First things First
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First Things First
Luke 10:38-42
Online Sermon: http://www.mckeesfamily.com/?page_id=3567
I remember the day when I said YES to the Lord. I was born that day of the water and
Spirit and felt an overwhelming peace that comes from being eternally adopted as God’s son.
The more I think about having been bought at the price of Jesus’s very life (1 Corinthians 6:20)
the more I desire to be not just be a
hearer of the word (James 1:22-25) but
one who offers Him my best service! I
know that many of you share this same
desire, so we try to have the nicest
buildings, finest music, most interesting
programs, eloquent preaching1 and
outreach that like the Good Samaritan
demonstrates our love for one another
(Luke 10:25-37). But I cannot help but
think that 5 percent doing 90 percent of
the service in a church2 is what God
wants from His own. Those who overestimate “their” importance and
frantically spend all their time on
outward service to God do great harm to their souls,3 not only do they often become possessive
and prideful4 but also spiritually weak because they are not depending on5 and spending time
with He who sustains and feeds their souls! Such a person has the tendency to serve so heartedly
that the object of one’s service, Christ, gets drowned out in business! 6 Those who do not
regularly commune with the Holy Spirit will “do commonplace things very well” 7 but without
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 231.
2
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 229.
3
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 234.
4
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 236.
5
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 234.
6
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 237.
7
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 238.
1
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taking time to be holy8 their service will never attain the divine fruit intended. The following
sermon is going to begin with the parable of the Good Samaritan to emphasize how important it
is for us to not just be hearers but doers of His word. The final part of the sermon is going to
focus on Mary and Martha’s different approach to pleasing Christ in Luke 10:38-42 and suggest
that to please God one must obtain a balance of both service and reflection.9
The Parable of the Good Samaritan (10:25-37)
One day an expert in the law tested Jesus with the question “what must I do to inherit
eternal life” (25)? Jesus answered him by asking him the question “what is written in the law”
(26) to which he answered, “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul
and with all your strength and with all your mind; and Love your neighbor as yourself” (27). To
justify his meager service towards others he asked Jesus who is my neighbor to which Jesus
spoke the following parable:
“A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by
robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him
half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he
saw the man, he passed by on the
other side. 32 So too, a Levite,
when he came to the place and
saw him, passed by on the other
side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he
traveled, came where the man
was; and when he saw him, he
took pity on him. 34 He went to
him and bandaged his wounds,
pouring on oil and wine. Then he
put the man on his own donkey,
brought him to an inn and took
care of him. 35 The next day he
took out two denarii and gave
them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will
reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’ 36 “Which of these three do
you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
When the expert in the law answered, “the one who had mercy on him” (36), Jesus told him to
“go and do likewise” (37). “The priest and the Levite of the Parable of the Good Samaritan
needed to learn that God and people are better served by deeds of mercy than by religious
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 233.
9
Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan
Publishing House, 1996), 306.
8
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rituals.”10 When presented with an opportunity to serve the Good Samaritan dropped
everything he was doing and demonstrated his love through service of both time and money!
Likewise, we too are to be ready and willing to serve whenever God asks! Though we are not
saved by our works we are “God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which
God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:9-10)! Since we are to be doers of the
word God expects all of us to use our spiritual gifts to build one another up in the faith (1
Corinthians 12) and to offer cups of water (Mark 9:41) and love to those in need (Matthew
25:31-46).
Mary and Martha (10:38-42)
To keep one from thinking that one should serve 24/7, Luke introduces another story
about two sisters of Bethany, 11 Mary and Martha.
As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman
named Martha opened her home
to him. 39 She had a sister called
Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet
listening to what he said. 40 But
Martha was distracted by all the
preparations that had to be
made. She came to him and
asked, “Lord, don’t you care that
my sister has left me to do the
work by myself? Tell her to help
me!” 41 “Martha, Martha,” the
Lord answered, “you are
worried and upset about many
things, 42 but few things are
needed—or indeed only one. c
Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
We are told that Martha invited Jesus,12 His disciples and probably others that were with them13
over to her house for a meal. Martha was probably a widow, the housekeeper14 and older than
10
Craig A. Evans, Luke, Understanding the Bible Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker
Books, 1990), 177.
11
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 229.
12
Tony Evans, “‘Putting First Things First,’” in Tony Evans Sermon Archive (Tony Evans,
2015), Lk 10:38–42.
13
J. Reiling and J. L. Swellengrebel, A Handbook on the Gospel of Luke, UBS Handbook Series
(New York: United Bible Societies, 1993), 424.
14
Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and
Unabridged in One Volume (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), 1859.
