Seeking for the help of the Lord, I direct your prayerful attention to Luke chapter 10. We'll read for our text the last verse, verse 42. But one thing is needful, and Mary hath chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her. Accusing the chosen better part which shall not be taken away. Our Lord visitors this house that he loved Mary and Martha and we have this short account where Martha is busy with caring in setting before them those things necessary for the body, or we may say more than necessary. Very careful and charged with these things.

So much so that though the Lord was in the house, she was not able to sit like her sister Mary and hear his word. And her Lord then sets before her a gentle rebuke, and that one thing is needful. And that one thing, we might say in one of our hymns, speaks of Jesus is the one thing needful. But Jesus isn't a thing. He is. He is needful. But the thing that is spoken of here, is that part that Mary chose, which was to sit at his feet and hear his word, is what Martha was not doing.

There's many times in the Word of God that there are comparisons made between one that is the Lord's people and one that is not. Right at the beginning of the Word we have Cain and Abel, two worshipers, and one worshiped acceptable and one not. And we have this right through the Word. We have Esau, we have Jacob, Not just one son, but two sons. We have Isaac, we have Ishmael, and Paul brings it in as two types, two covenants. We have in the book of Ruth, we have two daughters-in-law, not just one. We have Orpah that goes back, and we have Ruth that goes on.

And all the time, the Lord is given a comparison between one of his people and one that is not. The actions of one, the actions of another. The two that go up in the temple to pray, the Pharisee and the public, in two types of prayers. It is in this way that we see more clearly, with a contrast, what is the truth, what is the right way, who are truly serving the Lord. But here is a different case, because this is not two, one that's one of the Lords and one that's not. This is between the Lord's people. They are both the Lord's people. And we read that in the account of Midlazarus that the Lord loved them. He loved Martha, he loved Mary, he loved that family.

And so this is not a case of saying, well, one is my people and one is not. But it is that one has made a different choice than the other. And the choice of one The Lord is upholding. While the other one thinks that the other one has made a wrong choice and should actually be doing the same as what she is doing, the Lord uses the occasion to make a very important statement as that one thing is needful. In looking at this word, I want to, and especially as this is one of those texts that speaks of choice, I want to begin first in thinking of this way chosen by God. So the emphasis is on God's choice of us, not what we choose. And then secondly, that good part that is chosen by Mary, that one thing needful. And then thirdly, that which shall not be taken away. Not be taken away. But firstly, chosen by God. The Lord said of his disciples, he says really of all his people, that he has not chosen me but I have chosen you. Chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world.

And this is one of the Foundation truth, most comforting truth, the covenant of grace. That which David said, although my house be not so with God, yet hath he made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure. This is all my salvation, all my desire, although he make it not to grow. And so David is looking to that which is before time, between the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, a covenant agreement which is all of grace, but the subject of it was himself.

He was the subject. The same as with when David and Jonathan made a covenant together, Mephibosheth was not there, but he was the subject of it because Jonathan had asked David that when he was gone, David would remember his seed, remember his children. Saul had asked the same. Of course, really, in blessing Mephibosheth, who was at the house of Saul, laying in both his feet, brought to the king's table, David really honoured that promise, both to Saul and to Jonathan.

So in a way the Holy Spirit, when he quickens a soul into divine life, when he calls a soul, he is honoring that covenant both with the Father and with the Son in that way. And so it is that we look to the Lord that has begun an instigated salvation. And the Apostle, when he writes to the Ephesians, is very clear of where their beginning was, that it was in God.

And so we are to be reminded of this, that God does have a people, a people that he has loved with an everlasting love, and therefore with love and kindness has he drawn them. and they are a people, the same people before the world was, that when the world shall be no more, that same people will be in heaven, the same multitude, but they have been born into this world, they have been given a body, they have been given a soul, they are born into this world as fallen sons of Adam, under the curse, under the wrath of God, and through the grace and work of God in this time, The Lord brings them to be actually sons and daughters of God. They are adopted into a living family, not only reconciled, but brought to be inheritors with him of his throne.

There are some that think, well, God must be sometimes a terrible God for what he has done and allowed to happen with the human race. But when you think of God's people, and their end and what part they have with Christ, one can hardly think that God is not a good, a kind, a gracious God that should do that for people. Take them that were not a people and make them the people of God, people that were under the sentence of death and bring them not only to spiritual life but to be with him forever. A very very different thing than just pardoning the sins and then consigning them to someone else or putting them somewhere else.

