Ask you to take your Bibles,
turn with me to the book of Luke chapter 10. Luke chapter 10. Luke chapter 10, I'd like to
read verses 38 to 42. 38 to 42. I'm going to specifically look at verse 42,
but we'll consider these passages. Luke 10, 38. Now, it came to
pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village, and a
certain woman named Martha received him into her house. And she had
a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard
His words. But Martha was cumbered about
much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not
care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? Bid her therefore
that she help me. And Jesus answered and said unto
her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many
things, but one thing's needful, And Mary hath chosen that good
part which shall not be taken away." The Lord had a very short, but
a very striking conversation with a woman named Martha. Now, Martha had a sister named
Mary, and Mary sat at the Lord's feet and heard His word. Martha, the Scripture says in
verse 40, was cumbered about much serving." She was drawn
away. She was distracted. That's what
cumbered means. She was drawn off from hearing
the Word of the Lord, hearing the Gospel. What she was doing
is she was taken up and had everything on her mind to distract her from
the Lord. Now listen to what she was doing.
The Lord was there. Now I am just going to point
this out, we don't have any indication for sure. I'm assuming that this
was the same Martha and Mary who were the sisters of Lazarus. But the Scripture doesn't say
that. So I'm not going to say specifically that it is. We can
assume it. The Lord knew them. They were
divided into their home. But the message is the same regardless. concerning the Lord's dealings
with these ladies." I think it was probably the same. I read
the accounts and the other scriptures concerning these two women, and
it appears as though that they were. And if it was them, it
does specifically say that the Lord loved them. But His dealings
with these ladies here indicate that they probably were. Here
we find Martha, and what she's doing is she's wanting to make
everything right. The Lord's there. She wanted to make sure the food's
right. It's all prepared. And the house,
this house has got to be cleaned up. I've got to have everything
right, order. And what she was doing, was not
wrong. It wasn't that what she was doing
was wrong. It's good to make preparation.
That's what she was doing. But here's what the problem was. She was cumbered. She was distracted. She came to the Lord and she
said, Do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Do you see all this stuff that
needs to be done? Bid her, therefore, that she
help me. Lord, obviously she's not sensitive
enough to what's going on to recognize what I've got to do."
Would you tell her? She'll listen to you. And the Lord said, in verse 41,
the double Martha, Martha. It was a mild rebuke. It was
a loving rebuke. He wasn't angry, but he was going
to bring something to her attention. He said, Martha, Martha. Here's the problem. You're careful
and troubled about many things. But one thing's needful. Mary's
chosen that good part which will not be taken away from her. Now, I want to bring something
out here that We need to all understand. Believers need to
understand. This is not just an account about two sisters
that are bickering. It's not just an account about
two sisters and one of them is more responsible than the other. I want us to stop for just a
second and I'll be very short. This message right here, to God's
people by the Holy Spirit is given to reveal the struggle
found within every believer between the flesh and the spirit. That's
what this is all about. The Lord loved these women. He
loved them. Now, for us to understand the
message, listen to the words of our Lord. Here was Martha,
and she was doing that which was right and honorable. But she was distracted by it
from that which was the most needful. I mean, how many times
do we find ourselves with things that need to be done? But when
it comes to a point to where the one thing that's needful
is pushed aside, then we need to understand that
we've got a problem. He said there's one thing needful. And it's revealed in verse 39. What was it? Here it is. She
had a sister called Mary which also sat at Jesus' feet. And here's what she did. What does the Lord have to say?
She heard his word. She heard the gospel. She sat at the feet of the teacher. Here she was a student. Now, listen, this is what we're
here for today. We're students. God's people
are here listening attentively. Not to what Marvin has to say.
If I have anything to say that's apart from these scriptures,
then I'm just wasting our time. She knew that the Lord was God's
prophet. She knew that. She was anxious
to hear His word and learn from Him. Today, we've got a blessed opportunity.
to hear the Word of the Lord. There's a lot of places where
you can hear history, spiritual history. I've said before, you
take the story of the ark, Noah's ark. Did Noah get in the ark? Yes. He built an ark? Yes. It took him 120 years. Yes. Put animals in it. Yes. His wife, three sons, and
their wives were in the ark too. Yes. It rained. Yes. Forty days and forty nights. Yes. That's not the gospel. That's not the gospel. That's
history. The gospel is concerning Christ.
The ark was the type of Christ. Noah was a picture, a type of
all God's elect for whom God looked upon in grace and put
him in Christ and rained out judgment upon this world because
of their rebellion. And Noah was spared by the grace
of God being found in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. And
it was nothing that Noah had done. Noah was just as wicked
as anybody else. And God had mercy on him for
Christ's sake. According to God's everlasting
covenant of grace, that's the gospel. The rest of it is history. This is not just history. Here
the Spirit of God has been merciful in telling us this is the way
we are. Believers are Martha's and Mary's.
