A Mother of a Man
Ex. 2:1-10a
May 14, 2006 FBC, Chester Mike Fogerson, Pastor
Introduction:
A TOP TEN LIST OF WHAT MOMS REALLY WANT FOR MOTHER’S DAY
10. To be able to eat a whole candy bar (alone) and drink a Coke
without any "floaters."
9. To have a 14-year-old answer a question without rolling her eyes
in that "Why is this person my mother?" way.
8. Five pounds of chocolate that won’t add twenty.
7. A shower without a child peeking through the curtain with a "Hi
ya, Mom!" just as I put razor to my ankle.
6. A full-time cleaning person who looks like Brad Pitt.
5. For a teenager to announce, "Hey, Mom! I got a full scholarship
and a job all in the same day!"
4. A grocery store that doesn’t have candy, gum, and cheap toys
displayed at the checkout line.
3. To have a family meal without a discussion about bodily secretions.
2. To be able to step on a plane with toddlers and not have some
pencil-neck-yuppie-geek moan, "Oh, no! Why me?"
1. Four words: Fisher Price Play Prison
B Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a daughter of Levi. 2 The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was beautiful, she hid him for three months. 3 But when she could hide him no longer, she got him a wicker basket and covered it over with tar and pitch. Then she put the child into it and set it among the reeds by the bank of the Nile. 4 His sister stood at a distance to find out what would happen to him. 5 The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the Nile, with her maidens walking alongside the Nile; and she saw the basket among the reeds and sent her maid, and she brought it to her. 6 When she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the boy was crying. And she had pity on him and said, "This is one of the Hebrews’ children." 7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, "Shall I go and call a nurse for you from the Hebrew women that she may nurse the child for you?" 8 Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, "Go ahead." So the girl went and called the child’s mother. 9 Then Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, "Take this child away and nurse him for me and I will give you your wages." So the woman took the child and nursed him. 10 The child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son. Ex 2:1-10 (NASB)
1 Jochebed mothered an incredible man of God even during incredible adversity (essence of the text in a sentence).
2 Mothers, even in today’s culture, can still impart their love for God into their children. (essence of the sermon in a sentence)
C I hope you’ll dedicate (or rededicate) yourself to teaching the little ones in your life about God. (Objective)
1 What do you need to do differently with your little ones as far as teaching them about God is concerned? (Probing question)
2 Let’s look at two mothering tips that Jochebed gives us on how to be a mother of a man...a godly man.
3 Prayer
I You must have it to give it.
A Jochebed and her husband, Amran, had a solid relationship with God.
1 Having a child was a risky venture at that time.
a Pharaoh had put forth an edict that called for all male Hebrew babies to be thrown into the Nile.
aa This barbaric action was not his first attempt to stymie the Hebrew population.
bb 1) Tried to work them to death 2) Killing the Jewish boys at birth (self-regulated) & 3) Nile (Egyptians noticed dead babies floating in the water).
b Jochebed was trusting that God would protect a male child if she had one (that’s trust!)
2 God, through His hand of providence, allowed his mother & father to teach Moses about the God of their fathers.
a Probably 2-4 years
b She poured a life’s worth of love, teaching, & discipleship in what time she had...then he left home.
B Mothers, I believe Jochebed would tell us that we can’t teach about a God we don’t know.
1 Your relationship with God must be significant as a mother.
a Saved? Living in the fullness of the Spirit? Praying? Word? Church attendance? Involved in ministry? Sunday School?
b How do you think your kids would describe your walk with God? How significant God was in your life?
c You can’t teach them to go where you have not been (have it to give it)
2 The moment you have to impart/teach about God is brief.
a In diapers one day & driving the next. The child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter and he became her son. And she named him Moses, and said, "Because I drew him out of the water." 11 Now it came about in those days, when Moses had grown up Ex 2:10-11 (NASB)
b Be good stewards of the time God has given you with your babies.
