I’ve always been a little hard on Martha, one of the two sisters Jesus and his band of disciples dropped in on during their travels. Mary, her sister, sat at the Lord’s feet and drank in his words and presence. Martha, on the other hand, was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made.

She complained the Jesus, Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her to help me!

Come on Martha, throw some cheese and crackers on a tray, pop open a jug and hang out with Jesus and the fellas. Why blow your stack?

Then last fall I strolled through a museum in Amsterdam and happened upon the scene displayed above. Painted by Joachim Beuckelaer in 1566, the title explains what’s happening: The well-stocked kitchen, with Jesus in the house of Martha and Mary in the background (I encourage you to click the link, fill your screen, and take a longer look).

Martha just welcomed a large number of guests into her home, people she respected and cared for deeply. How better to honor them than serve a wonderful meal? Pondering Beuckelaer’s depiction of the scene I realized her dilemma. This was no cheese and cracker moment. The Messiah rested under her roof. Martha’s gift of hospitality kicked into overdrive and she needed the help of her sister.

Jesus’s words corrected and calmed Martha—Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her. Indeed, the Messiah hung out in her house, but he was more interested in Martha joining him in the living room than sweating in the kitchen. A few minutes with Jesus mattered so much more than the food on the stove.

If a famous person walked into our house I’d pull out the china and serve the best we could offer (actually, my wife would need to take over). How else should you treat rare and dignified guests?

But Jesus, happy with whatever we could throw together from the frig, would rather sit with us in the den and talk of more important matters.

Luke 10 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022