COME, SIT AT JESUS’ FEET
August 6, 2006 - PENTECOST 9 - Luke 10:38-42
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In our Savior’s Name, Greetings, Blessings:
Sit back and take a deep breath. Take this precious time to relax this morning. I wanted to come a little earlier to church this morning. Being delayed I am now rushing around. That is not a way to come into God’s house. Sometimes that does happen to us. Rather than rush around needlessly we need to sit back and relax and enjoy God’s message. We also want to pay attention, keep awake and alert for what God has to say to us. What he wants to say to us is to sit back and relax. In our Gospel Lesson Jesus takes his disciples away to a quiet place. Today, we are in that quiet place, in God’s house. It should be a place where we can let everything in the world behind us. Close the doors and here it is cool and comfortable. God speaks to us. He invites us to come to him. God invites us to come to him that we might hear his word and give rest to our weary souls. We know what Jesus says when the disciples were worried and distraught and wondered what was going to happen next and what they would do. Jesus said to them: "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own" (Matthew 6:33,34). We would all agree that this is true. Easy to hear and understand, but maybe a little bit harder to put into practice because we are caught up in this hectic life of ours. Today, Jesus invites us once again, "Come sit at my feet."
Our theme today – COME, SIT AT JESUS’ FEET
I. Leave behind worldly distractions
II. Look forward to divine attraction
I. LEAVE BEHIND WORLDLY DISTRATION
The setting for our text--Jesus and his disciples traveled around as they worked carrying the Gospel from one city to another. We are told: "As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him." We know about Martha, Mary and their brother Lazarus. They lived in a little town called Bethany, two miles southeast of Jerusalem. It was a good place to stop. If you were going to Jerusalem, you would want to have the next morning’s walk to be short. Two miles is not too bad of a walk in the time of Jesus. On the way to Jerusalem they would go generally on the road that would take them to the Mount of Olives to overlook Jerusalem. This was a beautiful, refreshing walk.
Jesus and the disciples stop at the home of Martha, Mary and Lazarus. Martha welcomes them in. We see what happens next. She has them there, and she realizes she has to get things ready. We are told in verse 40: "But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made." She has guests in her house, and not just guests, but Jesus and also his disciples. This was quite a group of people. Martha did not go to the freezer of fridge to look for leftovers. Everything that they had, day by day was made fresh. It had to be cooked over a fire with no temperature settings. There were no microwaves. Even the water had to be brought into the house from a well at a distance. Everything had to be made from scratch. Martha was quickly distracted by all these preparations.
Not only was she distracted by these meal preparations Martha was also distracted by the fact that Mary wasn’t helping her. With all of these guests, about 15 in all, she didn’t know what to do. "She came to him (Jesus) and asked, ’Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!’" The original world means Martha came "exploding in." She probably was in a different room getting everything ready, maybe was even outside killing the fattened calf. It was an explosive entrance. Her words were about the same, "Lord, don’t you care?" This was chiding Jesus a little bit. So she says to him, "Tell Mary to help me." Too bad that Martha was distracted.
But Jesus understands. He says to her, "’Martha, Martha,’ the Lord answered, ’you are worried and upset about many things.’"
Maybe even already this morning the Lord has said the same thing to us. God used our name and said, "You are worried and upset about many things." Maybe at the end of the day when the heat has taken its toll and we wonder if it will ever rain, the Lord says our name and says, "You are worried and upset about many things." The Lord says to us, too, at the beginning and the end of the day, "Come, sit at my feet. Leave behind the distractions of this world." Sounds easy and is good advice; but to put that into practice and make it a part of our life is a difficult task. It takes work and effort.