C Many of you I’m sure remember Charles Barkley, the NBA Basketball star who didn’t want people watching him too closely. People were disappointed with his actions and attitude on and off the court and challenged him to be a better role model. His response was basically, "Hey, I’m a basketball player. I didn’t ask to be anyone’s role model and I don’t need that added responsibility." As an NBA star, Barkley didn’t have the option to choose whether or not he wanted to be a role model. That decision had already been made for him when he signed a contract to play in the highly publicized NBA. The same is true for those of us who call ourselves Christians. Once we make that decision to follow Christ, people are watching. Whether you like it or not or whether or not you think it’s fair, you’ve become an example for the family of God.
II Trust God with the children
A Jochebed was doing all she could physically do while trusting God to provide.
1 Imagine making a small ark, putting your baby in it, & setting it afloat on the Mississippi.
a Pharaoh wanted this baby dead!
b Miriam, I believe, was sent by Mom to "trail" the ark with its precious cargo.
aa When the Egyptian princess saw the ark, Miriam jumped out at the exact right time, & with the exact right words (Mom probably told her what to say).
bb Jochebed did all this TRUSTING God to provide.
2 God did not fail Jochebed’s trust.
a What the enemy intended for harm, God intended for good!
aa The Pharaoh intended to destroy the boy; God would raise the boy in Pharaoh’s palace, foot the bill for his schooling, & this boy would eventually destroy the Pharaoh.
bb All of this because a mother did all she could & trusted God to do all He could.
b She trusted God & let go!
B Moms, God has been changing history through babies for 1,000s of years
1 Isaac, Joseph, Samuel, John the Baptist, & especially Jesus
a What if God is going to raise up the next history changer in your baby?
b Trust God with your baby!
2 Trusting is not always easy
a It definitely doesn’t mean that somehow your life is suspended from tough times.
aa And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28 (NASB)
bb God is not always going to work against trials, He works through them.
b Sadly, sometimes our kids don’t turn out the way we prayed, hoped they would.
aa Trusting God means you believe He is in control
bb "Train up a child...& when they are old they will not depart from it." -Prov.
cc You’ve got to train them when they’re young, & trust God for them when they’re old.
C (IL) Moses was raised to love God.
1 He was also exposed to the wild side in Pharaoh’s palace.
a So he looked this way and that, and when he saw there was no one around, he struck down the Egyptian and hid him in the sand. Ex 2:12 (NASB); Moses killed a man.
b Probably broke Mom’s heart, & also God’s.
2 This murdering man, who had been found on the banks of the Nile by an Egyptian princess, was now a fugitive.
a God always knew where he was, where he was going, where he’d been.
b Jochebed knew/trusted her Son was in God’s hand.
3 You may have a wayward child.
a Don’t stop trusting, believing that God is in control.
b Do all you can do & trust God to do only what God can do.
Conclusion:
A Jochebed mothered an incredible man of God even during incredible adversity (essence of the text in a sentence).
1 Mothers, even in today’s culture, can still impart their love for God into their children. (essence of the sermon in a sentence)
2 We’ve looked at two mothering tips that Jochebed gives us on how to be a mother of a man...a godly man.
a You must have it to give it
b Trust God with the children
B I hope you’ll dedicate (or rededicate) yourself to teaching the little ones in your life about God. (Objective)
1 Pleased or unpleased with the example you’re living before your babies?
2 Trusting God, or you think you’re trusting God?
C What do you need to do differently with your little ones as far as teaching them about God is concerned? (Probing question)
1 What would have happened if Moses’ mom hadn’t impacted him for God?
a Raised in Pharaoh’s palace without a godly foundation to build on.
b Princess would have filled his head with stories of Isis & other Egyptian gods, worshiped at their feet in spite on the Jewish blood coursing through his veins (she would have raised him to be like her).
aa Genius, yes! Misguided
bb Brilliant flash of lightning, but also destructive
c Instead, God sent Moses to a better school (best/highest), the school of a godly mother (she would raise him to be like her).
2 God has sent your baby to you for a reason/purpose.
a You’re not a mother by accident, but rather by divine appointment.
b He didn’t just pick anyone to raise your baby, He picked you.
3 What do you need to do differently with your little ones as far as teaching them about God is concerned? (Probing question)
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Respectfully,
Mike Fogerson
