Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
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Motherhood is a high calling, though you wouldn’t know that from our culture today.
God is the giver of motherhood
God sovereignly grants motherhood to some women, but not others.
Infertility and miscarriages are extremely common
“Infertility means not being able to get pregnant after one year of trying (or six months if a woman is 35 or older).
Women who can get pregnant but are unable to stay pregnant may also be infertile.
About 10 percent of women (6.1 million) in the United States ages 15-44 have difficulty getting pregnant or staying pregnant, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).”
--Infertility | Office on Women's Health (womenshealth.gov)
“Miscarriage is the spontaneous loss of a pregnancy before the 20th week.
About 10 to 20 percent of known pregnancies end in miscarriage.
But the actual number is likely higher because many miscarriages occur so early in pregnancy that a woman doesn't realize she's pregnant.”
--Miscarriage - Symptoms and causes - Mayo Clinic
Like other kinds of suffering, God doesn’t always tell us why he withholds certain blessings.
Ultimately, we have to trust him and rest in the assurance that it is part of his plan and in the knowledge that he knows what is best for us.
God is the source of the desire for motherhood.
No, Elkanah, you are not better to her than ten sons!
He meant well, but simply didn’t understand how deep his wife’s desire for children was.
For many women—perhaps even most—their identity as a woman is uniquely tied up in their children.
Most men cannot fathom the shame that often accompanies infertility for women, especially in the time and culture of Ancient Israel.
Bearing children was a source of great honor
Being childless was seen as a mark of God’s disapproval or judgement and brought shame.
It meant being left out in conversations with other women, it meant not having someone to care for you in your old age, it meant being less of a woman than others.
It’s hard for us to imagine the kind of shame that would come with being childless in that context, especially for men.
For many men, identity is wrapped up in their job.
Imagine working hard each day at your job, only to constantly fall short of the mark and incur your boss’s disapproval.
Then, to be publicly fired and humiliated.
Even that doesn’t do justice to the pain and shame of barrenness that Hannah would have felt, and many women today still feel when they struggle with infertility.
But Hannah’s desire for a baby wasn’t just something implanted in her by her culture...
God has planted a desire deep in the heart of (most) women to have children.
They are uniquely created for that purpose!
A woman’s body is uniquely designed for conceiving, carrying, growing, delivering, and nurturing children.
In fact, this is part of the fundamental purpose for God’s creation of women in the very beginning!
After the first mention of God’s creation of women, this is his first command:
We’ll come back to this later and see how this fits with God’s greater plan for motherhood, but for now, just note:
A husband can’t replace the deep, God-given desire for a child.
He wasn’t meant to.
That desire was purposefully built-in to your wife by God himself.
It’s part of who she is.
But neither can children replace the even deeper desire we all have for God.
While a husband can’t fill the desire women have for children, God can.
So, to those women for whom God has withheld the blessing of motherhood, lean in to him.
Your husband can’t fill that void, but God can and he has a purpose in it.
...But today we are focusing on honoring mothers!
Motherhood is a great gift!
A blessing from God!
In an age of excessive egalitarianism and feminism, there’s a profound irony in our culture.
The one thing that women can do that men simply CANNOT do—bearing children—is somehow disparaged as being weak or undesirable.
Most of the comic book Superhero movies—just like many other movies today—bear the influence of feminism pretty strongly.
There’s been quite a few new female superheroes featured in the movies in recent years: Black Widow, Captain Marvel, Wonder Woman, and many more.
What is interesting is that NONE of them have children.
Some of the male superheroes do, but none of the women superheroes.
The not-so-subtle message of these movies is that strong women spend their time out fighting bad guys, “don’t need no man,” and don’t get weighed down by children and domestic life.
The job comes first, and children just get in the way of true fulfillment.
That is NOT the biblical view of womanhood!
Being a mother is not just what you resort to if you’re not strong enough, smart enough, or ambitious enough to be a working mom or superhero.
In fact, being a mother is the highest calling that any woman could aspire to.
It takes far more strength and perseverance than fighting bad guys
It takes greater passion and dedication than serving your country
It takes the humility of Moses
The real superheroes are the moms who sacrificially love their children and families day in and day out, without recognition or praise.
They are truly SuperMoms.
None of this is to disparage women who are not called to be mothers or who are called to be working mothers.
It’s just to say this: “Being a mom is hard work and it’s not for wimps!”
God grants motherhood to further His Kingdom.
Two main ways that motherhood furthers the kingdom:
The Kingdom of God is advanced through the children born to godly mothers
Like all gifts that God gives, God doesn’t give you children merely for your enjoyment.
God does delight in giving his children good gifts, and children are a great gift!
But they have a greater purpose in God’s plan than just meeting your personal happiness...
Children belong to God.
God sometimes uses infertility to work about a change in a woman’s heart.
Did God change his mind between v. 5 and v. 20? No! Of course not!
So, why did God allow Hannah to go childless for so long?
God needed Hannah to come to a place of complete surrender, where she was willing to surrender the thing that was most precious to her in all the world—her baby—over to God willingly and joyfully.
God went on to use that baby in powerful ways:
To confront wicked kings, to teach a nation to honor him, to encourage and rebuke good kings, to pave the way for the Messiah.
God used other moms to bring about men and women who have had an impact on the Kingdom:
Mary—Jesus
Lois—Eunice—Timothy
One of the most common reasons that people don’t enter the ministry or missions is because of parents who disapprove or are unwilling to let go.
We are both blessed to have godly moms who have sacrificially embraced our calling to missions because they understand that motherhood is a gift from God and is designed to further the Kingdom of God.
The Kingdom of God is advanced through the hearts of mothers as they are refined and sanctified through childbearing and child-rearing.
There is nothing more sanctifying than having children!
Children are like holy sandpaper…some are like holy jackhammers!
They shape us and mold us, smoothing away our impatience, selfishness, and apathy until we look more and more like Christ.
Godly mothers honor God, and God honors godly mothers.
(1:21-2:10)
God honors godly mothers.
God answers the prayers of godly mothers
God demands respect and honor for mothers.
So children—you better honor your mother, because God does!
Speak to her respectfully.
Don’t criticize her or complain
Tell her how pretty she looks
Tell her you love her
Obey her the first time!
Make her a Mother’s Day card.
Give her hugs and kisses
Clean your room without her asking you to do it.
Ask her for advice when you’re making decisions, and carefully consider her wisdom.
Let her sleep in
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