This Sunday we will come together to consider a passage that's as well known as it is misunderstood. As Jesus enters a village, a woman called Martha welcomes the Savior into her home. Martha's sister, Mary, sits at the feet of Jesus as Martha herself works to provide all the things necessary to accommodate her esteemed guest.

Martha is in the wrong and Mary is in the right as she chooses "the better portion." This is the point of the passage. But what was right about what Mary chose and what was wrong about what Martha chose? That's the pivotal question to ask of the story, and it's one that often goes unasked, let alone answered.

One way to answer the question is to consider the actual energy being expended by the sisters. Martha is in a state of action while Mary is in a state of contemplation, resting at the feet of Jesus. Many have taken from this passage a commendation of a sort of soft-asceticism, a withdrawal from the cares of the world and an embrace of a higher, more transcendent posture of reflection.

The problem with such a reading of the text is other passages that are action-oriented. Jesus sends his disciples into the world to summon missional-energy to preach the gospel, heal the sick, and feed the poor. Indeed, there are times in the Christian life where faithfulness might look precisely like Martha's work of hospitality.

If Martha isn't rebuked for her work, what is her sin? It turns out, we don't have to speculate, the text tells us. Martha was "distracted." In her business, Martha lost sight of the reason she was cooking and cleaning: Jesus himself. Seeing Martha's sin in this light, we better see the invitation of the text: to attend to Jesus. To sit at his feet. To be with him. What is Jesus inviting us into? In a word, friendship.

Sometimes, this friendship with Jesus looks like baking bread and scrubbing dishes while at other times it looks like sitting on a sofa with the Book of Common Prayer. The point isn't about one's activity per se, but one's proximity to Jesus.

The questions we will leave Sunday considering are: Where is Jesus now? What is he doing? How can I be near him in his work in the world? It's this posture of apprenticeship that we seek to pursue at All Saints. To be a friend of Jesus is, truly, "the better portion." I hope you're able to join us Sunday as we sit at the feet of Jesus!