The second incident in which Mary and Martha appear occurs in John 11 with the raising of their brother, Lazarus, from the dead. When we focus on Christ, He becomes our greatest passion and our tendency to self-absorption dims and fades. Mary’s silence, which we will see again in another incident, indicates a lack of concern for herself, especially for defending herself. Martha’s rebuke of Jesus gives us insight into her heart and mind as she tried to make everything perfect and was so distracted that she lost sight of whom she was speaking to. From this incident, we learn that those who are distracted with the mundane and earthly are building upon the foundation which is Christ with “wood, hay and straw,” materials which will not stand the fires that come to us in times of testing, nor will they be remembered in eternity. Jesus further said that choosing the better thing, learning of the Lord, would not be taken away from Mary.īy “choosing the better,” Jesus meant that those whose priority in life is Christ, the knowledge of Him, and nearness to Him have chosen what will last through eternity, such as the “gold, silver and costly stones” referred to in 1 Corinthians 3:11-12. Jesus commended her for “choosing the better,” meaning that Mary’s desire to be near her Lord and hang onto His every word was far more beneficial than running herself ragged with preparations for a meal. Jesus’ response gives us our first insight into Mary of Bethany. Martha was so distressed and “distracted with much serving” and frustrated that her sister wasn’t helping that she actually rebuked Jesus, accusing Him of not caring that Mary sat at His feet while she did all the work. We see Mary three different times in the Bible, beginning with the incident in the home of her sister, Martha (Luke 10:38-42), where Jesus, and presumably the disciples who travelled with Him, were being entertained. Mary was the sister of Martha, and her brother was Lazarus whom Jesus raised from the dead. Mary of Bethany is one of the most beautiful characters in all of Scripture, and we can learn valuable lessons from studying her life.
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