This is the way of radical commitment (Nermalis Vera).

That the feeling is mutual. Today we're going to be telling a story about two sisters, Mary and Martha.

Martha is most likely the older sister. This is Martha's home that the story takes place in. So I'm going to invite you to join me in Luke chapter 10 verses 38 through 42. We're going to be reading out of Luke chapter 10, verses 38 through 42. It says:

Well, Jesus and his followers were traveling. He went into a town, and a woman named Martha let him stay at her house. She had a sister named Mary. Mary was sitting at Jesus' feet and listening to him teach. But her sister Martha was busy doing all the work that had to be done. Martha went in and said, Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her to help me. Just my opinion, that totally sounds like an older sister thing. I'm the youngest. But the Lord answered her, Martha, Martha, you are getting worried and upset about too many things. Only one thing is important. Mary has made the right choice, and it will never be taken away from her.

Luke 10:38-42

Let's pray. Lord, thank you so much because you are a God who values us, who values the important things, and you teach us how to do the same. Holy Spirit, I invite you to come and speak and receive this message today. It's all for your glory and in your holy name I pray. Amen.

Value What Jesus Valued

Alright, so in this passage we have three people that are central to the storyline. There's Jesus, there's Martha, and there's Mary. And when we observe how Jesus related with both the women in this passage, we see a really incredible lesson on the way of following Jesus.

The first thing that this passage teaches us is we have to value what Jesus valued. We have to value what Jesus valued. Martha has historically been painted as the villain in this story. And I understand why. After all, she's the one who gets corrected by Jesus at the end of it. But I want to make really clear that there was nothing intrinsically wrong with what Martha was doing. Martha was hosting Jesus and a group of his followers in her home. There were literally Jewish laws on hospitality and she was following them to a T. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with the fact that Martha was doing the things that she was doing. Her hospitality, her service. That isn't where she went wrong.

We've got to value what Jesus valued. So what did Jesus value? Jesus valued radical commitment. Jesus valued radical commitment. Mary in this passage is displaying a radical commitment. You see, Martha is obviously committed to Jesus. I won't wash dishes if I don't feel committed to the cause, you know what I'm saying? I'm not inviting them to my home and having 10 people there if I don't want to wash 10 people's dishes. She's obviously committed to Jesus and his teachings. She's hosting him. She's serving him. She's doing everything by the book.

But when she sees her sister displaying commitment in a way that is different, in a way that is beyond what is expected of her. In fact, the way that Mary is showing commitment to Jesus is societally taboo. Mary is sitting at the feet of Jesus. She is not engaging in the woman's role in that time and under those rules. She is breaking the rules for the sake of her commitment to lead with Jesus.

What makes her commitment to following Jesus radical instead of Martha's? It's her willingness to go against the grain in order to be with Jesus. It was her willingness to go against what was culturally normative and culturally acceptable to be with Jesus. Martha served, but it wasn't because that was her true and authentic act of commitment to Christ. She served because it was what was expected of her.

If we're honest with ourselves, every last one of us is guilty of this. Every last one of us has found ourselves going through the motions with our heart in the wrong place, waiting for someone to praise us for what we're doing, waiting for someone to notice or recognize us, and waiting for everyone else to be as miserable as we are. We all have done what is expected of us by others even if it's not what Jesus is asking of us. Again, it's not that what Martha was doing was wrong, but it's not what Jesus was asking of her. Jesus is asking us to choose radical commitment to him because he values commitment more than appearances. Jesus valued radical commitment and so should we.

Value Who Jesus Valued

The other thing that this passage shows us is that we have to value who Jesus valued. We have to value who Jesus valued. I'm tempted to say Jesus valued everyone because it's true. He did value everyone. But I think it's really important to note the specifics of this story and how intentional it is.

Luke is the author of this gospel. He's the author of the book of Luke. He's the author of the book of Acts. And there's a pattern to Luke's writing that is really neat. Most biblical scholars call it the great reversal. In almost all the stories that Luke tells about Jesus, he highlights Jesus taking somebody that society marginalizes and pushes down and he puts them in the elevated position in the story.

He tells a story about a Samaritan coming to the rescue when Samaritans were the people that the Jews were racist against. Then he tells the story of a woman coming and doing the right thing and being at the feet of Jesus. That's a pattern in Luke's writing. So yes, Jesus valued everyone. But really specifically, Jesus valued those no one else did. In this passage, it's women.

He not only allows Mary to sit at his feet and listen while he teaches, but he encourages her and he invites Martha to come and do the same. Women starting as young as four years old could not sit and learn the same rules as their male counterparts. They could not be in a room where boys were being educated starting as young as four years old.

This passage says that Mary was sitting at Jesus' feet, which also implies a proximity. She was in the front row and that was a place of honor. So not only is he being like yeah it's okay, he's not tolerating it, he's elevating and he's valuing this person that society pushes down. This is at the very least startling, but it was also likely really offensive.

