Stress and the Christian

Stress and the Christian


Do you remember the story of Mary and Martha when Jesus came to visit them? In that story Martha is running around like any typical housewife today, trying to get her house in order and dinner ready for all her company, most especially for Jesus as He’s a very important person. While Martha is doing all of that, Mary simply sits down with Jesus and listens to every word out of His mouth. She doesn’t want to move for fear of missing something He might say. Martha of course realizes that she’s not getting any help and goes to Jesus to complain. She’s probably thinking that Jesus will not only back her up but that it will cause her sister to feel guilty enough tat she’ll get up and help her. But Jesus once again does the unexpected and says:

Luke 10:41-42 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things,but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

I can just imagine the look on Martha’s face at that moment! Pure shock! And Mary was probably in the process of getting to her feet even as He started to speak, and her face probably was a mirror of Martha’s as she sank back down to the floor! Now the Bible doesn’t tell us anymore of what happened, but we know for sure that Jesus made sure Mary was allowed to learn all she wanted to. My guess is, since they both remained close to Jesus is that Martha also realized what was important and joined her sister at least for awhile.

More importantly though, exactly what was it that Jesus was saying was important here? What is the thing that was “needed” and “better” that our Lord said would not be taken from Mary? It was “listening to His Words”. That is what is so much more important then any of the daily busyness of life. Jesus talks about this same thing in the parable of the sower that I believe we looked at earlier.

Luke 8:14 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature.

This is showing the trap that Martha had started to fall into. Martha was being more concerned about life’s every day busyness and worries rather then being concerned about what was much more important, the Word of the Lord. We know from the Bible that she changed her ways because she continued on with Jesus and matured. Those who don’t make their relationship with God and His Word their priority in life, putting Him above everything else, won’t mature. Their spiritual life is choked by life’s worries, and every day activities. Jesus warns us of this again in Luke when He’s talking about the end times. He says:

Luke 21:34-35 “Constantly be on your guard so that your hearts may not be loaded down with self-indulgence, drunkenness, and the worries of this life, or that day will take you by surprise like a trap. For it will come on all who live on the face of the earth.

He’s telling us that if we don’t examine ourselves regularly, and make sure that nothing has inadvertently become a higher priority for us then Himself and His Word, that we can wind up not being ready for His return and instead be taken by surprise. He is not saying that we’ll lose our salvation, but that we won’t be as prepared as we would have been otherwise. Let’s look at how He puts this elsewhere:

Mark 13:35-37 “Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn.If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping.What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’ ”

Jesus is quite obviously telling us that we need to stay alert, pay attention and keep ourselves “in the faith”, by keeping Him and His Word as our number one priorities in life. When we don’t do that, it doesn’t affect our salvation but it does affect our future rewards and what our place of ministry will be in His coming Kingdom. When we are saved, God commands us to be faithful to Him. He is is our husband and when we put anything in our lives above being in communication with Him, and studying His Word, then we are committing spiritual adultery; we are allowing the cares and busyness of life to come between us and Him just as Martha did.

2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?

Haggai 1:5 Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways.

Join us at FH for this study on Stress!