Luke 10:38-42 (NRSV)
38 Now as they went on their way, he entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. 39 She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to what he was saying. 40 But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me.” 41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; 42 there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.”
Devotional: Changing Expectations and Perceptions
Do you ever feel that you’re not understood? That everyone is judging you because you don’t fit the patterns that society or your family or your church expect?
We can view Luke 10:38-42 as a passage about being v doing; heart v hands; contemplative v active spirituality; quiet listening v grumpy action. And these may be true – but there’s more. Martha isn’t just the complaining woman we seem to see here. In John 11:20-30, after the death of Lazarus, Martha is the woman of faith who goes to speak with Jesus before her sister Mary does.
In the context of societal expectations, Martha in our passage is doing what is right, whereas Mary is the in the wrong. Houses of that time had distinct men’s and women’s spaces. Men were active in the public areas; Women were expected to be in the areas of food preparation and child rearing. Mary had removed herself from the kitchen and placed herself in the men’s area with Jesus and the (male) disciples. This action was scandalous – what would the neighbours think? Martha, the apparent host of the gathering, needed to consider the propriety of what happened in her home. In addition, Mary was seated at the feet of Jesus. This indicated that she wanted to be one of his disciples, learning to be a teacher like him. Mary was in the men’s space of the home and aspiring to a man’s role.
What was Jesus’ response? He accepted Mary – both in terms of being with the men, and in wanting a similar role to the male disciples. Mary had “chosen the better part” and Jesus didn’t limit the possibility of her following this path. Do we limit the roles certain people can have in our churches? Do we consciously or unconsciously place limitations on participation or leadership because of age, sex, ability, education, race, background, or other factors? Are we willing to see new possibilities for ministry in serving our saviour Jesus?
Prayer:
God of unlimited potential, thank you that your view of us is not limited by what we or our community decide. Help us to grow in holiness as we open ourselves up to new possibilities for ministry in your world. Amen.
Rev. Pam Reed
Registrar and Student Support Tutor