Mothers Serving God

Introduction

I invite you to please get out your Bible this morning and make your way into your old testament to the book of Exodus this morning. Please go in your Bible with me to Exodus chapter 2. We’re going to read several passages in Exodus chapter 2 in just a moment. Today, as we all are aware of the fact, is first and foremost the Lord’s Day. It is the day when Christians come together to worship God and give praise to the name of Jesus Christ. But I also realize that in our culture, in our society, today is also a day when we appreciate and we celebrate our mothers. Today is also Mother’s Day, and I just want to say happy Mother’s Day to all of the mothers in the audience this morning.

You know, one of the things that we all have in common is we all have a mother, right?

Do you love your mama? Do you love the woman who brought you into this world? And help raise you in your life. I ask you a question because it can be easy for us to take a mom and does for a family for granted.

Solve problems and dilemmas and how a lot of things in a family would really break down if she wasn’t there. In fact, because I get the pleasure of working alongside the woman that I believe personally is the greatest mother in all the world, and that’s my wife. I know for a fact that being a mom in 2026 is hard. It is not an easy task or an easy responsibility. In fact, the truth is, because of all of the vervaseness of sin and our culture and our society, being a mother who serves God and who raises her children to serve God is one of the most difficult responsibilities in the world. One of the most difficult jobs that has been given to a human being in all the world.

And so I’m going to ask you another question that I probably shouldn’t ask you because I slept in the past few weeks, but that is, do you by any chance remember this sermon? You remember this sermon I preached a couple of months ago? Remember in relation to our theme this year of family serving God? And this sermon that I preached a couple of months ago, we talked about fathers serving God.

Who are wonderful examples of men who please God and who led their families to also please God? The question, though, now is what about the women? What about the moms? I mean, like in the case of these men or these or these fathers, are there any moms in the Bible who serve God? Are there any moms in the Bible who can inspire us and encourage us and provide hope for moms today? Or are there any moms in the Bible that can help us see clearly the significance and the importance and the impact that a godly mother can have on her family today? Well, I submit to you this morning that there are. There are. There are several mothers in the Bible who served God, who helped their families serve God.

And I believe that this morning it is timely.

1. Jochebed Protected Her Son in a Dangerous World

And let’s begin with this first one right here. Let’s begin with this woman named Jochebed. Jacobed. Do you by any chance remember what the Bible tells us about Jacobed? Remember, Jacobed is spoken of, she’s introduced to us in the first few chapters of the book of Exodus. And she was the mother of one of the most important people in the history of the world. She was the mother of Moses. She was the mother of the great leader and deliverer of God’s people. She actually became Moses’ mother during a very dark and dangerous time. She actually became Moses’ mother during a time when her people, the Hebrew people, had been made slaves in the land of Egypt. If you remember in Exodus chapter 1, we learned that due to their fear that the Hebrew people will continue to multiply and eventually outnumber them and turn on them, the Pharaoh at that time, he put the people of God, the Hebrew people, in bondage, and he gave them hard labor.

He gave them a lot of work to do. He gave them the task of building bricks and then eventually stored cities. He figured that if he kept them busy working all day, then that would severely limit their reproduction. But you and I both know that his plan failed. His plan actually backfired. The Hebrew people continued to grow and multiplied despite being persecuted. And so when that plan failed, he then turned to another plan to control their population. And the second plan was even more sinister than the first one. The second plan involves murder. It actually involved making a law that first commanded all of the Hebrew midwives to kill the male Hebrew babies. And when they refused to do that because they feared God, well, then another law was passed that demanded all the Hebrew male babies to be thrown into the Nile River.

One of them drowned as soon as they were born. And so look at what the Bible says in Exodus chapter 2 and in verse number one. It says, Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a daughter of Levi. We know who this woman is. Her name is Jacobed. We know her name is Jacobed because of what the Bible tells us in Exodus chapter 6 and verse number 20. And Exodus 6 and verse 20, we learn this woman’s name is Jacobed. Verse number 2: the woman conceived and bore a son. And when she saw that he was beautiful, she hid him for three months. But when she could hide him no longer, she got him a wicker basket and covered it over with tar and pitch.

Then she put the child into it and set it among the reeds by the bank of the Nile. His sister stood at a distance to find out what would happen to him. The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the Nile with her maidens walking alongside the Nile, and she saw the basket among the reeds and sent her maid, and she brought it to her. When she opened it, she saw the child, and behold, the boy was crying. And she had pity on him and said, This is one of the Hebrew children. Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, Shall I go and call a nurse for you from the Hebrew women that she may nurse the child for you? Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, Go ahead.

