I, like many Americans, was raised on processed foods and enjoyed eating “fast food.” My appetite for those high-calorie meals grew during college living off of Pot Pies, TV Dinners, Mac & Cheese and other inexpensive fast meals. I also enjoyed the “Dollar Menus” at a number of Fast-Food Restaurants. My palette began to expand when the Chinese Restaurant I worked at provided a whole Chinese meal for lunch each workday. In the decades since those early years I have moved towards enjoying healthier choices almost exclusively.
The follower of Christ must go through the same development when it comes to our spiritual diet. I was reminded of the importance of moving beyond the daily devotion reading for our spiritual health. Now, don’t hear me saying that a “Daily Bread” or online reading is spiritually unhealthy; It is a great place to start as most followers of Jesus are not in the Word each day. It is a starting point, with the end goal of moving onto the deeper truth of God’s Word that transforms our person to be like Jesus Christ. The writer of Hebrews makes the point, “Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity.” (Hebrews 6:1a).
I was struck by Jesus’ response to Martha’s frustration of getting stuck doing all the work: “but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”” (Luke 10:42). Jesus’ insight reminds each of us of the biggest obstacles in our spiritual development. We often do not make our time with our Savior the priority. I found that my weak point is online sources like YouTube or X for current insights on world happenings. The danger of these social media sources is that they consume our time. Now, for you it may be something else, like reading, your car project or fixing up your home. My point is that Jesus’ admonition to Martha speaks to each of us about our priorities in life.
Think about the impact of these distractions in our lives. Our passage reveals the real dangers. First, we rationalize that our distraction from time with Jesus is justifiable. It is when we rationalize that we tell ourselves rational-lies! “But Martha was distracted with much serving.” (Luke 10:40a). I like to call this sacrificing what is best on the altar of what is good. Serving others is a very good practice. The Bible encourages us to serve others. But it becomes an obstacle when it distracts us from spending time with Jesus. It is also interesting that Martha is doing what she wants. A big red flag of caution in our lives is when we begin to justify not spending time with Jesus.
The second danger is in Martha’s justification to Jesus “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.”(Luke 10:40b). I find it interesting that she does not come to the Lord asking for his direction but in essence demanding a solution. A second red flag is when we attempt to dictate what Jesus needs to do in a given situation. I am reminded of Paul’s teaching on a different issue that applies here. “Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.” (Romans 14:4).
I don’t want us to miss the main point. Jesus identifies that Mary’s choice to spend time sitting with Him was the best choice! “Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.” The time we neglect to spend with God each day is a loss in our own lives and in the lives of those we impact every day. We can never regain the wasted time in our day. Jesus elevates the need to take advantage of the opportunity to spend time with our Savior.
Let me encourage you to do what you need to do to “choose the good portion” each day. I have found setting a time and a place for my time with Jesus is essential for my development. I believe the same is true for you also. It does require us to sacrifice what is good to do what is best.
-Pastor Joe Parkinson