Mothers Day

1. A mother is an integral part of the first proclamation of the Gospel (Genesis 3:15).

The first promise of salvation mentions a mother and her son—

I will put hostility between you and the woman,

and between your offspring and her offspring.

He will strike your head,

and you will strike his heel.

A mother will be fundamental to this plan.

2. A mother is a specific object of satanic hatred (Genesis 3:15).

The Lord puts enmity between the serpent (Satan) and this mother. Satan will hate her (and the mothers to follow) because the One who will defeat him will be born of a woman.

3. A mother speaks the first recorded words of faith (Genesis 4:1, 25).

The first recorded words of faith are those of a mother and relate to motherhood—"I have gotten a man with the help of the Lord." Though conceived through normal means, Eve knows that her son is by God's gracious help. She believes God's promise to provide an "offspring," a second Adam ("a man").

4. A mother is the first recorded to speak the name "Yahweh" and influences a line of Yahweh-worshipers (Genesis 4:1, 26).

In her profession of faith, Eve speaks "Yahweh," and is the first to do so in Scripture.[1] Genesis 4, bookended by her confessions of faith, concludes by noting that Seth's descendants "began to call upon the name of [Yahweh]."[2] This mother's faith continues in a righteous line for generations to follow.

5. A mother is the first person to whom the angel of the Lord appears and the first to confer a name on God (Genesis 16:7, 13).

The "angel of the Lord" is a regular and important figure in the Old Testament. His first appearance is to pregnant Hagar, who fled from Sarai due to mistreatment. The angel is Yahweh himself, who saw this mother and heard her weeping.

In response, Hagar "called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, 'You are a God of seeing.'" She becomes the first human to confer a name on God.

6. Mothers repeatedly act to rescue and preserve the line of the promised redeemer.

Righteous Tamar (Genesis 38:26). Defiant Jochebed.[3] Deborah, “a mother in Israel.”[4] Shrewd Naomi.[5] These are a sampling of the mothers who act to rescue the line of the redeemer.

7. Mothers are to be honored; dishonoring mothers is strongly condemned.

The Law counted honoring mothers (alongside fathers) amongst the greatest of commands.[6] Dishonoring one's mother through violence, cursing, or rebellion was punishable by death.[7]

In the New Testament, honoring one's mother is a core command for children.[8] Disobedience to parents continues to serve as an example of the worst of evils.[9] Financially supporting one's mother (and grandmothers) is an act of godliness. A failure to provide for them is considered a denial of the faith.[10]

8. Mothers were one of God's means for imparting wisdom to kings.

King Solomon was the wisest man on earth.[11] Even so, he commended his wife's teaching as integral to the wisdom of their son.[12]

The mother of King Lemuel was not only a wise woman but a skilled artist. She crafted a remarkable poem to impart wisdom to her son, the king, and all who read it today.[13]

9. Mothers illustrate the compassion, attentiveness, and tender care of the Lord.

The way of a mother with her children illustrates God's way with his people.[14] Such "motherly" qualities are a model for those who care for God's people.[15]

10. A mother-to-be is the first person in both the Old and New Testaments to hear the Lord's ability to do the "impossible."

Both unbelieving Sarah and faith-filled Mary, hearing that an elderly woman will conceive, are told that "nothing is impossible with God." They are the first in each testament to receive this assurance.[16]

11. Two mothers-to-be are the first in the New Testament to believe and speak about the conception of the Messiah and his forerunner, John the Baptist (Luke 1:5-38).

Zechariah was struck silent for his unbelief.[17] But both Elizabeth and Mary believe and speak of these promised children.

12. Two mothers are the first to recognize and announce the arrival of the Messiah in the world (Luke 1:39-45).

Elizabeth and Mary are the first to recognize and announce the arrival of the Messiah.

13. A mother wrote the first hymn of the New Covenant era (Luke 1:46-55).

In her joy, Mary composes the first song in the New Testament, which we know as "The Magnificat." As with Hannah before her, Mary's song finds use in Christian worship and instruction today.[18]

14. A mother is the first to expect and ask for a miraculous sign in the ministry of the Messiah (John 2:1-11).

Mary's request demonstrates early insight into and faith in the Messianic ministry of her son.