So the girl went and called the child’s mother. Then Pharaoh’s daughter said, Take her, said to her, Take this child, take this child away and nurse him for me, and I will give you your wages. She’s getting paid to nurse her own child. You can’t beat that. So the woman took the child and nursed him. This is the providence of God at work. And the child grew, and she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son, and she named him Moses and said, Because I drew him out of the water. Now, as you ponder on those verses for a moment or two, I want to ask all the mothers here to do something. There are a lot of mothers in the room right now.

For all the mothers here, I want to ask you, can you ever imagine? Can you imagine bringing a child, a son, into a world like this? Can you imagine bringing a son, a precious little boy, into an existence like this and to a world where after the child is born, you couldn’t, you couldn’t celebrate that. You couldn’t be happy about his birth. You couldn’t have joy that God has blessed you with his precious baby boy. Instead, as soon as he’s born, you’re afraid. You’re afraid of the government. You’re afraid that the government is going to storm in at any moment and take your baby out of your arms, and you will never see him again. I’m pretty sure that no mother here this morning can ever imagine bringing a child into the world under conditions like that, and yet, according to the Bible, that is exactly the kind of conditions Jacobed faced.

Unlike mothers living in the land of the free in the home of the brave today, Jacobed had to give birth to Moses during a time when the law required him to be put to death, and yet the Holy Spirit tells us that she had the faith and the courage to protect him. She had the faith and the courage to protect her son and a dangerous world while other while all the other Hebrew women were handing over their sons to be executed by the government.

She refused to give him over to the government. She refused to allow him to drown or become crocodile food at the risk of losing her own life. She hid him for a period of time, and when she could hide him no longer, she executed a plan for him to end up in the right hands. In a very dangerous world. When so many innocent children were being murdered, Jacobed was a mother determined to make sure that her son was protected, protected, and have a bright future. And for all the mothers in the room this morning, particularly for all the mothers who are currently raising children, I want you to know something. You can be just like her. You can be just like Jacobed today while you don’t live in a time when it is illegal for you to have a male baby, you can still protect your children in a dangerous world.

You can still protect your children in a spiritually dangerous world. You can do that first by protecting them from evil associations, by carefully monitoring who they’re hanging out with and who their friends are, and by protecting them from those peers who you know have a negative influence on them and their lives.

By carefully monitoring what they’re watching on Netflix and Disney Plus and these other streaming channels by spontaneously checking their cell phones to see who they’re texting, what they’re texting, why they’re texting, and what they’re browsing on the internet, and you can also enforce some rules that will keep snakes out the bedroom. You and your husband, who hopefully is a man who’s serving God as a father. You can forbid any kind of browsing on the internet in the bedroom late at night. And you can keep a close eye on what they’re doing on their social media pages, whether they like that or not, and you can help your daughters find and embrace modest clothing. You can help them find and embrace clothing that will cover their skin, that will cover them up and bring glory to God.

And you can hold your children accountable to godly speech and godly morals and godly character and tell them to treat people right. Treat all people in love and kindness and respect. That’s the kind of mother Jacobed was.

2. Eunice Instilled in Her Son a Sincere Faith

We’ve been talking about Paul’s missionary journeys, his preaching journeys, and our Galatians class over the last couple of weeks. And here in Acts 16, we read about Paul’s second preaching journey, his second missionary journey. And the Bible says in Acts 16 and verse 1, Paul also came to Derby and Lystra. Now remember, these made up, these places made up the Galatian churches. Paul preached in Lystra on his first preaching journey, and now he’s back in Lystra again. And it says when he was there, a disciple there was their name Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. Now, look very carefully what the Bible says about Timothy’s parents. Do you see it? The Bible says that Timothy’s mother was a Jew.

She was a Jewish, but she was a believer. That means she’s a Christian. She’s a disciple, she’s a follower of Jesus, but his father is a Greek. My understanding is that that means his father’s not a Christian. He’s likely a pagan. So his mother’s a Christian. His father very likely is not a Christian. That’s interesting because when you go to 2 Timothy chapter 1, please, and 2 Timothy chapter 1 and in verse number 5, as Paul writes this epistle to the preacher Timothy, the young preacher Timothy, he says to him in verse 5, for I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice, and I’m sure that it is in you as well. Notice how verse 5 tells us that Timothy had a sincere faith.

