Characteristics Of A Christ Following Mother

A Christ Following Mother Worships

Luke 1:46–47 (NASB95)

And Mary said: “My soul exalts the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.

Mary acknowledges that she exalts and rejoices in the Lord to the very core of her personhood. The Bible describes this as her soul and spirit. Everything about Mary worships the Lord. She recognizes the attributes of the Lord. It is the realization of this that causes her to worship.

The fact that God can do anything is testimony to His greatness. Specifically that God can bring forth a child from a virgin like Mary. Luke 1:34-37

Luke 1:34–37 (NASB95)

Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God. “And behold, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month. “For nothing will be impossible with God.”

God demonstrated His greatness by showing Mary that he can do the impossible. There has never been and will never be a virgin that will conceive by the power of the Holy Spirit. This is impossible. Praise God that our God works in the impossible.

You may ask why God dealing in the impossible causes Mary to worship Him. Because she would have to have faith in God to care for her in her precarious situation. She was going to be an unwed mother that was pregnant. This meant that she would bring shame on herself and her family. Her husband could divorce her and even have her stoned. How would she bring up this child on her own with out the support of anyone? She was in an impossible situation.

God dealt with every concern that Mary had to deal with. Mary was not disgraced by her family, She was not divorce by Joseph, and the Lord provided everything Mary needed to be an earthly mother to Jesus.

Application

Mothers today face an impossible task in raising their kids. The pressure to be a “good mom” is impossible. Mom’s make sure that every need of that child is taken care of. They haul them around to all their events. Make sure that they are doing well in school. Wash their clothes, feed them dinner, heal their hurts, listen to their troubles, and a myriad of other responsibilities. These are the more common impossibilities that mom’s face.

Mom’s must sometimes deal with illnesses that their children have. This is a helpless feeling when they desire their child to be well but cannot do anything to fix it. She must rely on the Lord.

Sometimes mom’s have to deal with strong willed and rebellious kids. It will break a mom’s heart when she has done all she can do and the child continues to rebel. She must call upon the Lord of impossibility to change the heart of the child.

A good mom recognizes her need for a God that can work in the impossible. She sees His hand and heart working in the child’s life and worships Him.

A Christ Following Mom Is Humble

Luke 1:48 (NASB95)

“For He has had regard for the humble state of His bondslave; For behold, from this time on all generations will count me blessed.

Mary didn’t consider what others thought of her but instead how God saw her.

Luke 1:28-30

Luke 1:28–30 (NASB95)

And coming in, he said to her, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” But she was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was. The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God.

Mary recognized that in the worlds sight she was a nothing. As a woman during this time she had no rights and was considered second class. Most likely she was very poor and didn’t have many material possessions She was not educated in Jerusalem and didn’t have the learning that would make her “successful” in life.

Luke 1:38 NASB95

And Mary said, “Behold, the bondslave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

Mary saw herself as a bondslave to the Lord. A Bond slave was a free person who gave up their right to freedom to serve their master. They would volunteer to be the master’s slave for the rest of their lives. They would do this because they loved their master. The master would take very good care of the bondslave.

Mary recognized what God had done for her and will do with her. Mary’s accolades did not come from man but from the Lord. Mary knew that the Lord was good to her and would care for her no matter what her circumstances were. Mary knew the power of God to take someone insignificant and use them for his glory and bless the world through her.

A Godly mother sees herself as God sees her.

In the worlds eyes she may not be significant, but in the Lord’s eyes she is spectacular. There is no one more that can have more influence in a child’s life than a mother. In that child’s eyes mom is the most important person on the face of the planet. Even when mom’s have not been what they should have been a child has tendencies to look up to their mom.

Raising a child and supporting a husband is perhaps the most difficult responsibility a person can have. God chose mother’s for this responsibility. When a child won’t listen and drives you to a breaking point sometimes you blow up and sometimes you exercise patience. God gives you what you need. When your husband does hair brain things in spite of your gentle warnings, you comfort him in his failure rather than tell him how stupid he is. Mom’s are truly a blessing from God

A Christ Following Mom Is Grateful.

Luke 1:49–50 (NASB95)

“For the Mighty One has done great things for me; And holy is His name. “And His mercy is upon generation after generation Toward those who fear Him.

