Luke 10:38-42
Ninth Sunday after PentecostΒ -Β 17 July 2016
Rev. John Derme
Let me ask you a question. What important things do you have to do? If I handed out pieces of paper and gave you a couple of minutes, you could probably come up with a list of things that are important for you to do today, not to mention the duties that you want to get done this week or the achievements that you plan to accomplish at other times in the future. "I should get some yard work done, because once the workweek starts, I won't get another chance." β¦ "It's important for me to spend some time with my family." β¦ "I'd better rest and relax a little, so that I'm ready for another week of work." β¦ "I work on the weekends, so it's important for me to finish the work I have to do." You probably have some of these and more.
Let me ask you another question. What do you have to do that is necessary? That question may be a little more difficult to answer. You might come up with a number of things, but when you think about them you realize that, although they are important, they're not absolutely necessary. Why is it so vital to distinguish between important and necessary? What's the big difference? Failing to remember that some things are important but not necessary can cause serious damage in our lives. Forgetting to do what is necessary can weaken β and potentially cause us to lose β our relationship with Jesus.
Martha had a hard time telling the difference between important and necessary. She had many good and important things to do. She invited Jesus to stay at her home. She wanted to provide him with a nice meal. Many of you know exactly how she felt. She had company over, but the house wasn't as clean as she would have liked it. She'd planned to get the roast in earlier so she could visit, but it took her longer than she'd planned and dinner wasn't preparing itself. There was still work she wanted to do to be a good hostess for Jesus. If she'd had a little help, she could get it all done for him. But there was her sister Mary, who wasn't helping at all. She was just sitting there listening to Jesus.
Martha tried to get her attention. She made it obvious that she was working hard, so that Mary would notice and come to help. But Mary didn't take her eyes off of Jesus. Martha couldn't keep her mouth shut any longer. She came over to them and said, "Lord, don't you care that my sister left me to serve you all by myself? Tell her to come help me!"
Jesus replied to her kindly, "Martha, Martha. You are concerned, because you have many important things to do. But only one thing is necessary. Mary is doing what is necessary, and her choice is for her benefit β now and forever." What was Mary's choice? Rather than joining Martha in the important work around the house, she chose to do what was necessary: listening to the words that Jesus spoke.
Do you ever have the trouble that Martha was having? We all do. There are times when each one of us gets caught up in all of the important things we have to do and forgets what is necessary. Just think about all the things that you want to get done. It may be summer vacation right now, but for most of the year you young people have to spend half of your day at school. Then you have homework to finish when you get home. Most of you have jobs that you have to work so that you can earn money. You can't spend all of your time working, though, so it's important to take time off for rest. You have to spend a large portion of every twenty-four hour period sleeping and it's important to take a vacation every once in a while, too. If you have a family, it's important to spend time with each other, and especially if you're a parent, a significant portion of every day is probably spent taking care of your children. You probably also have friends with whom you find it important to spend time. Everybody has to take time for exercise for the good of their bodies. It's important to take care of your property, whether you have a lot or a little. This list could get longer and longer. You have things that you could be getting done right now, if you weren't sitting here.
Have you ever fallen for that temptation? "I don't have time to go to church, because I have too many other important things to do." And if we're too busy to give up two hours of a week for worship and Bible class, then we're probably also not willing to listen to Jesus by reading the Bible with our families or on our own during the week. But do you see the major fault in that line of thinking? It elevates all of the activities that are important to a level above the one thing that Jesus says is necessary. When we think that way, we are telling him that he doesn't know what he's talking about, because we know what's necessary for us.
