Today, we are focusing on a well-known and curious story of our Lord’s interaction with a woman named Martha in her home. However, before we delve into the details, it is helpful to place this text within the context of Luke’s Gospel. This story comes at the end of chapter 10, and that chapter begins with Jesus sending out seventy-two followers to prepare the towns ahead of time for His coming. They were to go, without any extra money or provision, and rely on the hospitality of others. Those who received them, those who received the message of peace they proclaimed, would, indeed, receive true peace and the nearness of the Kingdom of God. In fact, they are told that if anyone does not receive them, they are to shake the dust of that town off their feet as a testimony against them. Everything here hinges on hospitality, on receiving the one who bears the Good News of the Kingdom of God.

After the return of the seventy-two, we are given the story of the Good Samaritan, a story told as an answer to the man who asked, “Who is my neighbor?”  Who is the neighbor I am supposed to love as myself? Now, we learn in this powerful parable that it is our Lord who is the Good Samaritan. Only He truly shows mercy, loves the dying, and brings forth life. But this mercy, His compassion and kindness, became the model for us. When Jesus asks the expert in the law, “Who proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” The answer is clear: The one who showed him mercy. To which Jesus says, “Go and do likewise.” Mercy, compassion, and hospitality are the marks of the people of God. This is what we are to aspire towards as those who follow Christ.

So, it is after this that we are told about our Lord’s arrival in the home of Martha. We read that Jesus enters a village, and a woman named Martha welcomes him into her home. She receives Him, she shows hospitality, she opens her house to the very One who brings the Kingdom of God. And He blesses her kindness by teaching in her home. Here, the Word of Life Himself brings the gift of life as He unfolds the promises of the Father’s love. Among those gathered there, sitting at His feet, is Martha’s sister, Mary. She is consumed by His teaching, hanging on every word. And in her awe, she is oblivious to the hard work her sister is doing. Martha ignores it for a while, but eventually she cannot hold back any longer and says to Jesus, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her to help me.”

Now, the reason the context is important is because what we see Martha doing is a good thing. Her hospitality is commendable. It is what was expected of those who received the seventy-two disciples. It is what the Good Samaritan gave us an example of doing. And her desire for help from Mary is not wrong either. We all know the saying, “Many hands make light work.” And no doubt, Mary’s help would have been expected in this circumstance. Martha would have probably loved to be sitting and listening to the teaching as well, but someone needed to take care of all the things that needed attention.

I think we can all have some compassion for Martha. We have all been in this situation. You know the feeling, where you are doing the hard work, the unappreciated work behind the scenes which makes everything else flow. And you do not mind doing it. You want to do it, not to mention it needs to be done. But sometimes it gets to be too much. You want some help. You feel like you are being taken advantage of. So, at some point, you finally say something. It happens in your homes, it happens at your job, and it happens in church. This whole place functions on the hard work of volunteers, people who do the necessary things that make a space for us to engage the Word of God. And we have grown accustomed to their work, assuming it will always be done, even without our appreciation.

Yet, Jesus says, “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.” Note that he does not condemn Martha for her work. What she is doing is a good thing. The issue is not between a good thing and a bad thing. It is between a good thing and a better thing. He says Mary has chosen the good portion. In the end, there is only one thing which is necessary, and it is not the work of hospitality or all the unseen things that go on behind the scenes. It is to do what Mary is doing. And what is she doing? She was sitting at the feet of Jesus and listening to His teaching. She is attending to the Word of God. Everything else falls into the background, everything else comes second to that.

We see this teaching of our Lord continually being played out as we gather together for worship. When you look at the service in the hymnal, you will notice that we call it the Divine Service. The question we may ask is, “Who is serving whom?” Is it our service to God, is that what Church is about? Or is it God’s service to us? Taking our cue from this story of Martha and Mary, we can see that it is God who renders the service, God who is the first giver of the gifts. Our faith is not rooted in what we render to our Father but in what we receive from Him. When it comes to your salvation, to your assurance of the promises of eternal life, these are things in which you are passive. You receive them out of the abundance of His mercy. To receive the service of God is the good portion. Here we sit at the feet of Jesus as He gives forgiveness in great abundance, a portion pressed down and overflowing. He gives you Word and Sacrament to cleanse you, feed you, and clothe you in the garments of salvation.

And it is from this service of our Lord that we are then called into service. Perhaps that service begins with our songs of praise and confession of the faith, but it does not stop there. The service pours out into our care and compassion for one another. We render service to God by caring for each other, and the good works that flow from the gifts you have been given provide for your neighbor. You see, we are called to be both Mary and Martha, to attend to the Word of God, to dive deep into the good portion, and then to serve with what we have been given. There is one thing necessary, and that is our Lord Jesus Christ, and through His service, you are now free to serve.