He actually desires to have that people with him. So the choosing is not just the choosing of a person but is choosing them to all the means of grace as to how they shall be in this life, predestinated to how they should be, and where they should be in glory as well. So it is not just in one aspect, it's right through.

And so the Lord then has that teaching for his people in time, that they be what he has designed them to be in time, and in that way he makes them a people that are willing in the day of his power. Paul is very clear in Ephesians 1 that it is the same power that was put forth to raise Christ from the dead as will have quickened the Ephesians into divine life. We should never underestimate the power needed or put forth to save one sinner. But where the Lord begins, Paul says in Romans 5 that if while we were yet enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, how much more being reconciled we shall be saved by his life. and where the Lord has quickened into divine life, then he will also teach and instruct and give grace so that we are what he would have us to be.

And this is what he is doing here with these two sisters, instructing and teaching not just them, but for us and for the Church of God to the end of time. what they should be, what is the one thing needful, and what is more likely to distract and turn away from that one thing.

Don't look then, secondly, at that good part chosen by Mary. Our Lord does gently rebuke Martha because Martha is one that really is cast aspersion upon him as if the Lord didn't care. The Lord didn't care that my sister had led me to serve alone. She desires him to do something that the Lord would not do, did not want to do, and he would give a reason why not. And the Lord passes by that he did not care, he could easily have taken that up and made it a point that he did care, but he gently reproves her that they were careful and troubled about many, many things. Then he introduces what Mary had chosen, that one thing needful, And he says that before. It's a good thing.

Just remember the way the Lord addresses things here, spends more time on putting the positive way than the negative. More input in what way we should go than the way that we shouldn't. Often in scripture rather both, but the emphasis is not to be learning what is wrong, but to have that positive way forward, to be directed in the right way.

And this is why when we get to Romans, the way of dealing with sin is ye through the Spirit. To mortify the deeds of the body you shall live. The more time we spend thinking on sin, dwelling on it, trying to fight it, trying to resist it, the more we get embroiled with it. But the more we turn our back on it and actually say, no, you're not having your way, I'm going the Lord's way. I'm going to read the Word of God, I'm going to pray, I'm going to go with the Lord's people, There's no more room then for the sin.

The mind is on positive things, not the negative things. It's on things of the spirit. And in Romans 8, he speaks about minding the things of the spirit, and not minding the things of the flesh. So it's good for us to know where the emphasis is on the positive. And so, again, our Lord is emphasizing one thing. I always like it with the Gospel, really, how simple it is, and how it points to that one thing. In natural cases where we have one sick, you might say, well, you've got a specialist for this, a specialist for that.

There's all sorts of possibilities and all sorts of ways you can go and different remedies. But when it comes to spiritual, there is only one name given among men whereby we must be saved. There is only One saviour, if you believe not that I am he, you shall perish in your sins.

There's not many positions, there's one position, and there's not many ways, there is one way, there's a narrow way and there's a broad way, but it is set forth to make it very clear what is the right way. So he says here that there is but one thing needful. So we're not distracted in looking or even having to make priorities as to other things. He puts one thing as needful, and it is that which Mary has chosen. Now sometimes we can make unwise choices in our lives. Choices that we might think are actually wise and good choices, but they're not based upon the word of God.

And this especially comes in with obedience. We think of the solemn case of King Saul, where King Saul was told to go to the Amalekites and to completely destroy the Amalekites. When he comes back and he meets Samuel, and he says, I have fulfilled the word of the Lord. I have obeyed, I've done that which has been commanded. But Samuel, he said, well, what means then this bleating in my ears? And what is this? Oh, the people have brought the best to sacrifice for the Lord by God. Now he thinks he's being obedient, but it's not following the word of God.

And Samuel, he says it's better to obey so then sacrifice and we can sometimes get this idea well we can serve the Lord this way or that way it doesn't matter whether we bring the ark on a cart or on the shoulders of the Levites it doesn't matter if we have fire from the altar or we have fire kindled from ourselves, strange fire. As long as we're worshipping the Lord, we can worship him even if we have a golden calf in front of us and say that we're worshipping the Lord still. And you find this through Christendom, many innovations, many things that think, oh, we're worshipping the Lord, but it doesn't have a foundation in the Word of God. And so, This is why we need the Lord to instruct and teach us what actually is needful, and what things really he has not asked for, and what really is needful.