It is a temptation for us to fall into this way of thinking even when we are trying to do good things for Jesus. For example, imagine yourself as a person who would never miss a voters' meeting, because you love to take part in all of the work that we accomplish there for this congregation and for your Lord; and yet, you don't always make that same commitment to attend church regularly. Or imagine yourself as a person who volunteers your time to help with cleaning and maintenance projects around church, because it is important for us to have functioning facilities; and yet, you don't have time for Bible study, whether here at church or at home. Here at Shepherd, we love everyone who attends voters' meetings and work days, but do you see the temptation that still lies in wait even for us who are active in the congregation? It can be easy to feel like we're doing so many good things for Jesus without taking the time to listen to his words. No matter how many hours a week you spend in this building, you're not getting any closer to Jesus unless you are receiving his gospel. It is sadly possible for us to do important work for him while we are separating ourselves from him by neglecting to hear his Word.
When we forget what is necessary and get it confused with what is important, Jesus speaks to us through his Word again. Just as he spoke to Martha, Jesus gently reminds us that, though all of the things we have to do are important, only one thing is necessary. He takes our focus off of all of the duties that concern and trouble us, and refocuses us on himself. Then, like Mary, we sit at his feet and he speaks to us.
What does Jesus tell you that is so necessary? Though you have neglected your relationship with him at times, he loves you and will never forsake you. He has done everything necessary for your sin to be forgiven. He led a perfect life for you β he always heard and read God's Word eagerly, even though he is the Son of God. It was necessary even for him, and he fulfilled his Father's command to treat it that way. He died innocently for you β even though he kept God's command, he died to pay for the times you have broken it. Because of the life he lived and the death he died, when God the Father looks at you, he sees someone who has kept his command and treated his Word as the one necessity! Because of what he has done, you have a place next to him in heaven!
Jesus has a lot to say to you in the Bible, doesn't he? But he's not only telling you, as if to say, "By the way, I did all these things, just for your information." No, Jesus also uses his Word to make the benefits of all he has done yours. He uses the message to create and strengthen in your heart the faith, which trusts in him. And through faith, he gives you all the blessings he earned.
If he uses his Word to do all that, then I'd say listening to his Word is pretty important. Wouldn't you? Actually, it's not important. It's necessary. It is absolutely necessary for all of us to be in frequent contact with him through the Bible. We may have other responsibilities that seem necessary. For example, if you would own a house, but neglect to do the work required to keep the house, you would lose the house and be left without your worldly possessions. That would be a terrible tragedy. It would be even worse, however β eternally tragic β if you would neglect to do what is necessary to keep your relationship with Jesus and be separated forever from him in hell. Fortunately, Jesus has given each of us an easy way to make sure that kind of tragedy never happens to us. He has given us his Word in the simple form of a book, which each of us can have at home and take off of our shelves and open up to read. And he has placed this church in the midst of this community, where you can come and hear his Word proclaimed and explained. He has given you his Word and says, "Here it is. This is the one thing that is absolutely necessary for you. Use it faithfully. I guarantee that it will benefit you."
Jesus invites you to come and sit at his feet here at worship.Β Even if the guy speaking to you from the pulpit today isn't all that dynamic or sometimes muddles his words, remember that these aren't his cleverly crafted ideas. The words he speaks are Jesus' words. Jesus invites you to come and sit at his feet with your fellow believers in Bible study. There you work together with them to learn and understand more of the promises he has made to you. Jesus invites you to come and sit at his feet for a one-on-one conversation as you read the words that he speaks to you in the Bible on your own and you respond to him in prayer. Jesus invites you to gather your family at his feet as you read his Word in your homes, so that their relationship with him, too, may be strengthened. As Jesus taught in the home of Mary and Martha, he showed those two women that they were the most important people in the world to him. When you read your Bible and listen to his Word, he pays the exact same amount of attention to you, because at that moment, you are the most important person in the world, and he is speaking directly to you.
Important or necessary? With all of the things that you have to do, it can be difficult, at times, to distinguish which responsibilities fit into those categories. The distinction is vital, because Jesus says that β though many of your duties are important β only one thing is necessary. Like Martha, join Mary at Jesus' feet as he tells you everything that you need to hear. It's not important that you listen to him. It's necessary.