A Mother's Love: A true gift from God

A little boy once drew a complete blank and totally 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."

Today, we celebrate our moms…..those who carried us within their wombs and gave birth to us……those who have uniquely cared for us and loved us as only a mother can…..and even those who have served us as a type of spiritual mother in our Christian faith……to all the ladies who have held some, or all, of those roles - to you we say Happy Mother's Day.

For so many of us, our moms are a kind of a special light in the world……..and a huge reason for that is because of the many roles they play in our lives. They're our caretakers…..our teachers……our friends…..our cheerleaders……our chauffeurs…..for some, our coaches and providers…..they are our advocates……

Moms really do play a variety of roles!

One day, a teacher gave her class of second graders a science lesson on the magnet and what it does. The next day in a written test, she included this question: " My full name has six letters. The first one is M. I pick up things. What am I?" When the test papers were turned in, the teacher was astonished to find that almost 50 percent of the students answered the question with the word Mother.

But among all the qualities and characteristics that we can ascribe to our moms, there is likely no other quality that gets as much recognition than their love. A mother's love is truly a divinely inspired superpower!

But what is a mother's love?

The American author and historian Washington Irving once wrote, (SLIDE) "The love of a mother is never exhausted. It never changes--it never tires--it endures through all; in good repute, in bad repute, in the face of the world's condemnation, a mother's love still lives on."

Today I'd like for us to examine the love of a mother through the lens of Scripture and how it talks about one woman who is easily the most famous mother in Scripture, and likely one of the most famous mothers in all of history - Jesus' mother, Mary.

A lot can be said about Mary, and a lot has been said, particularly throughout Christian history. And although Scripture itself doesn’t have a ton of information about the person and life and work of Mary, doctrines surrounding Mary began to develop within the first couple hundred years of the early church.

- Beginning with the patristic fathers and the early church's understanding of Mary as the "theotokos" = the God-bearer……the Mother of God

- Roman Catholic Mariology (extrabiblical doctrines that are rooted in tradition, not Scripture)

○ Immaculate Conception of Mary

○ Perpetual virginity

○ Bodily assumption of Mary

○ Co-mediatrix

- The general Protestant reformers reaction to the excesses

- Our relative ignoring of Mary in today's evangelical circles

Even though Scripture has relatively litter to offer about the life and words of Mary, the mother of Jesus, we can nevertheless glean some powerful insight into the love she had for her son, who was in fact the Son of God and the Savior of the world. And I believe we can learn how that kind of love is displayed through a mother’s heart that is intricately connected to the heart of God.

And as we’ll see in our text today, I want us to make note of seven aspects of a mother’s love that we’re going to see in the life of a very important and influential mother for many in the Church.

(SLIDE) The favor of a mother.

I invite you to open to the gospel of Luke, to Luke 1:26–30 (SLIDE) “In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. And the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.”

Twice in this passage and in a single interaction with Mary, the angel Gabriel refers to her with the Greek word “charis” = grace, good will. The word conveys a sense of a gift of kindness and favor given to a person. In 2 Corinthians 8, Paul reflects upon the generosity of the Macedonian church and makes this observation in 2 Corinthians 8:6 “Accordingly, we urged Titus that as he had started, so he should complete among you this act of grace.” The tremendous generosity of the church was referred to as a charis, an act of great grace and favor. Charis also can identify charm or a delightful quality in the eyes of others, which seems to be how the term is applied to Mary here in Luke 1.

God is absolutely delighted in his daughter Mary, having created her from her mother’s womb and possessing all intimate knowledge about this young woman. And so the question now is, in what way was Mary so highly favored. Well, the text says in verse 28 that the angel Gabriel said to Mary “The Lord is with you.”

Now this may seem like just an average, ho-hum remark, but if you would recall what the angel of the Lord said to Gideon as he was being called to take arms and stand against the Midianite armies, the angel said (SLIDE) “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” And so in both ways, both in God’s good favor and in His presence, Mary was to find great comfort and encouragement.

