Did Somebody Say Potluck?

Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home.  And she had a sister called Mary, who was also seated at the Lord’s feet, and was 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 the serving by myself? Then tell her to help me.”  

But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; but only one thing is necessary; for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”

Luke 10:38-42 

When I read this passage I think about Church potluck dinners where everybody brings a dish to share and not too much thought is put into who will bring what.  For the most part the meal is just what it is.  There is some preparation with setting up tables and preparing beverages, but for the most part when it is time to dine, everybody serves themselves and sits down to eat together. It is a time of fellowship.

I think what Jesus was talking about was when we get too wrapped up in creating a worship experience we can loose sight of what worship is all about.  At the heart of worship is the teaching of the Bible.  

Let us take time to consider what is most important when we come together - that is the teaching of the Word and our fellowship with one another.   

Social Customs

 

So then each one of us will give an account of himself to God.  Therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather determine this—not to put an obstacle or stumbling block in a brother’s way.

 

Romans 14:12-13

In the early church people practiced many different social customs which people from different groups did not understand.  The Apostle Paul cautioned Christians not to let these differences in customs interfere with accepting new believers into the church because trying to force changes in customs might cause new Christians to turn away from the Church.

Paul said each individual would answer to God regarding their behavior and therefore, the Church did not need to busy itself with creating rules which would only serve to alienate people against the Church.

We can take this to heart today.  There are social customs like tattoos and body piercing which can create a barrier between mainline Christians and lost sheep that are searching for Jesus.  Our first priority is to tell people about Jesus and welcome them into the Church.  Anything more, we need not worry about, because God is the ultimate judge. 

Give Expecting Nothing In Return

Jesus said:

"Beware of practicing your righteousness before men to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven."

 

"So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be honored by men.  Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.  But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you." 

 

Matthew 6:1-4

Christians have odd ways of having fun.  One way is to “pay it forward.”  That is to do something nice for someone you don’t know with the idea that they will then do something for someone else.  Some people pay for the food for the people behind them at the drive through window of restaurants.  Other people put a few extra coins in the candy machine or leave a candy bar behind for the next guy.  The possibilities are endless.

The idea is to bless someone who does not expect it and this is exactly what Jesus was talking about.   When we give expecting nothing in return, we give as God intended that we give. 

Mothers - We All Have Them

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; and both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.”  

And Jesus said to her, "What business do you have with Me, woman? My hour has not yet come.” 

His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He tells you, do it.” Now there were six stone water pots standing there for the Jewish custom of purification, containing two or three measures each.  

Jesus said to them, “Fill the water pots with water.” So they filled them up to the brim. 

And He said to them, “Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter.” 

And they took it to him. Now when the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the groom, and said to him, “Every man serves the good wine first, and when the guests are drunk, then he serves the poorer wine; but you have kept the good wine until now.”  

This beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and revealed His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.

John 2:1-11 

Jesus' mother, Mary, was no different than many mothers.  She wanted people to see that her Son was special.  So, when she saw an opportunity for Him to demonstrate God's power, she encouraged Him to do so.  Jesus at first balked at her request, but then gave in and turned the water into wine.

This was Jesus' first public miracle, and because of it His disciples believed in Him and His ministry grew.  

So, the story began with a mother who believed in her Son.  I think God choose this way for things to happen to honor the role mothers play in our lives. 

 

The Interests Of Others

 

Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind, maintaining the same love, united in spirit, intent on one purpose.  Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.

Philippians 2:1-4  

As Christians, we are to look beyond ourselves and our needs and to serve the greater community.  We are to humbly serve others knowing that we can show the love of God by our actions.

Do not be shy about helping others, but boldly share, assist and treat others in a manner to improve their lives.   

We are not working for our own glory but for the glory of God.  The kindness we show, shows others the love of God, and can result in people coming to know Jesus.

Seventy Times Seven

 

Then Peter came and said to Him, “Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him?  Up to seven times?”  Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven….” 

 

Matthew 18:21-22

Seventy times seven is a lot of forgiveness.  And, that is what we need to do to have peace in our lives – forgive.  When we carry grudges around, we are the ones who suffer mental anguish and stomach aches, not the ones who have offended us.  They go blissfully on their way unaware or uncaring that we are suffering. 

We may try to discuss the problem with our offender, but that may not bring the apology we want.  They may laugh it off or not care.  If that's the case, we don’t even need to tell them that we forgive them, but we need to tell ourselves that we forgive them.  Once we do this, it puts the matter to rest and we can move on unencumbered. 

Forgive and feel the peace.

The Kingdom of God Belongs To Children

And they were bringing children to Him so that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked them. 

But when Jesus saw this, He was indignant and said to them, “Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.”

And He took them in His arms and began blessing them, laying His hands on them.

Mark 10:13-16 

One of the signs that a church is alive is the presence of children.  And, sadly many churches have few, if any, children.  It is not because there are no children, it is because their parents never went to church as children and still do not go to church.  This stems from parents in the 1970's not taking their children to church because they wanted them to have the freedom to decide what spiritual course they would take when they grew up without undue influence.  

Then parents were surprised when the children decided to be nothing.  This sounds far fetched, but I witnessed this phenomenon as an adult student in college where I and the instructor were the only ones in the class that had ever been to church. 

All this flies in the face of what Jesus said about children.  

So, what is the answer?  Well, I think we can take time to pickup our kids friends and take them to church with us, so that they can have the opportunity to learn about the church and it's ministries.   Then when they grow up, they will have something to base their decisions on and hopefully it will be to accept Jesus.

Remember, Jesus said the Kingdom of God belongs to children.