What Cannot be Taken Away

by Michelle Ramsey

I love the account of Mary and Martha in Luke 10:38-42.  We know the story, Martha is busy serving, while Mary is sitting at the feet of Jesus.  As you may know, to sit at someone’s feet is a Jewish idiom meaning to be one’s disciple.  I also love how Jesus defends Mary to her disgruntled, overworked sister, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.”  

I think it’s significant that Jesus doesn’t tell Martha what she’s doing for Him isn’t important, because it was very important at the moment.  He did need to eat, after all!  Those things had to be done.  However, He makes the point that what Mary is doing, sitting at His feet, is even better.  This will never be taken away from her.  Jesus is clearly stressing priorities in this passage.

In this season of social distancing during the COVID-19 crisis, many things have been “taken away” from us, some things that many of us hold dear.  May we hold fast to that which cannot be taken away!  No one can take away our time with Jesus.  No one can stop us from reading and studying the Bible.  No one can stop us from praying.  No one can stop us from having a song of praise.  No one can stop us from proclaiming the message of Jesus.  No one can stop us from doing good to others.  No one can stop us from being the church to a hurting world.  After all, every believer—not a physical building—is a temple of the Holy Spirit (I Cor. 3:16, 6:19).

In the days to come, we will by necessity have to rethink our method of some “A to Zs” of normal church life, from greetings to altar calls and many things in between.   While some methods may need to be adapted for our times, according to Jesus we are in need of one thing above all else.  And if we choose “sitting at His feet” as our chief priority, it will not be taken away.  If we seek Him first, everything else will fall into place (Matt. 6:33).  As Hebrews 12 teaches us, we belong to a kingdom that cannot be shaken.  After what can be shaken has been shaken, what remains is unshakeable! 

So let’s not have a crisis in our faith as a result of the things that have been taken away, rather let’s hold to what Jesus declares can never be taken away from us.  Let’s forever sit at His feet.