I can’t imagine all that goes through a woman’s mind the moment she hears for the first time that she’s going to be a mother, but I can only imagine that among all those thoughts and feelings are some level of doubt and fear and an uneasiness from not knowing exactly what’s to come in the days and weeks ahead.

And yet, it seems as though, at least for most moms, that they tend to receive that exciting news with great joy and encouragement realizing that God has blessed them with the gift of life and child-bearing. And what a gift that must be. Only a mom who has gone through the child-bearing process can really feel and understand what a gift of God’s grace and favor it is to carry a little life in their womb.

This favor of God is also seen in the interaction between Mary and her cousin Elizabeth, both of whom were pregnant at the same time. And this is what Elizabeth says when they met up in Luke 1:42–45 “...and she exclaimed with a loud cry, ‘Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.’”

Mary was blessed and highly favored. Now for many women, and for a variety of reasons, that gift is not granted. But even in those cases where a woman must go through other means to have a child, the grace and the favor that is reflected in a mother’s love toward her child is absolutely supernatural!

Proverbs 31:27–28 says this of the ideal, godly woman, (SLIDE) “She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:” And because a mother is so blessed and highly favored to carry that title of “Mom”, the importance of the next aspect of a mother’s love becomes all the more relevant.

2. (SLIDE) The purpose of a mother.

The fact that Mary was a virgin and God caused her to be with child could have been enough for her to be called favored and blessed. And if nothing else came of that, and she gave birth and we never heard about Mary or her child again, it still would have been an incredible story. But it didn’t stop there.

Consider now what the angel says in Luke 1:31–33 (SLIDE) “‘And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end.’”

Now every mom is proud of their children and typically are hopeful for their futures, no matter what they do. Again, that comes with the territory of being a mom. But imagine giving birth to and raising the Savior of the world! I’m sure that the revelation of the future identity and mission of Mary’s son gave Mary a great sense of pride and hope and resolve and purpose for what was to come, and I’m sure those words of the angel resonated within her soul for the rest of her life. And those words would be especially important in the toughest of times in Mary’s life when everything seems to be falling apart all around her.

Motherhood can often ironically be coupled with negative feelings of despair and a lack of identity and purpose. Often young moms can experience these thoughts and feelings with things like post-partum depression. And if it doesn’t come in those early days of motherhood, it can even come later on as a woman reflects on her life and almost sees her years of motherhood as ultimately worthless or meaningless.

But let me remind all moms out there - you’ve been blessed and high favored with tremendous purpose, a purpose that will literally last a lifetime. And that purpose is to care for and nurture and love another human being as only a mother can. Often times, women can become depressed and take on negative self-images because they think that all they’ve become is a caretaker and a servant of another person and its almost as if they feel like they’ve lost a great sense of identity and purpose in life.

Maybe they forsook that great career.....or that great hobby......or they didn’t the opportunities like others had to travel and enjoy life as a childless adult......and those F.O.M.O. feelings start sneaking in......

Again, let me remind all moms - there is no greater purpose or joy in life than raising a baby into a strong and independent and productive adult. And there is no greater mission field than the one you have at home with your children. Moms are the predominant influence in the lives of their children for the first several years, and so what a great opportunity moms have each and every day to disciple their children and bring them up in the fear and admonition of the Lord.

A teacher asked a boy this question: "Suppose your mother baked a pie and there were seven of you--your parents and five children. What part of the pie would you get?" "A sixth," replied the boy. "I'm afraid you don't know your fractions," said the teacher. "Remember, there are seven of you." "Yes, teacher," said the boy, "but you don't know my mother. Mother would say she didn't want any pie."

Among the many qualities a mother possesses is the seemingly ease and naturalness of her willingness to selflessly and sacrificially serve her children and her family. It’s truly one of the great purposes of her life that reveal a godlike quality of love that simply cannot be found elsewhere. And so from the moment you hear for the first time that you’re going to be a mama, to the last breath you take in this life - you have been given one of the greatest purposes in all of human experience!

3. (SLIDE) The faith of a mother.