15. Mothers are encouraged to find their ultimate worth beyond their relationship to their children (Luke 11:27-28).

A woman shouted to Jesus, "Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts at which you nursed!" She, like other Jewish women, measured her worth by the status of her child.[19]

Jesus replied, "Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!" Instead of finding their status in biological offspring, Jesus invites mothers to relate directly to God through his word. A mother finds true blessedness when she knows the Word-Made-Flesh and follows him.

16. Mothers' hardships are acknowledged by Jesus as he goes to his own crucifixion (Luke 23:26-31).

The most important work of Jesus is his death and resurrection. He suffered God's wrath for the sin of the world and rose from the dead to redeem those who trust in him. As he went to his death, he noticed a crowd of women who mourned and lamented for him. He told them, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children. For behold, the days are coming when they will say, 'Blessed are the barren and the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!'"

Jesus spoke of Jerusalem's coming destruction. In those days, its citizens would need to flee. But pregnancy or care of children would slow or prevent such escape. Mothers would have to watch their children suffer. Amid his own pain, Jesus recognized, acknowledged, and expressed compassion toward the unique hardships of mothers.

17. Mothers were among the last to be with Jesus at the cross when all but one disciple fled (John 19:25).

At least two mothers, along with some other women and John, were the last to remain with Jesus at the cross. Like our mother Eve, they remained faithful, even during painful loss.

18. A mother is the final person to whom Jesus ministered directly, even while dying (John 19:26-27).

The final act of ministry Jesus performed before his death was to provide care for his soon-to-be bereaved mother.

19. Mothers are recognized for their contribution to the faith of church leaders (2 Timothy 1:5; 3:15; Acts 16:1).

Paul celebrated the influence of Lois and Eunice in passing on the faith to their grandson and son, Timothy.

20. Mothers are New Covenant blessings promised to those who follow Jesus (Mark 10:29-30; Romans 16:13).

Mothers are not merely good gifts. Mothers are a necessity—a blessing that the Lord does not expect his people to live without. Jesus promises that we will not be left motherless, even if following him requires us to leave our mothers. Even then, we will receive "a hundredfold" of mothers in this life.

As though to illustrate this, Paul called Rufus' mother, "a mother to me as well." She was not likely his biological mother. But this older Christian woman cared for Paul, perhaps with hospitality and practical support. This caused him to view her as a mother—a beautiful picture of the new family we find in the church.

Conclusion

What can we learn from these things?

1. God cares about and speaks frequently of mothers.

The Bible highlights mothers from Genesis through Revelation. The Holy Spirit inspired the Bible's authors to notice, include, and celebrate mothers. We would do well to do the same.

God hears their cries, sees their pain, and pities their suffering. He welcomes their prayers, honors their faith, and prospers their efforts in all manner of work. He calls them to his service (from domestic to spiritual), equips them for the task, and sends them on mission. God loves, values, and celebrates mothers. So should we.

2. The manifold contributions of mothers matter.

The impact of mothers on children (biological, adopted, and spiritual) is undeniable; it should not be diminished. But the Scripture does not limit the significance of mothers to their child-raising. Mothers made remarkable (and necessary!) contributions to the advance of God's redemptive purposes. We must see, welcome, and celebrate such contributions in the same way Scripture does.

3. We cannot grasp the significance of mothers in the moment.

These mothers often did not know the significance of their actions in the grand scheme of redemptive history. They were simply believing God’s promises and exercising covenant faithfulness in the moment.

So, mothers, be content with faith and faithfulness. Believe the Gospel. Be faithful with what God has given you to do. Don’t measure whether you “matter” by what you can see happening; that is out of your hands



[1] English translations used "the LORD" in small caps to designate the translation of Yahweh, the personal, covenant name of God.

[2] This may refer to public, organized worship of the Lord.

