Even Me
An Unusual Mother’s Day Sermon
By
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
OPENING: - In Proverbs 31 we find the description of a virtuous woman and this passage of scripture will no doubt be used by many today. This virtuous woman that was described so many years ago is still the epitome of women today and has caused us to develop in our minds a type of super woman that is expected to get up early in the morning put breakfast on the table, make sure that the coffee has its sugar and cream, the eggs are over-easy, and the toast done lightly. She looks of a movie star, can cook like a master chef, have the stamina of a world-class athlete, the intelligence of a college professor, the tenacity of a military general, the wisdom of Solomon, the sensitivity of a Mother Theresa, the business sense of Elan Musk or Jeff Bezos, the grace of an etiquette expert and the spirituality of Mary the mother of Jesus.
The question then becomes what if I don’t quite measure up to the Proverbs 31 woman? Is there any hope for me? Can God use me? Let’s not just talk about the women because we all have times and circumstances in our lives when we ask these same questions? Is there any hope for me? Can God use me? Can God take me with all of my flaws, my sins, my lack of faith, my past, my pain, my sinned stained character and use me? Will God forgive me?
Well today just tap yourself and say, “Even Me”.
PRAYER: -
SCRIPTURE: - Matthew 1:1-6 & 16 says, “The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren; And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram; And Aram begat Aminadab; and Aminadab begat Naasson; and Naasson begat Salmon; And Salmon begat Booz of Rachab; and Booz begat Obed of Ruth; and Obed begat Jesse; And Jesse begat David the king; and David the king begat Solomon of her that had been the wife of Urias (Bathsheba); And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ”.
Now someone may wonder why on Mother’s Day I am reading about the genealogy of Jesus and not about a virtuous woman or a certain woman in the Bible. Understand there are 5 women mentioned here in the 1 chapter of Matthew in the genealogy of Jesus Christ. The number 5 symbolizes God's grace, goodness and favor toward mankind. Grace is mentioned 318 times in Scripture, 3+1+8 =12 which is Divine Government. Five is the number of grace, and multiplied by itself, which is 25, is 'grace upon grace' John 1:16. The Ten Commandments contains two sets of 5 commandments. The first five commandments are related to our treatment and relationship with God with the remaining one concerned with our relationship with other people. There are 5 primary types of offerings God commanded Israel to bring to him. 1.) Burnt Offering (Leviticus 1; 8:18 - 21; 16:24), 2.) Sin (Leviticus 4; 16:3 - 22), 3.) Trespass (Leviticus 5:14 - 19; 6:1 - 7; 7:1 - 6), 4.) Grain (Leviticus 2) and 5.) Peace Offering (Leviticus 3; 7:11- 34). The Book of Psalms is divided into 5 major sections. Section 1 (Psalm 1 to 41) refers to the Passover, Israel's beginning, and the start of the God's plan of salvation that centers on Christ. Section 2 (42 to 72) sings about a unified Israel in the land and pictures the creation of the New Testament Church. Section 3 (73 to 89) bemoans the destruction of both God's Temple and Jerusalem. This section also hints at prophecies regarding the End Time Great Tribulation. Section 4 (90 to 106) rejoices over the 1,000 reign of Jesus and shows Israel gathered again. Section 5 (107 to 150) pictures a time when Judah (representing all Israel) shall again be delivered. There are five books of God's Law (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy) commonly referred to as the Pentateuch ('Penta' means five). The 4 Gospels plus Acts equals five books that, as a set, can be designated as "the New Testament Pentateuch." They reveal Jesus' teachings concerning the Law and the Prophets. The apostle John wrote 5 books centered on the grace of God and eternal life (the gospel of John, 1John, 2John, 3John and Revelation).
Let’s talk about Grace.
So, what about these five women mentioned in Matthew 1 that are in the lineage of Jesus Christ? First, these women were mothers who are vital in the lineage of Jesus and along with all mothers are celebrated today, but before they became mother’s these women had some problems, they had some issues, four of the five have what we would categorize as a checkered past, they were outsiders, they were around the way girls, the kind of girls you don’t take home to mother.
