True Confessions

“Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:41-42

Martha certainly made a name for herself in the New Testament. If I asked you to describe Martha with one word, you might say: Impulsive. Bold. Impatient. Hardworking. But how about these words:
Faithful. Teachable. Insightful. Prophetic.

No? Why not?

When we hear the name Martha we often only associate her with the previous story. But Martha was also responsible for one of the most profound statements of faith in the NT.

Throughout John's Gospel, we find emphatic denials, hopeful declarations, rhetorical questions, and confused confessions regarding the identity of the Messiah:

John the Baptist to the religious leaders: “I am not the Messiah.”

Andrew to his brother Simon: “We have found the Messiah.”

The Samaritan woman to her neighbors: “Could he be the Messiah?”

The crowds in Jerusalem: “He is the Messiah!” and “He can't be theMessiah!”

However, the gold star of recognition belongs to Martha, the sister of Mary and Lazarus.

In John's Gospel, Martha and Mary called for Jesus as their brother Lazarus suffered with a grave illness. For reasons known only to himself, Jesus delayed his journey until Lazarus died. In John 11, Martha confronted Jesus when she heard of his entrance into the city.

"Lord," Martha said to Jesus, "if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask."
Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again."
Martha answered, "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day."
Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"
"Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world." ~John 11:21-27 (italics mine)

Burdened by grief, Martha proclaimed Jesus' true identity with steadfast faith and divine insight. However, sometimes the significance of her confession of faith is lost until we compare it to Peter's confession of faith in Matthew's Gospel.

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. ~Matthew 16:15-17 (italics mine)

Both Martha and Peter responded to Jesus' inquiry with divine accuracy. Their proclamations were virtually identical, equally significant, and profoundly insightful. Like Peter, Martha's response flowed from a mature and knowledgeable awareness of who Jesus was.

Martha's impatience with her sister and her bold confrontation with Jesus have been the fodder of many a sermon. But Martha was not simply the hardworking kin of the studious Mary and the beloved Lazarus. On the contrary, she possessed a deep and abiding faith and here in John's Gospel, Jesus granted her the unique opportunity to boldly confess her belief in him.

In the synoptic gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke recorded Peter's dialogue with Jesus and his confession of faith. However, in John's Gospel, the apostle chose to document only Martha's story and her statement of faith. Just as God used Peter, so God ordained Martha to proclaim the proper identity of Jesus.

At a moment in her life when Martha must have been very sad and stressed, Jesus invited her to testify to his true nature and being. While her brother Lazarus laid in the tomb, Martha with the same faith and boldness of the apostle Peter, recognized and testified to the Messiah, the Giver of life.