MOTHERHOOD: STILL THE MOST IMPORTANT INSTITUTION
INTRODUCTION:
Anna M. Jarvis (1864-1948) first suggested the national observance of an annual day honoring all mothers because she had loved her own mother so dearly. At a memorial service for her mother on May 10, 1908, Miss Jarvis gave a carnation (her mother's favorite flower) to each person who attended.
Within the next few years, the idea of a day to honor mothers gained popularity, and Mother's Day was observed in a number of large cities in the U.S.
On May 9, 1914, by an act of Congress, President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed the second Sunday in May as Mother's Day. He established the day as a time for "public expression of our love and reverence for the mothers of our country."
While not a spiritual holiday observed by Christians, this is a good day to reflect of motherhood and pay tribute to godly mothers. It is for sure that the Subject is Biblical.
I. WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS ABOUT MOTHERHOOD.
A. To be a mother is a holy privilege from God.
1. Look at what Eve said when she gave birth for the first time.
a. Genesis 4:1 - "Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, and said, “I have acquired a man from the Lord.”
2. Becoming a mother is the greatest joy that a person can have in is life.
a. John 16:21 - " A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world."
B. Children are a gift from God.
1. Psalms 127:3-5 Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, The fruit
of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the
children of one’s youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of
them; They shall not be ashamed, But shall speak with their enemies in
the gate."
2. God specially designed the woman physically and emotionally to
not only conceive and bear a child but to nurture and raise a child as well.
II. ENEMIES OF MOTHERHOOD.
A. The playboy philosophy.
1. This philosophy looks upon women as playthings and objects of
lust. Motherhood simply complicates the playboys "fun."
2. Many husbands have become infected with this philosophy,
resenting the time that children take away from them. One father once
complained to his friends, "We had so much fun until that baby was
born." This shows a selfish attitude on the part of any man.
3. This goes against the spirit and letter of what the Bible says
concerning the place of women/mothers in general in society and
specifically what it says about the place of mothers in the family.
a. Matthew 5:27-28 "You have heard that it was said to those of old,
‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that whoever
looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with
her in his heart."
b. 1 Peter 3:7 " Husbands, likewise, dwell with them with understanding,
giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs
together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered."
B. The Feminist Movement.
1. Modern feminism looks down upon motherhood as degrading and a
trap to keep women "barefoot and pregnant."
2. Much of what we see and hear today fosters the notion that
fulfillment comes from working outside the home instead of being a
mother.
3. The Bible stresses the homemaking responsibility of mothers.
a. Titus 2:3-5 " the older women likewise, that they be reverent in
behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good
things—that they admonish the young women to love their husbands,
to love their children, 5to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good,
obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be
blasphemed."
4. In spite of what some think, the Bible does not prohibit women from
working outside the home. It does, however, teach that this should be
supplementary to her role as a keeper of the home.
a. Proverbs 31:10-24
5. The problem is when huge numbers of mothers enter the workplace
full-time to the exclusion of raising children properly. The children
lose the nurturing of a mother in the home. They turn to surrogate
mothers (grandmothers, aunts, Daycare workers). I encourage
6. This is not a blanket condemnation of all mothers who have to
work. Mothers, however, need to be careful that they work out of
"necessity" and not out of a desire to have things or have freedom.
7. I encourage mothers of young children, if at all possible, to stay at
home with those children at least until they reach school age.
8. Never be ashamed of the fact that you are mothers!
C. Abortion may have caused many women to hate their roles as mothers.
1. The belief that a woman has absolute control over her own body
has caused mothers to despise the child in their womb.
2. Many women have bought the satanic lie that the child of their
body is not a human life. Add to this the rise of sexual promiscuity
and over a million abortions result each year in the United States.
3. The fact is that mankind is made in the image of God (Genesis
1:27). The taking of human life is murder and is deserving of death
(Genesis 9:6). God hates those who shed innocent blood
(Proverbs 6:16-17).
4. Every unborn child deserves to live, even those who are unwanted.
Those babies can be adopted by those who cannot have children.
D. Divorce has also eroded the foundations of motherhood.
1. It has forced many mothers, who did not desire to work, to choose
between welfare and working outside the home. Generally speaking
the person who suffers most financially from a divorce is the woman.
2. Divorce removes the great support of the both a godly mother, a
godly father, out of the home and separated one or the other from
their children. Children need both, if at all possible.
3. It has also caused many women to make bad choices, including
unwise second marriages and living with boyfriends, in order to put
food on the table.
4. God still hates divorce, and for good reason!
Malachi 2:15-16 "And this is the second thing you do: You cover the altar of the Lord with tears, With weeping and crying; So He does not regard the offering anymore, Nor receive it with goodwill from your hands. Yet you say, “For what reason?”
Because the Lord has been witness Between you and the wife of your youth, With whom you have dealt treacherously; Yet she is your companion And your wife by covenant. But did He not make them one, Having a remnant of the Spirit? And why one? He seeks godly offspring. Therefore take heed to your spirit, And let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth. “For the Lord God of Israel says That He hates divorce, For it covers one’s garment with violence,” Says the Lord of hosts.
