REFERENCE BIBLE VERSE
Luke 10:38-39 | Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching.
John 11:20-32 |So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.” (ESV)
OBJECTIVE
To learn from Mary and Martha on how relationship with God should be like
CONTENT
- Love and Welcome Him
- Just like a host is hosting a party at their house, so does Mary and Martha welcome Jesus to their house. As a hostess, Martha ensures that everything is well prepared and perfect. Martha is a good hostess, making sure the guest lacks nothing. Although Martha allowed her busyness to get in the way of being closer to Jesus, yet Jesus did not rebuke Martha for her zeal and her hard work.
- Mary on the other hand, soon found a place sitting at the feet of Jesus, drinking His words of wisdom. Mary took her time to hear what Jesus had to say and what He was teaching. As said in Luke 10:42, “one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away.” Mary chose one thing needful – salvation and commitment to follow Him in obedience. Jesus wants our heart, time, focus to welcome Him in our life. Fill ourselves with His words, give Him space to talk, to do His work for us.
- There must be a balance between a place for the busyness of life and the need for meditation at Jesus’ feet.
- Faith In Times of Difficulties
- The story of The Raising of Lazarus is hardly about Lazarus; the action centers on the bereaved sisters who are angry and upset by his death. They are in pain; they weep; they scold; They believe in the resurrection, as most of us do, but at the loss of a loved one, they are overwhelmed.
- Consider Mary and Martha’s situation. When Jesus told Martha that her brother will rise again, Martha’s response showed that she still has faith in Jesus as the savior. She believes, but her grief and sadness overwhelmed her so much that her faith in Jesus wavers – thinking that there is nothing He can do to save Lazarus. Even Mary was the same, and this caused Jesus to weep; both out of compassion for the loss of a loved one, and for their lack of faith.
- In our lives, it is expected for us to experience difficulties. But it is important to respond properly to those situations – either to continue having faith, or to blame God and lose hope.
- There may be times when we are so overwhelmed that we may stumble in our faith journey. Much like Mary and Martha, we still believe that God has saved us, but at the same time, we think that God cannot take us out of our problems. Despite this, God will remind us not to let our faith waver, and help us respond to difficulties with hope.
REFLECTION/DISCUSSION QUESTION
- What do you have to “let go” in order to become closer to Jesus or deepen our relationship with Jesus? How has deepening our relationship with Jesus helped us in our trying times?
- Share an experience when you think there is no answer to your worries, but God proved you otherwise.
REFERENCES