MARY-MARTHA DIMENSION

What thoughts did the image above provoke in your mind? Two women, one on her knees looking lovingly at Jesus. the other with a basket in hand also looking at Him. What other things do you notice?

This is a picture of Mary, Martha and Jesus- three good friends. It sums up everything I want to share today. Even though the sisters have different physical postures in receiving the Word (Jesus), Jesus is still pouring into them.

This picture was taken when Martha was snitching on her sister to Jesus since she preferred to listen to him speak than help her in the kitchen. Sounds like something I would do to my sister 😂- that's petty, I know. Jesus however told her,

Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her. -Luke 10:41-42 (KJV)

Everyone knows someone who is a man or woman of few words or labelled “quiet” by others. You may even be this person. Everyone also knows someone who is always putting themselves out there. Expressive, go-getter, extroverted. You may even be this person. As unique and beautiful as we all are there are times when we wish we were from the opposite camp. There are also times when society expects us to behave in a way foreign to our natural inclination.

Society expects us to be outspoken but not loud. Introverted but not dumb, soft but not too soft, principled but not rigid. But the truth is we all tend to be dominant in one area. And people will still judge you from their biased lenses. However, it is still possible to appreciate your unique temperament whiles borrowing some qualities from the other camp. Here’s a story of two women in the Bible who displayed their unique temperaments without shame and what we can learn from them. Grab your Bibles, and open with me to the book of John 11.

Mary and Martha are two sisters both lovers of God but very very different. The location of this story is Bethany, the village these sisters lived with their brother Lazarus. In this story, their brother Lazarus fell seriously ill. They sent a message to his good friend, Jesus. Jesus however arrived when Lazarus had been dead for four days.

Our main focus in today’s study is not the huge miracle Jesus performed (spoiler alert- He raised Lazarus from the dead) but on the reactions of his two sisters at the arrival of Jesus.

When the arrival of Jesus was announced, Martha left all that she was doing and went to meet halfway. Mary, on the other hand, waited inside until Jesus arrived and called for her.

Martha is the vocal one. Very expressive.

“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. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

“Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.” (John 11: 21-27 NIV).

After reading this I thought Martha is the "too-knowing" kind of person😂. She reminds me of those people who always answer questions they haven't even been asked in class. Like sis, Jesus didn't ask you to tell Him who he is. He already knows!

Mary on the other hand spoke less in the entire encounter.

When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled.- John 11:32-33 (NIV)

Aww just look at that touching encounter. Aunty Mary being all emotional and stuff. Don't get me wrong, I'm not preferring one over the other lol. I am just fascinated by how Jesus loved them even though they were so different.

​Martha	Mary
Martha spoke more	Mary spoke less
Martha met Jesus halfway as soon as she heard He was coming (John 11:20).	Mary sat still in the house, she came to Jesus only when Martha called her to come.
Did not fall at Jesus’s feet.	Fell at Jesus’s feet
​She did not weep.	She wept
Martha seemed more in touch with her intellectual side.	Mary was more in touch with her emotional side.
Martha served at the supper (John 12:2	​Mary sat at the feet of Jesus and listened as He taught.

Martha is society's definition of a strong woman while Mary is it's definition of a soft/feminine woman.

What did these two have in common?

They both called for Jesus when their brother was dying.

So the two sisters sent a message to Jesus telling him, “Lord, your dear friend is sick.”- John 11:3.

They both also asked Jesus the same questions.

…“Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died. (John 11: 21)- Martha

…“Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died” (John 11:32)- Mary

This shows that regardless of our different temperaments, our hearts for the things of God must remain the same. We must apply wisdom to know when to Mary and when to Martha even though one dimension might be dominant. We should not become so immersed in serving like Martha that we forget to sit at the feet of the one we are serving. We should also not emotionalize everything like Mary.

I do not believe anybody can be a complete Mary or a complete Martha. There will be times when even the most reserved of us will have to take a firm stand. There are Marthas who have subdued or hidden their Mary dimension and Marys who have refused to find their inner Martha. We need Martha's words of hope to sustain us in times of adversity and so do we need the tears of Mary to move the hearts of Kings.

Like the picture above, Jesus still loves you regardless of your physical posture but your heart posture will determine your receptiveness to His love.

On this note, give your extroverted friends a break and cut the introverts some slack, let them be themselves. As we undergo transformation, our temperaments will become more Christlike.