I Remember Mama

"I Remember Mama"

2 Timothy 1:1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, according to the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus,

2 To Timothy, my dearly beloved son: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

3 I thank God, whom I serve from my forefathers with pure conscience, that without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day;

4 Greatly desiring to see thee, being mindful of thy tears, that I may be filled with joy;

5 When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.

6 Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands.

7 For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

8 Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be thou partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God;

9 Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

Introduction: Back when I was a lot younger I remember seeing a movie entitled "I Remember Mama" and it starred Barbara Bel Geddes and Irene Dunn, who played "mama." The movie revolved around how "mama" took care of her family and placed her family's needs above her own. Even today when I watch this movie I get a little misty eyed thinking of my wife, mother and daughter and what they have done and are still doing for their families. In 2 Timothy Paul mentions (remembers) Timothy's mother and grandmother and that's where I'd like to start this message today. What does he say about them?

I. THEY EMBRACED THE TRUTH

a. Their background

Lois is the grandmother of Timothy, a Jewess who married a Greek (pagan) who embraced the Christian faith, made her home probably in Lystra, and was probably deceased by the time Paul wrote this letter. Eunice is her daughter and Timothy's mother and was converted during Paul's ministry in the same place. It is probable that Paul led a young Timothy to Christ while visiting in the home during his ministry in Iconium and Lystra since he refers to the persecutions there, which Timothy himself knew about. Paul may have recovered from his stoning at Lystra in Timothy's home.

b. Their belief

More than likely Lois was a messianic Jew who may not have known that the Messiah had come. Eunice and Timothy came to Christ during Paul's ministry.

Acts 16:1 Then came he to Derbe and Lystra: and, behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timotheus, the son of a certain woman, which was a Jewess, and believed; but his father was a Greek:

c. Their behavior

Their behavior is consistent with their beliefs. They "walked the walk and talked the talk."

ILL - A woman once wrote Gipsy Smith after an evangelistic campaign to tell him she had been converted as a result of one of his messages. She said "I believe the Lord wants me to preach the Gospel, Brother Smith, but the trouble is that I have 12 children to raise! What shall I do?" She received this letter in reply: "My dear lady, I am happy to hear that you have been saved and feel called to preach, but I am even more delighted to know that God has already provided you with a congregation of 12! The new convert got the point!

Someone has said, "Mothers write on the hearts of their children what the rough hand of the world cannot erase..."

Abraham Lincoln said, "All that I am or hope to be, I own to my angel mother."

Dwight Moody said, "All that I have ever accomplished in life, I owe to my mother."

Proverbs 6:20; My Son keep your Father's commands and do not forsake your Mother's teaching.

Out of the French Revolution came a story of a mother who wandered through the woods for three days with her two children, trying to survive on roots and leaves. On the third day, she heard some soldiers approaching and quickly hid herself and the children behind some bushes. The sergeant in charge noticed the movement, so he prodded the bushes to see what was stirring behind them. When he saw the starving woman and children, he had compassion on them, and immediately gave them a loaf of brown bread. The mother took the bread eagerly, broke it into two pieces and gave one piece to each of the two children. The sergeant noted, "She has kept none for herself." A soldier asked, "Is it because she is not hungry?" "No," the sergeant answered. "It is because she is a mother."