Some of your translations say a genuine faith. What does that mean that Timothy had a sincere or a genuine faith? Well, that means that when it came to being a Christian, when it came to being a disciple, Timothy was the real deal. He wasn’t a phony and a fraud and a fake. He wasn’t a hypocrite in the church. He wasn’t the kind of Christian who behaved one way on Sunday when he’s worshiping God with God’s people, but then he acts another way when he’s out there in the world Monday through Saturday. He’s the real deal.

He is very zealous about the gospel of Jesus Christ. He actually wanted to leave home and travel with the apostle Paul on very dangerous preaching journeys, and he wanted to preach the gospel and win souls. In fact, he wanted to do that so badly that he was willing to have surgery. He was willing to be circumcised as a grown man. He was willing to go under the knife just so he could have influence when preaching the gospel to the Jews. You talk about some dedication. Timothy’s a genuine, authentic disciple. And the question is, how did he become that way? How did he develop that? How did he develop such a strong, zealous and genuine faith in Jesus Christ? Well, the Bible tells us, and 2 Timothy 1 and verse 5.

The Bible tells us that one of the things that contributed to Timothy’s sincere and genuine faith were the women in his life. It was his grandmother Lois and his mother Eunice. Paul says that Timothy’s mother Eunice helped him develop a sincere faith. She helped him become a real and genuine follower of Jesus Christ. She instilled in him the desire to be all in for Jesus and for all the mothers in the room, particularly for all the mothers in the room who are currently raising their kids, you can be just like her. You can do the same thing today. You can have the same kind of impact on your children today. Like Eunice, you also can instill within your children right now a sincere faith. You can do that in so many different ways.

You can do that by not allowing the bulk of their spiritual teaching and training to be done in this building on Sunday and Wednesday. You can do that by picking up the Bible every day and reading the Bible with them. Listening to them, read the Bible to you, helping them every day understand what the Bible means and how to apply it in their lives. Look in your Bible at 2 Timothy chapter 3, and 2 Timothy chapter 3 and in verse number 14. And 2 Timothy chapter 3 and in verse 14. We’re very familiar with verse number 16, where the where the Bible says that all scripture is inspired by God. It all comes from God, it all comes from the mind of God, and it can help us be everything God wants us to be.

We’re very, we’re very familiar with that verse, but look at verse 14. Because in verse 14 of chapter 3, Paul says to Timothy, you, however, continue and the things you’ve learned and become convinced of, knowing from whom you’ve learned them. Somebody taught you the Bible. And in verse 15, he goes on to say, and that from childhood, notice, you’ve known the sacred writings, which are able to give you the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. Paul says that Timothy knew his Bible. He knew his Bible.

And it was his mother. Do you know what that means? That means that if Eunice was alive today, and maybe she moved to Florida, and she became a member of the South Bumby congregation, if she was part of this church, she would not be giving the task of teaching little Timothy the scriptures primarily to his Bible class teachers. She would not be content with young Timothy. Just studying the Bible on Sunday morning and Wednesday night. She would view any kind of teaching he got in this building as a small supplement at best. She taught him the scriptures. In fact, not only did she teach him the scriptures, but she also lived the scriptures in front of him. Someone says, How do you know that, Sean? Well, I know that.

Because Timothy would have noticed if she didn’t. He would have noticed if his mother didn’t have a sincere faith. He would have noticed if his mother was a hypocrite in the church. He would have noticed if she went to church and sang songs and prayed prayers and ate the Lord’s Supper and shook hands with the brethren, but then as soon as she left, she went and gossiped about them. As soon as she left, she went home. And she disrespected her husband. Or she went home and she cursed. Or she got drunk or she used the Lord’s name in vain. Or she prioritized earthly things over spiritual things. Timothy would have known if she was a hypocrite. He would have known if she didn’t have a sincere faith.

And you know who else knows that? Our kids.

Brothers and sisters, our kids know if we have a real, genuine and sincere faith. They know if we’re really walking in the truth. They know the things that are really important to us. They know how we really treat their daddy or their mama behind closed doors. They know if we value prayer and Bible reading and times like this when we come together to worship God on the first day of the week. They know how we really feel about the brethren in this church. They know how we really feel about the elders. They know what we say about the brethren here behind closed doors. They know if we gossip. They know if we lie, lie, cheat, steal, try to rationalize sinful behavior. There are a lot of people we can fool in this world when it comes to our faith, but one group of people we cannot fool is we can’t fool our kids.

