Galatians 4:12-31
Going to a Bible college like I did, we all had our own jokes. One of the most common was joking about someone who missed chapel – that they needed to “get saved” again. While we were of course just messing with each other, the idea of that joke is much more dangerous than you might think. If church attendance is that important that salvation could be in question for missing it, then you may be stuck in a MARTHA Lifestyle. Paul explains that in this passage.
In this section, again helping the Galatians understand the difference between a life under Grace vs under the Law, Paul begins to transition into a pleading argument with them to cast out the Judaizers and those who care foremost about the Law. He does this by comparing the law and grace to Hagar and Sarah – slavery and freedom. Again, it boils down to a simple choice – which life do you pick, but in his pleading he gives his readers a glimpse of how these two lifestyles differ in actual practice – very closely resembling the situation in Luke when Jesus visited Mary and Martha.
The MARY Lifestyle
Paul is begging the Galatians to cast out the Judaizers and return to a life of ministry. He harkens back to the days when the churches were initially planted and they accepted him (despite his past) and grew. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to go back to the past, back to when things were new, full of promise and potential? Go with me for a minute back to when a relationship was just beginning, things were new and exciting, and the future was bright. Before the honeymoon ended or the weight of the world began to bog down. This is the idea Paul is trying to evoke in his readers. Fresh faith. Faith that is excited and active, that dreams of new believers and rejoices in the surprise visit from the friend who needs the gospel. This is the Mary Lifestyle.
Mary was so captivated with Jesus being at her home that she couldn’t take her eyes off Him. She sat as His feet and listened to every word. She didn’t worry about the chores, the responsibilities, the things that needed to be done, but took the time to be fully present in the moment and soak it all in. We are not advocating to shirk ministry opportunities here, but in fact, we should be totally wrapped up in them. When was the last time you had a non-Christian over for dinner? When was the last time you allowed for an interruption to change your schedule to include a ministry opportunity? The MARY Lifestyle is in the moment, real-time living for the purpose of God’s blessing on this world. This is what Paul wants for the Galatians, because if that’s their focus, they won’t get stuck in the MARTHA Lifestyle.
The MARTHA Lifestyle
This is the conundrum that seems to dumbfound Paul. They had all that life and vibrancy and ministry but turned backwards to the law! They went back to Egypt! They chose a MARTHA Lifestyle. This is the lifestyle that focuses not on presence, intimacy, and ministry, but instead on appearance and expectation. In the Luke passage, Martha was too busy to stop and listen to Jesus. There was too much to do – in fact, she was bold enough to go up to Jesus, interrupt Him and tell Him to fix Mary. Clearly, Martha chose the wrong option and missed out on the incredible experience in His presence. The Galatians did the same thing, falling into the Ishmael trap. They, by abandoning ministry and the presence of the Spirit, instead chose to live like Ishmael – the child of the slave woman. If they continue to hold to legalism and the rigidity of the Law, they will be forever trapped in bondage, effectively choosing slavery over freedom.
When we greet a new person with comments or criticism over their outfit; when the first words out of our mouth towards someone who’s been gone a while is “Where were you?”; when it’s more important to be right instead of being loving, we have entered into the MARTHA lifestyle.
Next Steps
Are we opening or closing doors to relationship and ministry? Are people let into your home or do you keep yourself closed off and the front door has begun to gather dust? The life of a 4D disciple is evident by the Spirit pouring through their life out onto other people in love and hospitality.
- Invite a non-Christian over to build a friendship
- Work time into your schedule to be interrupted throughout the day
- In every conversation, seek to deposit LOVE instead of right-ness
Our jokes about missing chapel were mostly harmless, but we realized that we were actually looking in chapel to find those who weren’t there to give them a hard time. That just built on people pressure and expectation. Instead, we should have been focusing on who was there and encouraging deeper dependency on God and opportunities to minister to others. Invest instead of criticizing. That’s the MARY lifestyle Paul is pleading for.
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