The Good Part

I came home late from bible study, kicked off my shoes by the door, and went straight into the kitchen. I rummaged through the refrigerator, pulled out salami, pepperoni, rosemary ham, pickles, American cheese, diced onions, mayo, yellow mustard, and multigrain bread. (I bet you're getting hungry just reading off that list!) I placed all the ingredients out before me on the kitchen counter and went to work, perfecting the art of sandwich-making for the two men (or should I say 1 1/2 men) in my household. I oftentimes stick a pepperoni slice or two into my mouth as I am hand-crafting each delectable sandwich. But, this time I caught myself before slipping my hand into the plastic container to feast on this tasty treat. I had almost forgotten that I pulled out a bag of Trader Joe's dried mango slices as well in hopes that they would satisfy my craving for a late-night snack. I glanced over at them, a dull yellow pigment under the dim light of my oven range lamp. It didn't look as appetizing as the sodium-saturated, protein-enriched succulent mixture of beef and pork calling my name. But, as I obeyed that little voice inside, I realized that I had chosen the "good part".

As I later pondered upon this insignificant event, I thought of the story of Mary and Martha in the bible. You can find this well-known account in Luke 10:38-42. As the story goes, Jesus visited a village where these two sisters lived. Martha, receiving word that Jesus was in town, welcomed Him into her home. The course of events thereafter are summed up in a few verses. Contention brewed between the two sisters as Mary "sat at Jesus' feet and heard His word. But, Martha was distracted with much serving..." (Luke 10:39-40). I can picture this scene. Mary, completely oblivious of the commotion going on in the kitchen, is peering up at Jesus, intently listening and lingering on every word proceeding from His mouth. Martha, on the other hand, busying herself over dinner preparations, can not hear above the clamor of clanging pots and pans. A bit enraged, she confronts Jesus and states, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me" (Luke 10:40). Jesus cooly responds by saying, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her" (Luke 10:41-42).

We can infer that by eagerly welcoming Jesus into their home, both Mary and Martha accepted Jesus into their hearts. Scripture states, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me" (Revelation 3:20). One might even conclude that Martha was the first of the two sisters to receive Jesus with joy as she chose to invite Him in the first place. But, at some point during His stay, she lost sight of this joy. The condition of Martha's heart may be described as a mixture between two soils, that of the stony ground and thorny ground. (The Parable of the Sower further explains this in Matthew 13, Mark 4, and Luke 8). Scripture describes the stony soil as, "he who who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while" (Matthew 13:20-21). The thorny soil is described as "he who hears the word, [but] the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful" (Luke 10:22). Martha started out well by receiving Jesus into her home with joy and making preparations to serve Him. But, she became more concerned with works than with her guest. Meal preparations and tending to her company took precedence over simply laying at Jesus' feet to receive. After all, it was His intent to serve, not to be served. Jesus states in Mark 10:45, "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many". Mary, on the other hand, understood this. She sat by Jesus' feet to hear God's word and was in turn spiritually fed.

The condition of Mary's heart might be described as the good soil. This soil is explained in scripture as "those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience" (Luke 8:15). Resting at Jesus' feet looked like carelessness and negligence in Martha's eyes. But this is what Jesus Christ described in this passage as the "one thing [that] is needed", the "good part". Mary received the seed and endured with her Savior. She refused to allow what was being sown into her heart to be taken away from her by following her sister's lead. Martha, on the other hand, chose everything else but the "one thing [that was] needed". She was so preoccupied with the cares and concerns of the present moment that she no longer found joy in it. Jesus Christ visited the sisters not only to address their spiritual need but also to introduce them to the joy and fulfillment found in communing with Him. Psalm 16:11 states, "In Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore". Martha did not experience this fullness of joy because she did not remain in God's presence as Mary did. This is the "good part" that Mary understood, but Martha overlooked.

Jesus Christ who gave His life a ransom for many also became poor that "you through His poverty might become rich" (2 Corinthians 8:9). Jesus Christ (the God of the universe) has no need. Therefore, when He entered as a guest into Martha's home, it wasn't to be served (as I mentioned earlier) but to serve, to get personal with her and to address her unique and personal need. He desired to sow the invaluable seed of the word into her heart just as He did for Mary, but Martha was not still in His presence long enough for it to take root. Any potential for this was choked out by her trivial pursuits. Scripture states, "Be still, and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10). If she were still before Him, perhaps she would have realized that she was in the presence of her Maker and may have discovered the spiritual implications therein, satisfying not only her soul's need but also desire.