It’s very common for the Christian reader to remember the age of Mary when she became pregnant with Jesus. And at such a young age....maybe no older than 15 or 16....Mary exhibited tremendous faith and trust in the Lord. We read about this great faith in Luke 1:35–38 (SLIDE) “And the angel answered her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God.’ And Mary said, ‘Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.’” And the angel departed from her.”

I think a girl her age today would totally freak out with that kind of news, let alone that news from an angel. A modern day teenage girl would have an absolute hissy-fit on her Instagram and Snapchat, and all her friends would know just how she felt within moments of having received the news.

But not Mary. She merely inquired as how this would actually happen, given the fact that she was still a virgin. That was her only question of the matter. I’m sure alot of questions go through a woman’s mind when she learns she’s going to be a mother. And I would think its safe to assume that for the rest of her natural life, a mother internalizes many questions and concerns and even doubts that she may never express outwardly.

And so it requires a certain level of faith to continue to walk according to the will of God. Not only that, but going back to the purpose of mothers, moms have a unique opportunity to model a faith-filled life for their children and even for their husband.

Proverbs 31:30 says “Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.” So many women continue to buy the lie that their outward appearance is what really matters. And they’ll even leverage their physical appearance to garner attention and affection from others.

But what is truly praiseworthy in a godly woman? What is really attractive and worthy of attention? Its a life marked by faith and healthy fear and reverence for the Lord. And so many times I want to suggest to women who struggle to find or keep the “right guy”.....maybe you’re attracting the wrong guys because you’re flaunting and focused on all the wrong things.

I’m not kidding you, there is nothing more attractive in this world than my wife worshipping Jesus and talking about Jesus. And her faith not only affects me in types of ways, but it also powerfully impacts those who call her mama.....and soon, Ama! The faith of the mother is hugely influential in the lives of her family. Remember how Paul was reminded of the sincere faith of Timothy, a faith that came from his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice.

I know I’m here today, doing what I’m doing in part because of the faith that was displayed in my mom. I remember her counsel.....I remember the Scripture verses she would send me and prayer over me......I remember the sound of her voice singing songs during church on Sundays as a child. The faith of a mother is a force to be reckoned with! And so is this next aspect of the love of a mother......

4. (SLIDE) The worship of a mother.

One of the most famous songs in the Bible, and certainly some of the most famous words from the mouth of Mary are the opening words of the song she sang in response to the work of God in her life, called the Magnificat. And in Luke 1:46–47 we read the beginning words of this beautiful song dedicated to the Lord.......(SLIDE) “And Mary said, ‘My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,...’”

Mary’s responses of great faith and obedience and pouring out her heart of worship continue to set the standard for all Christians when faced with the unknown circumstances of our lives, especially when those circumstances involve untold hardships and trials.

Despite all that faced young Mary, she sang out that her soul would magnify the Lord as she rejoiced in God her savior. At the heart of worship is the magnification of God and rejoicing in who He is and what He’s done. That’s actually a good test of a good worship song.....is the song magnifying God and talking more about Him.....or does the song magnify man and all that we are and all that we can do through God.

But as we all know, worship is not just about the songs we sing, but about every aspect of our lives. So does your work magnify the Lord.....do you relationships magnify the Lord......do your hobbies magnify the Lord......how you spend your free time - does that magnify the Lord?.......does your engagement with social media magnify the Lord?.......does your personal appearance and your personal conduct magnify the Lord?.......do the words that come out of your mouth magnify the Lord?.......does the music you listen to and media your consume magnify the Lord?

In other words, worship is more than the songs we sing, but the lifestyles we lead on a regular basis. And moms have unique opportunities to nurture a lifestyle of worship in their kids by being living examples themselves. And so whether during the highest of highs or the lowest of lows, a mother’s children are watching her and how she responds to any given circumstance. And therefore, what better example to teach your kids than a lifestyle of worship that makes much of Jesus and seeks to point others to him?

And when all is said and done, the faith of mothers and the worship of mothers reveal this next aspect of the love of mothers......

5. (SLIDE) The heart of a mother.

