May 12, 2019
Following is a combination of questions for study and discussion purposes and quotes for reading and meditation.
1. The Value of Women/Mothers to God.
a. Read Genesis 1:26-27.
What does it mean “God created mankind in His own image?” What is the difference with the rest of His creation? Discuss the importance of male and female and how each express the character and nature of God. Would this still apply if God had created only Adam and not Eve? What about those typically considered more “feminine” characteristics such as comforting, gathering, nurturing, etc., ascribed to God? See Isaiah 66:13, 42:14, 49:15, Psalm 131:1-3. Give examples in your answer.
b. Consider the value God gave to women with their role to fulfill His command “to be fruitful and multiply” Genesis 1:28.
2. The influence Women can have.
Pick a woman in the Scripture who is known for anything and you’ll find she was a woman of influence. Following are a few examples to consider…
a. “For Good
• Deborah. (Judges 4-5). She stirred up a military leader to faithful action when he wanted to run away from a problem. She exhorted him to trust the Lord in the face of overwhelming odds. She was a true leader. She never made their success about her — in fact she pointed out the strengths of everyone else. Influence.
• Esther. (Esther 4-8) She was planted in a pagan palace so she could influence a king to spare her people from ethnic cleansing. No military intervention. No revolution. Just one woman submitted to God.
• The woman at the well. (John 4) She went from covering up her past to using it as the introduction to telling her whole town about Jesus, all because she met the Messiah.
b. For Bad.
• Jezebel. (1 Kings 19,21). She influenced her husband Ahab to deal treacherously with a landowner and the nation of Israel to serve the pagan gods of surrounding nations.
• Eve. (Genesis 3) She pulled her husband Adam into doing the one thing he knew he wasn’t to do, persuading him to disobey the Lord,
c. For Good and Bad.
Miriam. She influenced all of Israel’s women to celebrate their deliverance after crossing the Red Sea. All the women followed her lead (Exodus 15). But then she helped instigate a rebellion against her brother Moses about who was going to be in charge (Numbers 12). Because of it, God struck her with leprosy, stalling the entire nation from moving forward.
These women weren’t necessarily in some great position of power or financially wealthy. They just used their influence right where they were.
Whoever you are, wherever you are, you are a woman of influence. And the question for you and me is, how will we use it? “ # # # #
3. Motherhood.
What is your definition of who a mother is? Can a mother be other than just biological?
Discuss in your group the following:
Motherhood is not merely a biological function. Motherhood comes from the heart of a woman, put there by God. There are all kinds of mothers. There are those who have given birth to children and those who have not. There are those who have lost children and those who have adopted children. There are those who have loved and nurtured the children of others. But all mothers exemplify the beautiful quality of love. They nurtured, guard, love. True mothers are patient and kind and possess a way of touching the very heart’s other children.” #
What do the follow references tell us as to Who is ultimately the one who places children in families: Psalm 113:5-9, 139:13-16.
At many points in Jesus’ lineage, God intervened to give an infertile woman a child. God often granted motherhood to unlikely candidates, to show the surprising nature of his grace.
At many points in Jesus’ lineage, God intervened to give an infertile woman a child. #
Consider the following:
• Abraham’s wife, Sarah. Genesis 18:9-15, 21:1-7.
• Isaac’s wife, Rebekah; Genesis 25:21.
• Hannah, the mother of Samuel, 1 Samuel 1:9-20.
• Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist, Luke 1:11-13.
• Mary, the virgin mother of Jesus, Luke 1:26-37.
Mary.
What was Mary’s response when the angel told her she would be the mother of Jesus the Son of God? See Luke 1:38.
What was Jesus attitude toward Mary as His mother? How did He treat her? Some examples: See Luke 2:51, John 2:1-11, 19:26-27.
Consider the value God placed on mothers. The Messiah could have come to earth as a fully-grown man. God didn’t need to come through the womb of a woman, but yet He chose that path. This monumental choice makes it clear the importance God places on motherhood. Mums matter! Jesus shares with all of us the very human experience of being born and cared for by a mother.
Motherhood is not an extraordinary thing. No, on the contrary – motherhood is very ordinary. But going back to the Gospel, how did the ordinary compare to the extraordinary when it came to impacting the life of Jesus. He was born to an ordinary girl who lived an ordinary life…
… Mary’s role was that of a loving mother, who had hope and a strong faith in God’s ultimate plan of salvation, through her much loved Son, Jesus. # # # # #
4. The role of Mothers.
a. Responsibilities.
What do the following tell us?
• Deuteronomy 6:6-7, Ephesians 6:4
• Psalm 78:5-6; Deuteronomy 4:10; Ephesians 6:4.
• Romans 12:3-8 and 1 Corinthians 12.
• Ephesians 6:4; Hebrews 12:5-11; Proverbs 13:24; 19:18; 22:15; 23:13-14; 29:15-17.
• Titus 2:4; 2 Timothy 1:7; Ephesians 4:29-32; 5:1-2; Galatians 5:22; 1 Peter 3:8-9.
• Deuteronomy 4:9, 15, 23; Proverbs 10:9; 11:3; Psalm 37:18, 37
“The best mother is a Christian mother who is patient, kind, is not jealous, does not brag, and is not arrogant. She does not seek her own comfort at the expense of her children. She is not provoked by spilled milk or the scribble of crayons on the wall. She quickly forgets their crying, their dirty nappies, and their constant needs. The best mothers are those Christian women who pour out their lives for their children and who with incredible patience give of themselves as a pointer children to the Lord Jesus.
So, motherhood is not merely a biological function. It is an attitude of love, sacrifice, and nurturing that so naturally manifests in the feminine gender.” #
b. Blessings.
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. Motherhood is not a chore or unpleasant task. Just as a mother bears a child during pregnancy, and just as a mother feeds and cares for a child during infancy, so mothers also 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. # #
All that godly motherhood is remains one of the great wonders of mankind.
1. God foresaw the need for them.
2. God anticipated the warm nature and astute qualities mothers would need.
3. A good mothers is truly one of the greatest blessings and home can have.
4. When one sees all the good he believes his mother has to offer, there is always more than he ever imagined.
5. Husbands . . . Sons and daughters . . . If you will take time to notice that special woman in the home, you will observe some of the best of God’s marvelous creation. # # #
# https://carm.org/what-does-the-bible-say-about-motherhood
# # https://www.gotquestions.org/mothers-Christian.html
# # # http://www.biblecharts.org/sermons/dorcasawomanofinfluence.pdf
# # # # https://www.crosswalk.com/faith/women/did-you-know-you-are-a-woman-of-great-influence.html# # # # # https://www.jellytelly.com/blog/what-mary-can-teach-us-about-motherhood