283: Mary & Martha: Choosing the Better Thing (Luke 10:38–42)

In today’s Talkin’ Bible, Rohan Bell and Jeff Baxter sit with one of the most beloved short stories in Luke’s gospel — Mary and Martha. One is distracted with all the preparations, the other sits quietly at Jesus’ feet. But what’s really going on here? And what does it mean for us today?

Together, Rohan and Jeff unpack the cultural setting, the radical way Jesus elevated women, and how easy it is to slip into “Martha-ritis” — being so busy doing for Jesus that we forget to simply be with Him.

👀 In this episode, you’ll hear…

✅ 🏠 Why the detail that “it was Martha’s home” matters more than we think

✅ 👩‍🎓 How Mary sitting at Jesus’ feet broke cultural norms and signalled inclusion

✅ 🧺 Why Martha’s work wasn’t wrong — but her attitude towards it was

✅ 🍗 Why Jesus probably didn’t need more than “barbecue chicken and chips”

✅ 🙋‍♀️ How Luke consistently elevates women in his gospel

✅ ⚖️ The tension between performance, perfectionism, and presence

✅ ⏱️ Why finding even 5 minutes a day to sit with Jesus makes all the difference

✅ ⛪ How pastors and churches can fall into busyness and miss intimacy with Christ

⏱️ Timestamps

00:00 – Intro: Mary & Martha in Luke’s gospel

02:00 – Martha’s home and possible role as matriarch

04:30 – Hosting pressures: Jesus + disciples arriving!

05:30 – “Martha-ritis” and the trap of comparison

07:00 – Mary sitting at Jesus’ feet: radical, counter-cultural inclusion

09:00 – Luke’s theme of elevating women

10:40 – The real issue: not the work, but Martha’s attitude

12:30 – Modern parallels: busyness, performance, and perfectionism

13:40 – Making space daily to sit with Jesus

14:50 – Pastoral reflections: ministry without presence is empty

15:30 – Closing encouragement: choose the better thing

🙋‍♂️ Reflection & Application

Like Martha, we can get caught up in performance — in our homes, work, even church. But Jesus reminds us that the better thing is His presence. Serving is good, but not at the expense of intimacy with Him.

💬 Question for you: What does it look like for you to pause today and sit at Jesus’ feet?

🔔 Join us tomorrow for our final episode of the week!

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