Luke 10:40
But Martha was cumbered about 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. But Martha was cumbered about 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.
Martha was overwhelmed and anxious with preparing hospitality for Jesus and His companions after their tiring journey, while Mary sat quietly at His feet listening eagerly to His teaching, and in her many cares Martha complained that she had been left to serve alone and urged Jesus to make her sister help her. The visit took place in the home of Lazarus, Mary and Martha in Bethany, a quiet resting place of faith and love where Jesus could speak freely apart from strife and criticism. Practical service, even in ordinary duties, is to be done carefully and is not condemned, but it must not crowd out listening to Christ's instruction and cause the loss of the one thing essential. What is needed is both together: Martha's active willingness to minister joined to Mary's humility, devotion and choice to sit at Jesus' feet, first feeding on Christ and receiving His grace in order to give it to others. Choosing the better part as Mary did means treasuring His words in the heart and practicing them in daily life, which transforms character and gives lasting eternal life that will never be taken away, in contrast to anxious care about passing things.
Setting and Background
Luke 10:40 stands in the closing portion of Luke 10 beginning at verse 25, which shows what to do to inherit eternal life. That portion gives the work appointed to men and lays the solid foundation of Christ giving His own life for the life of the world, instead of requiring high education in sophistries and spiritualistic ideas.
The verse belongs to Jesus' visits to the home of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha in Bethany, a home dear to Him where He found rest from public conflict and a sincere welcome in an atmosphere of faith and love. It was a quiet resting place amid the conjectures, prejudices, criticism, and accusations of priests and rulers, where strife, prejudice, and enmity were absent and no stinging, bruising words met Him. Though not dependent on human sympathy, He did not check or repulse it, even as divinity enshrouded in humanity bearing the clear credentials of heaven and as the Son of God suffering in man's behalf with the necessities and woes of the human race pressing upon His divine manhood. There He could speak freely to attentive listeners in private and share instruction with freedom from the strife of tongues.
The visit takes place at Lazarus's home in Bethany after Jesus and His disciples travel from Jericho toward Jerusalem. Martha is preparing a meal for their comfort after their tiring journey, while Mary quietly sits at Jesus' feet to learn.
Martha's Burden and Appeal
Martha was cumbered, occupied, troubled, absorbed, overwhelmed, and anxious about much serving, preparing food and hospitality for Jesus and His companions after their tiring journey. While she was so taken up with serving a meal and caring for her guests, Mary quietly sat at His feet to listen eagerly to His teaching. Her care for hospitality and attention to practical work crowded out listening to Christ's instruction and caused her to miss the opportunity to learn.
She came to Jesus concerned that she had been left to serve alone and complained that her sister had left her. She asked whether He did not care, mistakenly assuming His indifference, and urged Him to bid and even make Mary help her. In her anxiety and many cares she forgot and overlooked the courtesy due to her Guest.
Service and the Better Part
Even ordinary work like preparing a meal is to be done carefully, yet attention to practical work must not crowd out listening to Christ's instruction. Martha's care for hospitality absorbed her and led her to miss the opportunity to learn while Mary listened eagerly, and household cares and other burdens still distract from the one thing essential, so the lesson is to put God's kingdom and righteousness first and direct effort and resources toward what has eternal value.
Martha's serving is not condemned, but she needed less anxiety about passing things and more desire for knowledge of immortal life and the graces needed for spiritual growth. Active service is valuable when joined to a calm, devotional spirit learned at Jesus' feet.
Both sides are needed together, with hands and heart and whole being devoted to the work. Martha's active serving, watchfulness for opportunities to serve others, and willingness to minister belong alongside Mary's humility and devotion, sincere love for the truth, and choice to sit at Jesus' feet and learn from Him, and Christians are to devote themselves wholly to the Lord's work while learning from Jesus. Those truly ready to serve first feed most on Christ by reading and studying His Word, drinking in the inspiration of His Spirit, and receiving His grace not to hoard but to give to others, for teachers must first be learners and the most zealous workers need to learn at the feet of Jesus, and busy workers also need Mary's character. The higher Christian attainments are reached only by being much on the knees in sincere prayer.
Martha's much serving is a God-given individual work for Christ, distinct from Mary's work, with both the Marthas and the Marys having their own place. It is good work for Christ when first grounded in learning meekness, bearing Christ's name in daily watchfulness unto prayer, walking even as Christ walked, possessing His Spirit, and daily purifying life from what causes spiritual weakness and brings dishonor to God by a well-ordered life and godly conversation, so that the power and grace of Christ is revealed through His people.
