[*This week's message is more topical for the occasion, next week we'll return to our study in Mark 1. SN]
Mother’s
Day 2022: Missional Moms
Introduction: Gloria Furman, in her book Missional Motherhood, said, “When you become a mother, you don’t leave your role as an ambassador for Christ behind. Not at all. Our motherhood is a part of God’s mission.” We’ve spoken a lot over the last year and a half about our part in the Missio Dei, the Mission of God. God has called every believer to have a part in that mission, and it begins with that small group of people he has put around us. For a parent that includes the teachers and other parents at school, coaches and parents at the soccer game, and above all, the innermost circle of our mission field is our family. No one will have a greater impact on children than a Christian mother.
The BIG Idea: A Christian mother can mirror the love of God, bringing
comfort and hope to her family and beyond. And so we’ll start with…
I. A Mother’s Love… and the Love of God (Isa 49:15,16; cf. Mt 23:37; I Jn 4:19). "Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she
should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I
will not forget you. 16
Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are
continually before me.”
(Isa 49:15-16).
The Lord is
talking about His sure love for Israel, and He uses a mother’s steadfast love
for her children as an illustration. Maternal love runs that deep, it is that sure,
that unbreakable. Of course, humans in a
fallen world can fall short, and so He says, in rare and unlikely situations when
even this the deepest and surest human love may falter, so He says, “…even
these may forget, yet I will not forget you.” The committed, protective,
certain love of a mother is so unshakable, it could be compared to God’s
love for His people. That made me think of the words of Christ as He approached
Jerusalem…
Matthew 23:37 37 "O
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are
sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen
gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not!
The pathos of that moment! We get a glimpse of the heart of
God, the depth of His love for Israel. He came unto His own, but His own
received Him not… As a hen seeks to gather her chicks under the protection
of her wings, God so loved His people. A mother’s love is as close as we can
get to understanding God’s unconditional love for us.
John talks a lot
about love in his first epistle. He tells us “God is love” and “We
love because he first loved us” (I Jn 4:8,19). Believer or not, it seems
there is something in common grace that allows mothers to love their children. Yet
someone who has experienced the love God in the Gospel, seems to have an
expanded understanding of love and a heightened capacity to share it. That’s the
BIG Idea: A Christian mother can mirror the love of God, bringing comfort and
hope to her family and beyond.
II. A Mother’s Comfort… and God our Comforter (Is 66:13; Jn
14:25-27). Again at the end of Isaiah, as God is talking about the restoration
of His people in Jerusalem, where they will experience the eschatological shalom
that they long for, He uses the picture of a mother comforting her child…
Isaiah 66:10-13 10
"Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her, all you who love her;
rejoice with her in joy, all you who mourn over her; 11 that you may nurse and be
satisfied from her consoling breast; that you may drink deeply with delight
from her glorious abundance." 12
For thus says the LORD: "Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river,
and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream; and you shall nurse,
you shall be carried upon her hip, and bounced upon her knees. 13 As one whom his mother comforts,
so I will comfort you; you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
A mother nursing her child, comforted, tranquil, at peace. A
little one being bounced on her mother’s knees, smiling and laughing before she
can even speak. Why does a screaming child immediately calm down when handed
to mommy? That kind of peace, tranquility, rest… shalom, pictures in
human terms the future God has in store for His people. Of all human
relationships, God uses the peace a child feels with their mother to express
His promise of peace. That image runs so deep in our hearts, that the Apostle
Paul actually used it to describe his ministry among the Thessalonians in I
Thess 2:7-8…
7 But we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking
care of her own children. 8
So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not
only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very
dear to us.
That kind of gentle, comforting care can be compared by Paul
to a nursing mother caring for her child.
The connection is obvious: maternal love overflows in the mother child
relationship, mother’s presence brings comfort, her words express her love. John
said it bluntly in his first epistle, “God is love” (I Jn 4:8). That
same God sent the Son. Then, in the upper room, Jesus spoke to his disciples
about his departure, and also promised that
he would send the parakletos, the “Comforter,” who is the Holy Spirit.
John 14:25-27 25 These
things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy
Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and
bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my
peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your
hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
Our ultimate Comforter is God himself,
and a Christian mother can mirror the love of God, bringing a measure of that comfort
and hope to her family and beyond.
