Lesson for May 14, 2023
Mother’s Day
A Faithful Mother
The Word of God has a lot to say about women, especially mothers. Contrary to popular belief, the Bible reveres women and God honors motherhood. The importance of being a godly woman and mother cannot be overemphasized. A godly woman or mother is one who is advancing in the spiritual life. As a godly mother advances through the various stages of spiritual adulthood, she is preparing herself for one of the most important roles God has assigned to a believer.
A mother is given the duty of not only bearing the child but also nurturing and teaching the child. It’s a big job and one that is to be respected. The objective of raising children is to prepare them for adulthood – not always an easy task. For the godly mother, the objectives are numerous. One objective is to teach her children to love God, love their family and love others. Mothers are also tasked with training their children in all areas of family life and social life. The influence of a mother on a child cannot be overstated. While fulfilling this role, a mother is also asked to be the supportive partner of her husband and perform many other more mundane jobs within the family unit. Motherhood is a huge job, but when done in accordance with the principles of the Word of God is one of the most (if not the most) rewarding jobs on earth. Let’s take a look at a couple of examples of faithful mothers from God’s Word.
Lois and Eunice are mentioned in II Timothy 1:5 as the grandmother and mother to Timothy, pastor of the church in Ephesus. Eunice was a Jewish believer married to a Greek man (Acts 16:1). Eunice, and her mother Lois, ensured that Timothy knew the Gospel and learned the Scriptures. Paul said in II Timothy 3:15, “And that from childhood you have known the sacred writings which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” Paul credited Lois and Eunice with the fact that Timothy had already been taught God’s Word when Paul met him. The sincere faith of Timothy’s mother and grandmother passed this faith on to him. (II Timothy 1:5). Paul said in II Timothy 1:5, “For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that it is in you as well.”
Lois and Eunice are examples for all Christian mothers to follow in the pattern of living doctrine and sharing it with Timothy. This should be an encouragement to every Christian mother and grandmother. It was this foundation in Timothy’s life that caused Paul to choose him to be part of his traveling seminary and become a competent, knowledgeable pastor.
Within a family unit, mothers have a great, if not the greatest, impact on the spiritual life of their children. When other family members are advancing believers, they also have the opportunity to be a huge spiritual influence on their family. Fulfilling this important role within the family brings great blessing and reward. Just consider the influence that Timothy had on the early church and how it continues to impact the lives of believers today.
Another wonderful example of motherhood in the Bible is Mary, the mother of the humanity of Jesus. Mary was a young, wonderful Jewish believer and especially chosen by God to give birth to the Messiah. Mary was the mother of the humanity of Christ, not the “Mother of God.” We can learn some things about Mary from several statements that were made about her and several statements that she made.
In Luke 1:28, the angel said that Mary was “highly favored,” “the Lord was with her” and that she was “blessed among women.” In Luke 1:38, Mary confirmed her obedient attitude toward the Lord. Mary was a faithful believer who knew and quoted from I Samuel 2 and Psalm 34, according to Luke 1:46-56, and she honored God. In Luke 2:19, Mary treasured all these things regarding the birth of the Savior and pondered them in her heart, which means she was concentrating on the Word of God. (Luke 2:19)
We know that Mary (and Joseph) saw to it that Jesus was trained in the Scriptures from the episode of Jesus in the Temple confounding the Jewish scholars. (Luke 2:41-52) We continue to see Mary throughout the life of Jesus. She was at the Cross when Jesus was crucified, at His empty tomb, in the upper room with the disciples awaiting the coming of the Holy Spirit. (John 19:25-27; Luke 24:10; Acts 1:14-15) This magnificent mother never abandoned her child, she stayed with Him until the end and was rewarded greatly when He returned from the grave. Mary was not sinless, not perfect, and certainly not deity, but she was faithful to God and to her children and sets a beautiful example for any woman to aspire to.
Naomi was also a faithful mother, not only to her children, but also to her daughter-in-law, as seen in the book of Ruth. Ruth 1:1-5, “Now it came about in the days when the judges governed, that there was a famine in the land. And a man of Bethlehem in Judah went to reside in the land of Moab with his wife and his two sons. The name of the man was Elimelech, and the name of his wife, Naomi; and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion, Ephrathites of Bethlehem in Judah. So, they entered the land of Moab and remained there. Then Elimelech, Naomi’s husband, died; and she was left with her two sons. And they took for themselves Moabite women as wives; the name of the one was Orpah, and the name of the other, Ruth. And they lived there about ten years. Then both Mahlon and Chilion also died, and the woman was left without her two sons and her husband.”
The Book of Ruth is a remarkable story that takes place during a period when the nation of Israel was in serious decline. They had turned their back on God and sought pagan gods and pagan practices. (Judges 17:6) In the midst of this period, there is a love story that was recorded in the Book of Ruth, which could not have happened if Naomi was not a faithful believer.
The Book of Ruth is the story of Ruth’s kinsman redeemer, Boaz, who was Naomi’s distant relative. In recording this love story, God was laying out the genealogical line from which Jesus Christ would come. We discover that Boaz and Ruth, who were eventually married, were the parents of Obed, the father of Jesse, who was the father of David. From the royal line of David came the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
Another interesting fact in the Book of Ruth is that Boaz lived in Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus. It was to Bethlehem that Naomi, along with her daughter-in-law Ruth, returned after the death of Naomi’s husband and sons. There is a significant prophecy written 700 years before the birth of Christ in Micah 5:2, regarding the birthplace of the Messiah. This prophecy states that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem-Ephratah (Ephratah being the former name of Bethlehem according to Genesis 48:7.) The royal line began in Bethlehem and the journey to Bethlehem by Joseph and Mary from Nazareth was because Joseph was in the lineage of David. God’s plan was being fulfilled even when Ruth traveled to Bethlehem with Naomi. It was the faithfulness of this Old Testament mother, Naomi, who God used to set in motion the coming of the King of kings and Lord of lords, Jesus Christ is an example of a faithful mother/mother-in-law.