As you already know, today is Mother’s Day. I would like to begin our message with a short story: A small boy invaded the lingerie section of a large department store and shyly presented his problem to a woman clerk. “I want to by a slip as a present for my mom,” he said, “but, I don’t know what size she wears.” The clerk asked, “Is she tall or short, heavy or skinny?” “She’s just perfect,” beamed the small boy. So the clerk wrapped up a size 8 for him. Two days later, Mom came to the store by herself and changed the slip to a size 16.(1)
How many of you here today feel that your mother is perfect? Mother’s are very special people, and some of us think they are perfect. Abraham Lincoln said, “All that I am or hope to be I owe to my angel mother. I remember my mother’s prayers and they have always followed me. They have clung to me all my life.”(2)
George Washington said of his mother, “My mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. All I am I owe to my mother. I attribute all my success in life to the moral, intellectual and physical education I received from her.”(3) The Bible even presents a mother as being close to perfection, as we see in the well-known description of a mother found in Proverbs chapter 31.
Today we are going to look at a biblical example of a near-perfect mother; and this mother is found in the book of Ruth. The mother who will be in the spotlight this morning is named Naomi. From Naomi we are going to examine a mother’s strength, a mother’s love for her children, and discover some things about a mother’s personality. So, let’s get started with our Mother’s Day message!
A Mother’s Amazing Inner Strength (vv. 1-5)
1 Now it came to pass, in the days when the judges ruled, that there was a famine in the land. And a certain man of Bethlehem, Judah, went to dwell in the country of Moab, he and his wife and his two sons. 2 The name of the man was Elimelech, the name of his wife was Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion—Ephrathites of Bethlehem, Judah. And they went to the country of Moab and remained there. 3 Then Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left, and her two sons. 4 Now they took wives of the women of Moab: the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other Ruth. And they dwelt there about ten years. 5 Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died; so the woman survived her two sons and her husband.
In these verses we are introduced to a very special mother named Naomi. She had a husband named Elimelech, and two sons named Mahlon and Chilion. They had moved to a land where the food was plentiful and had lived there a number of years. We see, however, that tragedy interrupted Naomi’s life.
Naomi’s husband died, for some reason we will never know, and she and her two sons were left alone to fend for themselves. I can’t imagine the pain she felt and what that would have been like, or the bewilderment of not knowing how she and her sons were going to survive. The loss of her husband was the loss of a close friend and provider.
There are women here today who have experienced the loss of a husband, and you can identify with Naomi’s pain. However, the Scripture doesn’t mention that Naomi grieved. It only shows us that she went on with life and raised her sons until they were able to take wives of their own.
Tragedy strikes again, in verse 5, with the death of both her sons. Naomi was left again with no one in the family to provide, and she had two daughters-in-law to care for. Just when Naomi thought her purpose in life was nearly served, she had to start over again from scratch. She once again had to provide for others; namely her daughters-in-law. She had to play the part of a mother all over again.
We see here the demonstration of a mother’s strength. The text gives no indication at this point in the account of Naomi showing any grief. It only reveals that she bore her pain and went on with life. We see this kind of strength all the time. With today’s high divorce rate, we see many dead-beat dads avoiding responsibility and leaving single mothers to bear the hardship of raising a family all on their own. The fathers won’t raise the children, because they lack the love and strength that only a mother possesses.
A mother’s strength is a great mystery to us. It is such a mystery that an old Jewish proverb says, “God could not be everywhere; and therefore, He made mothers.”(4) Mark twain described a mother as having “a large heart – a heart so large that everybody’s grief and everybody’s joy found welcome in it, and hospitable accommodation.”(5)
A Mother’s Concern for Her Children (vv. 6-14)
6 Then she arose with her daughters-in-law that she might return from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the country of Moab that the Lord had visited His people by giving them bread. 7 Therefore she went out from the place where she was, and her two daughters-in-law with her; and they went on the way to return to the land of Judah. 8 And Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go, return each to her mother’s house. The Lord deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me. 9 The Lord grant that you may find rest, each in the house of her husband.” Then she kissed them, and they lifted up their voices and wept. 10 And they said to her, “Surely we will return with you to your people.”
11 But Naomi said, “Turn back, my daughters; why will you go with me? Are there still sons in my womb, that they may be your husbands? 12 Turn back, my daughters, go – for I am too old to have a husband. If I should say I have hope, if I should have a husband tonight and should also bear sons, 13 would you wait for them till they were grown? Would you restrain yourselves from having husbands? No, my daughters; for it grieves me very much for your sakes that the hand of the Lord has gone out against me!” 14 Then they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.
We see here that Naomi was concerned for the happiness of her daughters-in-law. In verse 8 she advised them to go back to the house of their own mothers. Naomi knew she could not provide for their emotional need of a husband. Her daughters-in-law would one day desire a husband again, and she told them there was no way that she could provide husbands for them. In verses 11-13, we see Naomi’s desperate plea for their well-being; as she was concerned more for them than herself.
