sermon20230514 Who is My Mother?
Notes
Transcript
Handout
19 Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. 20 And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see you.” 21 But he answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”
Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
Introduction:
It is Mother’s Day. And it is traditional to hear messages that put the focus on how to be a mother or the qualities of a mother or perhaps the most feared of all Mother’s Day messages, how to be a Proverbs 31 woman.
As I prepared for Mother’s day I began to search the scriptures. Let me share where my search led me.
(1) God’s will is revealed in the Bible so that the believer can know God’s will and live out God’s will
There are truths in scripture that apply to all believers. The apostle Paul will give general principles and then give specific applications of biblical truth to the individuals or to the churches he is writing to. In the Book of Ephesians
32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.
21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.
1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 “Honor your father and mother” (this is the first commandment with a promise), 3 “that it may go well with you and that you may live long in the land.” 4 Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.
The word obey refers to active obedience, to do what you are told
Honor - to attribute high status to someone by honoring—‘to honor, to respect.’ (L&N) Gen. τιμή means 1. the “worth” one ascribes to a person (TDNT)
(2) Believer’s should seek to have a deeper understanding of God’s will
The Westminster Shorter and Larger Catechism - The Confession of Fatih: Families were to read this together
Q 122. What is the sum of the six commandments which contain our duty to man?
A The sum of the six commandments which contain our duty to man is, to love our neighbor as ourselves,1and to do to others
what we would have them to do to us.2
1. Matt. 22:39. 2. Matt. 7:12.
Q 123. Which is the fifth commandment?
A The fifth commandment is, Honour thy father and thy mother:
that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.1
1. Ex. 20:12; Deut. 5:16.
Q 124. Who are meant by father and mother in the fifth commandment?
A By father and mother, in the fifth commandment, are meant, not only natural parents,1 but all superiors in age2 and gifts;3 and especially such as, by God’s ordinance, are over us in place of authority, whether in family,4 church,5 or commonwealth.6 1. Prov. 23:22, 25; Eph. 6:1–2. 2. 1 Tim. 5:1–2. 3. Gen. 4:20–21; Gen. 45:8. 4. 2 Kings 5:13. 5. 2 Kings 2:12; Gal. 4:19; 2 Kings 13:14. 6. Isa. 49:23.
(3) God’s will is to honor our mothers
19 Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. 20 And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see you.” 21 But he answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.”
1 Do not rebuke an older man but encourage him as you would a father, younger men as brothers, 2 older women as mothers, younger women as sisters, in all purity.
Encourage
25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” 27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.” 29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
This command is for all believers - honoring all those who have the biblical title of Mother
Let’s go back to the question Jesus was asked, Who is my neighbor? Think of the man from Samaria. The Jews hated Samaritans and certainly this man was imperfect but did what he did not need to do. And now ask, Who is my mother?
I say this for those who perhaps have or had a fractured relationship with their mother.
We have a commandment to obey, to honor our mother. And we do this to glorify God, even in the difficult. And while we may not have had a perfect mother, it’s biblically true that no one does. BUT:
We have a God who is perfect. We have a Savior who is sinless. We have the Spirit who is always with us, our constant companion. May we truly seek to find in Christ a healing touch for a troubled heart. May we find in our Lord the love that says, I will never leave you or forsake you. May we see that our Savior will never have to come to us and ask for forgiveness, because He is sinless. And when we come to Him in true repentance or forgiveness, He is always faithful to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Amen and amen.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
