Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God the Father and our
Lord Jesus Christ,
Somebody
once said to me that because many people have extra money to spend and there’s
a lot of stuff available to buy, our society makes more out of Mother’s Day now
than in the past, and this may be true, because nowadays Mother’s Day is a
secular occasion. It actually began in
the church before the Reformation, when on a Sunday in the middle of Lent,
youngsters gave small presents to their mothers. Children who were away from
home, especially daughters working as servants, returned to their families for
a short time. The church on this day
calls our attention to deeper values and more worthwhile qualities than the
habits of materialism. It isn’t hard to
think about Mother’s Day from a biblical point of view.
First of
all, the Scriptures hold women in high regard.
Two of this morning’s readings provide examples. The passage from Acts refers to devout women
in the early church. During his earthly
ministry, Jesus’ most loyal followers were women. Many of Paul’s assistants were female, whom
he praises in his letters. You may have
noticed, too, that in the passage from Revelation, John refers to the church as
the bride of Christ. From God’s point of
view, the church is feminine. You’ve
probably heard the phrase “Mother Church”.
A Christian from the early days said that we cannot have God as our
Father unless we have the church as our mother.
And then there was the time when Jesus said that he longed to gather the
people of Jerusalem under his wings as if he were a mother hen, but they refused. The church nourishes and sustains, supports
and teaches – just like a mother. The
church leads wayward children to safety and salvation – just the way a mother
or grandmother takes youngsters by the hand to keep them from trouble. On Mother’s Day, then, we Christians remember
that all of us are children in the eyes of God and need the warmth and
protection of a loving mother – the church.
Now, if we
stop and think about it, we’ll notice that mothers are prominently featured at
many turning points in the biblical story.
Eve had three sons, from two of whom all people are descended. Sarah had a child late in life through whom
all nations would be blessed with the chance to lead full, abundant lives by
faith in God. And Christians everywhere
remember Mary, the mother of our Lord. The
Heavenly Father chose mothers to help him carry out his plans as they nurtured
their families. We can say that the
Bible is a family book, first the family of believers in Old Testament times –
descendants of Abraham and Sarah and Jacob and his wives – and then the New
Testament bride of Christ, the church, God’s family today.
Families
need mothers, and so God nourishes and protects the mothers he raises up. This, too, is part of our Christian Mother’s
Day celebration – the God upholds millions of Christian mothers, including the
mothers and grandmothers at St. Peter’s.
You receive a share of the recognition that is due you on this day.
The Bible
doesn’t neglect the hard parts of being a mother. The Heavenly Father knows that mothers
experience trials as well as joys.
You’ll recall that Eve had to endure the murder of one son by
another. Sarah waited a long time for
her only child and then suffered the stress of the possibility that Isaac might
be sacrificed to God. How joyful she was
when Abraham came back down from Mount Moriah with her son alive and well. Naomi, in the book of Ruth, lost her husband
and both sons to famine, a weight that burdened her soul to its depths. Then, too, the sufferings of Mary were sharp
and painful. But all these mothers
endured in faith and the blessed Lord refined them and turned their sufferings
into joy. Believing mothers live day by
day in faith. They carry on; they don’t
give up. You carry on even after your
children are grown up. Your spirits are
strong. I’ve told you that my own
mother’s family came from Finland. When I was in school, she taught me the
Finnish word “sisu”, which means determination, strength of soul, the refusal
to be broken. Jesus has given St. Peter’s mothers and grandmothers a Christian
kind of sisu, which enables you never to give up and to hold on to Christ in
faith, no matter what happens, for he will bless you and nourish your faith so
that you will be ready to welcome him on the day of his return.
You have the
same source of hopes and strength as the faithful mothers of the Bible, for you
are connected to the Lord. He promised
Eve that the Savior of the human race would be her offspring. Sarah looked ahead to the enormous family of
faithful people of which she would be the founding mother. The child of Ruth and Boaz, whom Naomi cared
for, was a direct ancestor of the Messiah.
These women believed in God and served his kingdom. Heaven grants Christian mothers and
grandmothers today the same access to the Lord.