[3]  Exodus 2:1-10

[4] Judges 5:7

[5] Ruth 3

[6] Exodus 20:12; Leviticus 19:3; Deuteronomy 5:16; Proverbs 23:22

[7] Exodus 21:15, 17; Leviticus 20:9; Deuteronomy 21:18-21; Proverbs 20:20

[8] Ephesians 6:1-3

[9]  Romans 1:30; 2 Timothy 3:2

[10] 1 Timothy 5:3-8

[11] 1 Kings 4:29-30

[12] Proverbs 1:8; 6:20

[13] Proverbs 31

[14] Isaiah 49:15; 66:13; Matthew 23:37

[15] Galatians 4:19; 1 Thessalonians 2:7

[16] Genesis 18:14; Luke 1:37

[17] Luke 1:20

[18] 1 Samuel 2

[19] See also Matthew 20:20-21

I Remember

I remember Dinah and Joseph, children of Jacob and Rachel, burying their mother on the way to Bethlehem and leaving her grave behind. I know too many children who have faced this day, suddenly without their mother.

I remember Rachel, Sarah, and Elizabeth, and I have celebrated with every friend who held her newborn child and found it to be simultaneously the greatest gift and the hardest task.

I imagine the hundreds of women who never merited a name in Scripture because they were unable to bear children to pass on the family faith. I know too many women facing miscarriage, infertility, and loneliness.

I remember Rahab, Deborah, Joanna, and Phoebe — women whose work surprisingly outweighed the need to record whether or not they had children. Were they childless by choice, by circumstance? Were the names of their children lost to a history that found them unimportant? Were they shamed in their lifetime for putting work ahead of family?

I remember the unnamed mother of Moses and the daughter of Pharaoh, linked and yet so separate. One gave up her child to save her child, and one took in a child despite the risks. I remember all the women who have given up their children in the hope of better life for them. And, as one who may one day join their ranks, I remember every woman who has made family through adoption, who has taken in a child “not her own,” because bone of bones is not always how a family is made.

I remember Naomi, demanding, “Call me ‘bitter.’” I remember the unnamed wife of Job. I know too many women who buried their children, lives lost unbearably early.

I remember Dinah, the daughter of Jacob, and Tamar, the daughter of David. I know too many women whose bodies, sexualities, marriages, and children should be a source of joy, instead corrupted by someone else’s sin.

I remember Hagar, and Tamar the wife of Er, women whose only hope for protection and care lay in having a child with a man who was not married to them. I remember that Hagar was sent into the wilderness to die, her son Ishmael at her side. I know too many women raising their children alone, and remember the women whose destruction has become a footnote while the men made history.

I remember Rebekah, and her twins Esau and Jacob already at war within her. I remember she chose a favorite son, just as her husband had. I know too many children who bear the trauma of parents who, perhaps, did what they thought was right and did the best they could, and scarred their children’s hearts for life.

MAY THE GOD WHO MOTHERS EACH OF US BE A SOURCE OF LIFE FOR ALL WHO LONG FOR HOPE.
I remember Hannah, her heart so wounded by the abuse of her husband’s other wife that she wept at the altar of God until she could not speak — and how Eli, the holy priest, assumed she must have been drunk to pray so hard. I know too many women whose heartbreak has been turned into a weapon against them.

I remember the woman at the well, silenced and shunned by divorce. I know too well the wretched freedom found in divorce, the messiness of new life with a broken heart.

I remember the foreign women described in Ezra and Nehemiah, the wives of God’s people, who came home with their husbands to rebuild the temple only to be cast aside by men claiming to be righteous and pure. I remember how many mothers have been made homeless or landless, often for reasons beyond their control, and how powerful men have turned them into pawns to be manipulated and ostracized.

I remember the Syrophoenician woman, alone, unsupported, and persistent beyond comprehension on behalf of her dying child. I know too many women whose demands were mocked or pushed aside, whose insistence on justice and equality meant others soured their lips.

I remember Mary Magdalene, the first preacher of the resurrection, soiled by centuries of slander that turned her from wide-eyed witness to reformed harlot. In her testimony, she gave birth to the church. I know too many women whose gender, sexuality, history, and bravery has been used against them and the gospel they proclaim.

I remember Mary the virgin, a teenage girl, cradling her stomach with wonder, answering the shock of a miracle and the sureness of societal judgment with a simple and determined “Yes.”

And I remember Eve, the mother of all, bone of the bones of the man of dust, her name a reflection of the Hebrew word for life.