[The following is the manuscript of my sermon delivered on the 10th of May, 2015.]
10 Who can find a virtuous woman?
For her worth is far above rubies.
11 The heart of her husband safely trusts in her,
so that he will have no lack of gain.
12 She will do him good and not evil
all the days of her life.
13 She seeks wool and flax,
and works willingly with her hands.
14 She is like the merchant ships,
she brings her food from afar.
15 She also rises while it is yet night,
and gives food to her household,
and a portion to her maidens.
16 She considers a field and buys it;
with the fruit of her hands she plants a vineyard.
17 She clothes herself with strength,
and strengthens her arms.
18 She perceives that her merchandise is good;
her candle does not go out by night.
19 She lays her hands to the spindle,
and her hands hold the distaff.
20 She stretches out her hand to the poor;
yes, she reaches forth her hands to the needy.
21 She is not afraid of the snow for her household,
for all her household are clothed with scarlet.
22 She makes herself coverings of tapestry;
her clothing is silk and purple.
23 Her husband is known in the gates,
when he sits among the elders of the land.
24 She makes fine linen and sells it,
and delivers sashes to the merchant.
25 Strength and honor are her clothing,
and she will rejoice in time to come.
26 She opens her mouth with wisdom,
and in her tongue is the teaching of kindness.
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 daughters have done virtuously,
but you excel them all.”
30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,
but a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.
31 Give her of the fruit of her hands,
and let her own works praise her in the gates.
--Proverbs 31:10-31 (MEV)
Let us pray… Father God, we come before You this morning to worship You and to celebrate our Mothers. Mothers set shining examples of Your love and the love Jesus would have us show the world. Speak to us this morning, Lord, that we might hear the deeper message You have for us. Speak to us, that we might better know Your will. In the beautiful and blessed name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
Ok, husbands, I may be a little late with this, but the most difficult shopping decisions you'll ever make are those over what to buy your wife, whether for Mother's Day or Christmas or her birthday or your anniversary. Many a man has faced great, enduring silence and felt extremely frigid temperatures for very long periods simply because they made a poor decision regarding just such a gift. So allow me to offer you some hints on what not to give your wife:
Don't buy anything that plugs in. If it requires electricity, it will be seen as utilitarian.
Don't buy clothing that involves sizes. The chances are one in seven thousand that you will get her size right, and your wife will be offended the other 6999 times. "Do I look like a size 16?" she'll say. Too small a size doesn't cut it either: "I haven't worn a size 6 in 20 years!"
Avoid all things useful. The new silver polish advertised to save hundreds of hours in the kitchen is not going to win you any brownie points.
Don't buy anything that involves weight loss or self-improvement. She'll perceive a six-month membership to a gym or diet center as a suggestion that's she's overweight.
Don't buy jewelry. The jewelry your wife wants, you can't afford. And the jewelry you can afford, she doesn't want.
Do not fall into the traditional trap of buying her frilly underwear. Your idea of the kind your wife should wear and what she actually wears are light years apart.
Finally, don't spend too much. "How do you think we're going to afford that?", she'll ask. But don't spend too little, either. She won't say anything, but she'll think, "Is that all I'm worth?"
There. Does that help?
Mother’s Day is a relatively modern observance of the time-honored institution of motherhood. And let’s face it – none of us would even be here if not for that institution. Motherhood was given to us by God, as part of His grand scheme for His creation, who gave us written instructions on just how important this is to Him, and to us. The institution of motherhood is so greatly significant to our Creator that He etched it in stone and handed it down to Moses as part of the Ten Commandments, clearly evident in Deuteronomy chapter 5, verse 16…
16 ‘Honor your father and your mother, as the Lord your God has commanded you, that your days may be long, and that it may be well with you in the land which the Lord your God is giving you.’
--Deuteronomy 5:16 (NKJV)
The Apostle Paul found it necessary to reiterate this crucial importance, perhaps because we are so thick-headed, we humans, and forgetful. In the 6th chapter of his letter to the church in Ephesus, verses 1 through 3, Paul wrote…
We are charged by Jesus to take care of all mothers, not just our own. We are to help see to the needs of the single mother, the mother in prison, the mother who is a stranger in our land, the mother who abused her child.
