\
\\
...
WELCOME
How long do you think can you sit in silence with no gadget in hand or watching anything on TV? How about keeping New Year's resolutions? What was the longest time you were able to keep yours? Why do you think this is so?
WORD
Luke 10:38-42
At the Home of Martha and Mary
38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feetlistening to what he said. 40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!"
41 "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one.[a]Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."
Blessed Happy New Year! This month, we are starting a new series called "WANTING THE ONE THING". Most of us make New Year's resolutions & almost always, fail at these resolutions by February. We overestimate the power of our will. It is one thing to be driven by a goal, but we tend to forget that our everyday habits established by a "system" or a step by step process of getting to our goals is an important part in achieving them. As we set our goals this 2020, may this new series remind us of the importance of having that ONE THING central in our lives our pursuit of an intimate relationship with GOD. We shall learn from the story of Mary of Bethany, who in the midst of the busyness of preparing meals, chose intimacy with Jesus Christ, listening to His valuable lessons as she sat at His feet. She chose to KNOW God more by hearing from Jesus Christ. What does it mean to sit at the feet of Jesus? Based on the story of Mary, we see four important components of a committed attention on Christ;
1. FOCUS
As we read the passage, we discover the family of Mary, Martha & Lazarus. When Jesus & his disciples came to visit, Martha decided to serve them, but Mary chose something else. She sat at the feet of Jesus. In their culture, it was not normal for a woman to sit at the feet of a man, much more a rabbi. Why did she do it? The Bible tells us she did this to listen to the words of Jesus. Mary wanted this intimate moment with Jesus because she yearned to learn from Him. Jesus corrected Martha's attitude
Luke 10:41-42
who while serving, began to complain that Mary left her to do the work. Mary wanted to have an undivided focus to Jesus. When you do not sit at the feet of Jesus, you will be like Martha: distracted & too engrossed in tasks. Serving God is not bad, but when you serve Him out of duty instead of love, you will begin to focus on complaining about & comparing yourself to other people.
Hebrews 12:2
2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneerand perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross,scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
reminds us to "fix our eyes on Jesus"; underscoring the very importance of our attention, desires & focus to be directed to Christ. Where are yoy focused on today? Are your eyes set on problems, tasks or orther people? Seek to draw near to God & focus on Him!
2. INTIMACY
Mary's posture before Jesus reminds us of the importance of intimacy with Him. When we focus on trying to control people & attending to multiple duties, we miss out on our intimacy with Christ. If you fix your eyes on people, you will be stressed. If you keep looking inwards, you can will be depressed. Learn to sit at the feet of Jesus & exercise intimacy with Him & all worries will melt away. When we allow God to minister to us, as we learn to trust & cling on to Him, we can be sure that anxieties will not bother us because the peace of God will guard our hearts & minds in Christ.
Philippians 4:6-7
6 Do not be anxious about anything,but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Intimacy with God will help us attain peace. As we become intimate with Him, we will realize that intimacy with God involves LISTENING to Him as well.
3. LISTENING
Mary pursued the ONE Thing; how? She chose to be intimate with Jesus Christ & LISTENED to His words. In other passages in the New Testament, we discover that Mary had a "system" of being at the feet of Jesus which enabled her to build intimacy with Him. A "system" enables us to develop a habit. We can focus on a goal, but if we do not focus on the activities that we do in order to achieve the goal, we will never reach our goal. The same goes with our relationship with Christ. Do we systematically read His word? Do we listen to God when we pray or do we just utter requests without even intentionally seeking to hear from God? How does God speak to us? He speaks to us through His Word & sometimes God uses other people to speak to us (SMALL GROUP sharing, BIBLE STUDY insights from others). We have a system that God has given; SMALL GROUPS, Sunday Services & even our PERSONAL QUIET TIMES WITH GOD. Small things like 10 minutes to 15 minutes a day of Bible reading & journal
compounded over time will surely have a great impact! When we hear from God in our inner being or from others, it is important to countercheck it with His word. Read the BIBLE everyday! Listen to God's word for you & get to know Him more. The more you understand Him, the more your desires will be in accordance to His desires & plans for you.
4. WORSHIP
Understand als that sitting at the feet of Jess is an act of WORSHIP. Life is about choices &
Luke 10:42
42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one.[a] Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."
emphasizes that Mary made a choice to sit at the feet of Jesus & worship Him by devoting her best for Him. Other gospel accounts of Mary, Martha & Lazarus are available for us to learn from.
In John 12:1-2
Jesus Anointed at Bethany
12 Six days before the Passover,Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 Here a dinner was given in Jesus' honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him.
we witness this small family again with Jesus & each of the characters worshipped Jesus in unique ways: Martha served joyfully. Lazarus reclined at the table with Jesus & six days before Jesus was crucified. Mary did something astounding.
John 12:3
3 Then Mary took about a pint[a] of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
shows us Mary's appreciation for Jesus as she lavishly poured down costly perfume on Jesus' feet & wiped them with her hair. We also take note of Judas in this story, who due to his personal agenda, focused on the "wastefulness" of such act. He eventually chose to betray Jesus for so much less cost. Let us be mindful that though we may serve God like Martha or follow Jesus like Judas, we can still miss out on that ONE THING that we ought to pursue like Mary did. The promise of Jesus for Mary in
Mark 14:9
9 Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world,what she has done will also be told, in memory of her."
was that Mary's act of worship will be remembered everywhere the gospel is shared & is being fulfilled even now as we learn & teach others about how to be laser focused on the ONE THING this 2020; sit at the feet of Jesus to pursue intimacy with Him!
DISCUSSION QUESTION: (DONT INCLUDE HERE YOUR PAST EXPERIENCE BECAUSE WE ARE NOW AT THE PRESENT 2020, POST THIS IN YOUR WEBNOVEL)
1. How was your intimacy with God the past year? How was your attitude while serving Christ in 2019?
Mia answer: My intimacy with God the past year was not that good; my attitude while serving Christ in 2019 was not that good also
Kathy answer: I was starting to have a Bible Study with Mia Ann Tan on the topic, Life Goals. Then that is the start I get back on my faith in Christ. That was in 2019.
2. What "system" need to be place in 2020 so you will not be too busy "serving" & missing out on "sitting at the feet of Jesus"?
Mia answer: The system that I need to place in 2020 so I will not be too busy serving & missing out on sitting at the feet of Jesus is managing my priority & time management
Kathy answer: The system that I needed to place in the year 2020 so I would not be too busy serving and missing on sitting at the feet of Jesus is "Focus, Concentration, Priority and Time Management".
3. What do you think is the most valuable act of worship that you can offer Jesus this year? What do you think will it cost you?
Mia answer: I think is the most valuable act of worship that I can offer Jesus this year is doing the OBBS daily journal; I think will it cost me is only my time
Kathy answer: I think the most valuable act of worship I can offer Jesus this year 2020 is doing the OBBS journal, listening to VCF morning prayer podcasts, VCF worship service podcasts and CCF-Binondo Zoom Webinar Bible Study.
\
\\
...
-END-