Praising the Lord for Godly Moms

A team has been meeting for the last few months to think of ways to make today special. I appreciate all the thought they put into the preparation, video, special prayers, gifts, and the message focus.

I am thankful that I can share the Word this morning. I want to say a few things as we get started.

First, we know that today can be a hard day for lots of reasons. Your childhood might not have been very pleasant, you no longer have a relationship with your mom, your mom might have recently died, you have recently lost a child, or maybe you want to be a mom.

• We know that Mother’s Day is not filled with joy. Part of our prayer leading up to this service included weeping with those who weep.

Second, we are focusing on moms today. That does not mean all others are unimportant or even that the rest of us can check out of the message. Men and women of all ages and stages of life can benefit from the truths we talk about this morning. I will mention a few explicit action steps for the non-mothers (like me).

• If you are not a mom, we are not suggesting that you are less of a person or a woman from one who is.

• The Lord works out his plan in each of our lives in different ways. The Lord’s plan is valuable regardless of the direction.

• All of us can learn from every page in the Bible, even those that speak directly to a different demographic.

Third, I know it is possible to load mothers with guilt over what they are not. To, in essence, use mother’s day as a means to help moms be what they should be. We know that mothers often sense their inadequacy or mom guilt. It could be as simple as wanting to invest more time to answering more difficult issues like (1) how do I comfort my child who seems like they cannot be confrorted, (2) how do I know when I need to instruct my child and when I need to discipline them, or even (3) how do I maintain a good relationship now that they are adults. We understand.

• There might be some things presented today that the Lord uses to challenge or convict you.

• However, that is not our primary goal today.

Moms, we want today to be an illustration of “giving honor to whom honor is due” or “focusing on the things that are right” or as the title of our message suggests, Praising the Lord for Godly Moms. I suppose if you are a godly mom, then you can praise the Lord for helping him be who you are today.

With that in mind, please turn to Proverbs 31. That is located on page ____ of the front section of the Bible under the chair in front of you.

I think it is helpful to see Proverbs not only as a collection of wisdom sayings but as the life story of one person.

• Proverbs opens with a series of speeches from a set of parents to their son. The son seems to be the main character. The parents, wisdom personified by a woman, and foolishness also personified by a woman offer him advice.

• At the end of Proverbs 9 we wonder who the son will follow. Who will he listen to? Whose words will he value? Whose advice will he take?

Proverbs ends with this amazing description of an excellent wife. It almost seems like she embodies wisdom itself.

• Maybe, just maybe, that is what the son received and all the blessings that came with it.

• Maybe he is the husband we will read about who married wisdom personified in this woman and is experiencing all the blessings of making that choice.

I am going to read Proverbs 31:10-31 for context, but I will limit my exposition to vv. 26-30. Please follow along as I read, this is the Word of the Lord.

As one of your pastors, I know that this text could be written about some of you moms. We are celebrating and praising the Lord for that this morning.

Moms, wives, ladies. Today we are going to praise the Lord and tell you some of the things that we love about you.

I. Praise the Lord for a mom who fears the Lord

Proverbs 31:30 Charm is deceitful and beauty is vain, But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.

Verse 30 explains how the rest of the chapter is possible so I want to begin there. Moms, wives, ladies, we praise the Lord as you fear the Lord. We love that about you.

• We love how you know the things that matter and the things that are of lesser value. We love those …

A. Whose true character is apparent

The Bible says charm is deceitful. What an interesting claim. According to the Lord, charm can give a wrong impression. Notice that I did not say charm gives a bad impression.

• In fact, just the opposite is true.

• o A charming person normally give a good impression.

• o They have a great external appearance, but inside they are rotten to the core (illustration: fruit for lunch…)

God says that charm gets in the way because it is false front. It hides wickedness.

Ladies, thank you for allowing who you are, what you value, and what you are like when others are not watching be how you think and function. Thank you moms for being real.

We praise the Lord as we watch you live out a Christ-like character. We also love those …

B. Whose greatest beauty is on the inside

The Bible tells us, on occasion, that a person was attractive. Abraham’s wife Sarah was called beautiful, as was Rachel. Jacob’s son Joseph was handsome in form. But wisdom understands that a physically attractive person is not necessarily a godly person.

This word (vain) is used in the OT for several different ideas.

• The NIV translates the word “fleeting.” Physical beauty is not sustainable over the long term.

• The other idea, conveyed in the KJV and NASB, is that beauty is worthless (or vain).

