Mary and Martha

Luke 10

Jesus and his disciples stopped at the home of Martha and her sister Mary in a little village just outside of Jerusalem. The house smelled wonderful with the aroma of Martha’s cooking, and every room was spic-and-span. The well-used broom rested in an out-of-the-way corner. But Martha’s work was far from finished. With so many people to cook for, there could never be too much food!

Mary had helped her sister all day, but when Jesus came in and was offered the seat of honor, Mary suddenly disappeared from the kitchen. She left Martha right in the middle of preparing the evening meal!

Martha was furious. How dare Mary shirk her responsibility! Didn’t she know what a special man Jesus was? Martha stormed out of the kitchen, only to find Mary sitting at Jesus’ feet, listening to him talk. "If Jesus knew how lazy Mary is being," Martha thought, "he would not be speaking so kindly."

"Lord, my sister Mary has left me alone to do all the work, while she sits down! Aren’t you going to do something about it?"

Jesus looked up at Martha. He saw in her face all her anxieties, her anger, and her gracious desire for everything to be just right for him and his disciples. Then he said, "Martha, Martha, you are worried about upset about so many things. Mary understands what is most important. She has chosen the better thing, and I won’t take that away from her. She may stay here and listen to me."

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(From Classic Bible Stories, A Family Treasury retold by Lise Caldwell (c) 1998 Standard Publishing.  Used by permission.  This book may be purchased at your local Christian Bookstore or from Standard Publishing (800-543-1301).