In contrast to being cumbered about much serving, choosing the better part as Mary did means sitting at the feet of Jesus as the divine Teacher and attending to His sacred lessons. It means studying the word of God and meditating upon it, treasuring His words in the heart and practicing them in daily life. Received, believed, and obeyed, this is the great instrumentality in transformation of character, quickening the physical, mental, and spiritual powers and directing the life into right channels, uplifting mind and soul and giving inward rectitude and strength of principle to resist temptation. Neglect of this sacred instruction leaves youth and even those of mature years without firm, decided will-power and without a mind earnestly directed to what inspires pure, holy thought and diverted from what is impure and untrue, so they are easily led into temptation and sin.
The better part Mary chose is lasting and will never be taken away. It is learning Christ's meekness and lowliness, giving up self, and having life hidden with Christ in God, and it endures unlike earth-born ambition. Freedom from anxious, over-troubled care about preparing food for the table, household duties, and other common duties of life stands together with holding that lasting gift of eternal life. That sitting and learning gives deeper piety and a stronger hold from above, so that life spared by God is devoted to His service and the precious hours of probation are not spent frivolously, in self-pleasing, or in self-absorption, while still not shunning responsibility in bearing burdens for the Lord.
Being cumbered about much serving with many trifling things taxes the nerves rather than quieting them and would better be left undone. Over-busy serving separates a large portion of life from God, robs Him of the capital of entrusted talents, and produces numerous difficulties in life and work that would be avoided by subjection to Christ. The remedy is to take Mary's place at Jesus' feet and learn of Him who is meek and lowly in heart and so find rest unto the soul, regulating words and actions by the holy law, restraining thoughts into obedience to Christ, and bringing little things to Jesus as well as larger things. Neglect in little things shapes habit and character, leaves the soul without the oil of grace when great trials come, scars and warps the whole life, and endangers delight in heart service for Christ.
Application for Workers Today
Martha stands as the picture of people found in every church who are intensely busy in religious activities and do much good, yet zealous work alone is not enough. Busy workers and conference officers also need Mary's character and must learn at Jesus' feet, for teachers must first be learners. The most zealous workers need to learn at the feet of Jesus, feeding most on Christ by reading and studying His Word, drinking in the inspiration of His Spirit, and receiving His grace not to hoard but to give to others. Work for God calls for blending Martha's willingness to minister and serve with Mary's sincere love of the truth. That ministering leaves self and selfishness, self-indulgence, self-centeredness, and personal convenience out of sight, taking the mind from self and centering it on Christ. It becomes earnest, prudent, warm-hearted, tender, true-to-principle, persevering work that speaks words of truth, prays with people who can be reached, and labors for the conversion of souls.
Being burdened by doing too much serving is exposed in excessive preparations for religious meetings. The same cumbered serving exposes a driving, censorious, dictatorial spirit that passes for Christian virtue, harsh, self-exalting, and wounding. Turning the eyes within to see how offensive that spirit is to God means banishing it and instead sitting at the feet of Jesus like Mary to learn meekness and lowliness of heart and mind from the Master. The right place for a sinner is to choose to be a learner in the school of Christ rather than presume to be a teacher of others, making determined efforts to gain a subdued spirit by keeping hold on Jesus in living faith in His merits alone. Sitting at Jesus' feet and learning His lessons keeps honor undefiled, refusing to prevaricate, to falsify, to come to terms with falsehood for love of a little money, to degrade the soul, or to sacrifice conscience to obtain advantage or to be thought greatest, and separating from the assembly of those who do such things.
The habit of constant activity makes listening to precious instruction next to impossible, so what is heard does not profit because it is not mixed with faith. The soul then fails to receive blessings it might have grasped and stays far behind where it would have been. By contrast Mary's spirit sits at Jesus' feet whenever opportunity is given, listens interestedly, prizes the opportunity enough to make sacrifice to obtain the light God desires to give, and appropriates truth to the soul as bread and water of life by faith. Being absorbed in serving and occupied with human pursuits stands in contrast to true higher education that comes from sitting at Jesus' feet. The scene points to the need to sit and learn from Him rather than let activity keep one from that instruction, exemplifying the meekness and lowliness of heart believers are to learn from Christ.
Learning at the footstool of Jesus is tested by whether workers in God's institutions do their duty and advance the Lord's work in the many large, unworked cities. That sitting and learning with an eye single to the glory of God gives deeper piety and a stronger hold from above. A life spared by God is then devoted to His service, and the precious hours of probation are not spent frivolously, in self-pleasing, or in self-absorption, while still not shunning responsibility in bearing burdens for the Lord. Hands and heart and whole being are devoted to ever abounding in the work of the Lord, and the higher Christian attainments are reached only by being much on the knees in sincere prayer. Neglect of sacred instruction leaves youth and even those of mature years without firm, decided will-power and without a mind earnestly directed to what inspires pure, holy thought and diverts from what is impure and untrue, so they are easily led into temptation and sin.