Luke 10:42

The One Thing Needful

But one thing is needful. Luke 10:42.

You all know what it is to have special friends. You know how you love to go and see them, and how happy you are when they come to visit you. And you have heard father and mother talking about their special friends, and saying how nice it was to have So-and-so “dropping in” of an evening.

Now Christ had special friends too when He lived on earth. There was one house where He knew He could go at any moment and find a welcome. It was the house of two sisters called Martha and Mary. We are told that Jesus “loved” Martha and Mary and their brother Lazarus. They lived at Bethany, a little village about half an hour's walk from Jerusalem. And in the cool of the evening, after Christ's day's work of preaching and healing was done, He would often walk out to Bethany to refresh Himself by a talk with His friends.

On the evening of which our text tells, Jesus had perhaps taken a few of His disciples with Him, for, when He arrived, there arose a great bustle in the house. Martha, who prided herself on her housekeeping and her cooking, began to rush here and there and to prepare a great feast in honor of her guests. It was very kind of her, but she did not understand, even although she loved Jesus dearly, that it was not fine food He was hungering for. She never saw that it was the love and sympathy of His friends that He was craving.

But her sister Mary saw. She loved Jesus in a more understanding way than did Martha. She loved Him in a more understanding way than did even His disciples, who were with Him all the time. She saw how He was longing for sympathy and friendship, so she sat down at His feet (as the Jews did at the feet of their rabbis or teachers) and she listened to Him and talked to Him of the things that matter most in the world God's love for men and men's love for God, and how loving God we love men, and loving men we love God. And perhaps Jesus told her how He had come to show men what God is like, so that it might be easier for men to love God.

In any case, Mary got so absorbed listening and talking to Christ that she was deaf to all the clatter and fuss that Martha was making. She never noticed how hot and tired and cross her sister was growing. But Martha was not too busy to notice Mary. Each time she flew into the room and noisily set extra dishes on the table she gave a look at Mary sitting at the Master's feet; and each time her wrath grew hotter, till at last it boiled over. She bustled up and said sharply to Jesus, “You don't seem to care how busy I am. Don't you see that Mary should be helping me instead of sitting there doing nothing?”

Jesus looked at poor angry Martha, and then He smiled and shook His head. “Martha, Martha,” said He gently, “I'm afraid you are worrying yourself unnecessarily cooking extra dainties for me. Don't you know that I'd rather just share your usual meal? There is no need to make a feast. One dish is quite enough. Did I say one dish? Ah, Martha, don't you see that the one thing I want most in the world is not food, but the thing that Mary is offering me a loving and understanding heart?”

Boys and girls, Christ still comes to visit His friends. He comes to our heart as our guest any day. What do we offer Him? Do we think it necessary to make a great fuss before we can entertain Him? Do we think we must bring Him this thing or that?

There is only one thing He asks for. It is the thing that Mary gave Him long ago, the welcome of a loving and an understanding heart.

“I wish everybody saw me with Grandpapa's eyes,” sighed a little girl when someone found fault with her. Grandpapa's eyes were the understanding eyes of love. Let us try to see Jesus with Mary's eyes, then perhaps we shall be worthy of the friendship and the comradeship He offers each one of us.