We all experience a craving for something richer and deeper than this world offers. There is a void in every man's heart that grows increasingly larger when he attempts to satisfy his spiritual need through superficial means. For example, every person craves love and many look to their relationships solely to satisfy it. Every person desires joy and many will strive to create or recreate their own utopia in hopes to obtain and sustain a transient sentiment known as happiness. Everyone desires peace and many walk through life in denial, a coping mechanism that makes the tribulations we face on a daily basis easier to endure. As C.S. Lewis puts it, "If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world". We are indeed made for another world, one with eternal resources intended to satiate the longings of our eternal state of being. How sad it is when even we as Christians rely on our own meager attempts to fill the gaping holes in our hearts rather than looking to the finished work on the cross that now affords us an abundant life. We live as paupers when in truth we are rich in Christ who "gave His life a ransom for many".

We who received the gift of His Spirit have direct access to the fruit therein--the attributes of Christ. Those who live in Christ are exhorted to walk in Christ as scripture states, "If we live in Christ, let us also walk in the Spirit", His Spirit (Galatians 5:25). To walk in the Spirit takes a conscious effort to silence the flesh by choosing joy, love, peace, kindness, forgiveness, self-control, etc., choosing the "good part". On the topic of love (a fruit of the spirit) vs. hate (a fruit of the flesh), Katherine Anne Porter writes, "Love must be learned, and learned again and again; there is no end to it. Hate needs no instruction, but waits only to be provoked." The gifts and fruit of the Spirit are something to be embraced by choice and not by chance for man is naturally against the things of God.

Just as Mary chose the "good part", Martha made a choice as well, one that kept her away from the fullness that Jesus Christ provides when He enters into our lives. We will become spiritually bankrupt if we are consumed with our rights (as Martha was) and the cares of this life. Though Jesus Christ was present in her life, she chose to spend her present not resting in His presence but rather concerning herself with pressing demands that were self-imposed. Now we all have responsibilities that must be attended to no matter how insignificant they seem in light of eternity. One might argue that if Martha didn't serve her guests, who would? But, it wasn't the work that separated her from the Lord. It was the condition of her heart while doing the work. We can choose to be good stewards of the work God has entrusted us with by laboring unto His glory. But, Mary sought recognition and reciprocation. If we invest ourselves into the kingdom of God looking for a payout, we are investing foolishly. We will drain our account. This is oftentimes when we find our "labor of love" laborious and burdensome because God is not guaranteeing our investment. We are exhausting our meager means in striving to do the Lord's work. Our efforts in this case are futile. Psalm 127:1 states, "unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it".

I pray that our lives reflect one that is well spent, resting in the presence of our Savior. For this is the "one thing [that] is needed", the "good part, which will not be taken away from [us]". It is so sad that many of us as Christians have not a clue about this rest Jesus Christ offers. Perhaps it is because we are following the wisdom of the world, believing that one must strive in order to see things accomplished in his life his way. However, the wisdom of the Father compels us to do the exact opposite, to deny our lives and follow Christ. Jesus Christ proves that this wisdom comes from God as He states in Matthew 11:25, "'I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes'". A few verses later in this text, Jesus Christ expounds upon where this wisdom will lead us--into His rest. "'Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest'" (Matthew 11:28). But, man submitted to his fleshly ways overcomplicates the simplicity of this message and brings upon himself grief. The lyrics of "What a Friend We Have in Jesus" describes this so well: "O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer"..."Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care? Precious Savior, still our refuge; take it to the Lord in prayer. Do thy friends despise, forsake thee? Take it to the Lord in prayer. In His arms He'll take and shield thee; thou wilt find a solace there".

David understood what it's like to be cumbered with a load of care, experiencing heartaches, anxiety, depression, and at many times in his life felt the sting of being forsaken by people he trusted and loved. But, still he managed to find his way into God's rest. In writing Psalm 27, he described the "one thing" that he desired of the Lord--"that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in His temple" (verse 4). This is the "one thing" that Mary desired as well, gazing up at her Savior and beholding His beauty.

At the start of each day and at every opportunity thereafter, let us choose that which is needed, the "good part". As David put it, being in the presence of God was the one thing he desired. Jesus Christ described it as the one thing needed. Our want and our need intersect at the foot of the cross where His death satisfies the aching condition of the human heart. When we identify the Lord as our shepherd, we "shall not want" as described in Psalm 23. He who sovereignly and tenderly takes care of His sheep knows how to satisfy every longing stirring within. But we have to choose to follow Him, to walk in His Spirit, and enter His rest. As an outsider looking in, this life may seem less appetizing like that bag of dried mangos, but a life hid in Christ is a life well-spent. It is an abundant life, something the world seeks and will never find outside of Christ. Those who rest like Mary did at Jesus' feet, beholding His beauty in steadfast communion with Him, are immovable. They have found the "one thing needed". As it states in Psalm 63:5 (NLT) "You satisfy me more than the richest feast". Therefore, may our lives reflect a choice made for the "good part".