• o In other words, it does not have real value because the attractiveness of the person on the outside is not necessarily a reflection of their inner beauty.

Either way, a beautiful woman is not necessarily a godly wife, mother, or woman. Moms, ladies, we praise the Lord when you understand that and invest in spiritual things. We love it when you understand that your greatest beauty comes from your character. We love those …

C. Whose fear of the Lord makes her wise and trustworthy

The Fear of the Lord forms the foundation of Proverbs’ worldview.

Proverbs 1:7 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

• There are two types of people contrasted in this verse. They are

• o Those who fear God and acquire wisdom

• o Those who do not fear God (fools) and they shun wisdom

Defining just what the Fear of the Lord is however, has been somewhat of a tricky proposition:

• Some have erred by defining the Fear of the Lord the way a prisoner cowers before guards about to torture him. These folks have made God out to be a horrible ogre looking to crush people.

• Others have erred on the other side by simply calling the fear of the Lord a ‘respect’ of God that suggests you take his counsel into consideration but does not have to be obeyed.

A genuine and right fear of the Lord results in a mom whose focus on the Word makes her wise and trustworthy by…

1. Controlling her Actions

Moms, we appreciate it when you allow the Word to keep you from sinning.

• In 2 Chronicles 19:6-9 we find that the king of Judah, Jehoshaphat appoints both priests and judges in the Land. Before they take their respective offices, he tells them:

2 Chronicles 19:6-9 He said to the judges, "Consider what you are doing, for you do not judge for man but for the LORD who is with you when you render judgment. 7 "Now then let the fear of the LORD be upon you; be very careful what you do, for the LORD our God will have no part in unrighteousness or partiality or the taking of a bribe."

8 In Jerusalem also Jehoshaphat appointed some of the Levites and priests, and some of the heads of the fathers' households of Israel, for the judgment of the LORD and to judge disputes among the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 9 Then he charged them saying, "Thus you shall do in the fear of the LORD, faithfully and wholeheartedly.

The Bible tells us that judges and priests might be tempted to play favorites.

• They might be inclined to rule in favor of their friends,

• Or against a person they see as foe

• Or in favor of a person who offered them benefits.

In the process, they would violate God’s Word. The fear of the Lord protected them. It controlled their decision making to ensure that they got the verdict right.

The fear of the Lord controlling actions occurs throughout Proverbs. For example:

Prov 16:6 By lovingkindness and truth iniquity is atoned for, And by the fear of the LORD one keeps away from evil.

• Evil comes in all shapes and sizes.

• o Drunkenness, immorality, wild living, profanity, seeking revenge, and gossip all evil in Proverbs.

Moms, thank you for allowing a proper fear of the Lord to keep you from that.

Prov 8:13 "The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverted mouth, I hate.

We see clearly that when a mom fears the Lord properly she allows the Lord and his word to control her actions. Some ladies view the Proverbs 31 woman as the biblical example of superwoman.

• We read that “rises while it is still night, considers a field and buys it, plans a vineyard, her hands grasp the spindle, she clothes her household with clothes she made…”

• Sometimes you might look at a person like this and say, “Is there no end to your talents?”

But when you think about it differently … if the fear of the Lord prevents her from the destructive behaviors of profanity, wild living, drunkenness, gossip, immorality, idleness, and satisfying self then she has a lot of time to be productive and a contributor.

Moms, we praise the Lord as we watch you fear of the Lord. We rejoice as you keep your heart from evil and your lips from speaking lies.

We pastors see it too. We watch as you serve in the church body, as you bless your husband, as you care for your children. We are thankful for the privilege and opportunity to pastor moms who genuinely live like this. This mom is also wise and trustworthy by …

2. Controlling her thinking

We also find in the book of Proverbs that the fear of the Lord not only keeps us from doing evil, it also helps us not to WANT to do evil. It reaches to our very motivation.

Prov 23:17 Do not let your heart envy sinners, But live in the fear of the LORD always.

• It is possible to envy. Even those who do not live for the Lord.

• It is possible to attempt to achieve those same things by whatever means necessary.

Prov 15:16 says something similar to Prov. 31:30. It says, “Better is a little with the fear of the LORD than great treasure and turmoil with it.” (the great treasure)

The book of proverbs begins with a discussion of the fear of the Lord, it references it multiple times in the middle, and that is where it ends. The Fear of the Lord is absolutely critical.

Moms, wives, ladies. We praise the Lord when you value fearing the Lord over a false front or a belief that your identity is found in your physical beauty.

• We rejoice when you avoid evil because the fear of the Lord controls your actions.

