Moms and Jesus

As I begin this morning, I want to start with prayer, please join me.

Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you and worthily magnify your holy name; through Christ our Lord.

Lord, open our hearts and minds by the power of your Holy Spirit, that as the Scriptures are read and your Word is proclaimed, we may hear with joy what you say to us today. Amen

Our Scripture today comes from 1 Timothy 4:6-16 is going to be our spring board. So let’s read that first.

1 Timothy 4:6–16 ESV

If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance. For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe. Command and teach these things. Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you. Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress. Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there. I don’t only mean those women who have had children. No. Mom’s come in all shapes and sizes, vocations, colors, and personalities. They have differing abilities as God has given them. There are women across the spectra of age, race, political party, and religion that have impacted our lives. Whether they were biological mother’s or not they mentored us, cleaned us, corrected us, fed us, inspired us, taught us, and most of all, they’ve loved us.

Even in our mostly egalitarian culture, too often women are overlooked for the absolutely necessary impacts they make on each of our lives. It is good for us to take a day each year and to honor these women that so often work behind the scenes.

Mother’s Day History

The celebration of mothers and motherhood can be traced back to the ancient Greeks and Romans who held festivals honoring their mother godesses. The Christian church offered a festival known as Mothering Sunday when the faithful would return to their “mother church”

In the United States the origins of Mother’s day date back to the 19th’s century in the years before the Civil War. A woman of West virginia, Ann Reeves Jarvis started Mothers’ Day Work Clubs to teach local women how to properly care for their children. Later, in 1870, Julia Ward Howe wrote the “Mother’s Day Proclamation”, a call to action that asked mothers to unite in promoting world peace. Her daughter, Anna Jarvis, conceived of Mother’s Day as a way of honoring the sacrifices mothers made for their children. She organized the first official Mother’s Day celebration at a Methodist Church in Grafton, West Virginia. She promoted the idea of a National mother’s Day, and in 1914, President Woodrow Wilson signed a measure officially establishing the second Sunday in May as Mother’s Day. It’s interesting to note that Anna Jarvis remained unmarried and childless her whole life.

And so we celebrate the unselfish service offered by these women and so many other women impacting our lives.

But I want to make a comparison today - and one that I don’t think is too far fetched - between Jesus and our idealization of moms.

First let’s look at Mom’s:

Moms

When people were asked what made Mom special their responses were very positive.

Mom encourages me to do my best and recognizes my hard work. She’s shown me that you can’t make it must by sliding by.

Mom is my rock, my friend and shoulder to cry on in my darkest hours. She is the strongest woman I know besides my grandmother.

Even with me being a stubborn brat she is always there for me and loves me unconditionally.

Mom is my best friend, she’s been with me through thick and thin. She always put us first.

My mom chose to be a mother. She didn’t have to be and I was a hellion of a stepchild. She taught me how to love, forgive and that just because she didn’t carry be didn’t mean I wasn’t a treasure to her soul.

Now, let’s look at Jesus with these same ideas in mind:

Jesus

Jesus sees you through the lens of the cross.

Jesus is truly the Rock of our salvation. He is the cornerstone to the wise and the stumbling block to the unwise.

Jesus loves you unconditionally.

Jesus is your friend and calls you His friend - he walks with us through thick and thin.

Jesus adopts us all as God’s children. In Christ there is no male nor female, no Greek nor Jew.

Jesus models ultimate forgiveness like no other.

The fact is when we speak of servant leadership, Moms and Jesus make pretty good role models.

Let’s look at 1 Timothy 4:7-8:

1 Timothy 4:7–8 ESV

Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.

You know it is so easy for us to get caught up in the irreverent gossip of the day. To get caught up in the demeaning political rancor, or to even focus on our fitness level and our diet. The first is silly, the bodily training and diet may be of some value, but it is godliness that is of value in every way, it is focusing on the eternal - not just the here and now.

Paul goes on to say to Timothy -

1 Timothy 4:10 ESV

For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.

And he goes on:

1 Timothy 4:11–12 ESV

Command and teach these things. Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.

Timothy was a relatively young man when he was pastoring this church in Ephesus. He is learning his way, and we can all imagine how difficult it may have been for this young minister to lead people older than himself. Paul reminds him, “Do not neglect the gift you have...” (v. 14).