“Therefore take heed to your spirit, That you do not deal treacherously.”
5. The ease of divorce has lulled many women into the Devil’s lie of,
“If it doesn’t work out I’ll just divorce him and get another.” They
often don't "get another" and if they do he is sometimes worse than
the first. Both Men and women sometimes seem to marry the same
type person over and over again.
III. THE BIBLE HAS SEVERAL EXAMPLES OF GODLY AND WICKED
MOTHERS.
A. Godly mothers.
1. Hannah, the mother of Samuel.
a. She promised God that she would dedicate her son
completely to Him if God would give her a child.
1 Samuel 1:11- "Then she made a vow and said, “O Lord of hosts, if
You will indeed look on the affliction of Your maidservant and
remember me, and not forget Your maidservant, but will give Your
maidservant a male child, then I will give him to the Lord all the days of
his life, and no razor shall come upon his head.”
b. Mothers should be willing to put God first and seek to dedicate her
child to the service of the Lord. The godly mother will not be so much
concerned with how much money their children make, when they
become adults, as how faithful they will be to the Lord and what
service they will be to Him.
2. Mary, the mother of Jesus.
a. She was thankful to be the mother of Jesus (Luke1: 41-45
b. She willingly followed her son all the way to the cross. (John 19:25)
and afterward to the beginning of the church. (Acts 1:14).
3. Lois and Eunice.
a. They show the power of a mother’s influence. Godliness
was “passed on” through three generations.
b. Lois was faithful to God, passed on that faith to her
daughter Eunice, who influenced her son Timothy to follow
God.
2 Timothy 1:5- "when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also."
c. There can be little doubt that Eunice and Lois, if she were still living,
were encouragers of Timothy in his work of preaching the Gospel.
B. Wicked Mothers.
1. Jezebel.
a. She was a wicked idol worshiper (1 Kings 16:31).
b. She lied, cheated, hypocritical and otherwise a wicked woman.
c. She fulfilled the proverb found in Ezekiel 16:44
“Indeed everyone who quotes proverbs will use this proverb against
you: ‘Like mother, like daughter!’
d. Her daughter Athaliah turned out just as wicked as her mother.
2 Kings 11
2. Herodias, the wife of Herod.
a. She was the wife of Herod’s brother and was an adulterer (Matthew 14:3-4).
b. She influenced her daughter Salome to do wickedness. They
teamed together to have Herod kill John the Baptist.
c. Matthew 14:3-10
"3For Herod had laid hold of John and bound him, and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife. 4Because John had said to him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.” 5And although he wanted to put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they counted him as a prophet.6But when Herod’s birthday was celebrated, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod. 7Therefore he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask.8So she, having been prompted by her mother, said, “Give me John the Baptist’s head here on a platter.”9And the king was sorry; nevertheless, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he commanded it to be given to her. 10So he sent and had John beheaded in prison. 11And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. 12Then his disciples came and took away the body and buried it, and went and told Jesus."
CONCLUSION:
A little boy forgot his lines in a Sunday school presentation. His mother was in the front row to prompt him. She gestured and formed the words silently with her lips, but it did not help. Her son's memory was blank. Finally, she leaned forward and whispered the cue, "I am the light of the world." The child beamed and with great feeling and a loud clear voice said,
"My mother is the light of the world."
While Jesus is the true light of the world, you mothers can be the light which will lead your children to Christ.
“God could not be everywhere, and therefore he made mothers.” 4--Jewish Proverb
The hand that rocks the cradle is the hand that rules the world. 4--W. S. Ross
A mother is not a person to lean on but a person to make leaning unnecessary. 4--Dorothy Canfield Fisher
All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.
--Abraham Lincoln
The mother's heart is the child's schoolroom.
--Henry Ward Beecher
WHEN YOU THOUGHT I WASN'T LOOKING
(Written by a former child)
A message every adult should read, because
children are watching you and doing as you do, not as you say.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I saw you hang my first painting on the refrigerator,
and I immediately wanted to paint another one.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I saw you feed a stray cat,
and I learned that it was good to be kind to
animals.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I saw you make my favorite cake for me, and
I learned that the little things can be the
special things in life.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I heard you say a prayer,
and I knew there is a God I could always talk to
and I learned to trust in God.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I saw you make a meal and take it to a friend who was sick,
and I learned that we all have to help take care
of each other.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I saw you give of your time and money to help people who had nothing,
and I learned that those who have something
should give to those who don't.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I saw you take care of our house and everyone in it,
and I learned we have to take care of what we
are given.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I saw how you handled your responsibilities,
even when you didn't feel good, and I learned that I
would have to be responsible when I grow up.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I saw tears come from your eyes,
and I learned that sometimes things hurt,
but it's all right to cry.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I saw that you cared, and I wanted to be
everything that I could be.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I learned most of life's lessons that I need to know to be a good,
and productive person when I grow up.
When you thought I wasn't looking,
I looked at you and wanted to say,
"Thanks for all the things I saw when you thought I wasn't looking."
