NEW TESTAMENT CHARACTERS.

MARTHA, MARY AND LAZARUS.
In one home the travelling band of apostles was always welcome.

Bethany was a village about two miles south east of Jerusalem - near enough to go in and out, far enough to be free from the city crowds. Here lived a wealthy woman named Martha with her young brother and sister, Lazarus and Mary. Martha was head of the household, apparent owner of the house and presumably guardian of the two youngsters.

Lazarus is called Jesus’ “friend” and it is stated that Jesus loved this family, but the strongest evidence of well-established friendship is that Martha could be irritable with Jesus. A hostess does not express bad temper to a stranger.

Martha (Luke 10:38-42).
The incident is well known and its interpretation controversial. It makes sense if Mary was indeed a teenager. Young people can be very caring at times and flip to thoughtlessness in a moment. It is not a weakness of character, it simply means that youngsters are young. Older people can be just as thoughtless in other ways. To dampen the enthusiasm of a Christian who is both young and new to the faith is a dangerous thing to do. Mary was sitting enraptured by Jesus, by His words and His personality, but Martha wanted to put an old head on young shoulders.

Anyone who has had to cater for a dozen people will know just how Martha felt - she needed help - and the help of a blundering male would be more trouble than it was worth. She wanted the help of the sister she was used to working with, who knew where things were kept and how they were done. She wanted Mary and no one else and there was the girl, totally wrapped up in the star attraction. Martha may also have felt it was not fitting for young woman to be in there with all the men.

Martha’s annoyance was directed more at Jesus than at Mary and she burst out, “Don’t you care that my sister is leaving all the work to me.”

And Jesus - who could handle heckling lawyers sent to trap Him in public debate - was forced into a corner. He had to choose between humiliating a vulnerable youngster and embarrassing His friend. He softened it as much as He could. The doubled name, “Martha Martha” is affectionate. He appreciated Martha’s effort “You are overloaded with so many things - don’t spoil the one thing that matters.”

He was appealing to the same friendship which had enabled Martha to grumble at Him. He was asking her to be the one who made allowances. His eyes were saying to her, “This conversation is going to hurt somebody - please be generous and let it be you.”

Youngsters grow up all too quickly as it is. Turn around and the carefree teenager has become the overloaded man or woman struggling with responsibilities. Value, before the chance has gone, the enthusiasm of youth. When it is directed towards Christ it is especially precious and older Christians should count it a privilege when they have to carry the load a little longer in order to set youngsters free to love Him more.

Lazarus (John 11 and 12:9-11).
A year or two passed. The band was staying on the other side of the Jordan in an area where they still had friends. The capital city was becoming increasingly dangerous, though the final warrant for Christ’s arrest had not yet been issued.

Then the message reached them that Lazarus was ill. Some thought they should not go into danger and this was when Thomas declared they should be prepared to die with Jesus if necessary.

Jesus went, but for some reason He delayed departure and the journey took several days. They arrived to find Lazarus dead and buried.

Martha, rational, wanted an answer. Why had her brother died when they had a friend who could heal the sick? Her mind cried out for a reason.

Mary, emotional, wanted comfort. She wanted to go with Jesus to the grave and weep together. Jesus felt their grief and wept.

Lazarus needed a miracle. He was dead and Jesus called him back to life.

To this day the same three needs confront people and we fail if we miss any one of them. Without a rational answer, comfort is shallow. Without caring sympathy, explanations are trite. Without miracle we have no more to offer than any other neighbour or friend. The mission of the church is to offer all three, reason, care and power.

Lazarus was raised to life again and the immediate result was twofold. First the Chief Priests held the council at which Caiaphas gave his advice - Jesus must die. The other result was that Lazarus himself found his life in danger. Merely by being alive he was a threat to the authorities; so they wanted him dead.

This last great miracle could not be hushed up or concealed. It had been done in public and all who saw it talked about it. Lazarus did not need to preach to bring people to believe in Jesus - he only had to breathe. His existence was evidence.

Jesus and the twelve once more returned to a quiet and safe country place, but not for long. The final Passover feast was due and Jesus led them back to where He would be crucified.

Mary (Matthew 26:6-13 Mark 14:3-9 John 12:1-8).
They reached Bethany on Friday evening just before the Sabbath rest began. Sabbath is from Friday at sunset until Saturday at sunset. When the rest begins, families are together in their homes. When the rest is ended, that is the time for celebration.

So on Saturday evening after sunset the village of Bethany gave Him a banquet. Martha was caterer in chief. The house belonged to someone called Simon - “The Leper” - whatever that meant.

Mary was a year or so older than when she was first enraptured by Jesus. Still young, still sentimental and emotional, but with a hint of young adult steel. She probably did her stint in the kitchen this time. But she had made a resolve, simple in its way, that the most valuable thing she owned must be given to Jesus.

The most valuable thing Mary owned was a flask of very expensive perfumed ointment. To anoint a guest was normal enough in that culture. It had happened to Jesus before. A good host would provide someone to wash guests’ feet first, then as an extra for a highly honoured guest there would be perfumed oil for head and feet. Mary could have gone round to the nearest apothecary for some quite good and reasonably priced anointing oil - just part of the preparation for a banquet.

It was not the fact of the anointing that was exceptional. It was the double extravagance of using her best perfume and using it all. This was the ointment she might have kept for her wedding night.

Suddenly the whole room was full of the scent, indeed it might have been overpowering. She anointed Him head and feet, both (cf Mark & John). She rubbed it in and finding that in her extravagance she had poured out so much it was flowing off Him, she wiped His feet with the end of her long hair.

Judas burst out, “That stuff was worth a fortune. We could have sold it for a good cause.” It was not only Judas, however, who begrudged the extravagance. The whole company thought it, only Judas said it aloud.

Once again Jesus was put in the position that He had to embarrass someone, but there was no question this time which.

He said, “Leave her alone, it was lovely *. You can give to charity any time you like. She has taken her chance to give this now - better than waiting till I’m buried. I’ll tell you something else. What this young lady has just done will be talked about all over the world, wherever this Gospel is proclaimed.”

And it is.

The “waste” was the whole point. That was what Mary was saying and it was not so very different from what Peter said a few days later, “I will go to prison and death with you” (as eventually he did, but not at that time). “You Lord are worth being wasted for.”

Jesus had another reason for valuing this gift. He saw in the determinedly sentimental teenager a mirror of all that characterises Heaven. Extravagant over-giving is a mark of God’s character and ways. It is at the heart of the Gospel - indeed it is the Gospel - that God has paid a billion billion times over more than His redeemed are worth. Jesus, Son of God - infinite, gave Himself for mankind - finite.

Soon His body would be broken like Mary’s flask - and the whole universe filled with the perfume.

To avoid confusion it must be noted that the occasion in Luke 7 when Jesus was anointed in the house of Simon the Pharisee was a different and earlier incident. Also that Mary of Bethany was not Mary Magdalene and was not present at the cross. (On the day of the crucifixion she was probably helping Martha care for the nine disciples who had fled.)

* KJV “She hath wrought a good work on me” gives an impression of mere approval. “It was lovely” expresses personal appreciation - which was what Mary needed to hear.