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her sister Mary.15 While both sisters shared in their desire to honor Christ they differed in their
methods.16 With “great plenty, great variety, and great exactness”17 Martha spent most of the
day preparing a large banquet for her guests18 while Mary honored Christ by sitting at His feet,
as a rabbinic disciple would,19 and listening intently to His teaching. In her business Martha gets
frazzled and asks Jesus to rebuke Mary for not helping. Jesus responded not by stating that
Martha was wrong for her service20 but that her attitude of being too busy was hindering her
spiritual growth. If on only she made fewer or only one food item for the banquet21 she could
have been like Mary and made spending time with the Lord and listening to His word a priority
in her life.22 While the fact that two women dominant this story would have “been shocking in
the first-century context, where men often dismissed women as marginal, the account is
designed to make a point about all disciples”23 … taking time to be holy must be a priority in our
lives!
Balance Between Service and Striving for Holiness
Both the parable of the Good Samaritan and the story of Mary and Martha emphasize
the need to have a balance of both service and reflection in our Christian walk.24 When the
pendulum swings too far towards service obsession, pride, and exasperation fills one’s soul and
drowns out reverence and awe of worshipping and being fed by one’s Creator.25 While one can
15
Leon Morris, Luke: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 3, Tyndale New Testament
Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 210.
16
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 230.
17
Matthew Henry, Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible: Complete and
Unabridged in One Volume (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), 1859.
18
Craig A. Evans, The Bible Knowledge Background Commentary: Matthew–Luke, ed. Craig A.
Evans and Craig A. Bubeck, First Edition. (Colorado Springs, CO: David C Cook, 2003), 295.
19
James R. Edwards, The Gospel according to Luke, ed. D. A. Carson, The Pillar New
Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.; Nottingham, England: William
B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Apollos, 2015), 326.
20
Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series (Downers Grove, IL:
InterVarsity Press, 1994), Lk 10:38–42.
21
James R. Edwards, The Gospel according to Luke, ed. D. A. Carson, The Pillar New
Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.; Nottingham, England: William
B. Eerdmans Publishing Company; Apollos, 2015), 327.
22
Walter L. Liefeld, “Luke,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed.
Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 945.
23
Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series (Downers Grove, IL:
InterVarsity Press, 1994), Lk 10:38–42.
24
Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan
Publishing House, 1996), 305–306.
25
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 238.
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fully understand Martha’s desire to give her very best service by preparing an exquisite
banquet,26 in her business she forgot her soul also needed to be fed by the Master!27 “Life has
few real necessities and at need we can
do without much on which we lavish
time!”28 When one becomes busy
unfortunately the first thing that seems to
go is time with the Lord that enables one
to grow spiritually, know His will and to
serve effectively in His kingdom!29
However, when the pendulum swings
towards doing nothing but being fed by
our Lord, our lives tend to be too focused
on self and we become like the priest and
the Levite of the Parable of the Good
Samaritan and neglect God’s second
command to love one another in action.
Does not Scripture tell us that we have
been given spiritual gifts to build one another up in the faith (1 Corinthians 12) and to spur one
another onto love and good deeds (Hebrews 10:24)? When Jesus stated Mary’s service was
better than Martha’s, He was not saying that internal was better30 than external service but
merely that Mary’s attitude of constant fixation on pleasing her Master was better than
Martha’s distracted business. The remainder of this sermon will focus on four additional points
that are noteworthy from today’s passage concerning obtaining a balanced perspective when
serving God.
Our Attitude when Serving Must Always Focus on Christ
While our service to our Lord, Savior and King ought to be based on our absolute best
efforts31 it will not only fail but be to us an albatross around the throats of our spiritual lives
26
Craig A. Evans, The Bible Knowledge Background Commentary: Matthew–Luke, ed. Craig A.
Evans and Craig A. Bubeck, First Edition. (Colorado Springs, CO: David C Cook, 2003), 295–
296.
27
Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan
Publishing House, 1996), 306.
28
Leon Morris, Luke: An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 3, Tyndale New Testament
Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 210.
29
Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan
Publishing House, 1996), 306.
30
Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series (Downers Grove, IL:
InterVarsity Press, 1994), Lk 10:38–42.
31
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 231.
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when it is done merely in the flesh!32
Martha became very frustrated and
grew weary because she overestimated the importance of the
banquet33 and in doing so lost sight of
the object of her service, loving, and
taking time to be fed from her Lord!
She learned that day that “Jesus would
be better pleased with a grain of love
than a heap of ostentatious service.”34
“Thoughtless service done while our
souls are asleep,”35 distracted with
worry about what others are doing or
not doing, “falls flat to the ground”36
because without the Holy Spirit37 and
our eyes fixed on Christ we are merely serving for ourselves and in our own abilities! Service
marked by distractions and worry rather than a genuine expression of faith 38 is not an
acceptable sacrifice unto God because our primary focus is not on seeking first the kingdom of
God!39 This means for those who serve 24/7 they need to do less serving and take more time
to feed on the Bread and Living waters that will sustain and enable them to do miracles in
Jesus’ name! Like Martha we should be less interested in what the Mary’s of this world are
doing and more interested in expressing our love for others by taking the time to be holy so
that we might know and rightly serve His children!
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 231.
33
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 236.
34
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 231.