Jesus commands us to love, unconditionally – it’s His job to judge, not ours. Our job is to love, to help others when they truly need help, no matter how they got into the situation they are in. We are to love each other as He loves us, as we love ourselves, as we love our own mother.
So this Mother’s Day, honor your mother. If she’s still with us, then visit with her, in person or at least on the phone, give her a little treat, just make that special effort to show her how much you love her and thank her for all she’s done for you. If she has already passed on, then show her your love by extending that love to others, to other mothers.
Make a difference in the life of someone else by volunteering with an agency that deals specifically with the needs of mothers, whether with those that are single or unwed or homeless or imprisoned or divorced or financially strapped. By doing this, you will not only be helping the mother, but her children as well.
This Mother’s Day, as we honor our mothers, let’s honor God as well.
Happy Mother’s Day!
Amen.
Let us pray… Heavenly Father, wise King Solomon provides us with a good description of a virtuous woman. But Lord, if we ourselves are wise, we can see characteristics of virtue that we should all exhibit in our daily lives so that we might be virtuous in Your eyes.
Father in Your grand scheme for life, You created mothers so that we would have someone to hold us, to nurture us, to love us unconditionally, to protect us when we are at our most vulnerable. In short, Father, You created Mothers to be almost like Jesus to us. We love our Mothers, Lord, and we love You.
Lord Jesus, we know that it is not just our own mothers we should love, but all mothers and each other as well. When You spoke to John saying, “This is your mother”, you spoke to us too, telling us to look out after those who may no longer have someone to see to their needs. You tell us to love all others, and to show that love in tangible ways.
Father God, hear us in this quiet moment as we pause to cry out to You from our hearts. Whisper Your will in our ear. Speak to us that we might better follow Your voice…
Father God, thank You for our mothers. Lord Jesus, thank You for showing us that we have more mothers than just those who gave birth to us. May we show You our honor and our love by showing all mothers and all people our honor and our love. In the name of our Savior and Master Jesus we pray. Amen.
6 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 “Honor your father and mother,” which is the first commandment with promise: 3 “that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth.”
--Ephesians 6:1-3 (NKJV)
Paul himself makes a very important distinction here in his letter to the Ephesians. The first four commandments deal with our relationship with God while the remaining six are about our relationships with each other. In the Reformed tradition, we generally consider “Honor thy father and thy mother” to be the fifth commandment, or the first of the human relations commandments. Paul notes that of the ten, this is the first commandment that also comes with a promise. “Honor your father and mother, that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth”.
Need a little more? In the 6th chapter of his Proverbs, verses 20 and 21, Solomon instructs us…
Need a little more? In the 6th chapter of his Proverbs, verses 20 and 21, Solomon instructs us…
20 My son, keep your father’s command,
And do not forsake the law of your mother.
21 Bind them continually upon your heart;
Tie them around your neck.
--Proverbs 6:20-21 (NKJV)
But today isn’t Father’s Day – that will come soon enough. This day is for mothers, and not just in the traditional sense.
For some women, motherhood is an accident, and not necessarily a welcome one. For some, biological motherhood simply isn’t possible. For some, motherhood under the very best of circumstances is still less than a bed of roses. And sadly, some mothers just aren’t all that nice. But these are all still mothers, and someone somewhere loves them – Jesus loves them, God loves them.
Could some mothers have been better? Could any mother be better? According to King Solomon, Yes, as can any woman if they follow his counsel in Proverbs 31.
A virtuous woman serves God with all of her heart, mind, and soul, seeking His will for her life and following His ways. If married, she respects her husband and is a true and trustworthy helper to him. If a mother, she teaches her children the ways of God, nurtures them with the love of Christ, disciplines them with care and wisdom, and trains them in the path they should follow. She takes care her body and prepares healthy food for her family.
