The New Testament contains an interesting account of a time when Jesus was teaching his disciples and Mary annoyed Martha. Martha was angry because Mary was just sitting around listening to Jesus and wasn’t helping out with dinner! This irritated Martha so much that she went to Jesus and complained about it. Jesus acknowledged Martha’s complaint but said “Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken away from her.” Martha was tuned into making dinner and Mary was tuned into hearing Jesus and that was the cause of friction between them.
An Age Old Conflict
This is really a story about the age old conflict between earthly things and spiritual. It’s a conflict that is still going on today and we see it all around us. These days there is no shortage of disputes that can pull us away from Christ and into the storms and passions of the world. Some Christians are passionate about elections and vaccines. Others have strong opinions about immigration and elected officials. Many Christians who are passionate about these earthly issues are seriously annoyed with believers who aren’t.
Disciples of Jesus Need to be Careful
There are culture wars being fought and political lines being drawn. Christian brothers are being set against each other. In just the past year I have been shunned by several Christian friends over earthly and cultural issues and another Christian brother even sent me a threatening text message. Current events illustrate the conflict between earthly and spiritual things and disciples of Jesus need to be careful. Careful not to get so wrapped up in disputes about earthly things that they begin to despise their brothers and sisters in Christ. Careful to repent of darkened hearts and attitudes.
Our Banner is Not Red or Blue
People are prone to giving their loyalty to leaders who claim to have the answers to all our problems but Christians should know better. The only leader who has any solutions to our dilemmas is Jesus Christ and when His administration takes office the world will be a far better place. In the meantime we should beware of individuals or groups that want to enlist us in their conflicts and earthly causes at the expense of Christian unity. Our banner is not red or blue. The banner over us is love and God has called us to be peacemakers.
Copyright 2023 by Bob Shutes
Bob, using the example of Martha and Mary is perfect. You accurately share how we as Christians get so caught up in worldly issues we totally bypass the teachings of Jesus, teachings of how we should treat one another and focus on God. How we so easily can turn our focus on these worldly issues and they become the hill we plant our flag on, only to find that our flesh and personal opinion and views begin to overpower the teachings we have learned from our Messiah, Jesus Christ.
Your brother in Christ, John