There's two natures in every believer. And here we have an
opportunity this morning to hear the gospel of God's sovereign
and saving grace. I'm not here to give you lessons
on how to live. I'm going to tell you about Christ.
I'm going to tell you about God's prophets. How does the Lord speak? Jeremiah 3.15 says, I will give
you pastors according to mine heart which shall feed you with
knowledge and understanding, expounding of the Scriptures.
One thing is needful. Why? Because faith cometh by hearing,
and hearing by the Word of God. We are all going to die. We're
all going to stand before God. And I'm going to tell you in
that day that one thing, one thing is going to be needful
for the eternal security of your soul. What do you think about
Christ? Not what you've done for Him. Not exercising your free will. Man is a helpless, impotent sinner
against God. Unless God does something for
him he can't do for himself, he's going to perish. Tell me
about Him who has saved my soul in spite of me. And don't tell
me anything's good about me. I know better. I know just enough
about myself. Mary sat and listened to what
he had to say. Without faith, it's impossible.
to please God. He that cometh to God must believe
that He is, that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek
Him. And whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall
be saved. How then shall they call upon
Him in whom they have not believed? How shall they believe in Him
in whom they have not heard? And how are they going to hear
without a preacher? There's one thing needful. Hear
the gospel. Hear the gospel. Secondly, Mary
had chosen that good part. That portion. Mary had chosen. Now, let me tell you what the
Lord just said. He said, I am the good part.
Mary had chosen Christ. He's the sum and substance
of the Word that she heard. He's the portion. Why did she
choose Him? Because He chose her first. You
that know Him, did you come in your heart to Christ because
you wanted to? After He made you willing in
the day of His power, you did. I want to come. But he had to
give me a new heart first. Mary has chosen that good part. Listen to Psalm 73, 26. My flesh
and my heart failing. Doesn't every believer say that?
My flesh and my heart failing. But God is my strength. God is my rock. He's the rock
of my heart and He's my portion forever. He is the heavenly inheritance
portion of His people for their eternal glory and happiness in
Him. In other words, He is all and
in all. Tell me about your salvation.
You ask somebody to tell you about their salvation, if the
first thing that comes out of their mouth is, well, I'm going
to say, well, this conversation is going the wrong way. Here's a believer. That's where it starts. The Lord
had mercy on me. When I didn't have enough sense
to get out of the rain, God looked upon me in mercy. He stopped me on my road to Emmaus. I mean to Damascus. He arrested
me. Graciously put me under the gospel
and taught me. And lastly, the Lord said, it
is not going to be taken away from her. This blessed desire was not from
the power of her own flesh But that which she desired, to
hear Him, to choose Him who had chosen her, to come to Him who came to her
first, was divinely directed and influenced by the Spirit
of God according to God's good purpose and will. God chose her from before the
foundation of the world that she should be holy and without
before Him in love, in Christ. And now here she is manifesting
the Lord's blessing upon her. How's that? She wants to hear
what He has to say. Lord, I want to hear what You
have to say. I don't want to be flowered with
all kinds of accolades Tell me one more time, Lord.
Speak to my heart. Tell me how You've loved me,
kept me, not going to leave me. The Lord declared to His people,
My sheep hear My voice. I know them. And they follow
Me. And I give unto them eternal
life. They'll never perish. Neither shall any man pluck them
out of My hand. One of these days, we're going
to know that in reality. Martha was cumbered with much
serving." That's our flesh. I want to see somebody commend
me for what I'm doing. Don't you see all this stuff
I'm doing? Don't you see everything that
I'm accomplishing? How about you give me a little
help right here? She was distracted, cumbered. She had no mind for
the best thing, the communion with the Lord. You that know
Him, do you not see yourself cumbered? Have we not been cumbered
ever since we got here? Distracted. Thinking about things
and mess and stuff. Anything to just take us away
from the hearing of the gospel. I see it. Lord, I feel it. I feel the stress within. Serving is needful. But let us be careful. Satan
entices the distraction. Let us be taught afresh today
by God's Spirit. The one thing that is needful
for my soul's rest I've got a whole lot of things to distract me.
I've got so much going on. There's so much going on within
and without. I've got so much to take me away
from just sitting. I truly want to just sit and
listen. Do you know how wonderful it
is to rest? Just rest in Christ. I want that. Lord, bless the Word of our heart
for Christ's sake. Amen.