Mother's Day

Well today is Mother’s Day, the day when families pay special tribute to their moms in various ways. We take them out to dinner, or buy them special gifts…We celebrate that special person on this day! We are primarily here to worship and Honor God, and today we will do that by honoring all the mothers!

Proverbs 31:29–31 ESV

29 “Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.” 30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. 31 Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.

Proverbs 31:25–31 ESV

25 Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come. 26 She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. 27 She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. 28 Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: 29 “Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.” 30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. 31 Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.

We have a gift for all the mothers today! We want to show our appreciation for all you do!!!!!!

Proverbs 31:10–31 ESV

10 An excellent wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels. 11 The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he will have no lack of gain. 12 She does him good, and not harm, all the days of her life. 13 She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands. 14 She is like the ships of the merchant; she brings her food from afar. 15 She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household and portions for her maidens. 16 She considers a field and buys it; with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard. 17 She dresses herself with strength and makes her arms strong. 18 She perceives that her merchandise is profitable. Her lamp does not go out at night. 19 She puts her hands to the distaff, and her hands hold the spindle. 20 She opens her hand to the poor and reaches out her hands to the needy. 21 She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet. 22 She makes bed coverings for herself; her clothing is fine linen and purple. 23 Her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the land. 24 She makes linen garments and sells them; she delivers sashes to the merchant. 25 Strength and dignity are her clothing, and she laughs at the time to come. 26 She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue. 27 She looks well to the ways of her household and does not eat the bread of idleness. 28 Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: 29 “Many women have done excellently, but you surpass them all.” 30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. 31 Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.

Now as we look through these verses, we get a good understanding of what the writer meant by “excellent” or some of your translations may say “noble”, “virtuous.” I personally see at least 5 qualities there… there might be more, but I see five.

Trustworthy & Devoted

1. If you look at verses 11, 12 and 23, you’ll see that she is trustworthy and devoted. She has her husband’s confidence, and she enhances his reputation.

Diligence and Wisdom

2. She is a woman of diligence and wisdom. We see that in verses 13 – 19. She’s not afraid to work, she’s a wise shopper, and she plans ahead.

Helper of the Poor

3. She is a giving person. Verse 20 says that she extends her hand to the poor. In other words, she has planned ahead well enough to be able to not only take care of the family’s needs, but also the needs of the poor in her society.

Dependable

4. She is dependable. We see that in verses 15, 21, 27. When adversity comes, be it bad weather, or something else… you know she’s already got a plan to deal with whatever it might be.

She Loves the Lord!

5. And lastly; she is a woman who loves the Lord. We see that by reading all the verses of our text. She is someone who is guided and directed by God’s Word and God’s wisdom.

Now ladies, you might read through that and say to yourselves, “This isn’t describing a woman, its describing Super Woman!” And that’s actually a pretty good assessment. It’s describing a woman who is living in a supernatural way with a supernatural God. And it has to be that way because there are few things that are more important to society than godly mothers. The Bible is clear in its teachings, both explicit and implicit, that the family is the foundation of society. And while fathers are responsible for the way the family goes, mothers are the glue that holds the family together.

As you can see from our text, the demands on mothers are awesome! They include grocery shopping, preparing meals (sometimes for picky eaters), washing and ironing, house cleaning, caring for the many needs of the family, and on and on… and again; we look at that list and we go, they lady that’s doing all of these things is probably a basket case.

Now let’s look at the last two verses of and then we’ll close (Read vss 30 & 31).

Proverbs 31:30–31 ESV

30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. 31 Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.

The woman who finds her value in her looks will either have so much plastic surgery and Botox done that she’ll end up looking like something out of a horror show, or she will devalue her worth to the point of self-loathing, (Because age and gravity eventually sets in on us all). But the woman who fears the LORD, she shall be praised! The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom!

The woman who fears the LORD doesn’t have to toot her own horn, and she doesn’t have to brag or boast about what she’s accomplished. Her OWN works will praise her. People will see it and know it. Her children will rise up and call her blessed and her husband will praise her.

So let me just encourage all you moms out there this morning. God doesn’t call you to be perfect; He calls you to walk in His perfection. It’s not by might, nor by power, but by His Spirit – declares the LORD. So take time to set at the feet of Jesus, in-other-words, take time to get into the Word of God. Read the Bible, study the Bible, learn the Bible, memorize the Bible… you do that, and before long, you’ll find that you’re living the Bible. Compare what God’s Word says with what the world says, and if they differ, reject the worlds point of view. And lastly; keep your eyes firmly fixed on Jesus, lay aside every weight of sin that so easily besets us, and look unto the Author and Finisher of your faith.

Lets Pray!

Happy Mother’s Day!!!!