Here is Martha. She certainly invited Jesus, not so she could be busy preparing everything, but so that she could also listen. Yet, we are told she was distracted. She was troubled and worried about many things. Today, our society plays upon our fears, our worries, and then just builds them upon all our fears and worries. Worry makes us wonder and throw up our hands in despair. We become worried and distracted, troubled about many things, not just a couple of things, but also many things. What is the honest-to-goodness truth? The truth is when we have company we throw something into the microwave and go into the refrigerator or freezer and get something out. We don’t even have to worry about hosting. Yet, Satan still knows what can distract us. Satan still knows those things that can draw us away from the love of God. Jesus told the parable of the seed and the sower in Mark 4. When Jesus got to the end, the disciples did not understand it, so Jesus explains it. Chapter 4:18: "Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful" (Mark 4:18,19). Thousands of years ago and still today are the very same thing--the deceitfulness of wealth, the worries of this life, and the desire for other things can make God’s Word unfruitful. It can make us worried.
God says, "Come, sit at my feet." When you sit at Jesus’ feet, the Gospel takes you to a quiet place. Leave behind the things of this world, the distractions." This is difficult, because we spend a lot of time in this world. The Lord has blessed us abundantly. At our Ladies Mission Society meeting yesterday we looked at Psalm 40. If we started counting the blessings we could not even keep track of them all. We live in a country with no bombs going overhead, no missiles or rockets. We are safe. Yet, the world makes it seem that is not enough. The world around us says we have to have bigger, better and more. Every ad that you watch indicates bigger, better and more. It is amazing how much bigger the pick-up get year after year. What happens? Paul writes in Timothy: "Godliness and contentment is great gain. We brought nothing into this world. It is certain we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that." We realize we have more than enough food and more than enough clothing for ourselves and probably two other people. The result Paul writes: People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction" (1 Timothy 6:9). There are very few wealthy people in this world who don’t end their life in destruction and despair. It is just a fact of life. Wealth, bigger, better and more doesn’t bring contentment, godliness, peace.
So we are told, "Come, sit at Jesus’ feet." Look at your life and realize that sure we can rush around until we are almost worn out to a frazzle, or worn out completely. Then the Lord uses some way to slow us down and make us really look at what life means. In Ecclesiastes, written mostly by Solomon, here is one verse in which he sums up earthliness: "So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me" (Ecclesiastes 2:12,18). We leave this life and all the stuff goes to someone else and maybe to someone who we don’t want to have it.
Come, sit at Jesus’ feet. Leave behind all the worldly distractions, all of the things of this life that is so tempting, but so unfulfilling. Come, sit at Jesus’ feet and look forward to God’s attraction.
II. LOOK FORWARD TO DIVINE ATTRACTION
Martha sees Jesus is coming. Martha opens the door to her house and welcomes him in. Certainly, she sat at his feet for a while and listened. But then as our text says, she was distracted. What about Mary? Was she unconcerned about her surroundings? Yes. Mary came to sit at Jesus’ feet. She was so attracted at what Jesus had to say she paid little attention to everything else. Jesus’ words were her life at that time, her meat and bread and drink. Martha opened her home to Jesus. "She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he said." Mary heard Jesus’ word. The disciples were listening. Lazarus may have been there listening, too. We aren’t told that.
Martha says, "Tell Mary to help me." Jesus answers, "You are worried about many things, but only one thing is needed." That one thing is God’s word. That was the one thing. He says to Martha, "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." Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the word of God. Mary chose that. Her faith was being strengthened. As her faith was growing, it would not be taken away from her. One thing is needed.
These are Mary, Martha and Lazarus whom we know quite well. Later on Lazarus dies. Mary and Martha know that Jesus can help. And he does. Jesus comes, taking his time to arrive. We are told it is because the Son of Man is to be glorified by the miracle that is going to be done. Very vividly those gathered learn about the resurrection and this Jesus who has power over life and death.
We know and believe in the resurrection. We confess it in our creeds. God’s Word is the one thing needed. Yet, what happens? We clutter up our lives with lots of things, don’t we? We clutter up our lives with the attractions, the distractions of this world, the worldly things. The Lord says to us again, come, sit at my feet. Look forward to the Godly attraction that is in store for each and every one of us. In the Gospel of John, Jesus says, "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life" (John 5:24). That is the one thing that is needed, God’s Word in its truth and purity. Of course, we know the Law since we were small beginning with the Ten Commandments. God’s Law shows us our sin. God’s Gospel shows us our Savior. It is free, unconditional. The Lord says it is ours. Whoever hears and believes is saved. Easy as that! That is the power of God’s Word. Jesus says, come, sit at my feet. Be attracted to this power of the word of God that surpasses all understanding.
