A Christian Mother
God has established only two social institutions: the family and the church. Never has the attack upon both proven more widespread, vocal, abused, legislated against and viciously undermined than in the modern Western culture. Yet, from a Christian perspective, this degree of attack only confirms motherhood remains a God created and honored calling.
Titus 2:4: “and so train the young women to love their husbands and children.”
- Grammatical Usage: “train” or in the Greek, “sóphronizó” meaning, “admonish” transforming thinking in terms of God’s values; “love” or “philandros” meaning, “affectionate stewardship.”
- Literal Interpretation: “teach the young women to be sensible enough to be loving wives and mothers.”
- Contextual/Comparison: God keeps His Word: God continually uses His Word. Being a mother is an ordained role:
- To be a mother is a holy privilege from God.
- Look at what Eve said when she gave birth for the first time.
- Genesis 4:1 – “And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.“
- Becoming a mother is the greatest joy that a person can have in this life.
- John 16:21 – “A woman when she is in travail hath sorrow, because her hour is come: but as soon as she is delivered of the child, she remembereth no more the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the world.“
- Children are a gift from God.
- Psalms 127:3 – “Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward.“
- God specially designed the woman physically and emotionally to not only conceive and bear a child but to nurture and raise a child as well.
A Christian mother is told to love her children (Titus 2:4-5), in part so that she does not bring reproach on the Lord and on the Savior whose name she bears. Children are a gift from the Lord (Psalm 127:3-5). Several things are commanded of Christian mothers in God’s Word:
- Availability: morning, noon, and night (Deuteronomy 6:6-7)
- Involvement: interacting, discussing, thinking, and processing life together (Ephesians 6:4)
- Teaching: the Scriptures and a biblical worldview (Psalm 78:5-6; Deuteronomy 4:10; Ephesians 6:4)
- Training: helping a child to develop skills and discover his/her strengths (Proverbs 22:6) and spiritual gifts (Romans 12:3-8; 1 Corinthians 12)
- Discipline: teaching the fear of the Lord, drawing the line consistently, lovingly, firmly (Hebrews 12:5-11; Proverbs 13:24; 19:18; 22:15; 23:13-14; 29:15-17)
- Nurture: providing an environment of constant verbal support, freedom to fail, acceptance, affection, unconditional love (Titus 2:4; 2 Timothy 1:7; Ephesians 4:29-32; 5:1-2; Galatians 5:22; 1 Peter 3:8-9)
- Modeling with Integrity: living what you say, being a model from which a child can learn by “catching” the essence of godly living (Deuteronomy 4:9, 15, 23; Proverbs 10:9; 11:3; Psalm 37:18, 37).
ENEMIES OF MOTHERHOOD:
- Selfishness
- Wives and husbands have become infected with selfishness, resenting the time that children take away from them. One father once complained to his friends, “We had so much fun until that baby was born.” This shows a selfish side.
- This goes against the spirit and letter of what the Bible says concerning the place of women/mothers in general in society and specifically what it says about the place of mothers in family (1 Peter 3:7)
- The Feminist Movement.
- Modern feminism looks down upon motherhood as degrading and a trap to keep women “barefoot and pregnant.” Everything is done today to foster the notion that fulfillment comes from working outside the home instead of being a mother.
- The Bible stresses the homemaking responsibility of mothers (Titus 2:4)
- In spite of what some think, the Bible does not prohibit women from working. It does, however, teach that this should be supplementary to her role as a keeper of the home (Proverbs 31:10-24)
- Abortion has caused many women to hate their roles as mothers.
- The belief that a woman has absolute control over her own body has caused mothers to despise the child in their womb, causing many women to believe the satanic lie that the child of their body is not a human life.
- The fact is that mankind is made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). The taking of human life is murder and is deserving of death (Genesis 9:6). God hates those who shed innocent blood (Proverbs 6:16-17).
- Divorce has eroded the foundations of motherhood.
- It has taken the support for the godly mother, a godly father, out of the home.
- The ease of divorce has lulled many women into the Devil’s lie of, “If it doesn’t work out I’ll just divorce him” in violation of Matthew 19:9
- God still hates divorce! Malachi 2:15-16: ” Did he not make them one, with a portion of the Spirit in their union? And what was the one God seeking? Godly offspring. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and let none of you be faithless to the wife of your youth. 16 “For the man who does not love his wife but divorces her, says the Lord, the God of Israel, covers his garment with violence, says the Lord of hosts. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and do not be faithless.“”
The Bible never states that every woman should be a mother. However, it does say that those whom the Lord blesses to be mothers should take the responsibility seriously. Mothers have a unique and crucial role in the lives of their children as God’s provision. Mothers play an ongoing role in the lives of their children, whether they are adolescents, teenagers, young adults, or even adults with children of their own. While the role of motherhood must change and develop, the love, care, nurture, and encouragement a mother gives should never cease.
- Conclusion: It is never too late to seek God’s love, healing and guidance for you and yours.
