Are You A Mary Or A Martha?

Any student of the Word recalls how Jesus gently reprimands Martha for noticing what Mary is NOT doing (instead of what she IS doing), and is in such a dither all over it, as she multi-tasks.  Martha thinks that work is more important than discipleship, spending time with the Lord, and studying the Word.  According to Jesus, Mary chose the better part, which was to avail herself of the rare opportunity to be tutored by Jesus nearly one-on-one at His feet.

It's not that prep work is not important, or that Jesus loved Martha less, but that she had her priorities wrong and should've taken advantage of the opportunity--seize the day!  Even though we must not be so heavenly minded we are no earthly good, one must love the Lord enough that it shows in our thirst for the Word.  Some people are too busy doing work for the Lord, that they spend little time with the Lord (in devotion, prayer, fellowship, worship, and the Word).

Whatever we do, ought to be in the name of the Lord (cf. Col. 3:17), both the so-called mundane and spiritual functions and whatever we do, we ought to do to the glory of God (cf. Col. 3:23). Revered theologians have said that to work is to pray, if done in God's name.  Bro. Lawrence wrote The Practice of the Presence of God to prove that even in washing dishes in a monastery, one could fellowship and enjoy God's blessing and company.  I recall the bricklayer who said, when asked what he was working on,  replied that he was building a cathedral.  Our outlook and orientation to what we do affect our fellowship and faith.

If we are so busy that we have no time for the Lord, our priorities are wrong and we need to get them aligned and in sync with God. Balance is the key--it's true that all work and no play make a dull person; one must exercise his faith and exhale after inhaling the Word.   Even the best students of the Word don't spend all their time in Bible study, but realize they must put it into practice--like James 1:22 said not to be mere hearers of the Word but does also.  We need to apply what we know, even in the mundane and realize that we are rewarded according to our works, not our faith. We are to "bear fruit in every good work," as we "increase in the knowledge of God" (cf. Col. 1:10);  2 Pet. 3:18 (CEV) exhorts us to "... grow in the grace and  knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ...."

It's not that washing dishes or cooking is unimportant, but that one should never let our busywork crowd out our time with the Lord--there comes a time of practicing what we preach and turning our creeds into deeds. There comes a time of putting our faith into practice!  Just like the saying goes:  The faith you have is the faith you show!   Like Paul appropriately said, "If any man is unwilling to work, he shouldn't eat" (cf. 2 Thess. 3:10).

Christianity is a very practical faith and not a mystical one that values people with their heads in the clouds or on cloud nine all the time, like the Eastern mystics who practice their piety before men with cloistered virtue.  Preaching a sermon is no more a divine or spiritual a task than digging ditches if both are done to the glory of God--they just represent different callings and one is judged by his faithfulness to his calling, not the level of prestige of the calling--and teachers shall receive the greater judgment. If one is God's dishwasher, he sees things in the light of eternity and lives for His glory--despite the occupation.

By way of application, we all must do some soul searching and examine ourselves whether we love to study the Word more than our daily routines or chores, and make sure we have the right priorities--would we rather do things for God or be with God? All believers are either Marthas or Marys and the choice is ours, and Jesus loves them both without partiality; however, Mary has chosen the better part. The problem with Martha was that she'd rather cook than learn from the feet of Jesus and she thinks that work is more important at that.  Never be too busy for God!  Soli Deo Gloria!  

Life's Priorities

Job One is to practice the lordship of Christ over our lives and to abide in Him.  What does this entail? We must walk even as He walked in constant fellowship and union with Him in obedience and confession with our motto being, "Thy will be done!  We must rearrange our priorities and change our lifestyle to please Him Jesus doesn't just have an important place in our lives, but the predominant and preeminent place. Everything else is secondary! This involves seeing things in a new light as God sees them, not as the world sees them, for we are no longer of the world. The centrality of Christianity is Christ! All else is peripheral or circumference. 

Furthermore, we must put our whole heart into following Christ with as much gusto as we can muster, as "Mr. Hustle" himself, Pete Rose did when he put his whole heart into his game. God wants the same kind of attitude of us:  "And in every work that he began in the service of the house of God, in the law and in the commandment, to seek his God, he did it with all his heart. So he prospered"  (2 Chronicles 31:21, NKJV). God found men who "wholly followed the Lord."  

This means a commitment to Christ through thick and thin and living by His agenda.  It means a "great commitment to the Great Commission and the Great Commandment!"  We "crown Him Lord of all," as the hymn goes, but this must be from the heart, not just the lips.  Joshua and Caleb are two examples:  "... for they followed the LORD wholeheartedly"  (cf. Numbers 32:11).

What is lordship mean?  "...You are not your own; for you were bought with a price (cf. 1 Cor. 6:20, ESV). "As you have received Christ Jesus as Lord, so walk ye in him" (Col. 4:6)--we didn't receive Him as best bud, sidekick, or colleague, but as our Lord!  The only legitimate salvation is "lordship salvation" (once quite a controversy), which means we must accept Him with all the authority over us, dedicating our wills to Him all our lives, as living sacrifices. There is no such thing as a class of disobedient Christians who have accepted the lordship of Christ. 