We can fool each other. That’s a walk in the park. I can come in here with a nice suit on and smile on your face and sing these songs and pray these prayers, and you think, man, Sean’s the real deal. It’s easy to fool you. That’s a walk in the park. Can’t fool my kids. We can’t fool our kids. You know why? Because they live with us. Because they they see us outside this building. They see if we’re really what we claim to be, and what they see is going to have an impact on them. That’s just a fact. And so Eunice is a mother who served God because she instilled in her son sincere faith. She taught him, she lived it. But we need to add another mother to the list, and this one might shock you a little bit.

3. The Wife of Zebedee Wanted Her Sons Near Jesus

I’ll just call her this morning the wife of Mr. Z. I’ll call the wife of Mr. Z. Someone says, Who in the world is that? Well, you should know who I’m talking about. I’m talking about the wife of Zebedee. I’m talking about the mother of James and John, two apostles. I want to talk about her for a little bit. And so go on your Bible to Matthew chapter 20. Look at Matthew chapter 20, because this is a very interesting text we have here in the scriptures. And Matthew chapter 20, and I want to ask you to please read this with me with fresh eyes this morning, if you can do that. In Matthew chapter 20 and in verse number 20, the Bible says, Then the mother, then the mother of the sons of Zebedee, that’s who we’re talking about.

The mother of James and John. They came to Jesus with, came to Jesus with her sons, bowing down and making a request of him. So notice the humility she has when she approaches Jesus. And he said to her, Well, what do you wish? She said to him, Command that in your kingdom these two sons of mine may sit, one on your right and one on your left. But Jesus answered, You do not know what you’re asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I’m able to drink? They said to him, We’re able. He said to them, My cup you shall drink. That’s the cup of suffering. But to sit on my right and on my left, this is not mine to give, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my father.

Now look at verse 24. Hearing this, the ten, the other ten apostles, became indignant. They’re angry with the two brothers, James and John. But Jesus called them to himself and said, You know what the rules of the Gentiles lorded over them, and the great men exercise authority over them. It is not this way among you. But whoever wishes to become great among you should be your servant, and whoever wishes to become first among you should be shall be your slave. Just so the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. Now, you and I both know there’s so much we can say about those verses, so much we could say. But for the purpose of this study, all I want to do right now is focus on this woman.

I want to focus on the wife of Mr. Z. I want to focus on the wife of Zebedee, the mother of James and John. I want to talk about her because with most people today, she’s not viewed in the most positive light. Most people are not really impressed with her as a mother because it seems like she not only frustrates the Lord here, but she also starts a fight. She starts an argument between the apostles. That is usually the main thing we consider when we study her story. But for the purpose of this lesson, I want to ask you to consider something that is often overlooked. I want to ask you to notice how while it was foolish for her to ask Jesus what she asked Jesus.

And Jesus makes that very clear. While this request is foolish to sit one apostle on the right and sit the other on the left, it was not foolish for her to want her sons to be next to Jesus. It was not foolish for her to want her sons to be near Jesus. It was not foolish for her to have big expectations for her sons in the kingdom of God. Those are good desires for every parent to have.

What is the top desire you have for your children? Is your top desire, and I emphasize the word top is your top desire for your children to maintain academic excellence? Is it to be a sort of a sports superstar? Or to be able to get into the best college and make the best grades and get a high-paying job one day so they can buy a nice house and have a whole bunch of money. Is that the top desire you have for your children? If it is, then I want to suggest in love that that needs to stop today.

That needs to change today. Today is the day to begin prioritizing what Mrs. Z prioritize with her sons, and that’s Jesus. That’s being close to Jesus. That’s knowing Jesus. That’s having big responsibilities in the kingdom of Jesus. That should be the top desire that we all have for our children. But some say, well, how can a mother demonstrate that kind of desire?

Well, a mother can demonstrate that kind of desire for her children by prioritizing worship. By making sure that her children get up on Sunday and attend the worship assembly, whether they want to or not. You can gripe and complain and moan and groan, you’re still getting up and you’re coming to church by helping her children understand. They’re watching a church service on a computer, that will never be a sufficient substitute for God’s plan in the Bible. I don’t care how smart we think we’ve become, it will never substitute scripture. It will never replace what we find Christians doing in the Bible. It will never replace God’s wisdom and God’s will. Our kids need to get that. A mother can help her children get close to Jesus by prioritizing worship.

And a mother can also prioritize her children getting close to Jesus by motivating and even pushing them into some kingdom work. She can involve them along with her husband. In kingdom work, she can have the children tag on alongside them when they go and visit the sick. Or have the children sit in on Bible studies that they conduct with the lost. Or make sure her sons are here for the young men’s training that we do a couple of times each month. Or encourage them to use those cell phones that they’re always glued to to text or shut in, to call and check on a widow in this church. Or encourage them right now, right now to think about one day becoming an elder. Or becoming a deacon or become a preacher.

