, and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.'

Now we would look at Martha and think she is doing good right? After all, she is "busy" serving and trying to provide for her guest. The problem is the fact that JESUS CHRIST, the Saviour of the world is in her house and she is more bothered with her serving than with Jesus Himself. Now Mary knows who Jesus is and she falls at His feet and listens to every word that proceeds out of His mouth.

Matthew 4:4 ...'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by EVERY WORD that proceeds out of the mouth of God.'

All Mary is concerned about is being with her Saviour and listening to His wisdom and learning from Him. But Martha, even though she has the Saviour in her house, she is "cumbered about with much serving". In other words, Martha is DISTRACTED by something else, which is keeping her from Jesus, and she actually complains about Mary, when Mary is doing the right thing of giving all her attention to Jesus. And Does the Lord say that Martha is doing good with her much serving? No, He suggests that she is too "careful" and "troubled" by many things which are keeping her from Him. Instead, Martha should have been like Mary and fell at her Saviour's feet and not left His side. Jesus confirms that Mary chose the right thing. Mary wasn't worried about being "busy" when she had her Lord and Saviour present. She just wanted to be with Him and listen to Him.

Am I saying that serving is wrong? Not at all, because a true personal relationship with Jesus will produce good works and serving in us. After all, Jesus Himself came to serve. The point in this story is that Martha was distracted from being with the Lord, because of her worries about what jobs needed to be done. It is our relationship with Jesus that should come first.

Who Does Mary and Martha Represent?

So who do these two women, Martha and Mary represent today? I believe they represent all of the professing Christians in the world. We know that there are two groups of people in the world in God's eyes. The saved and the lost. Now I'm not suggesting by this that Martha is lost, because only God knows who is saved and lost. I just want to show you the important meaning behind this story in the Bible, and what we as professing Christians MUST learn from it.

MARY represents those who have a true Christian faith. Those who give their full attention to Christ Jesus and are not distracted by worldly things. This group of people, represented by Mary, study God's Word every day and listen to His Word. But they are not hearers of the Word only, they are doers also. This group of Christians represented by Mary are spiritually sat at Jesus' feet, worshipping God in spirit and truth. They come to their knees everyday to pray to their God and Saviour. They give more of their time to Jesus than anything else in their lives, and they long to be with their Lord and Saviour. Now do these Christians represented by Mary do works? Yes, because a true and right relationship with Christ Jesus will automatically PRODUCE good works in that person. As James said, "you show me your faith without your works, and I'll show you my faith BY my works." This group of Christians represented by Mary knows the true meaning of putting God first in their lives, and they love the Lord with ALL their heart, ALL their mind, ALL their soul and ALL their strength. They have truly taken hold of the Kingdom of Heaven.

MARTHA represents those professing Christians who "believe" in Jesus, but are too caught up in worldly things to give their time in building a personal relationship with Him. Sure, they serve in their church, but don't realize that their serving will get them nowhere without a proper relationship with their Lord. The group of professing Christians represented by Martha are those who are busy with the world. They are too caught up in their jobs/careers. They are too concerned with their houses and cars and money. They are focused on building up treasure on earth, rather than treasure in heaven. They spend more time watching TV than they do with Jesus. They read more novels than they do the life giving Word of God. They spend little time in prayer, and they put their family and friends before Jesus. These professing Christians maybe think that their "belief" alone will save them. Well, the devils also believe (James 2:19). Are they saved?

Take a look at these two groups represented by Mary and Martha and apply them to your life. Which group do you belong to? Do you belong to the group represented by Mary, who fall at Jesus' feet and give their all to Him? Or do you belong to the group represented by Martha, who are too busy for a relationship with the Lord? Remember, there are only two groups of people, the saved and the lost. Friend, time is running out and we need to get right with Jesus today! Don't be one of the many that Jesus says the following words to when He returns at the second coming:

'And then I will profess unto them, I never knew you, depart from Me, ye that work iniquity.' (Matthew 7:23)

If you are not having a REAL daily relationship with the Lord Jesus, but instead you are caught up with the world's affairs, then you don't really know Jesus, and you are in danger of Him saying the above to you when He returns. Please heed the warning.

As the apostle Paul said, we need to test ourselves daily to see if we are truly living in the faith ... 2 Corinthians 13:5 ...'Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith, prove your own selves.'

I pray that you will really look into this story of Martha and Mary and be honest with yourself and with God. Examine your faith. Examine your walk with Jesus and find out which group of people you belong to right now. Do you belong to Mary or Martha's group? Are you at the feet of Jesus everyday, or too busy to make personal time for your Lord? Your eternal destiny depends on this. Do you choose saved or lost? Do you choose life or death? Jesus is coming soon my friend, please give your heart to Him today.