So here, with him in the house, yes they needed about something to eat, not a feast perhaps, or a banquet, or something that is very great. I know when we go around our special services, maybe at Cranbrook we're a bit default with this, we always like to have a nice tea, but it does take a bit of work to do it. Some other chapels we go to and they just have some bread and butter, just butter and that's it. And there might be one cake, not a whole tray of cakes and things. And the emphasis is put on the tea is very, very different.

And we always do have to be very careful like that. I find it on special services, especially those that are hosting it, can be so taken up, whether the urn is working, or whether you've got enough food, or whether there are enough plates, you're not even thinking about the service, you're not thinking about the word priest at all. And this passage has often been a caution to me on this. How far do you go? Do you go right overboard?

And the crucial thing here, what Martha was doing, was stopping her from doing the one thing needful, which was sitting at the Lord's feet and hearing His Word. And that really is a test for us. If it's a service or whatever it is we're doing, and part of that, we have the opportunity to listen to the Word, to pay attention to the Word, to hear the Word preached, And if what we're doing is taking our mind completely off that, so we cannot do that, we need to really, really rethink it. And it comes in all sorts of things.

I look after the streaming. Our chapel, we can be like that, so taken up with, is the microphone working? Is this going? Is that going? That again, we can't concentrate. And we need to really be very careful about what we've chosen to do. When we think of this, the situation here, our Lord wasn't to be long with them. And they had him in the house. He wasn't going to be always there.

But here is Martha, she's not even hearing him, but Mary is sitting at his feet. You know, I believe with Mary, she, more than any of the other apostles, she knew our Lord was coming to the time he was going to offer himself up. Later she anointed him with oil.

For my bearing she hath done this, the Lord says. Why? Because she discerned that that time was coming up and she was the one that was actually listening to his word, hearkening to his word. A good part, the one thing made for, to sit at Jesus' feet and hear his word.

Now there's other things that are bound up with this, things that this implies. And I want to look at some of these things. Now the simple act here, Mary is listening to the Lord, listening to his word. And that is the one thing needful for us. The still small voice of the word, His Word dwelling in us richly, when we are in the house of God, that our mind is still going every way, we're listening to the Word, and in a personal way. Those of us in the ministry, this scenario, can transpose into this way. We are so busy. We're preparing sermons, we're ministering and going here and there that we never have our own devotion time and sit at the feet of the Lord and hear his word for ourselves and for our own profit. So it relates very much to us and in the ministry that we can be filled with care in that way. I know it's a blessed thing, it's a good thing.

I encourage the seminary at Salisbury. And yet there was a question asked of an old minister recently. If you were the young person, the young minister, what advice would you give? That old minister, he said, well as you know, I've got several degrees, I've gone through seminaries, gone over things like that. He said, the one advice that I give to a young minister is know your Bible. Read your Bible. He said, don't worry about all the seminaries. He said, just make sure you know the Word of God thoroughly and you know the Lord. You spend time with the Lord, time with the Lord in prayer. And he emphasized that.

I hope it is, and I believe it is so, with the seminary and sorcery, that they do really strongly encourage that. That there is always a danger, and you can be so busy learning this and learning that, and just preparing, and the only time you read the Word of God is when you're preparing a sermon, that you don't spend that time with the Word, time with the Lord, and time in prayer. And so it is a situation that applies to especially, you might say, religious activities. These ladies will do things about the Lord, you might say. And so where any situation is about the Lord and about his service, if the devil can't get us away into the world, he will leave us in a situation where he will get something what seems lawful and seems good. but has the same effect, so that we do not sit and hear the word of God.

So Mary's spirit, she had then a teachable spirit, she wanted to be taught the covenant. Are you thinking of what we said about chosen by God? The covenant, they shall not teach every man his neighbor, saying, no, the Lord, they shall all know me, the least of the greatest. A teachable spirit, mine ear hast thou opened, And Paul, as soon as he was converted, Lord, what would that have me to do? Instead of being a teacher, he wanted to be taught.

And so Mary, she evidences that as a teachable spirit. Another evidence was faith. Faith, you, the Lord Jesus Christ, In my civil, Martha had faith too, but her faith, Mary's faith was an active faith in that he was the Lord of life and glory, here was the Christ she wanted to hear of his word. And the stronger the faith we had, the more we'll see, instead of a man of sorrows, instead of no comeliness that we should desire him, we'll see him and hear him, never man spoke like this man, and desire to hear him more and more.