Mary understands that she is deserving of nothing and recognizes that the Lord is good. He has shown Mary mercy as well as generation that fear Him.

Mary knew that she was a sinner and in need of a Savior. God chose her to bear the savior of the world. She was grateful for this as she sees the Lord providing the mercy she needs for salvation in the very Son that she is to give birth to.

Mary also recognizes that all generations will be blessed by her Son. Can you imagine the joy that she has from this fact. We understand how proud mom’s can be when their child has some sort of significant accomplishment, but imagine if your child was the Savior of the world!

I imagine her gratefulness is off the charts!

Mom’s have a lot to be grateful for!

Contrary to popular belief, there is no such thing as a perfect mom. Mom’s understand that they are going to make mistakes, but in the mercy of God, He takes care of the mistakes that we make. Our children tend to be alright even though we make mistakes.

A Christ Following Mom Knows the Power Of God

Luke 1:51–53 (NASB95)

“He has done mighty deeds with His arm; He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart. “He has brought down rulers from their thrones, And has exalted those who were humble. “He has filled the hungry with good things; And sent away the rich empty-handed.

Mary speaks of five mighty things the Lord has done: scattered the proud, brought down rulers from their thrones, exalted the humble, filled the hungry, and sent away the rich empty handed.

Scattered the proud

God hates a prideful heart because He knows that it is an attempt to diminish God and elevate man.

Genesis 11:1–9 NASB95

Now the whole earth used the same language and the same words. It came about as they journeyed east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. They said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly.” And they used brick for stone, and they used tar for mortar. They said, “Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into heaven, and let us make for ourselves a name, otherwise we will be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.” The Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. The Lord said, “Behold, they are one people, and they all have the same language. And this is what they began to do, and now nothing which they purpose to do will be impossible for them. “Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.” So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of the whole earth; and they stopped building the city. Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of the whole earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of the whole earth.

There is no room for pride in being a mom. They must see themselves as dependent on the Lord to fulfill their calling.

Brought down the rulers

God is the giver of authority and He picks and chooses who has authority. The Lord demonstrates His power by raising up leaders and bringing them down.

A mom can have confidence that the Lord has the power to dictate the authorities that have affect on a child’s life. People like teachers, coaches, pastors, children’s minister, youth ministers.

Exalted the Humble

Job 5:11 (NASB95)

So that He sets on high those who are lowly, And those who mourn are lifted to safety.

When things get tough as a mom, they can rely on the Lord to lift them up to safety.

Filled the hungry

Matthew 5:6 NASB95

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

Their will be times when Mom’s will need a special touch from the Lord. They will hunger and thirst for His righteousness. They will find the satisfying hand of the Lord.

Sent the rich away empty handed

A mom must spend time with the Lord and have a desire for the Lord. When a mom find the child to be her richness instead of the Lord then she will be left unsatisfied or empty handed.

A Christ Following Mom Knows the Bible

Luke 1:54–55 (NASB95)

“He has given help to Israel His servant, In remembrance of His mercy, As He spoke to our fathers, To Abraham and his descendants forever.”

Mary knew the Bible. She knew that the Old Testament pointed to a Savior that would rescue Israel and the world from sin. She would play a part in the deliverance of this promise.

Mom’s the Bible is full of promises for moms. It would be helpful to know these promises.

Isaiah 40:11 (NASB95)

Like a shepherd He will tend His flock, In His arm He will gather the lambs And carry them in His bosom; He will gently lead the nursing ewes.

The Lord will guide you in motherhood.

Joshua 1:9 NASB95

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Philippians 2:13 NASB95

for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.

Psalm 138:8 (NASB95)

The Lord will accomplish what concerns me; Your lovingkindness, O Lord, is everlasting; Do not forsake the works of Your hands.

Philippians 4:19 NASB95

And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Psalm 119:89–90 (NASB95)

Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven. Your faithfulness continues throughout all generations; You established the earth, and it stands.

2 Corinthians 9:8 NASB95

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed;

Jeremiah 24:7 NASB95

‘I will give them a heart to know Me, for I am the Lord; and they will be My people, and I will be their God, for they will return to Me with their whole heart.

Hebrews 4:16 NASB95

Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.