為什麽你不必為耶穌太過於忙碌WHYYOU NEED TO STOP BEING TOO BUSY FOR JESUS
作者: Adriel Sanchez 譯者: Maria Marta
https://corechristianity.com/resource-library/articles/why-you-need-to-stop-being-too-busy-for-jesus
我一直對路加福音中的這一場景感興趣: 馬利亞坐在耶穌腳前，馬大忙於伺候主耶穌。馬大接耶穌到自己家裏，盛情款待。她專心伺候耶穌，甚至因為她姐姐不像她自己那樣忙碌而到了灰心的地步。但是這個故事向我們顯示，耶穌自己反對為祂忙碌。經文告訴我們：
「……馬利亞，在耶穌腳前坐著聽他的道。馬大伺候的事多，心裡忙亂，就進前來說：『主啊，我的妹子留下我一個人伺候，你不在意嗎？請吩咐她來幫助我。』耶穌回答說：『馬大，馬大，你為許多的事思慮煩擾， 但是不可少的只有一件。馬利亞已經選擇那上好的福分，是不能奪去的。』」（路十39-42）
你能相信嗎? 馬大------實幹家-----關心主，希望為祂的特別到訪作點事。毫無疑問，對她來說這是個重要的時刻; 一切都要完美! 然而，路加告訴我們，她的侍候實際上分散了她對主的注意力。一本普通的希臘詞典對「注意力分散」(distraction)一詞的定義: 被拉去或拖走，或者把注意力從一件事轉移到另一件事上，分心，相當忙，負擔過重 (《新約及早期基督教文獻希臘文大字典》BDAG)。馬大背負重擔，開始懷疑耶穌是否真的注意到她的姐姐沒有提供協助。畢竟，她只是坐在那裏! 耶穌對馬大的溫柔回應有點令人吃驚。祂承認馬大有很多要操心應付的事。祂諳熟她的焦慮，但祂知道她的注意力被誤導了。受困的馬大所需要的不是繼續為耶穌忙碌，而是坐下來，花時間領受耶穌。
你能認同馬大嗎? 美國人以「忙碌」為傲，最近的研究表明，很多人把忙碌視為重要的標記。[註] 這種情況與今天教會的現象並沒有太大區別，基督徒經常受到鼓勵去思考「我們能為耶穌做什麼」。我們最近幾天強調不作基督徒消費者，這導致基督徒當中出現搖擺不定的局面，現在真正的焦點是作一個超級仆人。每個人都必須在一個小團體裏，有一項事工，並自願參與大型的教會活動。我認為小團體很棒，事奉也極好，但如果你不小心，你可能開始體驗馬大的感受。你環顧四周，感到沈重、煩惱、焦慮、沮喪。「他為什麼不做志願者?」 耶穌在乎我為祂所做的一切嗎? 祂要和在那邊還沒報名上幼兒園的妹妹打交道嗎? 就像這個故事一樣，耶穌知道我們事奉忙碌，祂叫我們停下來一分鐘，專心聆聽。對我們當中的一些人來說，停下來聆聽遠比完成密集的日程表困難得多。
有時我琢磨著我們是否用「忙」作為一種逃避的方式。當我們被拉去服侍耶穌，我們就有虔誠的理由解釋為何我們不需要花時間聆聽耶穌的話。做比聽要容易得多，尤其是當我們所聽到的，是一個知道我們所有憂慮的人的聲音時。耶穌的話暴露了我們的不安與恐懼。祂的說話之光光照我們的罪：我們常常設法用忙碌的事奉來贖罪。聆聽令人不舒服，但耶穌說，馬大，你能做的最重要的事，就是坐下來傾聽我的聲音。我不認為這意味著我們需要在侍奉耶穌和聆聽耶穌之間作出選擇; 相反，它強調事奉耶穌的唯一正確方式是坐在祂的腳前聆聽祂講話。
你可能有繁忙和填滿服侍耶穌事項的日程表，但它卻分散了你的注意力，使你沒有聽到祂的聲音? 我擔心，在我們熱衷作「動員部隊」時，我們牧師的教導經常給人的印象是，你的事奉是你參與教會最重要的事。我曾聽說，我們上教會時，應該考慮的第一件事不是「我將從中領受到什麽?」而是「我能作什麽事奉?」但是耶穌挑戰了這個秩序，不是嗎? 你應該上教會，整個星期都打開聖經，期待從中領受。聆聽基督的話是耶穌鼓勵馬大停下來和去做的必要事情。
如果你感到負重、灰心、焦慮，煩惱，也許因為你在忙碌中被拖走了，基督的聲音變得微弱。我相信耶穌溫柔地對你說: 「馬大，馬大……」祂知道你累了，能讓你安息。祂看到你所有的罪，希望潔凈你。只有當你不再為耶穌忙碌時，你才能經歷祂提供給你的服事。祂在祂的工作中清洗客人，讓他們沐浴在祂的說話當中。祂預備好桌子，擺上豐盛的筵席：賜給你們祂自己的生命。這意味著你上教會，首先不是做，而是領受。來經歷侍候主耶穌體驗，那上好的分，是不能從你奪去的。
[註] Harvard Business
Review Research: Why Americans Are So Impressed by Busyness. https://hbr.org/2016/12/research-why-americans-are-so-impressed-by-busyness
Adriel
Sanchez is pastor of North Park Presbyterian Church, a congregation in the
Presbyterian Church in America (PCA). In addition to his pastoral
responsibilities, he also serves the broader church as a host on the Core
Christianity radio program. He and his wife Ysabel live in San Diego with their
three children.