So never give up. Jesus carries
you. He pardons us. He lifts us up. He restores our strength and vitality.
It’s true
that life in Bible times was simpler in many ways than our lives today. Folks were close to nature. They followed the rhythm of the seasons and
carried out simple tasks. They worked
most of each day and didn’t worry, for example, about unemployment or where to
find the money for fancy amenities. It
was second nature for them to turn to God at every point in their lives. They didn’t have the conveniences and
opportunities we do, the rewards and excitements, the uncertainties and
corruptions of prosperous times. But the
complexities and temptations of secular life aren’t excuses for us to turn away
from God but inducements to cling to him all the more. The good Lord knows what we go through. He pardons our offenses and holds out his
hand for us to grasp.
Jesus
supports Christian mothers. He lifts you
up to nourish your children, to shine as lights in the community, to be the
salt of the earth. As you carry out your
tasks with patience, love, balance of mind, and faith in God’s goodness, you do
more important work than you may imagine.
You represent the Lord in a secular environment that needs to hear from
him. So on Mother’s Day, the church
encourages her mothers and grandmothers to keep on. You’re a part of God’s plan. He has a reason
for putting you where you are; he will strengthen you.
Now, I want
to switch gears and bring in this morning’s Gospel text. Jesus commands his disciples to love one
another. Everyone associates love with
mothers. Without the love of mothers,
the world would be cold, impersonal, and machine-like. It would be a lot worse than it is. We thank our mothers for the love they give
us.
We remember
that in this passage Jesus isn’t talking about a general human love but the
love he wants Christians to have for each other. Jesus brought a new kind of love into the
world – a love that is focused on God and neighbors rather than selfish
interests, a love with a purpose that keeps other people’s needs in mind, in
particular spiritual needs, the love that reminds others of salvation in
Christ. Jesus commands his people to
love one another with the same kind of love that he has for us. The love of other Christians encourages us as
we walk along the path to eternal salvation.
The Lord rejoices when he sees his people taking his kind of love as
their own.
In the early
days of the church, a pagan Roman said Christians love each other without being
acquainted with each other. “Their
master has implanted the belief in them that people who are born of God carry a
mystery within them, which unites them most intimately into one body – a
mystery that no one knows but they themselves.
It isn’t a kind of fraternal union with prideful and hostile exclusion
of those who are on the outside, because Christian love widens hearts so that
Jesus’ people love even outsiders with a love that bears all things and hopes
all things.”
Jesus
blesses all Christians, including mothers, with the love that carries us to
salvation. Christian mothers draw on the
love Christ and his community have for them for strength and support. Jesus delights in your friendship for each
other. How much it must mean to you in
times of both joy and stress to know that you have strong Christian friends to
call on.
The bonds of
love among God’s people has another purpose as well. It witnesses to unbelievers that the gospel
is true. Concern for folks who don’t yet
believe stretches the hearts of most Christians. A child may marry out of the faith or move
away from the church for other reasons.
Drifting away from public worship after confirmation is very common. We pray for such folks and ask that the
Savior open their minds to receive his love.
We speak to them about the church with gospel-inspired hints, and as our
dear ones see the effect on us of the love we receive in the Christian
community, they may think again. “If the
church means so much to my mother or grandmother,” some will say, “maybe
there’s something in it for me.” Hearts
will keep from hardening because you believe in the Lord who claims you and
stick with the church that nourishes.
Like the
Lord, we sometimes have a special love for those who stray. Though they may never say so, it must mean a
lot to people who’ve had some experience of God and his church to know that
someone they love prays for them and cares about their salvation.
Our
Christian Mother’s day, then, encourages the women and all of us to keep
salivation in mind as we continue to walk in the mystery of Christian
love. Christian mothers do something
that only Christians can do: you offer the hope of a blessed future in Christ
to your children, grandchildren, and others who come your way. So keep on.
Be encouraged, In Jesus’ Name.
AMEN.
The peace of God that passes all understanding keep your
hearts and minds in the knowledge of Christ Jesus. AMEN.
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