The Godly Mother

No man is poor who has had a godly mother.
- Abraham Lincoln.

Once again, Abe Lincoln is correct – the greatest thing a mother can do is be godly: be a godly role model, direct her children to God, teach her children the ways of the Bible, which are the ways of truth and of love. There is a difference between being godly and being religious. Being godly means to be spiritual, to follow God and to walk in His way, to have a relationship with the God of the Bible. Being religious means to follow a religion. Too many people, both within religions and outside religions, think that the way to heaven and to God is by being religious, but that is not true. The way to God is to know Him and to follow Him. This is what a godly mother does. If a child has this, there is a great chance that the child will go in the right direction. Abe Lincoln obviously had a godly mother.

There is another person we have all heard of that had a Godly mother. Moses. We all have seen The Ten Commandments and we all know about the Passover and the parting of the Red Sea. However, often lost in the story, is the faith and godliness of Moses’ mother.

Hebrews 11:23 By faith Moses parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw that he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict.

It’s interesting that the writer of Hebrews includes Moses parents as one of the faithful of the Old Testament. We know the greatness of Moses. He’s one of those one-name celebrities: Pele, Madonna, Cher. Moses. What he has done has been remembered throughout history. But the things he did would never have happened if it were not first for the faithfulness of his parents.

In Exodus 2, we read about the birth of Moses. But before we get to that, we need to understand what happened in Exodus 1. There, we read that the Pharaoh, or the Egyptian king, was afraid of the Israelites because they had grown so numerous. So Pharaoh comes up with the plan that he would kill every newborn son. This is where we pick up in Exodus.

Ex 2:1-10

Here we read that after she had given birth to Moses, his mother hid him for three months. What that entailed is beyond me – how she kept him from being heard, from crying; how she kept him fed and satisfied, changed and cleaned. All the hints must have been there that there was an infant in the house, but Moses’ mother risked all to keep him hidden so that he would not be killed.

The plan she came up with must have seemed ridiculous. How would she be able to pull this off? It would be impossible for people not to notice. “You were pregnant. What happened to the baby?” “Oh, I lost it before it was born.” “What was that noise I heard in the middle of the night?” “Oh, that was my daughter – she was not feeling well.” “For 2 months now?” “Well, she hasn’t been the same since she lost her brother.” How would she continue to keep this secret?!

The time was coming that she would not be able to continue to keep this secret. She needed to do something else. But what? She must have prayed for three months for God to show her what she was supposed to do. Finally, the day came that she knew she needed to do something. She again risked everything. Her faith must have been great. How else can someone expect to place her baby in a basket in the river and hope that the right person would see it, rescue it, and then, upon finding what was inside, decide to go against Pharaoh’s edict and keep the child? It was an impossible plan. At least for men. But for God, it was simple. The hard part would not be whether God could keep His part of the bargain, but whether Moses’ mother could keep her part. After many prayers, she knew she had to follow through on this insane plan. But her faith was great and she did exactly what God required.

Was it an accident that the basket didn’t sink? Was it chance that allowed the basket to pass by the bathing spot of the Princess of Egypt? What about the timing, what were the odds that the Princess would actually be there at that moment or that she would even see the basket? Someone watching from the outside today might say it was all chance or that the odds weren’t as bad as it might seem. However, those of us with spiritual eyes can see quite clearly that God had a plan from the beginning. He made sure that everything went as He planned by bringing together all the players at the right time at the right place.

At the right time, Moses’ sister shows up and offers to find someone to nurse the baby. Of course, she brings her mother. This allows Moses’ mother to bring up her son without fear that her son would be killed. Three months ago, Moses’ mother could only imagine that she would see her son live. Now she not only had a living son, but one she could raise herself without worrying about risking his life or hers. And raise him she did, for we know that when Moses was older, even though he was raised as a Prince of Egypt, with all the knowledge, language, culture and privilege that entitled him to, he chose to remain true to his own people. This did not occur because he saw how great his own people were doing. This occurred because while he was growing up, his true, godly mother taught him who God was, what His promises were to His people and what He had already done for Moses.

The risk and sacrifice that Moses’ mother showed is a lesson for us today. Mothers – are you being godly mothers, bringing up your children in the ways of our God? Are you, like Moses’ mother and Lincoln’s mother, raising up your children to be great men and women for God? Are you ready to sacrifice your own life for your child?

Years ago, a young mother was making her way across the hills of South Wales, carrying her tiny baby in her arms, when she was overtaken by a blinding blizzard. She never reached her destination and when the blizzard had subsided her body was found by searchers beneath a mound of snow. But they discovered that before her death, she had taken off all her outer clothing and wrapped it about her baby. When they unwrapped the child, to their great surprise and joy, they found he was alive and well. She had mounded her body over his and given her life for her child, proving the depths of her motherly love. Years later that child, David Lloyd George, grown to manhood, became prime minister of Great Britain, and, without doubt, one of England’s greatest statesman.

A mother’s love is a very unique love. Rarely will anyone give up their own life to save another, but a mother will do this for her child all the time. This selfless, sacrificial love is a model of the love we have from God. Each and every one of us are children of God and He loves each and every one of us the same way a mother loves her child. Even more! How do we know this? Because He has already proven it. John 3:16-17 tells us how much. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” For we know that every mother would give up her own life to save her child’s, what kind of love is it that would give up a child to save the lives of others? It is an inconceivable love, one that we cannot really understand, but it is the love that God has shown to us. He gave us His son, Jesus, so that everyone can be saved. He didn’t do it just for the Jews or the Middle Easterners. He didn’t do it for only the rich or only the poor. He didn’t do it for Black or White. He did it for EVERYONE! Everyone is free to accept the free gift that God has given us with His son. The Bible tells us that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. That means anyone can be accepted. Even if there is nothing good about anything you have done in your life. Even if no one else accepts you, God does. Even if you have slandered His name, worked against Him or sinned against Him, He still accepts you. You are His child – He loves you! Trust in Jesus to be your salvation and you will become a new creation.

Mothers, bring up you children in the way they should go and when they are old, they will not depart from it. Be godly mothers. Raise the next Abe Lincoln or Moses. Be faithful and have faith. As in the case of Moses’ mother, God will make all things work for the good and what you never thought or imagined will be yours.

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Last modified: May 16, 2007