Shepherd Notes June 2025
To Sit at His feet and Listen …
Luke 10:38-42 Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And 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.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”
Since the beginning of the Church year, we have gathered to hear about the life of Christ.
We celebrated His birth at Bethlehem; we mourned at the foot of the cross, and rejoiced with His glorious resurrection. But now we enter the long, long, “LONG” Pentecost season, also known as the “green season” (because of the paraments). What are we celebrating? I am reminded of the story of Mary and Martha from Luke 10:38-42, when Jesus came to their house. Martha was busy being the host, preparing food, cleaning, etc., while Mary was sitting with the rest of the guests at Jesus’ feet, listening. It’s easy to forget that the majority of the time Jesus was simply teaching the crowds, not performing miracles. In fact, the miracles were in part
to grab people’s attention so they would LISTEN to Jesus. After all, He is not called Rabbi (which means teacher) for nothing!
Jesus actually praises Mary for choosing to listen to Jesus as opposed to doing all the
household chores. But hear again what Jesus said to Martha, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious
and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion,
which will not be taken away from her.” In the midst of the constant chaos of everyday life, all the things that worry us, all the things we try to control, how often do we take the time to stop and listen to God? That is what this time of year is for, the first half we celebrate the LIFE of Christ, this second half, we are to sit at the feet of Christ and listen to His teaching. So we focus on His lessons on the Law, the Parables, and His instructions for us.
We also turn to God’s teachings in the Epistles of the New Testament, as well as the lessons throughout the Old Testament, as Christ teaches us how we ought to live in our new life of faith that He won for us through His life, death and resurrection. We will explore the life and challenges of the saints throughout history, so that we may be inspired to follow in their footsteps.
So in the midst of all that would make you anxious and overwhelmed, I invite you to come
and sit at the feet of Christ, to hear Him speak to us. When we find ourselves feeling overwhelmed with the troubles and challenges of life, the last thing we should do is stay away from Church so that we can get some work done. Those are the very times we NEED to stop, put all things into God’s loving hands in prayer, and listen to Him. Do not grow weary of the Pentecost season, rather be eager to come and listen to our Rabbi.
Pastor Brian