Thursday, October 3, 2013

12 MARTHA! MARTHA!


12
Martha! 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. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. 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!"
"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." Luke 10"38-42
On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home.
"Lord," Martha said to Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask."
Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again."
Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"
"Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world."
And after she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. "The Teacher is here," she said, "and is asking for you." When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. John 11:17-29
Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. "Take away the stone," he said.
"But, Lord," said Martha, the sister of the dead man, "by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days."
Then Jesus said, "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?" John 11:11-38-40

Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. Here a dinner was given in Jesus' honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. John 12:1-2

I feel like I'm picking on Martha, but I am concerned about her. Much has been said about the woman and we've discussed some it here. There are those who see her as an archetype of the Deacons, there are those who see her as two aspects of the Christian life and the Catholic Church considers her a saint. Yet I cannot escape a feeling that throughout in this story of two sisters, Mary gets it and Martha doesn't.
In The Lives of the Saints by Alban Butler (1894) under "July 29 - St. Martha, Virgin", we have this:
And in His own time the Lord came, and they go out to meet Him; and then follows that scene of unutterable tenderness and of sublimity unsurpassed: the silent waiting of Mary; Martha strong in faith, but realizing so vividly, with her practical turn of mind, the fact of death, and hesitating: "Canst Thou show Thy wonders in the grave?"

