When A Good Thing Becomes A Bad Thing
T’was the night before Christmas
when all through the house,
Not a creature was stirring
Well, except for Mom who was making sure everything was perfect for everyone!
Sound familiar?
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My upbringing was very old world, old school. I grew up in a two- family house with my Grandparents living downstairs and so our home was the hub of all of the fun on my mothers side with her 6 siblings and their families - aunts, uncles and cousins. We had huge picnics and parties and every year we hosted Christmas Eve and one week later, New Years Eve, in the basement,…cause you know every good Italian family has another kitchen in the basement. There were so many people that we used a ping pong table to seat everyone! And even at that there weren’t enough seats. We have many, many great memories.
Family was everything, traditions were rich and they were expected to be followed. All of us, I’m sure, no matter what heritage we come from have anticipated foods, events, visits, traditions that we participate in that make the Christmas season special….and harried…… Part of the reason why I struggle during this season to not be Martha and I suspect many of you do as well.
Now these traditions and the focus on family are not bad things, in fact many would call them good things- we would even say they are God pleasing things…Gathering with family, preparing our favorite meals, keeping the family traditions alive that have been passed down from generation to generation. None of this is bad in and of itself.
But what we're going to discover today is that even good things can become bad things when they become the most important thing…
Let's take a look at the story of Mary and Martha as they welcome Jesus on His way through Bethany.
Luke 10:38 ff
“ Now as they were traveling along, He entered a certain village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home.
And she had a sister called Mary, who moreover was listening to the Lord’s word, seated at His feet.
But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him, and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Then tell her to help me.”
But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only a few things are necessary, really only one, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”
So here we are, the infamous story of Martha and Mary….the doer and the one who seemingly didn’t do enough.
Verse 40 says that Martha was distracted by all her preparations. The word distracted (Per-ee-spah-o) means to be drawn away, to be driven about mentally, to be greatly troubled, STRONG'S Concordance uses the phrase to “ figuratively drag around “ In today's language we would call this mental baggage…the thoughts that plague us, that consume us, the ones that are always there. That’s what Martha’s preparations had become to her.
The second important word in vs 40 is preparations. .Martha was distracted with her preparations. The original Greek word is (Dee-ak-on-os) which means a servant, minister - doesn't sound so bad right? The interesting part is that this word is formed by roots of two other words and this is really funny
DIA- meaning thoroughly and KONIS - meaning dust….
One commentary says the literal meaning of the word that Luke used here for Martha scurrying about in her preparations is to thoroughly raise up dust by moving in a hurry and so to minister.
Can you just picture it? Martha was not hiding the fact that she had a lot to do…she was raising some dust off the floor Maybe she slammed a few cabinets, maybe she jingled the silverware extra hard in the drawer, maybe she huffed a little louder so the company in the living room could hear her and all she had to do….
Has that ever been you?…. I know it's been me…. It's like the Tasmanian devil entered the kitchen
Martha gets a bad rap but she was a conscience and meticulous host, focused on the details of her home and the meal surrounding the arrival Jesus. These are admirable traits. I'm sure she was dashing around to find the right linens for the table. Making sure she had enough flatware to serve everyone. Giving the house a good sweeping and dusting the shelves Making sure she had enough fruit and vegetables, beans and fish for the meal…
I think the key though is that it wasn’t so much that Martha was doing these things, or preparing the meal, I mean some ones got to cook the food right? If you’re having company you got to eat! Especially if Jesus is coming….we want to serve a good meal.
I think the more important focus is what Jesus gently reminded her of in verse 41….”Martha Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things.” And for Martha these things were her main focus of the visit with Jesus - so much so that she missed something, something very important. she was encumbered by everything she had to do - as if she was carrying it around like a weight.
Remember, good things - become bad things, when they become the most important things.
Martha’s drive to serve Jesus drew her mind away so much that she missed Him completely.
But her sister didn't…..
Here we have Mary… Jesus after gently rebuking Martha said that Mary chose the good thing, the better thing, the necessary thing..
Jesus said Mary chose the good part (ag-a-thos) meaning intrinsically good, good in nature, good whether seen so or not. The thing that shall not be taken away Mary chose what was absolutely necessary for life….sitting at the feet of Jesus listening to His words in a posture of worship.