III. A Mother’s Words… and the Word of Life (2 Cor 4:6; 5:20). I was deeply touched by the testimony of Kara Dedert that appeared in Table Talk Magazine. As a devotional entitled, “Words in the Dark.” It is beautifully told, here is the beginning of the article…
GOD SPEAKS IN THE DARKNESS - The moonlight spilled over the room’s
edges through the large windows on the south side. I could see his body lying
still, yet attentive, as I slipped through the bedroom door. The light outlined
his small form on the pillow, and a foot peeked out from under the sheet. He
was waiting again, more patiently than most eleven-year-olds, because waiting
is his life. Waiting to hear the creaking of the stiff door hinges, waiting for
the sound of feet coming near, waiting to hear the bedrail creak indicating
presence.
My slippers shuffled noiselessly along the wooden floor; at his bed I
leaned forward and felt his warm breath on my cheek. So near, yet his eyes
still wide and waiting—no recognition greeted me, just the same wondering and
expectant expression. I have done this a thousand times, but still, he does not
know my face. His eyes could not pick his mother out in a crowd.
I broke the silence with a hoarse whisper: “Son, it’s Mom. I’m here.” His
head jerked to the side, searching for me. “I’m here, I’m here,” I whispered
again, triggering a slow smile across his face. A big sigh escaped his
body—content, reassured. Someone was here; he was no longer alone. I lifted his
hand and ran it over my face.
Born blind and with quadriplegic cerebral palsy, Calvin is no
stranger to the dark night and constant stillness. The moon pierces the darkness of
the night, but it cannot help his eyes to perceive the details in the room, and
the morning sun cannot break through and lighten the darkness. It is in this
blackness, this still darkness of his, that we rely on something else to
cultivate relationship, reorientation, comfort, and life: the spoken word.
In the article she suggests that we,
like Calvin, can only see in part, our senses are limited, but God’s Word
reveals His presence, it brings comfort and hope to us in the darkness, it
assures us of His presence and His love. It is in His Word we hear God’s
comforting voice, we learn of His steadfast, unshakable love, and we find the
hope that one day we’ll see more clearly. Amazingly, the God who is, has spoken.
His Spirit illumines our understanding of His Word… His Word opens us to a relationship
with Him. His Word teaches us about His love and comforts our hearts. His word
reorients our thinking about how we should live. In a world of darkness, His
Word is Light and Truth.
2 Corinthians 4:6 6
For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," has shone in
our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face
of Jesus Christ.
God’s Word is Life to those who will hear. In the beginning
God spoke the universe into existence. Even after the Fall He continued to
reveal Himself through the prophets. And in these last days He has spoken in
His Son (cf. Heb 1:1). In our fallenness we struggle to understand. Even
though God’s Word is clear, the natural man is unable to understand the
things of the Spirit of God… (I Cor 2:14). But God illumines our
understanding.
A Christian mother lives a life that teaches by example, but also knows
that only the Word of God can reach through the darkness and bring light and
life to a human heart. The mission starts at home, and her words affirm the
Gospel as truth. She understands 2 Corinthians 5:20, “Therefore,
we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you
on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.” That’s the BIG Idea: A
Christian mother, through her actions and words, can mirror the love of God,
bringing comfort and hope to her family and beyond. The heart of that is…
IV. A Mother’s Mission… and the Mission of God (2 Tim 1:5-7;
2 Tim 3:14-16; I Thess 2:7; I Pet 3:15). Just as a Christian in the marketplace
is still on assignment, fulfilling his or her part in God’s mission, so a
Christian mother has a high and holy calling in her family. If our oikos extends
from our household to others in our close sphere of influence, it surely starts
with our immediate family! No one has a greater impact on children than
their mother. A great example is Paul’s word to Timothy…
2 Timothy 1:5-7 5
I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your
grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as
well. 6 For this reason I
remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the
laying on of my hands, 7 for
God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
It is an argument from silence, but
Timothy’s father isn’t mentioned, giving the impression that he wasn’t a
believer. But two generations of women are named, Timothy’s grandmother Lois,
and his mother Eunice. Later in the epistle Paul says,
2 Timothy 3:14-17 14
But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed,
knowing from whom you learned it 15
and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which
are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is breathed out
by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for
training in righteousness, 17
that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
Fathers share the responsibility, but it seems
God has especially gifted mothers with the capacity and the burden to love and teach
their children. One mother reflected on that truth when she wrote the following
under the title, “My child, what can I give you?”