Obedience is the test and the relationship is expressed by obedience. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, "Only those who believe are obedient; only those who are obedient believe."  We are either obedient or not, with no middle ground--this has no degree of fulfillment and obedience. We must bow to His lordship and I don't mean just lip service. A. W. Tozer said, "The Lord will not save those whom He cannot command." If we don't accept His lordship, we haven't accepted Him and this is nothing less than easy-believism or "cheap grace," as Dietrich Bonhoeffer termed it.

We abide in Christ and walk in the Spirit in fellowship with God, as we are led by the Spirit and being filled with the Spirit for every good work that He has ordained for us.  Let it be said of us what God said of Joshua:  "He wholly followed the Lord!"  We live in a trusting and obedient life: "Trust and obey, for there is no other way, to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey!" 

Jesus said that if you love Him you will obey Him (cf. John 14:21). Believing and obedience are equated in Heb. 3:18-19 and in John 3:36 (ESV) as:  "He who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him."  Hebrews 5:9 (ESV) says, "And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him."     Soli Deo Gloria!

Making Plans God's Way

"Then the king ... rejected the advice of the elders'  (2 Chron. 10:13).
"Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap"  (Gal. 6:7).
"Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision!  For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision"  (Joel 3:14).
"Who is this that darkens my counsel with words without knowledge?"  (Job 38:2).

Too many Christians erroneously make plans without counsel or wisdom from above.  If we rely only on human wisdom and insight we only get human results.  To achieve the impossible, to move mountains, we need God in the equation!  Equate the God factor--everything else are variables and He's a constant.  It is not an option to forget or ignore God and live as if there is no God; whether we believe there is a God or not, this is called "practical atheism."  There is safety in the multitude of counselors according to Solomon, and without counsel, plans fail.

Today we have everything from clergy, deacons, elders,  life coaches, school counselors, social workers, and mental health professionals to assist us in making wise decisions--we are not exempt from being wise, even as believers. God will reveal His will to us day by day and not necessarily in a rolled out itinerary.  For example, in Proverbs 24:27 it says to first make your career and then build your house.  Map things out before getting married, don't just hope to get it all together afterward (don't wait to get your act together!)--this is God's way!  God's way is to always put Him first (set priorities!) and let Him take care of the details and results.  "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you"  (Matt. 6:33).

Being wise enough to be a success means seeing the Big Picture and not getting too detail-oriented, and thinking small-time. God does have a plan for us and He will get His way regardless of whether we cooperate. In mapping out our life course it is necessary to have "vision," without which we perish according to Proverbs 29:18.  We want God to get all the glory and credit for our success and realize it came from Him and we owe Him and have no place to boast (cf. Deut. 8:17-18) they say, an Englishman is a self-made man who worships his Creator!   Ponder this verse:  "All that we have done [God] has accomplished through us"  (Isaiah 26:12).

God is in control and micromanages our life as well as history itself and no one can say to God: "What hast thou done?"  (cf. Dan. 4:35).  God's will will be done and He has no Plan B case we mess up and ruin our lives; we cannot blame God for our failure because we are still culpable for our errors and sin. "In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps" (Prov. 16:9).  And also in the same vein:  "A man's steps are directed by the LORD.  How then can anyone understand his own way?"  (Prov. 20:24). "Many are the plans in a man's heart, but it is the LORD's purpose that prevails" (Prov. 19:21).

We may be determined, for example, not to ever marry; however, God may have other plans and we might still end up hitched.  "I know the plans I have for you, says the LORD..." (Jeremiah 29:11) implies that as His children He has good intentions toward us and not evil ones to destroy a good thing.  After all He is the Potter and we are the clay (cf. Isaiah 64:8).   All of our life was laid out before we were born according to Psalm 139:16 and this demonstrates His sovereignty--which is not limited by our so-called free will, which means we cannot frustrate God! (cf. Rom. 9:19 quoted:  "...for who can resist His will?"). Therefore, Job 42:2 says:  "I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted."

In making plans we must turn over the lordship and ownership of our lives to Christ and surrender to God's will in all matters, holding nothing back--without reservation--this is a lordship issue and all believers struggle here because it's ongoing--Satan never relents.  "Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and your plans will succeed" (Proverbs 16:3).  God gives us the power to get wealth and to be a success (Mother Teresa said that God calls us to faithfulness and not to success!). Be careful what you plan for because you may get it (this goes also for praying).  In planning it never hurts to think big and to aim high, because then even if you don't reach your ultimate goal you may still be successful in God's eyes.  The revelation of God's plan or will for our life is conditioned upon our piety:  "Who, then, is the man that fears the LORD?  He will instruct him in the way chosen for him"  (Psalm 25:12).

Don't be wise in your own eyes or think you have a monopoly on wisdom--it takes the body of Christ to function and we all have something to contribute.  Finally, success means that whatever God has called us to do we will bear fruit and glorify God, it doesn't mean achieving the "American dream" or making a lot of money, having power or fame.  A word of wisdom from Deuteronomy 32:29 says: "If only they were wise and would understand this and discern what their end will be!"  In summation, the goal is achieving God's will for your life (a life of relinquishment), and walking with the Lord day-by-day, hour-by-hour, moment-by-moment, in faithfulness and leave the results to Him--just trust and obey!  Soli Deo Gloria!