You know we all have gifts, and sometimes we think to ourselves - I can’t do this because I don’t have the right education, or because I’m not “certified”, or perhaps we don’t think we’ve been a Christian long enough, or whatever. Can we forget that Peter, the one who denied Christ 3 times in one night was also the one who stood up and preached to the Pharisees and the religious leaders of the day only 50 days later!?

Or, how can we forget John’s recollection of Jesus washing his disciples feet.

John 13:1-16 - Jesus Washing the Disciples Feet

Washing feet was the task of a servant, and a very common thing in the world of the New Testament - and yet John remembers it so vividly 40 or more years later. Perhaps part of the reason it was so significant is that the disciples were likely young men in their mid-late teens. Remember age 13, a Jewish boy became a man at his bar mitzvah. A Jewish boys education continued until he was 15 then he would apprentice. A Jewish man would not get a wife until after 18. And only Peter is married from what the Scripture tells us.

So, now go back to that scene of Jesus washing the disciples feet. These are not his peers in any sense of the word. It’s not like in the movies where the disciples are most often a group of middle aged men. No, Jesus disciples were likely for the most part between the ages of 15 and 18.

A Rabbi, when he was about 30 years of age, would begin to accept students. Usually the students came to him and he would test them to see if they were worthy to take on. Jesus called the disciples, he went to them. Now, Jesus is their rabbi, their teacher, an elder person for whom their religion requires them respect. He has been their mentor for 3 years, and they have followed him throughout the region. He taught in the synagogues, but also on the mountains, on the sea shore, in a boat, while walking along the road…Jesus was always teaching. No doubt they were looking forward to celebrating the Passover with him.

But what does Jesus do? He lays aside his outer garments, wraps a towel around his waist and begins to wash their feet. It would have been a task he could have assigned, but he took it upon himself. He’s literally taking on the role of a servant.

Servant Leadership

Servant leadership is not leadership that is lorded over another. It is voluntary, and it is done with a sense of humility. Jesus models it so well in this passage from John 13.

Mom’s model it as well. Think about what it takes to raise a child. The tender care required, the feeding, the changing, the burping, all of that. But there’s more -

the encouraging, the disciplining, the long nights sitting up worrying, the constant hoping for what is best for your child, the mama bear moments, the cuddle moments, all of it. Mom’s are amazing.

I don’t know what your family is like, but in mine we have our Paul Harvey moments. Paul Harvey was a radio host that used to do a little bit called “The rest of the story.” He would then tell some story that would either have an unlikely hero, or there would be details that we were never aware of that made it that much more of a great story. Well, we often sit around the table reminiscing about our young lives and now that the statue of limitations has run out, it’s safe to share the rest of the story.

All of us have our wayward moments.

How appropriate that we should be called sheep and Jesus should be called the good shepherd.

Shepherds care for their sheep in more ways than just leading them here and there. They tend to them when they’re sick, bind them when they’re wounded, make sure they have enough to eat and drink, and make sure they’re safe each night. Jesus after calling himself the good shepherd says “my sheep know my voice.”

I’ve spent more than 35 years of my ministry career working with young people. I’ve been to countless sporting events, plays, recitals, and assemblies. I always cheer for the students I know hoping they’ll hear me. I’ve asked several times if they could hear me. Most often the answer I get is, “No, the voices pretty much blend together, except I can always hear my mom’s.”

Jesus and Moms

There are some things I think Jesus and Moms would have us know. In saying this, I know that some of us did not have moms who were supportive perhaps the way they should have been. Yet, in our heart I think we know the things that good mothers would say to us:

You’ve been given a gift - don’t neglect it. Don’t hide the gift you’ve been given, use it, grow it, bless others with it.

Be a positive example - in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. Don’t ever let anyone look down on you because of your age.

There are times when we can look down on ourselves not because of our youth, but rather because of our age. When Ronald Reagan was asked about his age as he was running for President he responded with “I will not make age an issue of this campaign. I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponents youth and inexperience.”

Let’s continue to make our mom’s proud and set and example.

Practice what you preach. Paul exhorts Timothy to put these things into practice, immersing himself into exercising the gift he had been given and that in doing so that others would see his progress in growing in his faith.

You can do it. You are empowered. I love you and know you.

In closing, I want to simply say,

Thank You

Thank you to all of the women who have spoken into the lives of others. Thank you for speaking into your children’s lives, your neighbor’s lives, the lives of the children of your friends and family. We are all blessed because of you exercising the gift that Jesus has given you that you would use it in service to others. Thank you.

Let’s pray.

Happy Mother’s Day!