The Importance of Mothers and Grandmothers

Pastor Mike will be speaking on The Importance of Mothers and Grandmothers. He will be in 2nd Timothy 1:4-5.

What I’m challenging you moms is to make sure that you are buying in to the truth of God’s word and that your faith is built upon the solid foundation of Jesus Christ and His word and that you make choices and decisions based upon that.

Hello this is Pastor Mike Sanders from the Open Door Church with Hope Worth Having. We want to welcome you to the program this week and I want to say to all the mothers out there happy Mother’s Day. Today we’re going to be in 2 Timothy chapter 1 and we’re going to cover verse 4 and 5.

We’re going to talk about the importance of mothers and grandmothers. So let’s get our Bible, let’s get a pen or paper, and let’s start learning together the importance of mothers and grandmothers. We cannot underestimate the influence and the impact of a mom upon her children.

And when we come to our text today in 2 Timothy chapter 1 we just point out in verse 5 this great text that the Apostle has written to the young Pastor Timothy and he says when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and I am persuaded is in you also.

Today I want to talk to you about the importance of mothers and grandmothers. We are looking at this text and we see that Timothy was raised by a godly mom and a godly grandmother and we know that they had a positive effect upon him.

Moms play a valuable role, women play a valuable role in the life of not only their children but their grandchildren and so it’s important that we understand how is it that we can increase the impact of our influence upon our children and our grandchildren.

So I just wanna bring out three things for you mom, three things for you grandma, three things that are important to help you to make an influence upon the lives. And if you’re serving as a mentor, if you’re serving as a role model to somebody, I want you to know that’s huge too and that it makes a great impact upon others.

So the first thing I want you to note out of our text is that a mother and grandmother’s faith must be sound. Did you notice the text what it says? The apostle says, I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, this genuine faith.

It was in Timothy and this genuine faith in his grandmother and that it was passed on down to his mother and it was passed on down to him. Timothy was a third generation. The Apostle is reminding Timothy of his background in the faith.

He is reminding him of his heritage in Christianity. Eunice, his mother, was a single mom and she lived in a very difficult world and she was a Jewish believer who had come to Christ and she had been married to a Greek unbeliever who had either left or he had died.

We do not know, but here we find that grandma and mom had raised Timothy and they were able to make a huge impact upon his spiritual life. So what’s it gonna take to have a sound faith mom? I think there are a few things that you got to remember.

Write these things down. Number one, you have to know Jesus Christ as your Savior and I want to remind every mother and of course every person that the most important thing in life is to know Jesus Christ as your Savior.

The Bible says that God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. Paul is pointing out to the young Timothy that his mother and his grandmother had a genuine faith and that they were genuine believers and that they fully and truly trusted in Jesus Christ.

When the Bible talks about this genuine faith it means it is a sincere faith, it is an authentic faith, it is a real faith. The key to having a sound faith is that you got to know Jesus Christ and to know Jesus Christ means mom, grandma, you got to humble yourself before God Almighty and you got to admit that you’re a sinner.

Now that’s always a toughie, nobody likes to admit that they’re a sinner. There are many times I get into conversation with people and they try to convince me that they’re not a sinner and I remind them that if you don’t doubt that we’re born into this world as sinners just have children because you never have to train a child to sin you never have to train a child to be selfish nobody’s having seminars and teaching their children how to have a meltdown in Walmart but these kids pick it up naturally because they are born with a sinful nature you say well my child is precious and my child is wonderful and that may be true in the eyes of man their goodness may be good to you but let me tell you in the standard of God and his holiness and his righteousness the Bible says that our righteousness is as filthy rags we come up short the Bible says all have sinned and come up short of the glory of God we do not measure up now some kids are a little bit better than others and some kids are a little bit more rotten than others hey man I’m just telling you that that’s how it plays out.

But the bottom line is that it doesn’t matter who you are, it doesn’t matter where you are, it doesn’t matter your status in life, it doesn’t matter how much education you have in life, we come into this world as sinners and we are in need of a savior.

