Given August 3, 2011

I said this on Facebook this week, “If Jesus comes into your house, there are more important things to be done than cooking supper.”  I want to expand on that today.  In Luke 9:10-17, we have the story of Jesus feeding the 5000.  Keep in mind that was 5000 men, surely there were some ladies and kids there as well.  When it was time for supper, the disciples wanted Jesus to send the people into town for food.  They were thinking practical, money, worldly.  Jesus basically said, “Tell them to sit down and I’ll feed them.”  “What do you have I can work with?”  You know the rest of the story; all were fed with lots left over.  They didn’t have to worry, Jesus was there.

Now, let’s go to Mary and Martha’s house a little later in Luke 10.  Martha was the owner of the house and she had about 70-some people come in with Jesus to visit.  Martha was in the kitchen preparing the meal for that crowd and got upset with her sister Mary for not helping.  Mary was listening to what Jesus had to say.  Martha sort of got a little huffy with Jesus for not making Mary help.  Jesus told her Mary was doing the, “better” thing, (v. 42).  Martha was thinking practical, worldly, I-gotta-do-it-myself.  I don’t know if she’d heard of how Jesus fed 5000+ people but if He could do that, surely He could provide food for 73!  She didn’t have to worry, Jesus was in the house.

In this time of economic uncertainty, our thinking too often is practical, money, worldly, I-gotta-do-it-myself.  I’ve got to make a living, make a deal, make a way for my family.  Remember what happened to the folks at Babel?  What did they say?  “..let US make brick, let US build us a city and a tower, let US make us a name,”, (Genesis 11:3-4).  They were thinking of doing it without God and He put a stop to it.  That’s the Babylonian system and our government is pushing it hard.  We, as followers of Jesus, have been added into the blessing of Abraham and we don’t have to, “do it ourselves”.  Let’s try God’s system!  Jesus is in the house!