Consider for a moment the heart of Mary as she responds to the miraculous events surrounding the birth of her son Jesus in Luke 2:15–19 “When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart.”

I can’t help but think that its natural and even expected for new moms to sit back and just ponder the circumstances surrounding the birth of their children. And now put yourself in Mary’s shoes. Not only did both she and her husband Joseph receive angelic visitations announcing the birth of their son, not to mention that she was a pregnant virgin, but also random shepherds in the fields surrounding Bethlehem received an angelic message.

And so all these intertwined and miraculous events surrounding the birth of Jesus must have boggled the mind of Mary, and I love how Luke described her reaction.....she treasured up all these things and pondered them deep down in her heart. And so I wonder how often these events would come to the forefront of Mary’s mind throughout her days as Jesus’ mom, especially has he grew up and began his ministry.

We see a glimpse of this again just a little later in Luke’s gospel, in Luke 2:48–51 (SLIDE) “And when his parents saw him, they were astonished. And his mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us so? Behold, your father and I have been searching for you in great distress.” And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” And they did not understand the saying that he spoke to them. And he went down with them and came to Nazareth and was submissive to them. And his mother treasured up all these things in her heart.”

So in both instances, there’s a sense in which Mary is storing up and treasuring all these various events and experiences, as if they will all work together to make sense of what’s to come in the future. And so she’s guarding and protecting these memories and keeping them close to her heart.

Mothers are especially keen to keeping memories and storing up the meaningful past events of their lives, particularly the lives of their children and their families. And its this unique gift of a mother’s heart that parallels what Jesus commands us all in Matthew 6:19–21 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Surely, a mother’s heart treasures her children and her family in a very special and unique manner, which actually allows her to live out this next aspect of a mother’s love. This is something I’m sure was developed and matured in Mary over time, as we see a perfect example of it in John’s gospel as Jesus began his earthly ministry.

6. (SLIDE) The obedience of a mother.

Look at what the apostle records of this interaction between Jesus and his mother in John 2:1–5 “On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ And Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.’ His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’”

At this point in the timeline of the life of Jesus, he’s likely around 30 years old or so. So he’s a full grown man, and he’s about to perform his first miracle recorded in the Scriptures, which ultimately points to his deity, and he has this interestingly brief conversation with his mother about a very serious problem in a Jewish wedding celebration.

And think of this from Mary’s perspective. She’s raised this man and has been an integral part of his life up to this point. And I’ve always wondered what Jesus was like when he was younger, especially as a toddler. Like, did Jesus go through the terrible 2’s? We know from the testimony of Scripture that he was a like us in every way, yet without sin, so I’m sure Mary didn’t have to deal with a rebellious teenager or a know-it-all young adult.

But nevertheless, I’m sure Mary continued to treasure in her heart all those past experiences and miraculous encounters with the divine surrounding Jesus’ birth and early childhood that helped develop this interesting dichotomy within Mary that Jesus was both her baby boy, and her Savior. Jesus was both her lovely boy, and her Lord! A Lord who, as we were just reminded in Luke’s gospel, willingly became submissive to his parents.

And now, Mary is called to become submissive to all that her son says. What a clear and concise command of Mary to the servants at the wedding...… “Do whatever he tells you.” And wouldn’t that be the words of Mary if she were with us today? Whatever you’re facing.....whatever trial or tribulation or fork in the road that you may face? No matter the smallness or the bigness of the decision you’re faced with and the choices that you might make.......do whatever Jesus tells you!

For many of us, our moms were the first ones to teach us obedience. They taught us how to be obedient to authority.....they often taught us obedience by how they would interact with our dads......but they also taught us how to be obedient to the Lord. We see our moms pray.....we see them read their Bibles......we see them faithfully attend and participate in the life of the church, and we learn not so much by words, but through their actions, what obedience to God looks like. And this is, again, is deeply connected to the last attribute of a mother’s love that we’ll consider for today.......

7. (SLIDE) The devotion of a mother.

