Good morning and Happy Mother’s Day! Our objective this morning is to honor mothers, grandmothers, step-mothers, foster mothers and all the women who fill that role for us. After all, it’s what the Lord commanded us to do. Let’s read the 4th commandment together, “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.” Ex 20:12
Not only is it the first commandment with a promise, it comes before, “you shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal.”
So, thank you, mom! For all that stuff nobody sees except the Lord! There are no perfect moms. Moms fail, sometimes terribly. So do kids and fathers. If your mom failed or wasn’t there for you, she was wrong, but her failures don’t change God’s commandment to honor her.
So this morning we are going to focus on these unique people we call “mom”. A fourth grader was writing his first essay at school. It was entitled “What Mom’s do”. He kept it short and sweet. He wrote “Moms are people that take care of you. If they weren’t there you wouldn’t know how to get your breakfast and you probably wouldn’t want to eat it anyway!”
So what is it that mom’s do? Watch this little video…
Imagine with me a job posting: Needed: Professional caregiver, teacher, organizer, diaper changer, nurse, cook, chauffeur, comforter, protector, security guard, disciplinarian, comedienne, recreational supervisor, entertainer, housekeeper, dish washer, laundry doer, nutritionist, events coordinator, peace maker, lullaby singer, story teller, tickler, back scratcher, love giver, etc, etc. Hours 24/7. No salary, room, board, some expenses provided as available.
Nobody in their right mind would sign up for a job like that - nobody but a mother. Motherhood is a gift and a calling from God. You could never buy what a faithful mother provides. She does it because it’s in her DNA – its part of what it means to be created in the image of God. To dishonor motherhood, is to dishonor God, because this is what God is like. Anyone who gives themselves so graciously and unselfishly deserves our honor and praise!
The Book of Proverbs begins and ends with a reference to mothers. Let’s read together. “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline. Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching. They will be a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your neck.” Prov 1:7-9
The last half of the last chapter of Proverbs is an acrostic poem. Each verse starts with a consecutive letter in the Hebrew alphabet. The intent was that they be memorized. It concerns the honor we give to the mothers in our midst. Open your Bibles to Proverbs 31:10ff.
Vs 10 “A wife of noble character, who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.” Not all women will be called to the unique role of wife or mother. That is no reflection on her worth or the respect that is due her as a daughter of God! But if a woman is called to that role, we need to recognize that it is a holy calling and honor it as such.
So what are the characteristics of a faithful wife and mother? Vs 11 “Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life.” Prov 31:11-12
A wife and mother or noble character is trustworthy, a crucial attribute of a healthy home. Where do we learn to trust? Where do learn to be trustworthy? We learn it from our mothers. Was your mother trustworthy? Then you should honor her, she has given you a great gift.
“She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands. She is like the merchant ships, bringing her food from afar. She gets up while it is still dark, she provides food for her family and portions for her servant girls.” Prov 31:14-15
A mother of noble character is a shopper. She picks through the tomatoes to find just the right ones. She’s on the lookout for bargains. She surprises her family with her finds! If your mom was like that, you should thank and honor her! Even if the things she buys are kind of strange!
When I read those words about her getting up while it is still dark and providing food, I didn’t think of just physical food, I think of those special Bible verses and prayers of encouragement that a mother of noble character is always looking for to feed the souls of those she loves. If you had a mom like that, you should thank her. And thank God for giving her to you.
Vs 16 “She considers a field and buys it; out of her earnings she plants a vineyard. She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks. She sees that her trading is profitable, and her lamp does not go out at night.” Prov 31:16-17
When I was a boy, nearly every home had a garden. My mom taught us a lot of valuable but tough lessons out there hoeing those weeds and watering those plants. Some of those lessons were about vision and investing and hard work and perseverance, responsibility, and reward. Good stuff that you can’t learn any other way than the discipline of hard work. If you had a mom that took the time and effort to teach you to work and the rewards that come from sticking to it and diligence, you should thank her. She gave you wisdom - which is a priceless blessing.
