THIS incident in the home of Mary and Martha is unique to the Gospel of Luke. None of the other Gospel writers have recorded it. It is a great blessing for us that the Holy Spirit inspired Luke to include this occasion in the life of Jesus for us. In these few verses we have the story, and then we have the lessons that we may glean from this bit of history.

The story commences with telling us Jesus was on his way. As Bethany was near Jerusalem, Jesus was either going to Jerusalem or returning from Jerusalem. Martha, probably the elder sister, invited Jesus into their home, which we learn from John 11 was the home of Lazarus, Martha and Mary. Both Martha and Mary loved Jesus, and Martha showed her love by seeking to provide the best hospitality she could. Mary showed her love by sitting at the feet of Jesus listening to his teaching. Both were lovers and believers in Jesus, and true people of God. Martha allowed herself to get worked up in resentment against her sister for not helping her in preparing food for Jesus, and she also shows that she was becoming critical of Jesus for not telling Mary to go and help in the preparations for a meal. When this resentment boiled over, Martha came to Jesus and accused Jesus of not caring about her, and allowing her sister Mary to listen to his teaching and not help Martha. She even went as far as ordering Jesus to do what she wanted. Martha had allowed herself to get all upset, and then grow angry, which followed with some unwise words. Jesus, showed his love for Martha by using her name twice, but then gently correcting her wrong attitude, and saying that Mary had chosen what was better, and he would not take this away from her.

No doubt we find ourselves sympathising with Martha, though on reflection we have to admit that she had allowed herself to be worked up to think and say wrong things; but what lessons are there in this story for us.

The question that immediately meets us is the meaning of the words of Jesus "but only one thing is needed." The literal Greek is no help. Most commentators opt for one or other of the meanings, but I believe that both are included. I believe Jesus is saying two things. The first is that Martha was seeking to prepare something unnecessarily elaborate, when just a simple meal would have been enough - one course and not two or three. The second is that Jesus was telling Martha that feeding the soul was more important than feeding the body. One thing needful for Martha was that she was allowing her earthly duties to take away from the one most important thing, and that was food for the soul. Jesus is indicating that Mary had chosen this better thing.

It is a fact that quite legitimate earthly duties often take over our lives to the neglect of our soul and our spiritual health. Spending time with Jesus in prayer and reading the bible often is crowded out of our lives by all the earthly and temporal duties that crowd upon us. The devil is very good at worrying us with all the earthly duties that are there in order to crowd out the feeding of our soul. The truth is that when we put our spiritual needs first we find that the many duties we have felt so pressing, either are not so pressing, or they are accomplished much more easily and quickly.

We learn also that Christians are naturally so different from each other, and that this is not something that makes one better than another. Both Mary and Martha loved Jesus, and wanted to serve him and show their love for him. Although Martha became worried and upset, it does not mean she loved Jesus less than Mary or that Jesus loved Mary more than her. Becoming a Christian by faith in Jesus, and being born again of the Spirit, does give us a new and holy principle of life within, but this does not change what we are naturally. If we are a worrier, then this won't have gone away, but rather by the new nature we are given we will be given strength to overcome our worry. It will be the same for all our natural make-up. Our good points will be enhanced by new birth, and for our weak points we will find renewed strength to overcome them.

Martha's experience shows us how easy it is to let our sinful nature cause us to sin. It is so easy for us to feel hard done by, and so harbour resentment, and from this grow angry, and say and do things which are wrong and sinful. We must always be on our guard against the manipulation of our weakness by the devil.

The last and very important lesson from this story is found in the words of Jesus when he said that Mary had chosen the better part which would not be taken from her. The most important thing for every believer is the nurture of our soul. We can not spend too much time and effort in seeking heavenly things, and growing in knowledge and application of the truths of God's word. Nor can we spend too much time in worship and prayer before the Lord, and in the name of Jesus. The fact is that most of us find that earthly duties take over our lives to the neglect of our souls. We find also that when we do have moments of time, we will fill them with earthly things, rather than heavenly. Reading a novel or watching TV often comes before and more easily than reading the Bible, or spending time with a good Christian book of one kind or another.