One Thing is Needful: Mary Chose the Best

The title of this blog was spoken by our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ at Bethany in the residence of Mary and Martha. 

While her sister Mary sat attentively at Jesus’ feet, listening to His words, Martha bustled about making preparations for her guest. She was so zealous in this regard that she was angry that her sister was not helping her prepare the meal for the Lord. Therefore, she went up to him and said,

“Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me”(Luke 10:40). “And the Lord answering, said to her: Martha, Martha, thou art careful and art troubled about many things: But one thing is necessary. Mary hath chosenthe best part, which shall not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:41-42).

Is Your Desire to Please God?

Is your desire to please God and make a difference for Him in the world? One thing that is needful above everything else is to focus on Jesus and be devoted to Jesus. This blog post will explore what it means to follow Mary’s example and choose the ‘best part’ by dedicating ourselves to serving God.

Martha was Occupied and distracted with much serving (Luke 10:40)

I believe Martha must have been a wonderful person with outstanding character. She must have been kind, generous, hardworking, considerate of others, and full of love for the Lord Jesus. It is important to note that Martha was doing exactly what was expected of her. She was doing the proper thing.

Mary, on the other hand, was doing something that was not only unusual but also socially unacceptable at any time and in any culture. According to every custom of the day, she should have been assisting Martha. Mary herself was in Martha’s house in Bethany. Therefore, the hospitality code demands that she help her sister and allows for nothing less. You can probably imagine the surprise on Martha’s face upon hearing the Lord’s response.

The Lord Teaching Martha and Us–Service is Important, But One Thing Must Come First

What is the Lord teaching Martha, or what is the Lord teaching us here? Beloved Martha and all like her could spend their life after salvation with loads of care and trouble with doing things for Jesus. They could fill all their days with activities, dashing about and trying to show their love for the Lord– and yet, for all those strenuous activities, not hearing one word that He had to say.

The Lord is definitely not teaching us that service is unimportant, for itwould be contrary to His command. Service is important. Therefore, we, His disciples, should spend and be spent for this glorious gospel.

But He is teaching us to place service and our communion with God in their proper order. The Lord says that the most important thing is to dedicate ourselves to Him in communion and fellowship. To listen to Him, get to know Him and His will. This is the principal thing.

Definitions of the ‘Best Part’

Can anyone ever know the mind of Christ if such a one does not take time to listen and to hear what He has to say? It is safe to say that one could spend his whole life slaving fervently in service for God and yet not know Him. This is because the trouble and time spent in that much serving could have taken up all the time, leaving no time and energy left to listen to the voice of Jesus. This is a sobering revelation that should cause you and me, and everyone that considers himself or herself a minister of the gospel, to ponder on.

There is a best part, a principal portion, and a more excellent way. We do not know much about Mary, but from the Bible, she dedicated herself to the Lord as she sat at His feet and listened to His words. And the Lord testified of her that Mary hath chosen the best part. At the end of the day, after the Lord left Martha’s house, it was Mary who knew what the Lord had said; it was Mary who was acquainted with His plans and purposes. And it was Mary who had His mind. She could tell everyone what the Lord had said, and she could declare His secrets because she had listened to His words and learned His wisdom.

Mary hath chosen the best part, the needful part, which cannot be taken away from her.

Worship, Prayer, and Meditation in God’s Word is the “One Thing that is Needful”

Our Lord’s desire is for us to choose the best part. He wants us to pursue the most excellent way. The main reason for which man was made is to be with God. Therefore our devotion to ministering to God in worship, prayer, meditation, and walking in the Spirit is more important than any service. He wants us to sit at His feet and learn of Him first. The Lord Jesus says to Martha: “…there is need of only one thing: Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.” 

He is saying that Mary has chosen part of salvation as part of her life. While Martha concentrated her energy on laboring and doing good deeds, Mary focused on seeking after God (Luke 11:38-40). “To pursue this one thing is to choose the better part; to choose the better part is to be a disciple of Christ, to sit at His feet in communion with Him.

Obedience to God’s Word Completes the Best Part

Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him” (John 14:23). Here in the gospel of John the Lord Jesus says if we love Him, we will keep His words.  And that the father will love us as well. Jesus said as He addressed the disciples, saying: “the one who is much loved” by the Father is one who “remains in union with me and in His word” (John 14:23). When Mary chose to remain in union with Jesus, she made the right choice that she would always follow His will above her own. Even if we do not have an understanding of what good is, we can still choose ‘best’ as Mary did, knowing that it will for sure make us  become better people.

“I am the one who is calling you. And I have good news for you and magnify you,’ says the Lord. ‘My spirit is upon you, and my joy has filled your heart’.” In verse 6, Jesus says this to those who obey His words and who, like Mary, have chosen God and, more importantly, are His followers.

That They Might Be with Him

In the Gospel of Mark, the Lord Jesus went up a mountain, selected twelve out of His followers, and ordained these as His disciples. The Scripture tells us that He chose these twelve—that they might be with Him, and that he might send them out.

The Lord ordained the twelve,:

• first: that they might be with Him; and
• second: that He might send them out to preach the gospel of the Kingdom, to heal the sick, and to cast out evil spirits.

For how shall they preach unless they have been with Him; how shall they truly relate Christ to others unless they know Him personally? As a result of this association with Him, they received His power and were able to go out to preach, heal, and cast out devils. 

In the same manner, dear Saint, the Spirit of God is telling us that if we would spend time in fellowship with God, He will transform us. He will change us through His divine presence. In addition, He will fill us with the Holy Spirit’s power to preach, heal, and exercise dominion over evil spirits. 