We learn from many examples in Scripture. One example: The Apostle Paul realized God’s power. God’s power would take him, who was on his way to put Christians in jail, and change his life, his heart, his eternal destiny. God has done that for each one of us. We aren’t walking on a path to put believers in jail. We were born into this world as sinful human beings and were destined to end up in the flames of hell itself. But God gave us faithful parents to bring us to be baptized with the washing of water and the power of God’s Word. Then our lives have changed, and we are given heaven. Paul says in Romans: "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile" (Romans 1:16). Paul writes that the believers, Jews, Gentiles, unbelievers all alike, God’s power can change them. The power of God’s word does all of this.
Come, sit at Jesus’ feet. Be attracted to what he has to say to us. Good advice, easy to hear; but a little harder to put into practice. What does the devil do? Satan does lots of evil and wicked things. The devil says to us, "Sunday, today, is a nice day to do something else, nice day to go down to Speed where they are having the national Mattel / Hot Wheels gathering." There might be as many as 15,000 people coming from all over. It started at 7 a.m. this morning. It will make the national news. Saturday could work better than Sunday. For the most part most of the crowd will miss the attraction of God’s word because of the distraction of the world.
The devil says to us, "You don’t have time to read the Bible. You can’t find time, because you have to get up and do this and that." Satan sneaks in there, doesn’t he? Even though you and I have a Bible, maybe two or three with a couple of different translations. In some countries it is against the law to own a Bible. But the devil says to us, "You don’t have time."
Jesus says, "Come, sit at my feet." Understand the attraction that is there: God’s word appeals to our new man, our Christian nature, not to our sinful nature. Therefore we have to beat down our sinful nature. We have to step on Satan and say, "I am going to take and make time to read God’s Word, to hear God’s Word, and to learn God’s Word." The easiest thing to do is to fit Bible reading / study time into your schedule. This can become one of those habits that we can’t live without. Going to church is a good habit. Reading God’s word everyday is a good habit. Yet we will have to make that first effort to fit it in and make a special time in a quiet place at the feet of Jesus. Jeremiah declares: "When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, O LORD God Almighty" (Jeremiah 15:16). Consider the fact that we are Christians, God’s children. God has placed his choice upon us. God has placed his name upon us. Now the word of God is our joy and our delight. I know it is busy out there and how it is so easy to become wrapped up in busyness. Sometimes we are busy just for busyness sake. A survey this week came out and said Americans, on average, work 44 hours a week. It wasn’t that long ago everyone was only supposed to work 30 hours. For us, we can be thankful if we only work 44 hours. But the Lord says, "Come, sit at my feet." Take time off. In Ecclesiastes God’s gift is to enjoy the labor of our hands.
Come, sit at Jesus’ feet. Somehow and some way put behind the distractions of this world if it is only for ten minutes. That is a start. If you can do it for longer, there will be even greater blessings. Then you are able to focus and look forward to the attraction of God’s word and the power that it has for you. Paul struggled. Paul realized how God had chosen him from darkness into his light. Paul now had the blessing, the opportunity, the privilege to keep looking forward.
Philippians sums up our sermon: "Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it (the gift of eternal life). But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:13,14). The prize is something Paul doesn’t have to win, because Christ has won it for him. Jesus says, "Come, sit at my feet." When we sit at the feet of Jesus, we forget what is behind. We press on for what is yet in store, for what God has called us to--eternal life. All of this is possible only by God’s grace through the power of his word, Amen. Pastor Timm O. Meyer
Sunday radio broadcast @ 9:05am on KQNK 106.7FM or 1530AM + www.kqnk.com
Pentecost 9 readings: JEREMIAH 23:1-6; EPHESIANS 2:13-22; MARK 6:20-34