She serves her husband, her family, her friends, and her neighbors with a gentle, loving, and charitable spirit. She spends money wisely, being careful to purchase quality items that her family needs. She works diligently, praising God rather than grumbling as she completes her tasks. She is a homemaker, creating a loving, inviting and warm environment for her family and guests.
She uses her time wisely, being diligent to complete her daily tasks while not wasting time on activities that do not please the Lord. And lastly, she is a woman of worth and beauty, worth more than rubies, and with an inner beauty that only comes from Christ.
Doesn’t all of that apply to a mother? Doesn’t most of this fit your mother?
Not all mothers can fully live up to all of those virtuous behaviors in their entirety. But all of us should strive to do so, to live these virtues every day of our lives – men and women. OK, so men aren’t going to be mothers, but they may find themselves being both father and mother at some point – I did. And nurturing, disciplining, and training are all part of being a father too.
As long as we’re looking at these virtues and applying them to everyone, at least to some level, what can we do to grow these characteristics within ourselves?
First and foremost, we must seek Jesus – reject the world’s lie that anything or anyone else can fully satisfy us, can completely fill that hole within us that seems to cry out for more… only Jesus can. We can love God, love others, and not be afraid to show our love, always exercising gentleness and kindness in our dealings.
We should let our inner beauty show through, investing only in that reflection of Christ within us, that continues to shine long after our outward beauty fades. We must stay humble, being always alert that our enemy “pride” not sneak into our conversations and actions, keeping watch that our motives not be selfish.
And we must serve our Lord, fully surrendering to Jesus, giving Him our all and serving no other master, such as fame or fortune or power. Man or woman, father or mother - all of us can become more virtuous in the eyes of God if we strive to follow these few directions.
This is Mother’s Day and I don’t want to take away all our focus on this time of remembering and honoring those who gave us life. Nor do I want us to overlook the many forms of mothers we might see today, as we noted in our Congregational Reading earlier.
We have mothers still with us, and mothers who have passed on. We have single mothers, and those soon to become mothers. We have those who willingly accepted another’s child and mothered them as her own, and those who had to give up their child, for whatever reason. We have those who lost a child, and those who desperately want a child but can never have one. We have those who serve as a mother figure to many, and we even have some fathers trying valiantly to fill the role of mother in some child’s life.
Jesus cared about all mothers, not just His own, when He gave His beloved disciple a command as He hung from the cross. John recorded the scene for us in his Gospel account, chapter 19, verses 25 through 27…
For some women, motherhood is an accident, and not necessarily a welcome one. For some, biological motherhood simply isn’t possible. For some, motherhood under the very best of circumstances is still less than a bed of roses. And sadly, some mothers just aren’t all that nice. But these are all still mothers, and someone somewhere loves them – Jesus loves them, God loves them.
Could some mothers have been better? Could any mother be better? According to King Solomon, Yes, as can any woman if they follow his counsel in Proverbs 31.
A virtuous woman serves God with all of her heart, mind, and soul, seeking His will for her life and following His ways. If married, she respects her husband and is a true and trustworthy helper to him. If a mother, she teaches her children the ways of God, nurtures them with the love of Christ, disciplines them with care and wisdom, and trains them in the path they should follow. She takes care her body and prepares healthy food for her family.
She serves her husband, her family, her friends, and her neighbors with a gentle, loving, and charitable spirit. She spends money wisely, being careful to purchase quality items that her family needs. She works diligently, praising God rather than grumbling as she completes her tasks. She is a homemaker, creating a loving, inviting and warm environment for her family and guests.
She uses her time wisely, being diligent to complete her daily tasks while not wasting time on activities that do not please the Lord. And lastly, she is a woman of worth and beauty, worth more than rubies, and with an inner beauty that only comes from Christ.
Doesn’t all of that apply to a mother? Doesn’t most of this fit your mother?
