Skip to main content

"Who was Martha in the Bible?"



Question: "Who was Martha in the Bible?"

Answer: 
Martha is a significant New Testament figure, a personal friend of Jesus, and someone with whom many women today identify. She lived in Bethany with her sister, Mary, and her brother, Lazarus, whom Jesus raised from the dead (John 11:1–15, 43–44). We meet Martha three times in the Bible, and each event helps to build a profile of this interesting woman.

The Bible first mentions Martha in 
Luke 10. She is in her home in Bethany, a small town near Jerusalem, where she is hosting Jesus and the disciples. Jesus was well-known to Martha and her siblings; in fact, Jesus loved this little family (John 11:5). On the day that Jesus visited, Martha’s desire was to be a good hostess—to serve the best meal with the best possible presentation, for Jesus’ sake. Her sister, Mary, however, was taking some time out to listen to Jesus (Luke 10:39). As Martha “was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made” (Luke 10:40), she became a little cross with Mary and spoke rather abruptly to the Lord: “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” (verse 40). In this foolish utterance, Martha implied that Jesus did not care about her, and she gave the Lord a command, demanding that He force Mary to assist in the serving. In her busyness, Martha had taken her eyes off the Savior. Jesus, who was able to see into her soul, diagnosed her problem: she was worried and troubled about the serving and had no peace in her heart. He gently told Martha that a simple dinner was more than adequate, and He reminded her that Mary’s decision to sit at His feet and hear His word was the better choice (verses 41–42).

We see Martha again just after her brother, Lazarus, had died (
John 11). The sisters had sent for Jesus when Lazarus fell ill (verse 3), but He did not arrive in time to heal him. When Jesus finally approached Bethany, four days after Lazarus’ death, Martha ran out to meet Him and declared, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask” (John 11:21–22). Notice Martha’s faith: she firmly believed that Jesus could have healed Lazarus of his illness. And her faith is not diminished by the fact that Jesus had arrived “too late.” Jesus encourages Martha with one of His “I AM” statements: “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?” (verses 25–26). Martha’s response is one of great faith and understanding of Jesus’ divine nature: “Yes, Lord . . . I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world” (verse 27). Martha’s faith was rewarded that very day as she witnessed her brother’s miraculous resurrection from the dead (verses 43–44).

The third time we encounter Martha in the Bible, she is doing what Martha was known to do—serving (
John 12:2). Jesus is again attending a dinner in His honor in Bethany, and Martha is again serving. It is on this occasion that Martha’s sister, Mary, anoints Jesus’ feet with expensive perfume (verse 3). It becomes apparent that Martha was likely a woman of some means, evidenced by the size of her home, the frequency of her hosting dinners, and the expensive perfumed oil her sister owned.

In Martha’s life-changing encounters with Jesus, we see the importance of balancing service with worship, of trusting the Lord even when all seems lost, and of using our material resources for the glory of God.

Martha was honest with Jesus. If you could be really honest with Jesus what would you say or ask him?


Be blessed or be a blessing...









Source: gotquestions.org

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Good Friday

  Happy Good Friday   This is the day that we remember what Jesus did for us --- enduring beating, mocking, and being crucified.   I imagine his disciples did not consider it to be a “good” Friday at the time. But what makes it GOOD is what happened on Sunday --- when Jesus did the impossible and rose from the dead.    Knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.  ~ 1 Peter 1:18-19 ESV   One of the best ways of celebrating Jesus and His Resurrection…is through family traditions.    Family traditions can be as simple as attending  ️  church and having lunch or brunch together.    Jesus was a story-teller. I believe he knew the power of a story to capture hearts and bring joy while effectively delivering a specific message. He often used parables to teach.  Do you have a favorite Bible Story or family tradition? A G

Canva

Created 2 Create Twitter Cover Image Design Canva - One of My Favorite Design Programs and Apps With Canva , you don’t have to be a design pro, it makes designing easy. You can use your own photos or you can you upload images from sites like Unsplash or Pexels  and download them on your computer totally FREE. Canva also offers an app for you phone. Canva lets you Create designs for Web or print: blog graphics, presentations, Facebook & social media covers, flyers, posters, invitations and many more.  The design options are endless, and the site is very user-friendly – you can modify one the their designs or create your own using one of the templates. Unsplash offers professional images that you can modify, edit and use as you desire. Again, totally free! Pexels ’ site is just like Upsplash , these are royalty-free photographs for you to use as you wish. These are some of the designs I created using Canva … Click on links belo

Why God Wants to Bless You!

  Why God Wants to Bless You!   “For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away” (Matthew 25:29, ESV). Do you know that God wants to bless you? He wants you to have abundance, lacking no good thing. But He doesn’t want that for you and me so we can merely enjoy our lives. He wants us to steward our resources so we can be better able to reach out to others and bless them in His name. Jesus said in Matthew 5:16 (ESV),   “…let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”   The goal is fruitfulness. The goal is God’s Kingdom. The goal is for God’s blessing to flow through us so we might be a blessing to others, to the glory of His name!