Distracted But Not Denied

Joining us for another week of The One Thing, Dan Watson preaches through Luke 10:38-42 and Exodus 33, teaching that God just wants our undivided devotion and affection above all else.

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 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!" “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Luke 10:38-42

Martha, Martha. This is one of the seven times in Scripture that God uses someone's name twice.

• Genesis 22:11—Abraham, Abraham.
• Genesis 46:2—Jacob, Jacob.
• Exodus 3:4—Moses, Moses.
• 1 Samuel 3:10—Samuel, Samuel.
• Luke 22:31—Simon, Simon.
• Acts 9:4—Saul, Saul.
• Luke 10:38—Martha, Martha.

Why does he say these names twice?

1. We serve a loving and compassionate God, and the repeated name is a sign of intimacy.
2. We serve a God who wants to get our attention.

God was trying to get Martha's attention, to remind her that He is the one thing that matters.

One of the greatest dangers we face is the struggle to sit at Jesus' feet and stay in His presence.

We all know the traditions, but many of us need to remember to just sit at his feet and be in His presence.

I’m asking God for one thing,

  only one thing:

To live with him in his house

  my whole life long.

I’ll contemplate his beauty;

  I’ll study at his feet.

Psalm 27:4 (MSG)

Scripture tells us that Martha was distracted. Her service was not the problem—her distraction was.

Distracted in Greek means to be pulled away or dragged down.

Nothing Martha was doing was bad, sinful, or blasphemous. But it was a distraction.

If our distractions cause us to be pulled away from Jesus, we need to eliminate them.

We can be in the House of God and still not be in His presence. We don't want to be distracted from lifting up the one name that matters; we want to worship Him because He is in the room with us.

Sometimes, the greatest enemy of intimacy with Christ is not our outright sin but our busyness and our distraction from seeing the beauty of the Lord.

We can be distracted by errands, social media, tasks, relationships, social commitments, financial worries, anxiety, shame, guilt, perfectionism, etc.

These can become barriers to God or idols that create the lie of self-sufficiency, but we must remember that nothing is greater than being at His feet.

"The world is perishing for lack of the knowledge of God and the Church is famishing for want of His Presence. The instant cure of most of our religious ills would be to enter the Presence in spiritual experience, to become suddenly aware that we are in God and that God is in us. This would lift us out of our pitiful narrowness and cause our hearts to be enlarged." - A.W. Tozer

There's power in being with Jesus like Mary was.

Here are three takeaways:

1. The power of Jesus brings transformation.

Read Exodus 33:3.

God let the Israelites do what they wanted to do because they didn't want his glory.

So many people want the provision more than they want the provider. You can get the job, car, or house, but if He doesn't get the glory, it's pointless. We don't want the land of milk and honey without God.

So the Israelites turned from their ways and worshipped Him.

Exodus 33:11 says that there was a pillar of cloud (which we understand to be His presence). God comes where He is wanted.

Read Exodus 33:14-16.

What will be the thing that distinguishes us from the world?

You can be really nice, a great encourager, or a generous person and not know Jesus. But the thing that will distinguish us from the people of God from the ones who do not know God is God. If we do not carry God with us, we are just like the world.

Read Exodus 33:18-23, 29-30.

God gave Moses a glimpse of Himself because Moses couldn't handle His full glory, but the mere glimpse had the power to transform him.

Moses' face was radiant because he had spoken with the Lord. It was evident that he had been in the presence of the Lord.

Our lives should look different because God is in us.

The more time we spend with Jesus, the more brightly our lives will shine for others.

2. The power of Jesus brings rest.

Even if the storms are raging in your life, you can find supernatural peace and rest at the feet of Jesus.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Matthew 11:28

The Lord replied, “My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

Exodus 33:14

If you're struggling with relationships, anxiety, insecurity, pride, etc., you can rest at the feet of Jesus.

3. The power of being with Jesus brings delight.

There is nothing better than being in the presence of Jesus, and there's nothing Jesus loves more than us wanting to sit and commune with God.

The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend. Then Moses would return to the camp, but his young aide Joshua son of Nun did not leave the tent.

Exodus 33:11

This is an intimate and personal God who wants to speak to us and know us. He doesn't want us to just come into church and do the motions. He delights when we seek after Him.