But This isn’t the only time we would find Mary at the feet of Jesus
She fell at His feet when her brother Lazarus had died (John 11:32). John 11:2 tells of this Mary anointing Jesus’ feet with ointment and wiping them with her hair. In the next Chapter of John , John 12 - 6 days before the Passover - there is a dinner at the home of Lazerus, there is speculation that it may have been a public celebration of Jesus raising Him from the dead - …and here we find Mary again at the feet of Jesus…Martha again serving, even after the rebuke…..but Mary, ….Mary still chose better….here she is again anointing His feet w perfume….extravagant worship of Her King….Martha still isn't getting it….although she isn't running- around and causing dust to lift off the floor this time…..she is still found focusing on serving Jesus..while Mary chooses the better thing, the most important thing, the thing that cannot be taken away.
Remember a good thing, becomes a bad thing when it becomes the most important thing.
We are in the third week of Advent
Advent is the season of reflective preparation for the Nativity of Christ and His expected return. Advent means arrival, The arrival of the long awaited Messiah
Jesus is coming… the celebration of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords is coming
I’ll confess that much of the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas my mind is consumed by the things I have to do. The parties, the gifts, sending Christmas Cards, the cookies, the traditions, the Christmas visits, my list….Again not bad things …but have those things become the most important things this Advent Season?
Am I going to miss the most important part like Martha?
Yes I welcome Him into my home just like Martha did but am I so busy checking off my to do list that I missed Him too? I know he's coming, I’m making room for him - but my thoughts often are consumed by something else. How am I preparing for His arrival? What are my thoughts focused on? What things do I drag around as a burden that consumes my mind?
Everything begins in our mind. You know psychology says so, but what's even better than that is that the Bible says so….
Proverbs 23:7 says, “As a man thinketh, so is he”
Our thought life is something we talk a lot about in counseling. If it is true, which it is, that our thought life determines our outcome to an extent….than It would stand to reason that we might want to take account of what our thoughts are. See Our thoughts - turn into our beliefs - our beliefs turn into our actions - and our actions, repeated over and over again develop patterns.
Martha's pattern was being distracted by her preparations….her thought life was consumed by all that she had to do…
Whereas Mary was being driven by something else…Mary had been preparing something else and making something else more important in her mind- her thought life -than serving the meal, than even serving Jesus Himself.
She had developed a pattern too…She was seated at the feet of Jesus, she was listening to His words. She worshiped Him. She was acting out of what she had spent her time thinking about…
What do you think Mary allowed her mind to dwell on? Where were her thoughts focused?
It had to be the Goodness of God, His Faithfulness, His Miracles, His Love and Mercy, ….
Her thought life drove her to worship Him….to choose the good thing, the most important thing, the thing that could not be taken away …but this started in her mind….as a man thinketh so is he.
Martha was kind and hospitable. She set the table,she harvested the fruits and vegetables, she made the meal, she scurried about making sure everything was prepared to serve Jesus BUT the problem was she herself wasn't prepared….her heart, her mind wasn't prepared for His arrival.
Martha was busy doing good things, not sinful or dishonoring things, she was even doing these good things for Jesus Himself, She welcomed Him under her roof, She even called Him Lord…..But what she worshiped wasn’t the Lord…..
We all worship something
Worship means to ascribe value to
We worship what is most important to us.
Christmas is coming, the long awaited Messiah is coming. What are your thoughts consumed with this season?
Yes there are things that have to be done….but am I preparing my heart with the same passion and energy that I am preparing my table?
Actions (What we say, how we say it, what we do) are proof of where our mind has been….
Maybe we have lost sight of the babe that comes Christmas morning?
Maybe we have drawn cold and forgotten His goodness and faithfulness, His Love and mercy?
This baby - born in a manger (fully God and now fully man) would one day go to the cross to pay the price for your sin - for my sin…so that we would once again have access to God as we did in the Garden…to restore humanity to our Creator
In this Advent season- what are you going to prepare?
What will you set your mind and heart on:
Where will you allow your mind to dwell
As a man thinketh so is he……
What will you discipline your mind towards as we await this coming King?