Mother's Day Message 2015
If You Had A Mother Who....
Scriptures: Genesis 16:1-6; 1 Kings 3:16-27
Introduction
I have delivered several Mother's Day messages through the years and what I have come to realize is that no matter how much I say about a good mother it does not seem to fully do them justice. I cannot tell you anything new about a good mother as we have good mothers in this congregation - so you know them by their example. But I can give you a gentle reminder as sometimes we can take them for granted because we are accustomed to them being so good. Many of us have currently or have had good mothers or “good mother figures” who, although not perfect, loved us enough to help us become who we are today. Many of you who are hearing or reading this message are good mothers and I thank God for you even though some of you I have never met personally. This morning as you listen to this message, if you had a good mother or mother figure that cared enough about you to help you be who you are today bless them and give God the praise! Tell Him hallelujah for the woman who influenced your life! The title of my message today is "If You Had A Mother Who..." and you can complete the sentence.
I want to share with you the stories of two unlikely mothers who share some traits with good mothers today. I want to start with Hagar, who was the slave of Sarah, Abraham’s wife. Turn with me to Genesis chapter 16.
I. Hagar Becomes An Unwilling Mother
Genesis 16:1-6 says, “Now Sarai, Abram’s wife had borne him no children, and she had an Egyptian maid whose name was Hagar. So Sarai said to Abram, ‘Now behold, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Please go in to my maid; perhaps I shall obtain children through her.’ And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. After Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Abram’s wife Sarai took Hagar the Egyptian, her maid, and gave her to her husband Abram as his wife. He went in to Hagar and she conceived; and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her sight. And Sarai said to Abram, ‘May the wrong done me be upon you. I gave my maid into your arms, but when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her sight. May the Lord judge between you and me.’ But Abram said to Sarai, ‘Behold, your maid is in your power; do to her what is good in your sight.’ So Sarai treated her harshly, and she fled from her presence.” (Genesis 16:1-6)
Hagar was a servant/slave of Sarai (Sarah), Abram’s (Abraham) wife. She served Sarai faithfully, so faithful was she that when Sarai could not have children she gave Hagar to Abram to bear a child for her. In this transaction Hagar became Abram’s concubine which carried more importance than just being a slave/servant. A concubine was a female slave designated as bearing children. They did have a certain status above the normal slaves though. Some were listed among family members and sons of concubines could also be equals in inheritance and succession and thus a threat to the sons of wives. Although they may have had other responsibilities their primary job was to bear children of the man they were given to. We need to understand that Hagar was a slave and had no choice in the matter. When Sarah offered her to her husband, Hagar did not have the right to say no, she had to obey. She allowed herself to become the 2nd wife of Abram to bear children to him on behalf of Sarai. Can you imagine how she felt? This was the custom of the time, but she was still a woman serving as a surrogate for someone else without a choice.
Now the Bible tells us that when Hagar found that she was pregnant, her attitude changed towards Sarai. It could be said that maybe her attitude changed because she was forced to do something that Sarai herself could not do and succeeded. When Hagar’s attitude changed towards Sarai, Sarai noticed and went and complained to Abram. She actually blamed Abram for the situation although it was her idea. Now notice what Abram said to her in verse six: “Behold, your maid is in your power; do to her what is good in your sight.” Although Hagar had been given to Abram to be his concubine, she was still viewed as being the slave of Sarai. Sarai appears to have revoked Hagar’s “concubine” status after she became pregnant. Sarai began to treat Hagar harshly to the point that Hagar ran away. When you read the rest of the chapter you will find that an angel of the Lord found her and told her to return to Sarai and submit to her. He also told her that she would have many descendants and she was to name her son Ishmael. Hagar returned to Sarai and she bore Abram a son and named him Ishmael.
After her child was born, she did not reject her son even though he was not conceived out of love. We need to understand this. Hagar life changed after she had been given to Abram to bear his children for Sarai. Hagar was a virgin and was part of a dowry that the Pharaoh of Egypt had given to Sarai when he mistakenly thought he would make her one of his wives (Genesis chapter 12). Because she had now conceived and delivered a son on behalf of another it would have been easy for her to see her son as a reminder of what she had gone through and how her life would forever be changed. There was a chance that no other man would want her now that she had been with another man. Every time she looked at her son, she would remember what she had been through. However, this was not her response. She became a mother and she loved her son.
