When Martha heard that Jesus was coming,
she went to meet him;
but Mary sat at home.
There is a time to be active. When we are with Jesus we should take the opportunity to sit at his feet and be taught by him. But when we need to go somewhere to see him we should go "to meet him". If we go to him in faith my may "see the glory of God[.]" If we sit at home we may still see the results. But this won't have the transformative effect on our faith that Jesus intends.
Jesus brings Martha from a faith that is distant...
Martha said to him,
“I know he will rise,
in the resurrection on the last day.”
...to a faith that is immediate and transformative:
She said to him, “Yes, Lord.
I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God,
the one who is coming into the world.”
With each encounter with Jesus she comes to grasp more and more the one thing that is necessary. Even though the LORD is not always with Martha she nevertheless always displays zeal although she doesn't always show it in the best way. But we are not always so zealous.
As he drew near the camp, he saw the calf and the dancing.
If we go too long without his guidance we will be increasingly subjected to the temptation to fall back on our own resources and into our old ways. Even though such failings leave a bitter taste in our mouths...
Taking the calf they had made, he fused it in the fire
and then ground it down to powder,
which he scattered on the water and made the children of Israel drink.
...Jesus does not abandon us. Even more so than Moses, Jesus stands in the breach for us.
Then he spoke of exterminating them,
but Moses, his chosen one,
Withstood him in the breach
to turn back his destructive wrath.
Because he never stops interceding for the zealous, the lukewarm, and even the coldhearted, let us thank him.
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.
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