We so badly need more preachers right now in the kingdom of God. And when it comes to the daughters, begin helping them work on the kind of character that a Christian woman is going to need to help qualify her husband to one day become a leader in the church. These are the kinds of things we can do right now. You see, while this request she makes here, Mrs. Z, the son, the wife of Mr. Z, while this request, I don’t deny, is a foolish request. I don’t deny that. I still like that she has high spiritual expectations for her sons. She wants them to be near Jesus. And that’s a good thing. That’s a great thing. But this does bring us now to the final mom I want to talk about this morning, and that’s the mother of a king.

4. The Mother of King Lemuel Gave Her Son Godly Wisdom

The mother of King Lemuel. Kim Lemuel. That brother Wally read for us in Proverbs chapter 31. Many of you are familiar with the fact that Proverbs 31 contains a description of the virtuous or the worthy woman, right? You’re familiar with that. But let me ask you this. What is that chapter really all about? What is really going on in Proverbs chapter 31? Well, unlike the vast majority of the book of Proverbs, we need to understand that Proverbs 31 was not written by, was not written by Solomon. It did not come from the inspired hand of this wise king who was a son of David. Instead, Proverbs 31 was pinned by inspiration by King Lemuel. King Lemuel wrote Proverbs 31, and we don’t know exactly who he was.

He’s only mentioned here in the Bible, but probably the most interesting thing we could say about this chapter is the targeted audience of Proverbs 31 is not women. Instead, it’s men. Men are the targeted audience. Proverbs chapter 31. In fact, the chapter actually begins with King Lemuel’s mom giving her son advice. She gives him counsel. She gives him wisdom when it comes to so many different things. For example, she gives him wisdom about relationships. She tells him to watch out for bad relationships and evil companions and people who can influence him to do the wrong kinds of things. She also gives him wisdom about alcohol. She tells him emphatically that drinking alcohol is foolish, it is dangerous, it can destroy your life, and it is not fit for someone who’s supposed to be a person of influence.

She also instructs him to be a servant. She tells him to help people, to bless people, to defend even the outcast of society, the poor of society. Don’t use your position as a king to take advantage of people. And then in the section that many of us know so well, she also gives him counsel about who to marry. In this section about the virtuous woman, she tells her son that when it comes to one day picking a bride, when it comes to one day picking your wife, you pick a wife like this. You pick a wife that’s going to make you better, not worse. You pick a wife that has godly character and godly conduct. You pick a wife that is spiritual and focus more on inward beauty than outer beauty.

You pick a wife who’s going to serve others? Who’s going to serve her family and serve God and not just focus on herself. King Lemuel’s wife spends this whole chapter giving her son godly wisdom. And for all the mothers in the room this morning, you can do the same thing with your kids.

Even today, you can help your family serve God by offering your children wisdom. By offering them godly counsel, by offering them wisdom that will help them succeed and avoid danger and stay on the straight and narrow path by offering your children wisdom on who to date and what qualities to look for in their future spouse. And don’t just solely focus on outward beauty, but focus also on inward beauty by constantly warning them to stay away from drugs. Stay away from alcohol. Be careful how you conduct yourself at all times. Be careful how you conduct yourself on social media. Protect your influence. Your name means everything. Find good friends. Don’t walk around life thinking people owe you something. Don’t walk around life being selfish and self-centered and failing to make a positive difference in the people who are around you.

Conclusion

These are four. Four mothers who serve God. And they help their family serve God. And I know that there are more we could have put on this list. I know that. You probably think of ten others we could have put on this list, but we gotta go eat at some point, right? Gotta go take my mind to eat. We can’t be here all day. So I hope that these four mothers will at least encourage you. I hope they’ll bless you. I hope they will encourage all the mothers here who are trying to serve God and help their families serve God. I also hope and pray that if we were raised by women like this, we show appreciation for them and thank God for them through prayer, not just today, but every day.

Godly mothers are a blessing. They are one of the great gifts that God has given us in this life, but they’re not the greatest gift. The greatest gift is not a godly mother. Instead, it’s Jesus. Jesus is the greatest gift we’ve been given by God. And maybe there’s somebody here this morning who needs to come to Jesus, maybe for the first time through faith and repentance and baptism, or maybe there’s someone here who needs to come to him again because you’ve fallen away. If there’s anyone here this morning who maybe needs to respond to the gospel for the first time but come back to the Lord again, we’re gonna sing this song and invite you to come to the front as we stand and we sing.