Introduction

Thank you guys for participating in our “let’s see” Scrolls. Let’s see if anybody knew my subtle hint or my subtle plans that I didn’t tell you about with the “let’s see” Scrolls. Does anybody over here have an idea of what my agenda was? Because I know I told you what your agenda was, but I had an agenda. Do you know my agenda?

(Pause and banter but not students figured it out)

All right, well if I get to point one and we haven’t gotten there, and I don’t mention it, feel free to interrupt. If I get to point two and I didn’t cover it in point one, say, “Mr. Brittain! Mr. Brittain!” Okay? You have permission. Of course, if you yell it out but I actually did go over it, then you’re just not listening. Then I’ll call you by your name twice. (laughter) Toby… Toby…

All right, we are going to pray, but I want to set up our passage drill briefly and set your hearts right. I want you to think about sports and crazy coaches—coaches who don’t just coach like crazy during the practices and pregame, but also during the game. Think of coaches on the sideline of a football game yelling at their players, yelling at the other coaches. You can think of baseball’s third-base coach, coaching like crazy with signals—nose taps, belt taps—I never know what it all means. I also have a picture in my mind of a wrestling coach. In wrestling, it’s just two people on a mat and two coaches at opposite corners. Often, those coaches seem more intense than the two wrestlers! They use all these terms I don’t know, but that coaching is intense and constant for those few minutes.

Well, that’s kind of like this lesson or this time right now, because I’m going to be coaching you, hopefully, as we open God’s word and see what it clearly says. I’m coaching you on what you’re doing—like a wrestling coach or volleyball coach who calls out rotations during the match—while you’re actually doing it. I’m telling you what to do while you’re doing it. And what you’re doing tonight is sitting under the hearing of God’s word.

This passage is about sitting and listening to God’s word. There are things you can be taught, even in the posture of your body, to sit and attend. Even in the discipline of your eyes and what you look at—is it the artwork on your friend’s left hand, or your friend’s scratch on their right hand, or the body language of the person talking to you? For those of you who are competitive, girls, I want you to beat the guys; guys, I want you to beat the girls in attentiveness!

I have a quote from this book Expository Listening—what is the hearer of God’s word supposed to do? Let me encourage you with this: “A preacher’s commitment to the Lord is to be prepared every week to stand and deliver His word. Your commitment to the Lord should be to be prepared every week to sit and receive His word. My goal is to be the best preacher possible; your goal should be to be the best listener possible. When the preacher does his part and you do your part, God’s Spirit will effectively use His word to accomplish His purpose in your life.” Just think about that.

And one more coaching analogy: think of a baseball pitcher and catcher. If a catcher isn’t locked in, he or she is going to hurt themselves. The pitcher is delivering the truth of God’s word; your job is to listen attentively—like a catcher waiting on every pitch. Fifty or sixty catchers here on a Wednesday night, four hundred plus on a Sunday morning—that’s how preaching and hearing ought to be: a focused pitcher and an attentive, very focused catcher. Will you do that?

Let’s pray and ask God to help you prioritize the bringing of His word, whether it’s fifteen minutes, thirty minutes, or a full Sunday morning sermon.

[Prayer] Oh God, I thank You that we can be here tonight. Thank You for the joy in just being together again. I know it’s common for us to gather, because we’ve made it a common practice, a common habit, but it is a gift—it is a treasure. And God, I thank You that hearing Your word and seeking to be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive ourselves, is what we’re all about at Grace Bible Church and what we’re all about in Student Ministries. I pray for these future men and future women, that they would listen attentively and hear what Your word says. May the illustrations, or my words that aren’t directly about the passage, not be the focus, but may Your word be the focus and land in good soil in their hearts. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Setting Up Our Passage

Okay, so we’re going to be dropping into a passage in Luke. But first, I want to show you some bookends of the intensity of this moment. Here’s one bookend: in Luke 9:51—this isn’t our passage, but if you have your Bible, you can check it out—it says (I’m reading from the Legacy Standard Bible): “Now it happened that when the days for Him to be taken up were soon to be fulfilled, He set His face to go to Jerusalem.” Some versions say He set His face like flint toward Jerusalem. Jesus came to die. He is setting His face toward His final mission. Lots of smaller missions along the way, but the reason He came—the reason God came to earth—was to be the sacrificial, self-giving sacrifice for us.