WHY
YOU NEED TO STOP BEING TOO BUSY FOR JESUS
By Adriel
Sanchez
https://corechristianity.com/resource-library/articles/why-you-need-to-stop-being-too-busy-for-jesus
I’ve
always been intrigued by the scene in Luke’s Gospel where Mary sat at the feet
of Jesus, while Martha busied herself serving him. Martha showed Jesus
hospitality, and welcomed him into her home. She focused on serving the Lord,
even to the point of frustration because her sister wasn’t busying herself as
Martha had been. But the story reveals to us that there’s a busyness for Jesus
that Jesus himself objects to. The text tells us that,
Mary…
sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted
with much serving. And she went up to him and said, ‘Lord, do you not care that
my sister has left me to serve alone. Tell her then to help me.’ But the Lord
answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things,
but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be
taken away from her.’ (Lk. 10:39-42)
Can
you believe that? There’s Martha – the doer – tending to the Lord, wanting to
make this a special visit for him. This was, no doubt, a big moment for her;
and everything needed to be perfect! And yet, Luke tells us that her service
for Jesus was actually a distraction from Jesus. One popular Greek lexicon
defines this word, distraction: to be pulled or dragged away or to have one’s
attention directed from one thing to another, to be distracted, quite busy,
overburdened(BDAG). Burdened with the heavy lifting, Martha begins to wonder
whether or not Jesus is at all concerned with her sister’s lack of assistance.
After all, she’s just sitting there! Jesus’ gentle response to Martha comes as
somewhat of a shock. He recognized that Martha had a lot on her plate. He was
intimately aware of her anxieties, but he knew that her focus was misdirected.
What the troubled Martha needed wasn’t to keep busying herself for Jesus, but
to sit and spend time receiving from Jesus.
Can
you identify with Martha? Americans take pride in being “busy,” and recent
research shows that many view busyness as a sign of importance.[1] It isn’t
very different in the church today, where Christians are often encouraged to
think about “What they could be doing for Jesus.” Our emphasis in recent days
on not being consumer Christians has led to a pendulum swing, where now the
real focus is on being a super-servant. Everyone has to be in a small group,
and have a ministry, and volunteer for big church events. I think small groups
are great, and service is wonderful, but if you’re not careful, you can begin
to experience what Martha felt. The feelings of being burdened, troubled,
anxious, and frustrated when you look around. “Why isn’t he volunteering? Does
Jesus care about everything I’m doing for him? Is he going to deal with my
sister over there who hasn’t signed up for the nursery yet!?” Like in this
story, Jesus is aware of our busy service, and he calls us to stop for a
minute, and listen. For some of us,
that’s far more difficult than filling our schedules with things to do.
I
wonder if sometimes we don’t use busyness as an escape. When we’re pulled
around serving Jesus, we have a pious justification for why we don’t have to
spend time listening to Jesus. Doing is much easier than hearing, especially
when what we hear is the voice of the one who knows all of the things we’re
anxious about. His word confronts our insecurities and fears. It shines a light
on the sin we often try to atone for with our busy service. Listening is
uncomfortable, but Jesus says the most important thing you can do, Martha, is
sit and listen to my voice. I don’t think this means we need to choose between
serving Jesus, and hearing Jesus; rather, it highlights that the only right way
to serve Jesus is after having sat at his feet and heard him.
Has
your busy schedule, filled as it may be with acts of service for Jesus,
distracted you from stopping to listen to his voice? I’m afraid that in our
zeal to “mobilize the troops”, we pastors have often given the impression that
the most important thing about your involvement in the church is your service.
I’ve heard it said before that the first thing we should think when going to a
church isn’t, “What am I going to get out of this?” But, “What can I do to
serve?” Jesus challenges this order though, doesn’t he? You should go to
church, and open the Scriptures throughout the week, expecting to receive.
Hearing the word of Christ is the necessary thing which Jesus encouraged Martha
to stop and do.
If
you’re burdened, frustrated, anxious, and troubled, perhaps it’s because you’ve
been dragged away in your busyness, and Christ’s voice has become faint. To
you, I believe Jesus gently comes saying, “Martha, Martha…” He knows you’re
tired and can give you rest. He sees all of your sins and wants to cleanse you.
Only once you stop being too busy for Jesus can you experience the service he
offers you. He washes his guests in his work, bathing them with his word. He
sets the table and provides the meaty feast: his own life, given for you. This
means that you don’t primarily go to church to do but to receive. To experience
Jesus’ divine service, the good portion, which will not be taken away from you.
Notes
^
Harvard Business Review Research: Why Americans Are So Impressed by Busyness. https://hbr.org/2016/12/research-why-americans-are-so-impressed-by-busyness