Not all mothers can fully live up to all of those virtuous behaviors in their entirety. But all of us should strive to do so, to live these virtues every day of our lives – men and women. OK, so men aren’t going to be mothers, but they may find themselves being both father and mother at some point – I did. And nurturing, disciplining, and training are all part of being a father too.
As long as we’re looking at these virtues and applying them to everyone, at least to some level, what can we do to grow these characteristics within ourselves?
First and foremost, we must seek Jesus – reject the world’s lie that anything or anyone else can fully satisfy us, can completely fill that hole within us that seems to cry out for more… only Jesus can. We can love God, love others, and not be afraid to show our love, always exercising gentleness and kindness in our dealings.
We should let our inner beauty show through, investing only in that reflection of Christ within us, that continues to shine long after our outward beauty fades. We must stay humble, being always alert that our enemy “pride” not sneak into our conversations and actions, keeping watch that our motives not be selfish.
And we must serve our Lord, fully surrendering to Jesus, giving Him our all and serving no other master, such as fame or fortune or power. Man or woman, father or mother - all of us can become more virtuous in the eyes of God if we strive to follow these few directions.
This is Mother’s Day and I don’t want to take away all our focus on this time of remembering and honoring those who gave us life. Nor do I want us to overlook the many forms of mothers we might see today, as we noted in our Congregational Reading earlier.
We have mothers still with us, and mothers who have passed on. We have single mothers, and those soon to become mothers. We have those who willingly accepted another’s child and mothered them as her own, and those who had to give up their child, for whatever reason. We have those who lost a child, and those who desperately want a child but can never have one. We have those who serve as a mother figure to many, and we even have some fathers trying valiantly to fill the role of mother in some child’s life.
Jesus cared about all mothers, not just His own, when He gave His beloved disciple a command as He hung from the cross. John recorded the scene for us in his Gospel account, chapter 19, verses 25 through 27…
25 But standing by the cross of Jesus were His mother, and His mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus saw His mother and the disciple whom He loved standing nearby, He said to His mother, “Woman, here is your son.” 27 Then He said to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” From that time, this disciple took her to his own home.
--John 19:25-27 (MEV)
Jesus commands us to love, unconditionally – it’s His job to judge, not ours. Our job is to love, to help others when they truly need help, no matter how they got into the situation they are in. We are to love each other as He loves us, as we love ourselves, as we love our own mother.
So this Mother’s Day, honor your mother. If she’s still with us, then visit with her, in person or at least on the phone, give her a little treat, just make that special effort to show her how much you love her and thank her for all she’s done for you. If she has already passed on, then show her your love by extending that love to others, to other mothers.
Make a difference in the life of someone else by volunteering with an agency that deals specifically with the needs of mothers, whether with those that are single or unwed or homeless or imprisoned or divorced or financially strapped. By doing this, you will not only be helping the mother, but her children as well.
This Mother’s Day, as we honor our mothers, let’s honor God as well.
Happy Mother’s Day!
Amen.
Let us pray… Heavenly Father, wise King Solomon provides us with a good description of a virtuous woman. But Lord, if we ourselves are wise, we can see characteristics of virtue that we should all exhibit in our daily lives so that we might be virtuous in Your eyes.
Father in Your grand scheme for life, You created mothers so that we would have someone to hold us, to nurture us, to love us unconditionally, to protect us when we are at our most vulnerable. In short, Father, You created Mothers to be almost like Jesus to us. We love our Mothers, Lord, and we love You.
Lord Jesus, we know that it is not just our own mothers we should love, but all mothers and each other as well. When You spoke to John saying, “This is your mother”, you spoke to us too, telling us to look out after those who may no longer have someone to see to their needs. You tell us to love all others, and to show that love in tangible ways.
Father God, hear us in this quiet moment as we pause to cry out to You from our hearts. Whisper Your will in our ear. Speak to us that we might better follow Your voice…
Father God, thank You for our mothers. Lord Jesus, thank You for showing us that we have more mothers than just those who gave birth to us. May we show You our honor and our love by showing all mothers and all people our honor and our love. In the name of our Savior and Master Jesus we pray. Amen.
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