• We rejoice when your fear of the Lord allows you to think carefully and critically even when there is a conflict involving your own children.

• We rejoice when you take the side of a sibling, a teacher, or a friend even against your own child because your eyes look at situations through the Scripture with a proper fear of the Lord rather than through fake rose colored glasses.

We are rejoicing on Mother’s day over those who live this out. We pastors see you and appreciate you. For those of you in the middle of changing 4,000 diapers, making meals, endlessly cleaning messes and doing it all for the Lord Jesus … you are building the next generation of church leaders.

• That son of yours just might be a future leader in Jesus’ church.

• That daughter of yours just might be used of God to accomplish great things for the Lord.

For those who change diapers, make meals, and clean from a pure heart also teach their children by example that there is only one way to experience abundant life… to live faithful for Jesus.

I would like to broaden my application for just a moment. Today is about moms. More specifically, about praising the Lord for all the things that are right about our moms. But sometimes the Lord uses one message to accomplish many things.

Moms, maybe what I have described here is totally new to you. You came today because it was a special day, but this who concept of the fear of the Lord is new. Maybe the Lord wanted you here today because he wanted you to learn something about him.

• This Lord created the world and he created human beings. From the beginning he wanted close relationship with people. However, we chose to rebel against his commands. The first sin of Adam and Eve has been replicated billions of times over in our lives.

• The Bible says that all of us are sinners – violators of God’s law.

• Maybe you have never learned that before. Maybe you have not heard that you a sinner in God’s eyes. Or that your sin is so serious that he created hell as the punishment. As a Bible believing church, we believe there is a heaven to be gained and a hell to be shunned.

• Sin is so serious that he sent his son to die on the cross to make forgiveness possible.

• o Maybe today will be a special day because you learn that by repenting and trusting Christ as your personal savior you can be in a right relationship with the Lord.

Romans 10:9-10 says if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; 10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.

Maybe there are some Christian moms who are not letting the fear of the Lord control either their actions or their thinking. Your life has drunkenness, profanity, gossip, or immorality and fearing the Lord is not very motivating. Maybe God’s Word is not very exciting to you.

• In fact, maybe a good haircut, manicure, or pedicure is far better than devotions, church services, a ladies Bible study, or a ladies friendship group.

Today is an opportunity for you to change. You know some things are not right.

• Maybe the simple answer is you know what you need to do. You must repent. You know the ways you need to change. So maybe the Spirit is encouraging you to be different. You know what that looks like.

• Maybe some of you would benefit from meeting with another lady for mentoring or for counseling to discuss your situation specifically.

The same could be said of the rest of us. Maybe part of our take away today is praising the Lord for the moms in our lives who genuinely fear the Lord.

• The other part is that we need to change because we are not equally allowing the fear of the Lord to control our thoughts or actions.

Moms, according to Prov. 31:30 making a difference in your family will not come from your charm or your beauty even if you are blessed with both. It will come from your character. It will come from an honest desire to properly fear the Lord.

That brings us to the second characteristic found in proverbs 31.

II. Praise the Lord for a mom whose speech is full of wisdom and kindness

Proverbs 31:26 She opens her mouth in wisdom, And the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

Don’t you love the sound of those two words together, “wisdom and kindness?”

Moms, thank you for the way that you are allowing the Lord to control your tongue so that wisdom and kindness come out.

• We all praise the Lord as we overhear some of those conversations whether they occur in the home, in the church hallway, or even out in Meijer.

In the grand story of Proverbs, the parents teach the sons that there are two general paths in life. There is the path of wisdom and the path of foolishness. From Proverbs 1 the son is encouraged to follow the path of wisdom because it brings certain benefits.

• In other words, listen to a mom who speech is full of wisdom.

A. Because wisdom offers safety and security

Moms, your children (I do not just mean little ones) need wisdom from you. Wisdom consistently offers safety and security.

That makes perfect sense. Moms, when you share the truth of God’s Word, you are giving your children a slice of blessing. When you are not there, those words will protect them. Your children receive many offers…

• In Proverbs 1, the offer was to take advantage of other people. It is an easier way to make money. You instructed your children with the word of life.

• In Proverbs 5, immorality offered pleasure. Your words served as a hedge to protect them from all the damage that immorality does.

• Laziness calls out and offers rest and relaxation. You sharing the Word of the Lord tells them that hard work brings blessing.

• Greed tells them that they will be happy only if they acquire all the right toys. The Word tells them differently.