In Genesis chapter twenty-one Sarah requested that Abraham send Hagar and Ishmael away so that Ishmael would not be in competition with Isaac for his inheritance. This was something that distressed Abraham, but God told him to listen to Sarah but promised that He would make a nation out of Ishmael’s descendants. (Many Arabs today claim Ishmael as their forefather.) When she was driven away from Abraham's home and got to the point where she thought she and her son would die, she separated herself from him as she could not bear to see him die (Genesis 21:16). Ishmael was in his mid to late teens at this time. In verse sixteen of chapter twenty-one she asked not to see the boy die and then she wept. These actions are not the actions of a woman who was the mother of a child that she did not love. Even though she was forced to have this child and it forever changed the circumstances of her life, this was her child and she loved him. Keep this in mind as I move to mother number two. Turn with me to First Kings chapter three.
II. The Mother Who Stood Up To King Solomon
In verses sixteen through twenty-eight of First Kings chapter three, we find the story of two women who had babies within days of each other. Both mothers had given birth to sons. One of the mothers accidentally laid on top of her baby while she was sleeping smothering the child. When she realized what she had done she switched her child with the woman who lived in the house with her. When the other woman woke up in the morning, she found that the baby lying next to her was dead. She initially thought that her child had died, but upon looking closely at the baby, she realized that this baby was not her baby - you see a mother knows her child! She confronted the other woman and the woman claimed that she had not switched the babies. Finally they were both brought before King Solomon. I want you to understand before I go further what the rules were in that day when you were in the presence of a king. Remember the story of Queen Esther as recorded in the book of Esther? Remember when she went to see the king without being summoned and how she had to wait to be acknowledged? During those days when you were in the king’s presence you did not speak to the king without permission or it could cost you your life. Well, when these two mothers stood before King Solomon, one of the mother’s broke protocol.
After both women plead their case and there was no way to determine who was telling the truth, Solomon made a decision. You see, some say possession is half the battle towards proving ownership, but not in this case. Although one woman had the baby, the baby's real mother was determined to have her child. Let’s pick the story up at verse twenty-four of First Kings chapter three. “The king said, ‘Get me a sword.’ So they brought a sword before the king. The king said, ‘Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one and half to the other.’ Then the woman whose child was the living one spoke to the king, for she was deeply stirred over her son and said, ‘Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and by no means kill him.’ But the other said, ‘He shall be neither mine nor yours; divide him!’ Then the king said, ‘Give the first woman the living child, and by no means kill him. She is his mother.” (I Kings 3:24-27) Solomon made the decision that because both women claimed the child as their own that the child should be divided equally between the two women. When this decision was announced, the mother of the child being “deeply stirred over her son” spoke to the king out of order. She was no longer concerned about protocol – she was only concerned about her son. She was not concerned about being killed for speaking to the king; she was only concerned about saving the life of her son! She spoke up and told the king to give the baby to the other woman. The other woman proved that she was not the mother when she said that the king should divide the child between the two of them. At this point Solomon knew who was the baby's mother and he returned the child to his rightful mother.
It would be hard to recognize a mother who would be willing to allow her child to be killed because another woman claimed the child was hers. This story contrasts two mothers – one who loved her child and one who would rather see a baby killed versus being a part of the child’s life even though she was not the child’s mother. I do not know a mother who could stand by and watch a baby be killed, even if that baby was not hers. I sometime think about what that baby’s life would have been like with a mother like that – but as we live and breathe today, we see mothers just like this. The mother of the child stood before Solomon and heard him speak the words to divide her son. She quickly processed what that would mean. If she allowed Solomon to divide her baby she would lose her child forever. If she allowed this woman to have her child, at least her child would be alive and she would be able to watch him grow and possibly have a relationship with him. There would always be a chance later that the child would come to know who his real mother was. I am not sure if this mother was thinking this, but I believe that she was thinking about saving the life of her child. She was willing to put her life on the line and speak out to the king to save her child. If you had a mother who stood up for your life, then you know what I am talking about.