33 years of miraculous encounters and divinely-inspired events that were surely treasured up in Mary’s heart, all led up to the point where she would stand before the cross on calvary. Where she would sit at the foot of the cross and stare up at the crucified man who not so much her baby boy anymore, but her Savior. And so consider John’s description of this scene in John 19:24–27 (SLIDE) “...so they said to one another, “Let us not tear it, but cast lots for it to see whose it shall be.” This was to fulfill the Scripture which says, “They divided my garments among them, and for my clothing they cast lots.” So the soldiers did these things, but standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.”

One of the glaring differences between men and women is how they parent young children. A crying baby is the cause for instant concern and attention on the part of the mother, while dads tend to be able to tune those kinds of things out and manage through the crying much easier than moms. I mean, when Dawson cries, his mom attends to him immediately. And I can see that it still affects Monica, certainly different than me.

One evening we were watching Dawson while Jadyn was hanging out with the young adults, and it was around his bed time, so I got his bottle and went to go lay him down in our bed, and he just wasn’t having it. He was fighting and fussy the whole time, long after he finished his bottle, and so I stood up with him and cradled him, which he doesn’t really like, and so he continued to cry and cry and cry. And several times, Monica came in and asked if I needed her to take him, and I said no each time. And I just continued to hold him tightly and closely and eventually he fell asleep. And I could feel the tension in the air with Monica. She still has that mother’s heart towards a young child. And this is one of many reasons why children need both mom and dad in their lives, because of the balance that they provide.

Dads are devoted to their children for sure, but moms are uniquely devoted to the ones to whom they birthed and brought into this world. And so despite the three years of mistreatment and persecution that her son experienced, and all the circumstances surrounding the last several days of Jesus’ life that would lead up to the cross, Mary remain devoted to her son Jesus. And so the question for us, is through all the ups and downs of life.....all the heartache and seemingly unfair circumstances that we face, will we return to the cross and remain devoted to Jesus? Will we remain with him to the very end?

Look, here’s the point.....Mary’s greatest lesson and example to all of us is summarized in this LIFEPOINT in your outlines.....(SLIDE) “A mother’s love is most powerfully displayed when it reflects the love of the Father. Mary’s not the hero of the story....we know that....Jesus is! And why? Well in one sense, he perfectly displays the love of the Father.

This love is mentioned all throughout the Bible and takes on many different symbols and metaphors, but consider this one metaphor of God’s love found in Isaiah 66:13 (SLIDE) “As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.” God’s love for his people is likened to that of a mother’s love for her children. Specifically, how a mother comforts her children. In the Greek Septuagint, that word comfort is the word “parakaleo” = meaning to come along side of to comfort, to help, to be an advocate. And in the NT, the known form of that word, which is parakletos, is ascribed to both Jesus when he’s referenced as the Consolation of Israel in Luke 1, but also to the Holy Spirit in John 14 when Jesus himself calls Him the “Comforter” or the “Helper”.

And this comforting and compassionate love of God is also expressed in Jesus in Luke 13:34, where Jesus says (SLIDE) “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!” So again, the compassionate care and love of God is likened to that of a mother hen towards her baby chicks.

Its worth repeating again......A mother’s love is most powerfully displayed when it reflects the love of the Father. And any godly woman would tell you the same....don’t look at them....look at Jesus. They have loved with great favor and purpose and faith and a worshipful heart...and they have remained obedient and devoted only because they want to put on display the love of God in Jesus Christ. And I believe that is the true desire for every godly mother.....yes I’m sure they appreciate the attention and the love and the gratitude that is shown them on this day (and hopefully it extends beyond the second Sunday of May).....

But if I can speak for the moms here today, your greatest desire is for all of us to see your love and your grace and compassion, and for us to give thanks to our Father who is in heaven, who has given us the greatest love and the greatest grace and the greatest comfort and compassion in his Son Jesus. A mother’s love is truly a gift of God, but no greater gift than the grace freely given to us through Jesus Christ our Lord.

So this Mother’s day, we want to honor our moms, we want to show you our gratitude, and we want to pray for you, that God would continue to uniquely use you to put on display God’s love for each and everyone of us.

End in prayer over moms.......