First of all, we do not know for a fact that Martha was a virgin. She may have been married or she may have been widowed, or even perhaps, she could have been the wife of Simon the Leper. We really don't know much of anything about these two sisters outside of what is here in Scripture. There are legends about the sisters, but that is all they amount to, legends and since these include the slaying of dragons and of Christ returning to earth at Martha's death, we can take them with a large dose of salt. The Catholics Online section on "Saints & Angels" sums it up best:
"We know nothing more about Martha and what happened to her later. According to a totally untrustworthy legend Martha accompanied Mary to evangelize France after Pentecost."
Both these sources, and others as well, speak of Martha's faith, courage, lack of doubt and, of course, her service. Fine, but somehow I have a different take on Martha. Now understand, I'm not claiming I'm right and others are wrong. Nor am I saying Martha was never saved. I just want us to consider another possibility.
We first meet the sisters when Jesus has come to Bethany in the latter period of His Judean ministry. It is just before He begins the confrontations with the Pharisees and other Jewish leaders which causes Him to leave Judea for Perea. When He came to the village, Martha opens her home to Him. This certainly seems to indicate that Martha owns the home and is the head of it, although again that is just supposition. Martha is distracted, worried and upset, busy with doing all the prep work, while her sister sits at Jesus feet and listens. Martha complains and asks Jesus to make her sister help with the work. Probably much to her surprise, Jesus mildly rebukes her. "Martha, Martha...only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better and it will not be taken away."
There this first encounter ends. We don't know what happened next. Did Martha sit down then and listen as well? Did she go back to whatever she had been preparing and finish up on her own? Did she sulk? Did she understand? The next words from Luke are Jesus teaching his Disciples how to pray. Luke doesn't mention Martha or Mary again.
John is the next to tell us more about Martha and Mary. This is perhaps a few weeks later and Jesus is twenty or more miles away "beyond the Jordan" on his Perea ministry. The sisters sent a messenger to Him saying their brother, Lazarus, is sick. We really don't know much more about this man than we know of his sisters. (Beyond the Scriptures he is included in the same legends about being put to sea and missions in France as Martha and Mary are.) By the time the messenger arrives, Lazarus is dead. By the time Jesus arrives back in Bethany, Lazarus has been dead and buried for four days.
When Martha hears Jesus is coming, she goes alone to meet him. Obviously Martha is a woman of action. She didn't wait for Him to come to her. She meets him and we have a short conversation. It is on this conversation that the remarks about Martha's faith and lack of doubt are based.
The first thing she says is, "if you had been here my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask." (`Sir, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died; but even now, I have known that whatever thou mayest ask of God, God will give to thee.' - Young Literal Translation)
On the surface this sounds as if Martha believes, or is even asking, that Jesus will bring her brother back to life then and now, if he would ask God to do it. However, the following conversation really makes one doubt that interpretation.
Jesus: "Your brother will rise again."
But Martha doesn't react as if Jesus is saying He will ask God to raise Lazarus now, which if she had been asking that you would expect her to take His comment that way. Instead she says: "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day." (`I have known that he will rise again, in the rising again in the last day.' Young Literal Translation)
So Martha is saying she believes in a resurrection of the dead in the last days. (Not all Jews believed in a resurrection, such as the Sadducees.)
Jesus responded with this statement: "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"
Martha than says: "Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world."
What might she have meant by that? It tells us that Martha believed in a Messiah and she believed Jesus was that Messiah. It does not tell us she believed Jesus was about to raise her brother from the dead. It doesn't tell us Martha believed Jesus was going to die for our sins and be resurrected from death, either. A First century Jewish view of those looking for their Messiah to come at that time (because they knew the prophets and knew the timing was right) expected Him to come as King, to reclaim the throne of David and free them from Rome. They were not looking for a sacrificial lamb. Jesus own disciples were struggling with Jesus' increasing warnings that he was going to die. Martha was showing belief and faith in the concept of a Messiah, who was the Son of God, and in a future resurrection of the dead, but perhaps if she had sat down next to Mary at that first visit, she would have understood what Jesus was really talking about.
Immediately after this, Martha leaves and goes home. She doesn't come in and tell Mary that Jesus is going to raise their brother, does she? She tells Mary that Jesus is here and is asking for her. Mary is excited and rushes to Jesus, falling at his feet. Her haste so peaks the curiosity of those who had been there to comfort the sisters that they follow after. Apparently Martha follows behind the others. Mary falls at the Lord's feet, weeping, and yes, she asks the same question Martha had asked, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." Perhaps Mary has some growing to do also.
Jesus is directed to the tomb and He orders the stone to be removed. This is where we next hear Martha and it is a matter-of-fact, practical warning or perhaps apprehension: "But, Lord, by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days."
Does this sound like a statement of great faith, of expectation of a miracle, of a woman who believe Jesus is going to raise the dead? Jesus' response indicates it was not. "Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?"
The next and last mention of Martha is near the end of Jesus' life. He is again in Bethany and at a dinner given in His honor. Lazarus is inclined at the meal along with others. Mary is going to enter and perform an anointing, an indication that Mary does have understanding. The only mention of Martha is this: "Martha served".
Here is how Catholic Online puts its: "Our final picture of Martha in Scripture is the one that sums up who she was. Jesus has returned to Bethany some time later to share a meal with his good friends. In this home were three extraordinary people. We hear how brother Lazarus caused a stir when [he] was brought back to life. We hear how Mary causes a commotion at dinner by anointing Jesus with expensive perfume. But all we hear about Martha is the simple statement: "Martha served." She isn't in the spotlight, she doesn't do showy things, she doesn't receive spectacular miracles. She simply serves Jesus."
But is simply serving enough? Many people are faithful servants to their church or to a mission. Many people are faithful readers of Scripture or saying prayers. But what do they truly believe. Again, we can be so busy being busy serving Christ that we never know Christ.
I am not saying Martha never knew Christ. I don't know that. I wouldn't presume to judge her or anyone in this matter. But it is a question to ask ourselves when we read about Martha and Mary and be aware of the danger of being too busy to sit at his feet and hear.
When I first became Christian, I did fall into the trap of over serving. You could become a devoted server in your church and remain a child spiritually. We look at Martha and wonder if she was maturing or not. Or was she slow to learn?
We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. Hebrews 5:11-14
Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And God permitting, we will do so. Hebrews 6:1-3.
And now, what was the aftermath of the raising of Lazarus?

Illustration: "The Raising of Lazarus" by Vincent van Gogh 1890

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