First there is Tamar, her story is found in Genesis 38. Tamar is the daughter in law of Judah, yes that Judah, one the 12 sons of Jacob. Tamar was married to Judah’s first son - Er. Now Er died without Tamar having had a child. Tamar is then given to Judah’s second son Onan to carry out the custom of the day and that is father a child with her to carry on the name of his brother Er. Onan decides not to carry out the custom and he died without giving Tamar a child. Judah is now concerned; Tamar is getting the reputation of being a black widow. Custom stated that his third son must carry out the responsibility of producing a child with Tamar in his brother’s name. Judah was worried that he would end up dead as well, so he lies to Tamar and promises her that when the 3rd son named Shelah is old enough that he will send him to Tamar, and they will be married and can have a child to carry on Er’s name. So, he sends Tamar back to her father to live as a widow until Shelah is old enough. Judah never had the intention for that marriage to happen. After a period, Shelah grows older and Judah’s wife dies, and Tamar still is a widow without a child and becoming bitter because she realizes Judah has lied to her and she will not be marrying Shelah. She hears that Judah is coming to check on his sheep and she is now desperate, her biological clock seems to be winding up, she is lonely, bitter, and vengeful and she does the unthinkable. Tamar disguises herself as a prostitute and propositions her father-in-law Judah. He takes her up on the offer, but he has no money, so he gives her his seal and his staff and promises to give her a lamb when come back through the city. Well, he doesn’t come back but sends his servant who can’t find the prostitute, but he finds Tamar is pregnant and returns to tell Judah. When Judah hears that Tamar is daughter in law is pregnant, he demands that she is punished according to the law, which was to be put to death until she pulls out Judah’s seal and staff and said the one who owns these items is the one, I am pregnant by. Judah says Tamar is more righteous than he is. Here is a woman that was conniving, deceitful, bitter, lonely, vengeful, and desperate yet she finds Grace and gives birth to Perez making Tamar the 35th great grandmother of Jesus. The number 35 when added together 3+5 = 8 the number of new beginnings. Perez is 34th great-grandfather of Jesus Christ. Grace gave her a new beginning.
Second there is Rahab. You will find her story in Joshua 2. It is Rahab’s house that is used by the spies to scout out the land Jericho before entering. Now, Tamar, was a one-time prostitute, but Rahab, when we meet her in Joshua 2, is a pro she is a full-time prostitute. Joshua 2:1 says, “harlot” but the Hebrew word Ishahzonah is prostitute, that is how she is described. She was not an upstanding moral citizen who had gone to church every Sunday and sang on the Praise Team. She was a gentile, an outsider, a shameful hussy she was no doubt called, selling her body to men who would never bring her the kind of safety and security she longed for, but bored only the sign of the sin that stained her heart and soul. Rahab represents that kind of person who cannot dodge their past. She didn’t just have a skeleton in the closet she had a graveyard. Even in reformation and repentance, someone or something is always there to remind you of your past. However, Rahab went from living on the wall of shame to being mentioned in the Hall of Faith Hebrews 11 and because of Grace she marries a man by the name of Salmon and gives birth to Boaz who is the 28th great-grandfather and she is the 28th great-grandmother of Jesus.
Third there is Ruth. You know her story for there is after all book named for her. Ruth’s story is a story of tragedy, famine leads to the death of all the men of her immediate family, her husband, her father-in-law, and her brother-in-law. The tragedies allow us to see her devotion to her mother-in-law in returning to the land of Bethlehem, the House of Bread. But don’t miss this Ruth is an outsider she is not an Israelite; she is from the land of Moab. If you read your Bible being a Moabite from Moab is worse than being from the wrong side of the tracks or the wrong neighborhood, she was from the wrong line of people, her lineage was all wrong, her pedigree as distasteful. The Moabites were from a line that came from incest between Lot and his two daughters. The Moabites were a notoriously pagan and ungodly people. Like the Moabites some people cannot shake their roots today. Sadly, so often our roots will carry a stigma that can wrap around our feet and hold us solidly in place or push us forward to achieve more and more. But because of Grace Ruth catches the eye of Boaz – Rahab’s son, who wasn’t worried about her past, he didn’t care where she came from, he didn’t care about what she had done. He didn’t care about her pedigree; he didn’t care that her roots were messed up. He became her kinsman redeemer. He spread out his wings and covered Ruth with his blanket. In the morning Boaz sent her home with a shawl full of barley and a heart filled with hope. Ruth was empty in many ways, but God through Grace filled her and provided for her. She marries Boaz and gives birth to Obed and becomes the 28th great-grandparents of Jesus Christ.