Vs 19-20 “In her hand she holds the distaff and grasps the spindle with her fingers. She opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy.” Prov 31:18-19
A woman of noble character is not selfish, she is selfless. She models generosity and compassion for her children. No matter how modest her supply, she finds a way to share and bless those in need. She has room in her heart for the hurting, lonely, the needy. She finds her strength and supply, not in herself, but in the Lord. If you had a mom like that, you should thank the Lord, for what she showed you came from God. It was the image of God in her.
“When it snows, she has no fear for her household; for all of them are clothed in scarlet. She makes coverings for her bed; she is clothed in fine linen and purple.” Prov 31:21-22
This doesn’t mean she dresses her family in the latest fashions and fads, a woman of wisdom knows better than that. Scarlet was the clothing of royalty. The meaning here is deeper. Certainly she makes sure her family is adequately clothed. But a mother, a wife of noble character, doesn’t clothe her family in charm or shame. She clothes them in garments of praise, humility, and dignity. She doesn’t tear them down, she builds them up.
This isn’t only encouragement; its telling us you can’t leave the house dressed like a tramp. Go comb your hair, wash your face, stand up straight, don’t slouch, speak clearly! Things that drive us crazy! But, thank you, mom, for seeing in us what we didn’t want to see in ourselves and having the fortitude to cramp our style for our own good. If you had a mom like that, honor her, thank her.
“Her husband is respected at the city gate, where he takes his seat among the elders of the land.” Prov 31:23
It’s been repeated over and over again throughout the centuries, behind every great man is a great woman, be it a mother, a grandmother, a wife. A woman of noble character is tenacious! She refuses to allow us to be less than what God has called us to be. Like a great coach, she never gives up. She comforts the afflicted and afflicts the comfortable. Guess where she got that?
Look at verse 25 “She is clothed with strength and dignity; she can laugh at the days to come. She speaks with wisdom, and faithful instruction is on her tongue.” Prov 31:25
The Bible says that wisdom comes from the Lord, but the first place we encounter it is often in the instruction of a godly mother. Vs 28 says, Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praise her; “Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all.”
Often as children, we don’t realize or appreciate her sacrifices on our behalf, but hopefully a time comes, when we give up our childish ways of thinking and we begin to honor her for her faithfully giving what she had on our behalf.
Jump down to verse 30 “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.” Prov 31:30 Things haven’t changed much in the centuries of human culture. From the earliest days we’ve had an enemy of our souls who persistently whispers in our ears – “A woman’s worth is judged by her physical beauty.” “Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who is fairest of them all.”
But the Lord doesn’t look at the outward appearance. He looks on the heart. And there is nothing more beautiful to him than a faithful mother’s heart. I don’t know what your experience with your mother may have been. I don’t know how she may have succeeded or failed. It don’t know what may happened in her life that caused her to succeed or fail.
What I do know is this, no matter what your experience was, there was a woman somewhere in your childhood who loved you with a mother’s heart. If that were not so, you would have died! It was God’s love for you that passed through her. And today we honor her.
Chapter 31 ends with these words, “Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.” Prov 31:31
There is one more characteristic of a noble woman we haven’t mentioned. We find it in 2 Tim where Paul writes to his young pastoral assistant Timothy. “I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also.” 2 Tim 1:5
The word “sincere” means real, not phony. Mothers aren’t perfect, they never have been, never will be. But neither are any of the rest of us. My mother used to cry herself to sleep asking God for the wisdom to raise her 4 boys and 1 girl. My name was mentioned often.
Many times she felt like a failure and so she prayed without ceasing for God’s forgiveness and for strength and wisdom to not give up, to keep at it. She fought against the devil, the world, her own sinful nature and the sinful nature of her children, and she gave all the glory to God.
I can’t speak for you, but I know in my own life, my mother’s faithfulness is bearing fruit! God answered her prayers and blessed her sacrifice - not only in my life, but in the lives of my children and grand-children.
So thank you, mom! You are a woman of faith, you have been faithful in your calling and you are worthy of honor and praise!
The LORD commanded us, “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.” Ex 20:12
On this Mother’s day, who is it you need to thank, honor, maybe forgive, and praise and encourage…? AMEN