…I give you my love, which means I accept
you, without reservations, just as you are and will be. I give you my personal
presence in order that you will have the security you need during your
childhood. I give you my ears, in the sense that I will never be too busy to
listen to you—sometimes never uttering one word. I give you opportunities to
work so that you might learn to do it without shame and come to enjoy the
satisfaction of work well done. I give you my counsel only when it is necessary
or you ask for it so that you may avoid some of the mistakes I have made. I
give you my consolation when you have failed or feel discouraged, but I will
not always protect you from the consequences of your sins. I give you
instructions in the way of the Lord so that when you are old, you will never
depart from it. I give you my daily prayers that the Lord will keep you and
guide you in such a way, that you, my child, will be a man or woman who will
serve and glorify our Heavenly Father… This I give you with all my love — Your
mother, Lydia Lightner
That is someone who embraced the calling to be
a missionary at home. That kind of love impacts the hearts and minds of
children. A Christian mom will see the home as her first mission field. “Mom” is
the best missionary! Think of how she can carry out Peter’s words…
1 Peter 3:15-16 15
but in your hearts regard Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to
make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in
you; 16 yet do it with
gentleness and respect, having a good conscience...
There is no higher calling than
living out that mission in a Christ-centered family!
What is God saying to me in
these verses? That’s
the BIG Idea: A Christian mother can mirror the love of God, bringing comfort
and hope to her family and beyond.
What would God have me to do in response to this
passage? The world
is a dark place, the results of the fall are all around us. Parental love,
maternal love, can be a light in the darkness. Kara Dedert, the mother of the
blind, quadriplegic Calvin said this,
There are certain moments when Calvin can catch a glimpse of us. He has
cortical visual impairments, meaning that there is nothing wrong with his
actual eyes, but his loss of sight is from his brain’s inability to perceive
objects. This means there are rare occasions that he can get a glimpse of something,
a shadow or a bright light, in his peripheral vision. Once as I was moving
behind him, I saw him turn his head quickly back. I walked noiselessly back and
forth several times—each time my shadow blocked the sunlight, his head would
jerk. He caught a glimpse of me, but it was just a shadow. I cannot imagine
what it will be like to know Calvin restored, to be able to see my face, not
just hear my words. It brings a joy that I cannot find words for.
This makes me reflect on how much the Lord longs for our final restoration
when our faith will be replaced with sight. Now we “see through a glass,
darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even
as also I am known” (1 Cor. 13:12). The Bible is an incredible gift,
bringing light to our reality, reorienting us, and bringing us into
relationship with God, but one day we will no longer need it. Instead of having
faith in His words, we will actually be in the presence of the Living Word. We
will no longer catch rare glimpses of Him but will be saturated with His
presence. The Shepherd’s voice, familiar to us from following Him through the
dark nights, will be accompanied by His physical presence, as He will wipe
every tear from our eyes: “For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will
be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God
will wipe away every tear from their eyes” (Rev. 7:17).
That is the heart of a missional mom.
How does a busy mom get there?
1. First, determine to know God and to love Him with your whole heart.
That is the first and greatest commandment. It means prioritizing time in the
Word and prayer. You need to care for your own soul so you can better carry out
your mission. You cannot impart what you don’t possess. Hear the Father’s voice
in His Word. God knows how busy you are, ask him to help you carve out at least
a few minutes in His presence daily.
2. Christian moms need to know they needn’t get on an airplane and cross
an ocean to be engaged in God’s mission. Your family is your highest priority, the
frontlines of the mission field. That means living as a believer, and always
looking for ways to teach the truth about Jesus – whether carpooling or play dates
or soccer games or family dinners or parent/teacher conferences – they are all occasions
for missional motherhood.
3. Those everyday moments can be lived out in faith, as an ambassador
for Christ, seeking to live out the love of Christ in your home. Another quote
from Gloria Furman to close,
Be his ambassador in those places. You might go into town to
run errands or go to the doctor's office; go as one sent by God. Maybe your
plans for being on mission for Jesus changed when you became a mom, but
remember that God’s plan to glorify himself in and through you will never
change. You were created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared
beforehand so that you would walk in them. So, where will you walk? Or drive?
Or sit and rock a baby?
God is making his appeal through us. From playdates for our kids to baby
showers for our grandkids, our job is to implore our family, friends, and
neighbors on behalf of Christ. “Be reconciled to God.” That is our mission.
That’s your mission, mom,
grandma, spiritual mom, you are Christ’s ambassador, in your family, at work,
in the church, helping at AWANA… wherever God has you, you are a disciple
called to make disciples, living your faith, and always ready to give a reason
for the hope that is in you, impacting for eternity the lives of children. Amen.
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