I believe the other thing is this, that the value was realized. You realize the value of doing this, The devil is always one that will say, it is not, it is not. He won't say it while we're getting taken up with this or that. But as soon as we come to reading or prayer, then he'll say, you could better spend the time doing this and doing something else. All the time that will come to our minds.

But here, Mary, she knew that value. of what she was doing to hear the word of the Lord. Another thing that implies is a submission unto the Lord. That she would submit to what the Lord would do. One thing that's quite remarkable with this, you don't hear about Mary saying anything in her own defense or anything. She let the Lord deal with the matter for her, and the Lord did, but she was submissive to how he would deal with the matter, and submissive also in that attitude as at his feet.

May we also have that spirit of being at the feet of the Lord, To do what he says, perhaps to use a contrast, you think of Naaman the Syrian. He spoke here of one thing is needful, a simple thing. Well, Naaman was given a simple thing by Elisha to go and wash seven times, come again. And he was offended after. He went away in a rage. The servants had to pacify him.

If the prophet had bid they do some wonderful thing, what's there not to do? How much more to just go and watch? And you get a little insight. It's not something just to pass by. When the Lord gives simple instructions, actually obey it and walk in it. Because those that are offended at it, they'd like to do some great thing, some big thing, but something just so simple as sitting submissively, hearing the word of God, and obeying what he'd have them to do, they wouldn't want that.

You think of the Previous case that we read of here, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? The Lord points him to the law, to what is the law, what is the commandment, and he recites it all off, but then he wanted to know who was his neighbor, told who his neighbor was, and what a difference. No, when we're actually told what is actually required, no, don't want to do that. Another case similar to this was one that go sell all their house and give it to the poor. He went away very sorrowful. We all know to think because something is simple, that man will automatically embrace it, believe it, follow it, We don't.

And so with Mary we see a grace of submission here. That she is actually listening and hearkening unto it. Another thing here is discipleship. Now Lord had in John Ains, those that believed on him, he said to them, he said that if ye continue in my word, then shall ye be my disciples indeed. And again, we have a believing, but the Lord says now, what is a true disciple indeed, is one that continues in my word. And here is Mary, she is continuing, she is sitting, Just passing by, sitting at his feet and hearing his words.

Sometimes I think it's good in occasions to have street preaching. I really agree with that. You've got a crowd, you've got those that come and listen. But sometimes I think it's very sad when the preacher is speaking there and people are just walking past. And I might catch one or two words, that's all. That's very different than actually sitting and hearing the word.

If one was to stop and listen for five or ten minutes, they'd get a lot more than just passing by. And the idea here is with Mary, she's sitting and hearing the mark of a disciple. The mark of the disciples in our Lord's day, they followed him and they heard his word. That's why they were the multitudes and they went from city to city so they could hear his word. a sign of a disciple. And so even today, a sign of discipleship is one that is continuing the Word, sitting and hearing the Word of God.

Also there is love evidenced here. The Lord loved them both, but here Mary is evidencing a real love to the Lord in hearing Him. We need to really think of how is our love really evidence to the Lord. So if we had a couple, a courting couple, who never wanted to really hear what the other one had to say, you say, have you really loved each other? If you don't want to listen to what each other has to say, or if when the other one was saying something you're just speaking over them all the time, it wouldn't evidence love at all. And so the evidence of love to the Lord is hearing his word, receiving his word. Our Lord in another place, he warned in this way, labor not for the mate that perisheth, but for that which endureth unto eternal life. John 6.

They knew what natural food was, They followed him over the sea because they'd seen the miracles that he performed in breaking the bread and feeding Moses' sheep. But the Lord took them from that natural food to spiritual food. So, listening to the word of God, our Lord reproved Satan. Man shall not live by breath only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

And though you might think perhaps it is veiled here, but we do have the same thing. Martha is here, and she is concerned with food for their bodies, serving. Our Lord is concerned with food for the soul, and Mary is looking for food for the soul more than for her body. And you find this, it comes across in different ways of illustrations through the Word of God.

And to emphasize to us what is so vital. If we are a soul born again, then we'll have an appetite, and then we'll have a need. And that spiritual food is what's so vital. Man shall not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. And was that from you, Joanna Mae? Did Mary think of that? Is she mindful of that as she sits here? Listening to the Lord. One thing is needful. One thing is sensual. There's another thing here.