Thank you for offering wisdom to your husbands, to your children, and to others in our church family because wisdom which brings safety and security.

B. Because kindness builds relationships

The way we use language either draws people to us or pushes people away from us. We can take a rather sharp rebuke done in a kind way easier than a light rebuke done with meanness.

• It is much easier to reject a rebuke (even if the person is right) if they deliver it meanly.

Moms, thank you for using language with us that encouraged us to listen to you. Thank you for offering positive and encouraging words when they were appropriate.

• Thank you for offering your rebukes with kindness.

We rejoice and praise the Lord that you not only can do this, but also that you were willing. We husbands have benefited from your kind words even when they had a bite to them.

• We children benefit from words that encourage us and teaching that comes through kindness.

The third characteristic we are going to see in the text is found in v. 27

III. Praise the Lord for a mom who cares for the home (v. 27)

Proverbs 31:27 She looks well to the ways of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness.

Thank you moms for being an integral part of what takes place in the house. I am not limiting the discussion to various domestic duties nor am I assuming that mom does everything. There may be a division of various household duties.

For today, Moms, we are thankful for the ways that you make our various houses homes. We praise the Lord for your diligence.

• Rather than sit around and do nothing, you are active, busy, and accomplishing things that need to happen.

I am also talking about something more.

• I am talking about sharing insights with your husband and determining together the best plan of action. Life changes and as it does, we must adjust.

• o Thank you for noticing changes and wanting to make those adjustments to honor the Lord.

• o Thank you for caring and being on it to ensure we steward our opportunities well.

Moms and wives, we know that you do a lot. We know that you add meaningful value to our home at every stage of our lives.

• We know that you are also in tune to what is happening and the directions we are going. Thank you that you care.

• Thank you that you invest so much of your time, strength, and energy to blessing those around you.

Thank you that you look “well” to the ways of the house and then you actively take steps to make it honoring to the Lord.

The final characteristic I will mention today is …

IV. Praise your wife and/or mom for what they do that is right (vv. 28-29)

Proverbs 31:28-29 Her children rise up and bless her; Her husband also, and he praises her, saying: 29 “Many daughters have done nobly, But you excel them all.”

I realize that is not a characteristic of hers per se. We read the response of a husband and children to a wife/mom who lives vv. 10-31.

In the process of their praise, however, we also see that these verses say something else about these moms. They have a great reputation with their children and their husbands. Living according to the fear of the Lord, such that you care about the home, you speak with wisdom and kindness, and refuse to be lazy results in praise from those who know you best.

• Even unbelieving children appreciate godly moms. That does not mean that they like or agree with everything they did.

• o I mean they value her love for them, the way she cared for their dad, the commitment to make the house a home, the work ethic that resulted in blessing, and the safety and security provided by her words.

In this way, we see an easy point of application for us. Our role is not just praising God, but turning our voice to our moms/wives who live like this.

• Her children bless her

• o “Children” … today is a good day to remind you mom how much you appreciated them. There comes a day when you no longer have that opportunity.

• o Moms like to hear how much their children value them.

• o Don’t you love that?

• o Men, it is easy to take our moms/wives for granted. They serve us in so many ways that we are so used it to that we fail to see it.

To say that she has done nobly is not limited to her actions, but includes who she is. How she loves, cares, prays, and encourages each member of her family to live for Jesus.

• She does nobly by finding her identity in Christ.

• She finds nobly by growing spiritually.

• She does nobly by caring for us.

Husbands, let me encourage you to follow the example of v. 29. If your wife/mom is like this then ask yourself …

• Are you creating an environment where your wife and their mother is honored?

• Ask them about ways that you could honor her privately and in front of our children.

Then, be ready for the answers: You might hear something like

• Please recognize and express appreciation for what I do

• o Laundry, cooking, cleaning to make the place nice for all of you

• o Please come home ready to hear about my day and to tell me about yours.

• o If you are going to be late, please call me so I can make an adjustment

• o Schedule a date with me so that I do not have to do any of the work (including child care)

• o Hear my fears, concerns, and joys. Do not just ask for the facts.

• o Not just when I am at the store, but when I am home as well. Let’s do things as a family.

Moms, we hope today is very special for you. We hope the gifts, the video, and our recognition of what is right encourages you. I hope your husbands and children explain that you are blessing to them.

I also hope it challenges us all … a mom or not … to continue striving to fear the Lord and thus allow his Word to control your desires, thoughts, and action.

• To be thankful to the Lord and our wives/moms.

• To follow their words of wisdom knowing that they lead to safety and security.