Sister Brenda Sunday School 7/10/11

Sister Brenda Sunday School 7/10/11

Blessed are they that DO hunger and thirst after righteousness.

The enemy wants us to allow unbelief to work in our life so that we do not hunger and thirst.  He wants to blind us to how blessed we will be if we will hunger and thirst after righteousness.  Hunger and thirst are the keenest of our appetites.  If we will not eat or drink our life will not be sustained.

A deer will find a refuge in the river when they are chased by hounds.  They are refreshed and their thirst is quenched and they are protected from their scent.

David said that he hungered and thirsted after God.  When he was isolated in the wilderness he hungered for tabernacle worship.

Jesus hungered to be alone with God.  If He hungered for this, how much more we need to hunger and thirst after God.

The saints know that there is no total satisfaction in anything of this world.  We should not expect people or anything else to satisfy.  We must find our satisfaction in God.

David wrote, “All my springs are in thee.”  We shouldn’t expect our spouse to satisfy us completely; the satisfaction for the desire of the human soul can only come from God.

Pro 12:28  In the way of righteousness is life; and in the pathway thereof there is no death.

Hungering and thirsting after God brings righteousness and life.

If we will have the glory of God in our lives, if we will hunger and thirst after righteousness it will be a crown of glory to us.

Luk 10:38  Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.

Luk 10:39  And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word.

Luk 10:40  But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me.

Luk 10:41  And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things:

Luk 10:42  But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her.

Jesus was traveling with His disciples.  Martha no doubt received them into her home.  Martha was the hostess and felt responsible for feeding them.  I can understand Martha’s situation when I put myself in her position.  It takes work, preparation and effort to be a good hostess. 

Mary and Martha were good friends with Jesus; this was a love relationship.  Jesus loved these people (John 11:5).  When someone you love comes to visit you want to do your best.  She wanted to have an excellent meal for them.  It was a job to make a beautiful meal especially in that day without the modern conveniences that we have today.

Mary also sat at Jesus feet, maybe Martha usually sat at Jesus’ feet too, it may be some outside people were there sitting at His feet.  Mary sat at Jesus feet and He commended her.  We must do this too, it is not wrong to do your best and put every effort you can into something, but you must not leave out what is most important.  Mary sat at Jesus feet and heard His word. 

It is one thing to have devotions; it is another thing to hear what God has to say to us.  We must get away from the distractions and in the closet to hear from God.  Mary’s heart was set to hear.  I believe she also wanted Jesus to have good food and a bed to sleep in, but her heart was to hear Jesus.  She couldn’t busy herself with chores and give Him her full attention. 

I can’t do more than one thing at once very well, God talks to me when I’m in the kitchen, but God honors us when we set things aside to hear Him.

The song, “Sitting At The Feet of Jesus”, p370 in the hymnal:

Sitting at the feet of Jesus, O what words I hear him say!
Happy place! So near so precious! May if find me there each day.
Sitting at the feet of Jesus, I would look upon the past;
For his love has been so gracious, it has won my heart at last.

Sitting at the feet of Jesus, Where can mortal be more blest?
There I lay my sins and sorrows, and when weary find sweet rest.
Sitting at the feet of Jesus, There I love to weep and pray;
While I from his fullness gather, Grace and comfort every day.

Bless me, O my savior, bless me, As I sit low at thy feet;
O look down in love upon me, Let me see they face so sweet.
Give me, Lord, the mind of Jesus, Keep me holy as he is;
May I prove I’ve been with Jesus, Who is all my righteousness.

Written by Casey Mentor, a Methodist minister from Corpus Christi Texas.  He and his wife were killed in a car accident in 1948 and no information is available about what inspired him to write the song.

Sitting at the feet of Jesus implies a willingness to hear and a submission to His words.  We need to see God as the Almighty God in our lives and the one that is willing and able to save us.

Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

Let’s not cast aside the early morning worship; it is important.  We want to be strong in this way; don’t let down or lose this.  Begin your day by seeking God and have His direction in your day.  Seek God before other things come in to distract and divide your attention, before other influences come in to divert your attention.  Religion flourishes only in the soul that makes God the first object in our lives.  We want to be strong in this and not be lackadaisical about having our devotions.  We will only have God’s help if we take time to seek God.

Martha felt like she was serving alone.  Have you ever felt this way?  We understand how Martha felt; “There is a lot of stuff to do and my sister is just sitting on the floor and not helping.”  She went to Jesus about it.  She was trying to do too much, making it what it didn’t have to be, maybe too fancy. 

I believe Martha was a good woman, a child of God, but she was wrong.  It led to a bad attitude toward her sister.  We cannot afford to get a bad attitude about anything. 

She was so concerned that she went to Jesus.  Jesus said, “Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things.”  Cumbered means to drag around and distract.  The situation about eating was the primary thing in her thoughts; she was careful and troubled about it.  Worldly business can distract us from what is really important.  “One thing is needful; Mary has chosen that good part.” 

Do we have troubling needless things in our lives, could we be less involved in things of life so that we could have time to sit at Jesus’ feet?  Do we need to lay aside some things that we are involved in so that we have time to sit at Jesus’ feet?

Bro Bill – I’ve said to my wife, “Let’s do our life in such a way so that we have the least amount of irons in the fire as possible so that we are freed up to do what we should for God.”  Martha probably tried to get too much done.  I want to have the least amount of distractions as possible so that we can do our best for God.

We shouldn’t be too quick to take up responsibilities.  Seek God, be led of Him so we can know and do what He wants us to do.  We can be so busy that God is not able to use us for what He wants us to do.  It would be different for each one, but God can help each of us to know how to do this.

Martha was taken up with things so that she missed what Jesus was teaching.  You know that Jesus appreciated her desire to do something special for them, He was kind to her.  How many times has God spoken to us and taught us that we need to lay aside something and do what is more important.

Jesus had the answer and He has the answer for each one of us.