But Jesus values those no one else did and he calls us to do the same. Jesus calls us to value the person who lives in a lifestyle we don't like. He calls us to value the person who grew up in a broken home. He calls us to value people who have different skin colors and speak different languages and eat different foods than us. He doesn't model pitying those society has marginalized. He models valuing them and there is a difference. So we must value what Jesus valued and we must value who Jesus valued.

Perceived Values Versus Actual Values

And this sounds like an easy enough concept. I have pretty much never spoken to someone who feels committed to following Jesus and feels secure in saying they're a follower of Jesus and doesn't have the understanding that they value who Jesus values. They value who Jesus values. But I want to clearly define what I mean when I say value.

You see, there's actually two different types of values. And a lot of times we say we value things, but there really are perceived values. So they're the things that cognitively we agree with, cognitively we understand to be true. But then there are actual values, which are the things we value enough to live out and we value enough to put into practice.

I had a professor, Dr. McKnoten, and one of his jobs was he was a church consultant. So he used to get invited to different churches that were struggling in different areas. And he would go and consult. And the first thing he would do, what he taught us, he would sit down with their listed values. Most churches have like a list of things like, here's what we value. And he would go item by item and he would make the leaders define the value and point out the things they do in the church that support that they actually value that thing.

And if they could point out tangible or practical things that prove they value that thing, he would not cross it out. But if they couldn't, if they couldn't point out the evidence, he would cross it through it because it wasn't an actual value. It was a perceived value. It's only an actual value if you act on it.

I can say I value sacrificial giving, but if I never sacrificially give, it's just a nice ideal. I can say I value diversity, but if my entire friend group and every voice of value in my life looks like me, sounds like me, thinks like me, then it's not an actual value. It's a nice idea. Actual values are things that we put into practice, we walk out, we live out.

Jesus didn't tell Mary, didn't tell this room of men, I value women. He sat her in the front row. It's an actual value. To follow the ways of Jesus, perceived values must become actual. Perceived values must become actual. We must value what Jesus valued and we must value who Jesus valued.

Living Out Your Values

I'm going to ask the band to come up. Can you get nice and chill today? And I'm going to ask everyone to go ahead and get up on their feet. We must value what Jesus valued and we must value who Jesus valued. Jesus valued radical commitment and those that no one else did. And if we are going to follow Jesus, then we have to do that too.

So I have a quick question that I'm asking you to ponder as we go back into the time of worship. And it's this: Do you find that there are some things in your life that are merely perceived values, not real values?

I'm willing to bet that the majority of the people in the room don't cognitively feel like, of course I value everything Jesus values. I love everyone. But to really pause and reflect, I invite the Holy Spirit in to examine your heart and to bring to light areas where maybe I say it's important to spend time with God, but I can't tell you the last time I did spend time with God. I say it's important to give, but I never in my adult life given my tithes and offerings. I say it's important to serve, but I haven't come to [Contributor Night] yet.

Any and all areas where our perceived values need to become actual values. This is an opportunity to pause, reflect, repent, and seek guidance from God on how to make those things actual. Ask God to come into your heart to quicken your spirit to action and to serve you to truly value what and who Jesus values.

We're also going to take some time just to worship and thank Jesus because whatever your life experience is, whether you're a man or a woman, whether you're white or a person of color, whether you come from a nuclear family or broken one, a PhD or GED or whatever your life looks like, Jesus values you in a real and in a tangible way. And that's special and that's beautiful. And we worship him for that. And we thank him for that because he does what no one else does.

And we're going to worship him for that. So I'm going to pray with you guys and then I'm going to hand over to the worship team and we're just going to take some time to reflect and hang out with the Holy Spirit.

Jesus, thank you so much because you are counter-cultural. Thank you because you're better than the standards of humanity. Thank you because you call us to places that nobody would ever dream or imagine we're capable of going. You love us more than we believe or capable of being loved.

Thank you because you model what it looks like to be a follower of God and to be a disciple. You lived it out. You didn't just say it. You didn't just teach it. You did it.

Thank you, Lord, for that. Lord, I pray that your Holy Spirit is coming with the boldness to have a radical commitment to you, even if it means not doing what's expected of us, even if it means doing what you're asking of us that might cause ridicule, that might mean we have to stand out, that might mean people disagree with us or don't like what we're doing. Lord, give us the boldness to be radically committed to you. Lord, give us a heart to love, truly love and truly value those who you value and may all of that come from a place of just overflowing with the love of a Savior that truly values us.

Lord, I thank you and worship you in your holy name we pray. Lord, we thank you and worship you. I pray that your Holy Spirit is going to enable us and empower us to value what you valued and value who you valued. We get to look like you every single step of the way as we continue to learn and grow in following you. Jesus, we thank you and it's in your way we pray. Amen.