Sometimes we and others perhaps searching the Christian faith can get very hung up on parts of the word that they cannot understand. They think, well, they just must be able to understand the end times. Or they must be able to understand this part of the Word. And if they can't, well, they're not going to worry about the rest of it. They want this problem solved first.

Well, it's a good thing when we think that there are sensual things. One of the ways I believe the Lord does it, in many parts of the Word of God, being inquisitive, you think, I wish something more was written here. um you might say what was the customs of the times and i was quite shocked by the day to have a book that was recommended and in the blurb on the advert for it, it says that you need two things as a minister today.

You need the Bible and you need this book that tells about all the customs that are written in the Bible. Otherwise you will not understand what the Bible is telling you. And I felt horrified. You are saying that The Bible is insufficient. There are passages in the Bible that we must get another book and must be able to understand the customs of that day before we can understand the Word of God. Isn't it rather the Lord is saying I put what you need in the Word of God and what you don't is not there. So you don't use it.

When I was doing my engineering studies there were some years that we said to our instructor As he was teaching one thing, oh, we'd like to know something else. What about this? And what about that? No, he said. He said, that is for next year. He said, you've got to pass your exam for this year. So all you need to know is about this.

And it was a good instruction. And we can easily get sidetracked and sometimes even stumbled that because we cannot understand this passage or this text, then It stumbles us from following things that are absolutely vital. It's a good thing to remember the Lord taught his disciples as they were able to bear it. Not everything at once. It's a good thing that if we know one thing, like the blind man, one thing I know, whereas I was blind now, I see.

And so, dear Mary here, there's a lot bound up with her sitting in this attitude, and in a very practical way. Let us spend time with the Word of God. Let us spend time with the Lord in this Word. and time in prayer, in fellowship and communion with the Lord. That one thing that is needful, sitting at his feet in that attitude and hearing the word of the Lord. Well, when we've had a life like that, Where the Lord has been precious to us, where he's been that one thing needful, the pool of the world and the things of it has poured in vain, but this has been what our chief desire and our chief love are to consider that last point. That which shall not be taken away. It's a beautiful word. I've found it very beautiful, very comforting. Where the Lord begins, he will finish.

And where the Lord gives his people to choose those blessed things, he will not have, even if it is a sister, a lover, then be robbed of that, taken, that taken from them. No, he won't do it. Where he gives repentance to the Ninevites, it doesn't matter if Jodah, stands and watches and wants to see the destruction of the city. He's not going to take that repentance back.

And it's a beautiful thing. I remember years ago, a dear sister in faith in a nursing home. It was a nursing home where she died when she was 81. I took her to a funeral. But one of the sweetest blessings she had, she was in a low place in her soul. She was greatly tried, tried there. Her religion was not right, she would be taken away, she lost the blessings that she had, and they came.

Yes, the Lord used a simple thing. A new nurse came into her bedroom, adjusting things in the wardrobe, and she turned around to her and she said, My name is Mary. And the Lord immediately dropped this word into my sister-in-faith's heart. Mary hath chosen that good path which shall not be taken away from her.

And that broke the snare. And she was so blessed and so favoured at that time. And it really affected her physically as well. She was able to walk up and down the corridor without the sticks. It really made a profound difference. And it was through this being brought to remembrance.

The Lord doesn't, and will not, take away from his people. It may be at the end of their lives, they can't remember, their mind is muddled, they are stressed, they may be tried and tempted. They change, but the Lord does not change. And where the life has been like this, in the Word of God, He won't take that away from them.

And sometimes he breaks through. I used to notice and go to visit in the Bethesda home or Pilgrim homes and you speak about natural things and there's no comprehension. But then you speak the Word of God and suddenly there's a flicker of recognition. And suddenly there's a comprehension.

And it's lovely to see when that is so. that a life that has been spent since being called in the Word and with the Lord, the Lord will never take away that portion. It said here Mary had chosen that good part and it's a blessed token for good where the Lord has made us willing and order us or our loved ones to choose the good path and then to have that beautiful seal to it. We shall not be taken away from her. How wonderfully realized in heaven to be with the Lord forever. No distractions, nothing to mother, but to be ever with the Lord. May this word be an encouraging word, a word of direction to us, a word of help, that however busy we may be in good things, right things, caring for others like Martha and myself, caring for my Lord, may we never neglect sitting at the feet of the Lord and hearing His word. Amen.