I have shared with you these two stories to stress this point: delivering a baby into this world makes you a birth mother but it’s what you do afterwards that determines if you’re a “good mother.” Each one of these mothers is examples of mothers today. Yes there are mothers who love their children and would give their lives for them and likewise there are mothers who not only do not care about their children, but see them as a means to an end – whatever that “end” is. These mothers would not put their lives on the line for their children and their children are sometimes viewed as a hindrance to the lifestyle they wish to live. Oh but when you find that good mother. Proverbs 31:28 says “Her children rise up and bless her…” If you have a good mother who is still living – Bless Her Today! Do not wait until tomorrow. If your mother is with you today in this service get up out of your seat and go and bless her!
There are many mothers who have passed through this world, some were good, and some were not. Some people measure the "goodness" of a mother based on whether or not that mother did things for them as they grew up under her guidance. Do not ask a child or teenager if they have a good mother because their frontal lobes are not fully developed and they may not fully understand the question. You see, sometimes you have to experience some things in life before you really understand what it means to have had a good mother. Sometimes we do not appreciate them when we are living with them - it comes later when we have time to reflect. So let me share with you some of my thoughts on a good mother.
Conclusion: If You Had A Mother Who…….
If you had a mother who stopped you from leaving the house for school with clothes on that were so tight and revealing and was not made with less than a half yard of fabric and barely covered you – bless her! If she showed up at your school to see if you sneaked the clothes out of the house so you could change when you got to school – bless her and give God the praise!!! You see, your mother cared about the image you presented about yourself when your frontal lobe was not developed enough for you to know how to dress. She understood the doors that could be opened or closed based on how you looked and she wanted you to know that early in life versus learning it later. If you think I am wrong, go to the mall and just walk around and see what our children are wearing these days. By the way, while you’re looking at them, look at the adults who are giving them their example!
If you had a mother who told you to pull your pants up because no one wanted to see your underwear or see you doing the duck walk trying to keep your pants up – bless her! After she told you once and you did it again and she caught you and pulled the pants all the way down showing your business, bless her and give God the praise! You had a mother that cared enough about you that she did not want ducking walking down the street and trip over your pants and fall and bust your head on the sidewalk expecting her to take the household food money to pay your emergency room visit. She was thinking way ahead of where your mind was!
If you had a mother who worked several jobs because she had to in order to provide for you and she provided for your every need and even gave you a few of your “wants”, bless her and give God the praise! You see whether your mother worked several jobs to take care of you and to invest in you.
If you had a mother who quit her job to be at home with you because that is what you needed at the time – bless her! If she stayed home and was there for you when you got home from school and was present at all of your school functions – bless her and give God the praise! Your mother forfeited her career to be home with you. She made a conscious investment in you and that investment kept you off the streets, out of jail and alive to hear or read this message.
If you had a mother who washed your mouth out with soap when you actually used some words in the house because you forgot where you were – bless her! You had a mother who was willing to teach you early how to converse using appropriate language skills. If you had a mother who, God forbid, had to slap the taste out of your mouth (the taste for bad language) because you did not learn from the soap – bless her and give God the praise! You had a mother who believed that sometimes a physical touch of love drove out a lot of stupidity. If you don't believe me, look around at some parents who have some children living in their homes and they are afraid of them. My parents were not afraid of us. My teachers were not afraid of us. The old members of the Church were not afraid of us! You understand what I am saying? They were not afraid of us because we were actually afraid of them!!! Parents – it’s time to stop being afraid of the children God has put under your authority!
If you had a mother who took you to Church; would not let you fall asleep during service; made you go to Sunday School; made you sing in the choir; made you participate in the youth group; made you give some of your allowance in the offering plate; made you learn speeches for the Easter and Christmas programs; made you become a junior usher and stand during the service; bless her and Give God the Praise! If your mother had not done those things you might not be sitting here this morning or reading this message in an email!
If you had a mother who prayed for you because she had you on her mind so she took some time to pray for you – bless her. Thank her for those many prayers that she prayed for you while you were too unawares to pray for yourself! Many angels have been dispatched from heaven because of the prayers of mothers!
As I close this morning, I ask that you give God the praise for the mother or mother figure who so influenced your life that you accepted Christ as your personal Savior and will be able to live an eternity with them when all is said and done on this side.
Have a blessed Mother Day today!
Until next time, “The Lord bless you and keep you. May the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. May the Lord lift up His countenance on you and give you peace.” (Numbers 6:24-26)
