Mary’s Good Choice
“The Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.’” (Luke 10:41–42)
The Lord himself, under her roof! Martha can hardly believe it. “Quick,” she thinks to herself, “I must knead some dough so there’ll be enough bread for dinner. And then I should start chopping up vegetables for the stew. I wonder where they’re all going to sleep. Oh no, I still haven’t washed the sheets since Aunt Ruth came to stay last weekend. If I wash them now, will they be dry by this evening? I hope the Lord hasn’t noticed that the flowers in the sitting room are wilting. Perhaps I should dash to Hannah’s house to borrow some of her lilies. I’m going to need Mary’s help. Where is she? Why isn’t she here when there’s so much to do!”
And that’s when Martha sees that Mary is sitting down with the disciples listening to Jesus teach. Through the open doorway Martha can almost hear what he’s saying— “The kingdom of God is like a… .” She wishes she’d caught the end of that sentence, but she’s too far away and there’s so much to be done! Eventually, she catches Mary’s eye, and she mimes kneading bread, chopping vegetables, and stirring the stew pot. Mary sees her, but she shrugs her shoulders apologetically before turning back to face Jesus, to carry on listening to him. Martha can’t believe how outrageously selfish Mary is being. If only Jesus knew how much she had to do, he’d definitely tell Mary to start chopping up the carrots. Well, maybe that’s the solution: just tell Jesus! He’ll be sure to understand.
So Martha walks right up to the group and interrupts Jesus’s message, saying, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” (Verse 40) Everyone falls silent. When domestic disputes spill out into the open, observers always feel uncomfortable. To Martha’s surprise, Jesus praises Mary’s choice, saying “Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”
And what’s this good portion that Mary has chosen? “Mary … sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching.” (Verse 39)
When I was in my final year at high school with big decisions looming in front of me, a youth group speaker encouraged me and my friends to focus on the three Gs: the Glory of God, the Good of others, and our own personal Growth as Christians. Martha was focusing on the first two Gs while neglecting the third. Mary correctly identified an opportunity for the third G that she didn’t want to miss.
We all have room for growth. None of us is the finished article. But seeking spiritual growth through sitting at Jesus’s feet takes time. Church services, Bible study groups, personal Bible reading, listening to sermon recordings or Christian podcasts, reading faithful Christian books—all these activities can quickly seem skippable, if, like Martha, we’re “distracted with much serving” (verse 40). Mary’s example should inspire us to keep setting aside time to do exactly what she did and listen to the Lord’s teaching.
Bernard Howard