I think this may be one of the most needed messages for today's church because we're surrounded by a culture, even within ministry, that celebrates doing. Jesus consistently calls His disciples back to being. Before He asks us to bear fruit, He asks us to abide. Before He sends us into the world, He invites us to sit at His feet. That order is not incidental; it's the secret to a life that bears genuine, lasting fruit.
"Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." -Luke 10:42
"Abide in Me, and I in you... apart from Me you can do nothing." -John 15:4–5
The Christian life has a way of becoming very busy. And we have a way of justifying this, making things more about works than faith. Indeed, there are meetings to prepare, meals to cook, children to raise, bills to pay, people to encourage, ministries to lead, and countless responsibilities demanding our attention. We often measure our commitment and/or faithfulness by how much we're doing. Remember this- works are the result of relationship, relationship is not measured by works.
One of the most startling conversations Jesus ever had happened in a home filled with good intentions. Martha welcomed Jesus into her home with intention to serve Him. Mary welcomed Him into her heart. Both loved Him. Both desired to honor Him. Only one understood what mattered most.
The Danger of Good Intentions
Luke tells us that Martha was "distracted by all the preparations that had to be made."
Notice, Martha wasn't distracted by things she should NOT have been doing. She was distracted by serving Jesus. Now that should shock us to attention!
It is entirely possible to become so busy doing things for Jesus that we neglect simply being in a relationship with Him. Satan does not always pull believers away through obvious rebellion.
Sometimes he simply keeps us so occupied with good things that we quietly neglect the best thing.
The Root of Martha's Frustration
Eventually Martha reaches her breaking point. She interrupts Jesus. She criticizes her sister. She questions whether Jesus even cares.
"Lord, don't You care...?"
What happened? Nothing in the room changed except Martha's heart.
The work wasn't the problem, her distance from the feet of Jesus was.
When intimacy fades, service begins to feel heavy... ministry becomes exhausting. Other people become irritating. Comparison creeps in. Joy disappears. We begin serving from obligation instead of love.
Many Christians assume burnout comes from doing too much. But often it comes from trying to produce fruit apart from intimacy with Christ.
Mary Understood Something Martha Didn't
Mary wasn't being lazy. She recognized an opportunity that would not last forever. The Son of God was speaking. Meals could wait. The dishes could wait. The house could wait. The King was in the room. Jesus wasn't minimizing service; He was establishing priorities.
There is a time to serve. But before we ever serve Him, we must learn to sit with Him.
Before we speak for Him, we must listen to Him. Before we labor in His name, we must know His heart. Everything else flows from that relationship.
John 15 Explains Luke 10
Years later, Jesus would explain exactly why Mary's choice mattered so much.
"I am the vine; you are the branches... If you remain in Me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing."
This is one of the most important truths in all of Scripture: fruit is never manufactured, it is produced. A branch never strains to produce grapes, its only responsibility is to remain connected to the vine. Life flows naturally from the connection.
Jesus is teaching exactly the same principle Martha needed to learn: the Christian life is not sustained by activity, it is sustained by abiding.
We often reverse the order. We think if we work harder, pray harder, serve more, volunteer more, and stay busier, we will become fruitful. Jesus says the opposite. Remain first. Fruit follows.
Presence Before Performance
The world rewards productivity. Jesus values proximity.
The world asks, "What have you accomplished?"
Jesus asks, "Have you been with Me?"
Acts 4:13 says the religious leaders recognized Peter and John because they had been with Jesus.
Not because of their education.
Not because of their influence.
Not because of their accomplishments.
Everything that astonished the world flowed from time spent in Christ's presence.
This has never, and will never, change.
The One Thing
Jesus looked at Martha and said,
"You are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed."
One thing. Not ten. Not twenty. One.
The Christian life begins here. Not with serving. Not with striving. Not with proving ourselves. Not with building ministries. It begins at the feet of Jesus. Everything else is meant to flow from that place.
When we reverse the order, ministry becomes burdensome.
When we keep the order Jesus established, ministry becomes an overflow of the life He is producing within us.
We Cannot Give What We Have Not Received
Imagine trying to pour water from an empty pitcher, eventually nothing comes out.
Many believers are spiritually exhausted because they are trying to pour into others from an empty soul. And Jesus never intended that.
He invites us first to receive... Receive His love. Receive His peace, His correction, His joy, His wisdom... Only then do we pour into others.
Healthy ministry is not the result of running harder, it is the overflow of abiding deeper.
The Church Needs Fewer Marthas and More Marys
The Church desperately needs people willing to prepare meals, clean buildings, teach children, greet visitors, organize events, and care for practical needs. This is not a criticism of those who faithfully serve. Martha's service was valuable.
What Jesus corrected was not her willingness to serve, but her willingness to let service replace intimacy.
Our greatest danger is not becoming inactive. It is becoming active without abiding.
Churches can become incredibly busy while quietly drifting from the presence of Christ.
Programs multiply. Calendars fill. Events succeed. Yet hearts grow distant.
Jesus is not building a people known merely for their activity.
He is forming a Bride who delights in His presence.
A Question for Every Believer
If Jesus walked into your home today, what would you do?
Would you rush to finish the dishes or clean the house? Would you start preparing a meal? ]Would you what you were just working on?
Or would you quietly lay it all aside...
...pull up a chair...
...sit at His feet...
...and simply listen?
Mary understood something that many believers spend a lifetime learning- the deepest fruitfulness does not begin with working harder, it begins with remaining closer.
The one thing that cannot be taken away is not your ministry, your reputation, your accomplishments, or your influence... it is your relationship with Jesus Christ.
Choose that first. Everything else will find its proper place.
~Devin
Devin Osborne
The Early Church