Naomi was willing to sacrifice her only source of companionship, which were her daughters-in-law, so that they could be happy. She would give up her own happiness for theirs. Isn’t it typical of a mother to sacrifice her own needs in order to make her children happy? There is a story from Focus on the Family concerning the sacrifice of a mother; and I wish to share that story with you:
A thirty-six-year-old mother was discovered to be in the advanced stages of terminal cancer. One doctor advised her to spend her remaining days enjoying herself on a beach in Acapulco. A second physician offered her the hope of living two to four years with the grueling side effects of chemotherapy and radiation treatment. She penned these words to her three small children:
“I’ve chosen to try to survive for you. This has some horrible costs, including pain, loss of my good humor, and moods I won’t be able to control. But I must try this, if only on the outside chance that I might live one minute longer. And that minute could be the one you might need me when no one else will do. For this, I intend to struggle tooth and nail, so help me God.”(6)
I said that a mother will give up her own happiness for the well-being of her children, but to the mother, she is not really sacrificing her happiness. Her greatest happiness and joy comes from seeing the eyes of her child light up when she is there for him or her, no matter what the cost to herself.
One of Those Crazy Mother Tricks (vv. 15-18)
15 And she said, “Look, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.” 16 But Ruth said: “Entreat me not to leave you, or to turn back from following after you; for wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. 17 Where you die, I will die, and there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, if anything but death parts you and me.” 18 When she saw that she was determined to go with her, she stopped speaking to her.
One of Naomi’s daughters-in-law took her advice and left. Ruth, on the other hand, refused to listen to her; and just look what Naomi did in verse 18: “When she saw that she was determined to go with her, she stopped speaking to her.” Right here we see one of those tactics that mothers use in attempting to persuade their children into making a good decision; in order to prod them along in the right direction. A mother might say, for example, “If you won’t accept my advice, then don’t expect to hear any more from me ever again.”
You see, mothers have a way with their words. They know exactly what to say in order to prick their child’s conscience. I guess you could call this is a form of verbal discipline; and a parent who loves their child will discipline him or her for their own good. In Revelation 3:19, the Lord said, “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten.” Naomi showed her love and concern for Ruth when she tried to persuade her to return to her own mother and find another husband.
A Mother is Not Superwoman (vv. 19-21)
19 Now the two of them went until they came to Bethlehem. And it happened, when they had come to Bethlehem, that all the city was excited because of them; and the women said, “Is this Naomi?” 20 But she said to them, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me. 21 I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?”
In verse 20, Naomi said to the women of Bethlehem, “Do not call me Naomi; call me Mara, for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me.” The name Mara, which sounds like “to mar,” actually reveals that Naomi was marred by the unexpected death of her husband and her sons. The name Mara in Hebrew means “bitter.”(7) Naomi was indeed very bitter inside; nevertheless, she only thought about helping her daughters-in-law and putting them first.
Earlier we observed how there was no mention of Naomi being grieved or upset by what happened to her husband and sons. She appeared to go on with life without a second thought as to why such tragedy had befallen her. We see once again one of the great mysteries of a mother. A mother appears to be Superwoman, without a care in the world for herself, but that’s not true. Oliver Wendell Holmes said, “Youth fades; love droops, the leaves of friendship fall; a mother’s secret hope outlives them all.”(8)
Mother’s have needs too, but we often fail to realize this fact. They sometimes suppress their feelings in order not to bother their husbands or children. They possess a sort of “secret strength” or “secret hope” as Holmes called it. We need to recognize this quality concerning our mothers, and we need to take the time to find out their needs, and treat them with loving care.
Time of Reflection
The story of Naomi has presented us with an image of a loving mother who is only concerned for the well-being of her children. Every quality that we examined can be summed up in a poem that I wish to read for you this morning. Katherine Nelson Davis wrote the following poem, entitled What Is a Mother?:
A mother is someone to shelter and guide us,
To love us, whatever we do,
With a warm understanding and infinite patience,
And wonderful gentleness, too.
How often a mother means swift reassurance,
In soothing our small, childish fears,
How tenderly mothers watch over their children,
And treasure them all through the years!
The heart of a mother is full of forgiveness,
For any mistake, big or small,
And generous always in helping her family,
Whose needs she has placed above all.
A mother can utter a word of compassion,
And make all our cares fall away,
She can brighten a home with the sound of her laughter
And make life delightful and gay.
A mother possesses incredible wisdom,
And wonderful insight and skill -
In each human heart is that one special corner,
Which only a mother can fill!(9)
Our mother’s are wonderful examples of unconditional love; and unconditional love is an attribute of God, Himself. The Lord’s love for us is so great that you just have to wonder if He is a mother; however, God isn’t a mother, but He is our Father in heaven who loves us with the greatest love that can be found in the universe. If you don’t know this God of love, then I want to invite you to know Him this morning. You know Him by confessing His Son, Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.
NOTES
(1) Michael P. Green, Illustrations for Biblical Preaching (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1997), 251.
(2) Abraham Lincoln, taken from the Internet May 2000 at http://marvelicious.com/mothersday.html.
(3) George Washington, taken from the Internet May 2000 at http://www.coos.or.us/~dust/mother.htm.
(4) Taken from the Internet May 2000 at http://freespace.virgin.net/derek.berger/mothers-day.html.
(5) Mark Twain, taken from the Internet May 2000 at http://marvelicious.com/mothersday.html.
(6) Green, 226; cited in Focus on the Family, May 1985.
(7) Strong, 72.
(8) Oliver Wendell Holmes, taken from the Internet May 2000 at http://freespace.virgin.net/ derek.berger/mothers-day.html
(9) Katherine Nelson Davis, taken from the Internet May 2000 at http://marvelicious.com/ mothersday.html.