35
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 238–239.
36
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 236.
37
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 233.
38
Joel B. Green, The Gospel of Luke, The New International Commentary on the New
Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1997), 436.
39
D. A. Carson, “The Gospels and Acts,” in NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible, ed. D. A.
Carson (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2018), 1849.
32
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Serve Others, Not Self
While Martha’s service was an honorable endeavor it fell short of high praise from Jesus
because she was focused on what Mary was doing instead of on pleasing her Savior.40
“Martha’s concern seems to have been that she had to work alone rather than that she could
not sit at Jesus’ feet.”41 Like Martha it
is quite easy when serving the Lord to
look around and condemn others who
appear to be doing nothing! For
example, when serving for long periods
of time it is easy to fall into the trap of
being like a Pharisee and become so
confident in our own righteousness
that we thank God we are better than
others whose external service seems
to be sadly lacking (18:9-14). “We
often spend too much time evaluating
the walk of others and too little time
being self-critical about our own
actions for Jesus.”42 In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus told the crowd that those who serve to
make themselves look good to others would not receive any reward from the Father (Matthew
6)! Only that which is given out of a humble and generous spirit43 and with the goal of pleasing
God will be acceptable in His sight! Inside of the church it is critical that “each member take
individual responsibility for his or her own walk” 44 while encouraging the body of Christ to
serve with an attitude that exemplifies the summary of all of God’s commands, to love Him and
one another!
Do not Become too Busy to Take Time to be Holy
We do serious damage to our souls when we place all our strength in outwards service
while neglecting our inward souls! Even though God often requires us to accept goals of service
40
Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan
Publishing House, 1996), 304.
41
Walter L. Liefeld, “Luke,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke, ed.
Frank E. Gaebelein, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 945.
42
Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan
Publishing House, 1996), 306.
43
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 237.
44
Darrell L. Bock, Luke, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan
Publishing House, 1996), 306.
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that are beyond human capacity to achieve,45
He never does so without giving us ample time
to invest in deep principles of inwards beliefs
that are grounded in His word and will! 46
While those of us who are “serve-acholics”
might view taking the time to invite God to
feed our souls as “idle time,”47 this is far from
the truth for until one learns from the Master
about love one simply cannot serve in a way
that fulfills His command to love one another!
Remember Jesus did not tell Martha to do
nothing but merely that “when the work you
do for Me breaks your relationship with Me,
you need to reassess the kitchen.”48 It is only
when the believer is like Mary and surrenders at the Master’s feet in “listening, learning,
feeding, edifying, and loving” 49 that our attitudes are guarded in Christ and all things become
possible (Philippians 4:13). The moment we forget our utter dependence on He who sustains
all things seen and unseen (Colossians 1:16) 50 we slip back into our old human nature that can
do nothing. However, if we abide in the Vine51 then with faith as tiny as a mustard seed our
service will not only move mighty mountains but also be pleasing in God’s sight (John 15:5;
Matthew 17:20)!
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 234.
46
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 239.
47
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 237.
48
Tony Evans, “‘Putting First Things First,’” in Tony Evans Sermon Archive (Tony Evans,
2015), Lk 10:38–42.
49
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 237.
50
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 234.
51
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 234.
45
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Striving for Food that Does not Perish (Deuteronomy 8:1-3)
Let me finish this sermon by stressing how important it is to feast on the word of God. I
believe we are living in the era that has fulfilled Paul’s prophecy that there would come a day
when people would not longer put up with sound doctrine but instead would choose only to listen
to teachers and pastors that say what their itching ears want them to hear (2 Timothy 4:3-4).
May we not give into the spirit that despises the Lord’s teaching, preferring only outward
service, “for if we do, in prizing the
fruit and despising the root we shall
lose the fruit and the root too.”52
How desperately we need Christians to
stand up for the doctrines of
Scripture,53 and in humble and in total
submission54 be like Mary and kneel to
view every jot and tittle of His word
(Matthew 5:18) as a pearl and treasure
(Matthew 13:44-46)55 that truly is
learned and obeyed (James 1:22)! In
today’s passage Luke refers to
Deuteronomy 8:1-3 which states that
we are not to live by bread alone but
every word from the mouth of God.56
When we take time to be holy may we be like Mary, “so wrapped in devout wonder,”57 in our
times of prayer and meditation that in those precious moments we become oblivious to self
and utterly devoted to God! In conclusion, may we never forget that to please God we need
take time to be holy and then out of the love we get from the Father serve others and show
them how much we love them too!
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 232.
53
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 231.
54
Tony Evans, “‘Putting First Things First,’” in Tony Evans Sermon Archive (Tony Evans,
2015), Lk 10:38–42.
55
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 232.
56
Craig A. Evans, Luke, Understanding the Bible Commentary Series (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker
Books, 1990), 177.
57
C. H. Spurgeon, “Martha and Mary,” in The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, vol. 16
(London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1870), 230.
52
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