That’s in Luke 9. Then if you jump to Luke 13:22, it says, “He was passing through from one city and village to another, teaching, and proceeding on His way to Jerusalem.” It doesn’t say He stopped setting His face like flint. He’s still on that mission—He knows what’s going to happen. He knows one of His own twelve will betray Him. He knows He’s going to the cross for His sheep who hear His voice.

In the midst of that final journey toward Jerusalem, Luke records critical lessons disciples must know—lessons about what Christians must know, what God’s people must know. There’s the incident where a Samaritan village shuns Him, and the disciples say, “Lord, shall we call down fire?” and He replies, “You don’t know what spirit you are of.” There are men who say, “I will follow You, but first…” wanting to delay discipleship, and He corrects them. Then the disciples rejoice that demons are subject to them, and Jesus corrects them again, saying, “Rejoice not in this, but rejoice that your names are written in the Book of Life.” So He’s teaching them what to truly rejoice in—what real discipleship looks like, what kind of spirit they should have if they are followers of Christ.

Then comes the lawyer who asks, “Who is my neighbor?”—and Jesus gives the parable of the Good Samaritan. He knew the commands: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind, and love your neighbor as yourself. But seeking to justify himself, he says, “Who is my neighbor?” and Jesus gives this parable for the ages: the Good Samaritan. Or in the hearing of that lawyer, it’s the “despicable Samaritan,” yet Jesus says, “Go and do likewise,” meaning be like that Samaritan. So these are the events leading up to our passage in Luke 10:38–42, which is about listening to God’s word.

Reading Luke 10:38–42

This is five verses, right after the parable of the Good Samaritan. If you can lock in for five verses, here we go. I’ve titled this “A Welcome Home.” Starting in Luke 10:38:

“Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister called Mary, who was also seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, ‘Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the preparations alone? Then tell her to help me.’ But the Lord answered and said to her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.’”

Okay, simple story: Martha and Mary, Jesus in the house. Martha is practicing hospitality. The title of the message is “A Welcome Home.” Maybe you have questions running through your head, thinking, “What did that look like?” I’ve always pictured it as Martha in the back of the room, Jesus at the front, Martha calling out, “Lord…,” making her complaint. But when I looked closely, she came up to Him—maybe gently, even motherly—and said, “Lord, You see what’s happening here…?”

In this passage, we have three “acts” that accentuate one critical priority:

1. A contrasting response
2. A revealing request
3. A loving reproof

Three acts that emphasize one central point: hearing God’s word. Now, as a quick aside, did anybody here from Winter Camp draw anything about the church? The focus of Winter Camp was the church—what is its priority? The church does a lot of good things, but its main priority is the preaching and hearing of God’s word. God’s word is front and center. This passage likewise deals with the centrality of sitting and listening to God’s word. So let’s look at verses 38 through 40 (the first half of 40): Martha’s practicing hospitality in her own home, and she has a sister, Mary. From the Gospel of John, we know more about Martha and Mary—they are sisters of Lazarus. Martha is the one who made a great confession in John 11: “I believe You are the Christ.” She also was the one who told Jesus it had been four days since Lazarus died and warned about the smell when Jesus said to roll the stone away!

Mary is the one who perhaps the next day anointed Jesus’ feet with very costly oil, wiping them with her hair, and was rebuked by some for “wasting” the ointment. So that’s this Martha and Mary. Verse 39 says Mary was seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. Martha welcomed Jesus into her home, but Mary sat there, doing the one activity some of you are doing now: listening. She was listening intently to Him. Martha, meanwhile, was distracted by all her preparations. She was doing a good thing—serving—but was unable to focus on the most important thing because of her busyness.