Identify What is of Ultimate Importance to God

This is a message from the Father God. The Holy Spirit is admonishing us to identify and lay hold on what is of utmost importance to God. That is, for us to draw nigh unto God, sit at His feet, and learn His ways.

Jesus said “the one who is much loved” by the Father is one who “remains in union with Him. When Mary chose to focus on Jesus, she chose to follow His will above her own. And while we may not always have a concrete understanding of what ‘best’ is, we can still choose as Mary did. Because we know  it will help us become better people.

Jesus’ words in this story remind us that we should prioritize those things which are eternal over the temporal. By doing so, we can experience happiness in this life rather than being mired in regret at the end. We can learn from Mary’s example by putting aside our worldly commitments to focus on the most important. In other words, we focus on our relationship with God.

What is the Best Part?

The best part produces the outcome God intends for us in our lives. It is making God’s desire and His Presence our passion. We should make His word our necessary food. As we sit at Christ’s feet and learn His ways, we become more and more like Him. Then, we can live a godly life by following Jesus.

The best part highlighted in Luke 10:38-42 is to listen to Him and walk in humility and obedience to God’s will. Like Mary, we put our total attention and trust in God. In addition, it is to obey Him even when it means giving up our plans and desires. His desire must take first place. The Scripture teaches us that ‘to obey is better than sacrifice.’ In the same manner, putting God first is better than a million services.

What does it mean to choose the best part?

To choose the best part is to have an intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus, sit at His feet and listen to Him. This begins with salvation when we give our lives to Him. Then we proceed to set our priorities in life with Christ at the front and in the center.

This means we seek the kingdom of God first, and the Bible tells us that God will add all the other blessings to us.

These three steps will help in this endeavor:

• First, list the important life essentials.
• Secondly, examine the list thoroughly and identify borderline essentials, downgrade them and eliminate distractions (maybe social media related) and prioritize what is truly important.
• Lastly, Seek the face of God on priority No 1., Get wisdom and direction, and guidance from God on how to start or proceed. Then step out in faith, being confident that God is with you and that you have His wisdom.

“Get His wisdom, and with all your getting, get understanding”.

The Necessity of Choosing the Best Part

We need to make seeking God our No. 1 priority if we are going to:

1. Know Him intimately
2. Understand His ways
3. Be conversant with hearing His voice clearly
4. Be a spiritual force that will make a difference in the world.

The attitude of Mary is one that should inspire us to prioritize spiritual over temporal matters. This is important for us today as it was for Mary, who lived in Israel during Jesus’ time. It’s important to have a lifestyle centered on God’s kingdom because it will help us develop a mindset that is satisfied with God alone.

What Happens if We Don’t Choose the Best Part?

If we don’t choose the good part, we may miss out on blessings and opportunities. We can become overwhelmed. And we will most likely be distracted by things that don’t really matter in the long run. If we don’t spend sufficient time in fellowship with God, our ability to serve in spirit and truth will be compromised. We might be occupied with service, working for God, building things “for Him,” and even preaching. However, if, like Martha, we didn’t spend time at the Master’s feet; we would have missed the ‘best part.’ 

5 Benefits of Choosing the Best Part

First, It will make our ministry to be very effective and fruitful. And I mean by God’s standard of measurement. Because it will not be about working for God but being a “co-laborer” with Him in His vineyard. If indeed our ‘One Desire’ is to focus on Him, we will be an under-laborer in His ministry. Therefore, it will not be ‘my ministry’ or ‘my congregation’ or (an outrageous statement) ‘my church’, but His.

Second, We will become more proficient in worshipping Him in spirit and in truth. And we’ll be able to hear Him speak clearly and reveal His mind to us as a man speaks to His friend.

Third, there is an everlasting source of power and glory in store for us to tap into when we abide in the presence of God, the Omnipotent One.  

Fourth, As we wait upon Him and fix our entire focus on Him, we grow in faith. We also increase in strength from faith to faith; because faith comes from hearing His words.

Fifth, as we sit at His feet and fix our eyes on Him, the Bible tells us that we will undergo a transformation, changed from glory to glory, into the image of Christ whom we are beholding.

That’s the “better part” of which Jesus speaks in this text. Mary chose the better portion, which no one could take away from her. She chose the eternal portion while Martha was occupied with the ephemeral.

How We Can Continually Choose the Best Part

First, Pray this prayer regularly: (Colossians 1:9) (“…pray and make request for you, that ye may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding”

Second, meditate on God’s Word: “whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things” (Phil 4:8).

Finally, like David, let us set our hearts upon “one thing”, and seek that to the exclusion of all other things. Let us let the “one thing” we seek be the Lord Jesus Christ and Him alone. Let us cause all our capacities, powers, talents, ambitions, and affections to be concentrated upon Him. And that we should set our affection on the Son of God, our blessed Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Conclusion

O’ that God would make us a people with one solitary object possessing our beings, a people whose hearts burn with desire for nothing but Christ! “Lord, help us by your grace and the power of your Spirit to set our hearts upon Christ and Him alone.”

Mary’s example of choosing the ‘good part’ and committing to put Jesus first should be an inspiration to all of us. We can make a difference in this world by devoting our lives and attention to Jesus. As we focus on Him and put Him first in all things, we will find He is faithful to guide and strengthen us daily. As we sit at His feet and behold His face in worship daily, He will continue to change us until we become like Him. So let us choose the best part today and commit ourselves fully to Jesus. He’s the One who alone is worthy of our devotion.