Then we come to the 4th woman Bathsheba. Bathsheba’s story is found in 2 Samuel 11. Bathsheba is known for her sin with King David. Bathsheba was the daughter of one of David’s 30 Mighty Men; her grandfather was one of David’s most trusted advisors, her husband, Uriah the Hittite, was one of David’s military leaders. David saw the bare-skinned beautiful Nubian princess bathing from his rooftop and had to have her, like an object to be possessed. The Bible doesn’t offer up many details about her thoughts or feelings but let me inject this right here Bathsheba becomes a victim of a story she really didn’t ask to be a part of. A decision was made about her life that she didn’t have control of, she was violated and taken advantage of, seduced, and used by a man that had no business doing what he did. And because of a decision of someone more powerful than her she is now faced with a life of whirlwind tragic events outside of her control. She is physically, psychologically, and sociologically messed up. She experiences overwhelming loss she couldn't possibly have foreseen or asked for. She finds herself pregnant from the man that took advantage of her King David, her husband Uriah is murdered, she is probably having feelings of dreed and despair, she later gives birth to this son that dies less than a week after he is born. God gives her Grace after having been violated, used, broken hearted, dealing with depression, panic attacks, and anger issues she conceives and gives birth to Solomon the 24th great-grandfather of Jesus Christ and making her the 25th great-grandmother of Jesus.
The 5th is Mary, the mother of Jesus, her story is found in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Unlike Tamar, Rahab, Ruth and Bathsheba who had checkered pasts as vengeful, deceitful, prostitutes, widows, and foreigners, we don’t know much about Mary’s background. She was not rich or famous, she was not a princess or a queen. She was a teenager and about as low on the social ladder as one could get. She lived in the out-of-the-way town of Nazareth of all places.
There was in those days a stigma associated with Nazareth and the people then. There was even a saying that was “Can anything good come from Nazareth”? Stigmas have a way of following us. People don’t forget who you are or what you did or where we came from. The world has a hard time seeing us outside of the stigma. Nazareth was not known for much. It sat surrounded by soft, porous limestone hills and was filled with people who made their living farming. They were spread out as they needed room for plants and livestock to roam. They were very communal in how they lived, but nothing good was expected to come out of such humble places.
In the eyes of the world, nothing made her qualified for a task and privilege so special as to be the mother of Jesus.
In Her Own Words we see a glimpse of her low self-esteem. Mary said in Luke 1:46-55 “My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For he hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden: for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed. For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name. And his mercy is on them that fear him from generation to generation. He hath shewed strength with his arm; he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seats and exalted them of low degree. He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away. He hath helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy; As he spake to our fathers, to Abraham, and to his seed forever”.
Mary according to her roots, her lifestyle, and where she was from was considered by people as an inconsiderable speck, but the Grace of God shined upon Mary and all generations call her blessed.
CLOSING: - We see here in this lesson 5 women who were less than acceptable in the sight of people. Some women that had a checked past. Some women that society looked down upon. Some women that felt hopeless and helpless. Some women whose pedigree was considered all wrong. Some women that have been abused, violated, plundered, criticized, mistreated, and stained by sin. Some where outsides that just didn’t fit in. Some had low self-esteem. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6 “fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, effeminate, abusers of themselves with mankind, thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, extortioners, And such were some of you”.
Often desperation causes people to make bad decisions. Sometimes you find that you just don’t fit in. You may have low self-esteem. Because sin will take you where you don’t want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and make you do things you never wanted to do. Sometimes you are like the song says you find yourself sinking deep in sin, far from the peaceful shore very deeply stained within, sinking to rise no more.
But I just want to tell you that GRACE, that SAVING GRACE that same refuge that took a prostitute changed her life from living on a wall of shame to being mentioned in the Hall of Faith.
That same Grace that took a woman from an incestuous past and caused a book in the Bible to be named after her.
That same Grace that looked upon a young teenage girl that lived under the stigma that nothing good can come from here and caused her to be called blessed by all generations.
That same Grace can reach down right where you are, it can reach down in the crack house, reach down into the prison cell, it can reach down in the muck and mire pick you and turn you around, clean you up, give you and new look, a new talk, a new attitude, and new point of view.
There is nothing that God can’t deliver you from.
That same Grace can change your life.
Tap yourself and say EVEN ME!
Yes, EVEN YOU & ME.
But you don’t understand Bishop I did such and such – Yes Even You.
But I committed this and that – Yes Even You.
Well, I know God won’t forgive this – Yes Even You.
The best Mother’s Day gift you can give your mother or honor her memory is to give your life to Jesus.
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