A Contrasting Response

We see Martha welcoming Jesus, working hard to serve, moving dishes around, maybe getting help from others (though clearly not from her sister!). Mary is seated, listening to Jesus’ word. Martha is distracted. I even thought of blowing bubbles to illustrate distractions—sometimes random things come your way that keep you from focusing. Martha is a bit like that: she’s doing something good, but she’s missing the main thing. This passage does not rebuke serving as wrong, but rather the mindset that gets so distracted by it that you can’t hear God’s word. So that’s the contrasting response: one sister sits attentively at His feet; the other is swirling with preparations.

A Revealing Request

Now, the second half of verse 40: “She came up to Him and said, ‘Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the preparations alone? Then tell her to help me.’” She comes up close, presumably to quietly but firmly bring this to Jesus’ attention. She interrupts Him, saying in effect, “Lord, do You not see what’s happening?” and she assumes He will agree with her. She says, “Then tell her to help me.” It’s almost like she’s giving Jesus instructions. That is very revealing about Martha’s heart in this moment. She thinks she knows what’s best, not only for her but for Mary. She is sure Jesus hasn’t noticed or hasn’t intervened properly.

When you read God’s word, do you ever have those Martha moments where you think, “God, do You not see this situation? Let me correct You on this point.” We might question God’s ways, or how He allows or causes something to happen. Be careful how you hear and how you respond. This is a revealing request that exposes Martha’s assumption that she knows better, so she’s giving Jesus directions.

A Loving Reproof

Then the final “act” hits with an almost parable-like punch: “But the Lord answered and said to her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part.’” Martha gets a loving reproof. Notice how He repeats her name twice: “Martha, Martha.” In Scripture, repeating someone’s name twice often conveys deep emotion and a plea to really listen (like “Simon, Simon” or “Jerusalem, Jerusalem”). It is full of compassion.

He tells her she is worried and bothered by so many things—not necessarily bad things, but too many things for her heart to handle at once. She is anxious and troubled, and He says only one thing is necessary. Mary is doing that one thing, listening to God’s word, and Jesus won’t take it away from her. So while Martha expected Jesus to tell Mary to get up and serve, Jesus flips it: Mary chose the best portion. He won’t remove that blessing from her.

This is a loving reproof. Think of all the ways Jesus could have answered Martha—He could have remained silent, or He could have asked a question. Instead, He addresses her by name, twice, and gently but firmly redirects her to the priority: hearing the word of God.

We get distracted by so many things, even good things, when it comes to sitting under God’s word. We can be worried, anxious, or troubled. But we have to remember: “Only one thing is necessary.” Mary has chosen that good part, and it won’t be taken away. That idea of “the good part” is like choosing the best piece of a meal. God’s word is that for us.

Conclusion and Application

I like to call this “A Welcome Home” because Martha welcomes Jesus into her home with hospitality, but Mary really welcomes God’s word into her heart. Does your heart welcome home the word of God? That’s the question for us. If you’re not a follower of Christ, keep listening to His word—it’s through hearing the word that faith comes (Romans 10:17). If you are a follower of Christ, remember that hearing God’s word must remain a priority.

I have some practical helps for you after this. There’s a handout about listening—expository listening. For those who are feeling convicted that you don’t want to waste the hundreds of sermon hours you might sit through in your teenage years, I encourage you to develop that skill of hearing and applying God’s word. If we simply hear and do not apply, we’re in danger of spiritual atrophy. But if we hear and truly apply, we grow stronger in faith. So ask God to give you an appetite for His word.

Let’s pray:

[Prayer] Lord, I thank You for the wonderful gift of Your word. The older I get, the more I treasure it. I feel like the rich get richer when they keep hearing and applying, but those who hear and don’t apply get poorer, hardening their hearts. I know I’ve sat and heard without applying in the past, and I pray for all of our hearts here that we would grow in sitting under and welcoming Your word, so that we’ll be doers of the word and not hearers only. Work in each one of us by the power of Your Holy Spirit through the preaching of Your word. In Jesus’ name, Amen.