People Jesus met - Mary

People Jesus met – Mary

Luke 10 verses 38 to 42
There are three Marys mentioned in the Bible:
a) Mary of Nazareth – the mother of Jesus
b) Mary the wife of Jairus
c) Mary of Bethany, the sister of Martha and Lazarus.
When Jesus was in Jerusalem he often came to Bethany which was on Mount Olivet. It was ¾ of an hour from Jerusalem. It was his favourite place while he was in Judea.
He only spent 3 nights in Jerusalem- one in the Garden and two in the tomb. He preferred to go to Bethany, he was familiar with this house. John calls it the Village of Mary. Luke says that Martha invited Jesus in – was she the eldest? The head of the house? She may have been a widow, Mary and Lazarus were younger siblings. None are mentioned as being married. People were married by twenty, so they could have been orphans. They are very natural and open with Jesus, Jesus is informal with them. They may have been rich – it seems to have been a big house.

Mary was a friend of our Lord
There was a friendly welcome to the home. Jesus had relatives in Galilee (as did the disciples) so he had someone to stay with there. In Judea he needed kindness and hospitality for respite from the crowds who drained his emotional and physical energy. He was very dependent on the kindness of people to take him in. He was poor, he needed hospitality. By grace he gave up riches in glory and for our sake became poor. This is an insight into his needs and dependency on others.
We know little of them except they invited him in, they were pleased to have him whenever he came to Jerusalem. They loved him, this was a practical expression and they served him. We may not be able show love by hospitality but we can show love to the lonely, homeless and aliens who come to our shores – we can befriend them and show them the gospel of our Lord.
Jesus came to the house after a busy – public teaching, answering questions and dealing with difficult people. Mary may have washed the feet of the disciples and the Lord Jesus..

Mary chose to listen to our Lord – verse 39
The disciples were probably glad to get off their feet, they gathered round our Lord, Mary joined the circle, with the disciples, she thirsted to know more.
a) She decided that this was not an opportunity to be missed
This was fellowship she rarely had, she listened to the disciples’ questions and Jesus’ answers. They had all sorts of problems and long conversations, how to be good ministers. Ministers need to gather together and help and encourage each other and learn from each other
b) She was fully attentive to his words.
She was so absorbed that she failed to think of the sister who was preparing a meal. She was so taken up she ignored food. She wanted to know answers to her questions more than anything else – it was her greatest need.
c) She sat quietly listening in a composed way
d) She sat at the Lord’s feet as a humble learner.
Do we want to be near to the Lord – how close do we want to be to him? She was very focussed.
e) She sat at the Lord’s feet as a humble learner.
Listening is the way to learn. We need to concentrate and pay attention or our minds wander. She was a good listener. It is a joy to preachers when people want to listen and learn. Mary was there, it was a simple thing to listen it showed that she loved the Lord and had a hunger for God’s word and to know the Lord. We can all sit at Jesus’ feet and learn and grow.

Mary’s choice upset her sister – verses 40 to 42
Mary is sitting with men listening, Martha is busy with food, she had a lot to do, probably grinding flour, preparing the lamb etc. She was probably honoured to have Jesus there but she needed help. She was getting hot and bothered. She probably coughed to get attention. She probably pretty well blew her top.
Hospitality comes at a price. Men can be very inconsiderate of what goes on in the kitchen as can children. From Philippians 4 verse 3 we know we need to help women who labour. Men and women are partners in the Gospel. Women often need a rest.

Mary’s choice was commended by the Lord.
a) Our Lord gently rebukes Martha by repeating her name.
Her desire to do what was right distracted her from what the Lord was saying.
(i) Martha’s mind was pulled in a thousand directions. There are too many things we worry about – Matthew 6 verse 31 tells us to seek first God’s kingdom and his righteousness, we must get our priorities right. Jesus did not like to see her so upset.
(ii) Martha let a hint of self righteousness creep in. She felt only she was doing something worthwhile. Christians can feel resentment in the same way.
(iii) Martha perhaps felt a touch of envy. She felt hot in the kitchen and wanted to swap places to do what Mary was doing. She felt hard done by. It was absurd to accuse Jesus of not caring.
(iv) Martha also pretty near blew her top.
b) Our Lord accepts the sisters were true believers but different.
Martha was a type A personality, she was driven and active. Mary was quiet and contemplative. It is so in many families. Both loved the Lord Jesus and wanted to serve the Lord, it was shown in different ways. We all agree on primary things, but in other things we are very different. Mary had qualities that Martha did not really appreciate. In the church there will be Mathas and Marys. Jesus accepted both.
c) Our Lord then commends what Mary was doing as being better.
Martha wanted Mary to be like her. Jesus did not want Martha to be like Mary. It is not active versus contemplative. Mary did the one thing needful. It was an opportunity not to be missed. Mary made that a priority, she left some things undone so she could be with the Lord Jesus. We need to discipline and prioritise our lives. The real answer to a peaceful heart is to seek God and be quiet before the Lord.

Summarising:
a) The Lord is saying that the Knowledge of God and worship is the most profitable thing we can do.
b) The Lord Jesus is saying it is something that we can never lose. Many things in life pass, we grow older, our friendships move on, and we change – see John 17 verse 3. The things we gain from Christ however, will never be lost. The love we experience now will be full and last forever, the peace we have now will be richer and deeper. The knowledge we have will blossom into complete knowledge.