The question is, my friends, if you start out saved, if you start out good, if you start out righteous, why would Jesus need to go to the cross? Why would He need to go and die for your sins and pay the punishment of your sins?

Why wouldn’t He just say, look, step up your game, do better, try to do this, let me give you a bunch of rules to follow. The truth is that you and I could never be all that we should be and that when we are at our best, the best of Mike Sanders falls extremely short of the excellency of the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

And that’s why we need to recognize we’re all sinners before God. And I can never have a sound faith unless I first come to the acknowledgement that I am a sinner and the second is that I understand that I’m in need of a savior.

Jesus Christ loves you, Jesus Christ died on the cross, He does not leave us in the mess we’re in, He does not leave us in our state of sinfulness, but rather He has provided a way of salvation for each and every person that comes to Him and believes in Him.

The Bible teaches us that whoever believes on the name of the Son of God shall be saved. And I want you to know friends that no matter who you are, you can have a sound faith by calling upon Christ today, this morning, and you can know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and He’ll wash away your sins and He will wash away your shame and wash away your guilt and He’ll give you a new brand new start in Him.

You say, well, my life’s been a mess and I’ve made a lot of bad decisions and I’ve gone down to a lot of bad paths in my life. It doesn’t matter because God will. give you a fresh start in Him. The Bible tells us that He takes our sins and He cast it as far as the east is from the west to be remembered no more.

How can a mother have a sound faith? How can a grandmother have a sound faith? No Jesus Christ as your Savior, but let me also say you need to demonstrate authentic faith at home. I already told you that when the Apostle used this word faith he’s talking about a sincere faith.

It’s the idea of not having a mask, meaning that what Paul is saying is that you can’t be a hypocrite at home. You can’t say well do as I say and not as I do. You can’t say in your home that I’m gonna do this but I’m gonna expect a different standard out of my children.

Friends it won’t work. Your faith must be sincere and your faith cannot be filled with hypocrisy if you want to make an impact upon the Lord Jesus Christ. How else can my faith be sound? It can be sound by being scriptural.

Listen to me, mothers. I want you to understand that there’s a lot of voices in your life and that there are a lot of people who are trying to speak into your life. And not all these voices are speaking truth into your heart.

And you need to recognize these people that are telling you to follow your heart are foolish because the Bible says the heart is deceitful, who can know it? And your heart can lead you down the wrong path.

What I’m challenging you moms is to make sure your faith is scriptural. Make sure you’re not buying in to the New Age movement, that you’re not buying in to the pop psychology that has infiltrated so many churches and teachers.

Make sure that you are buying in to the truth of God’s word and that your faith is built upon the solid foundation of Jesus Christ and his word and that you make choices and decisions based upon that.

Let me give you another way, moms, to help your faith be sound. We said you gotta know Christ. We said you gotta demonstrate authentic faith. You gotta be real at home. And then you gotta be scriptural.

But let me tell you this also, to have a sound faith, you gotta grow through your trials. You see, there’s nothing more powerful in the life of influencing your children and grandchildren than them observing your life that even through the trials of life that you are getting closer to Jesus Christ.

You see, friends, God uses trials. He uses transitions. He uses temptations to make us stronger in him. We go through different seasons in our life, moms and grandmas, did you know that? I always try to remind parents that you can’t raise a preschool child like an elementary child and you can’t raise a teenager like an elementary child.

There are different seasons in your life in parenting and there are different seasons in your spiritual life and there are different seasons in your physical life and you gotta come to grips with that.

The Bible teaches. us that we have seasons and it’s okay there’s nothing wrong with those seasons but as you go through those seasons people need to understand this that you’re growing that you’re thriving that you’re getting closer to Jesus Christ I know that we like to hold on the way things have always been we like to hold on some of you moms are raising your kids so they’ll never leave your home well unfortunately some of you got that wish but the bottom line is God wants us to transition and he wants us to grow in our trials he wants us to grow when we go through temptations in life and when we are showing that kind of a faith at home it makes a great impact upon our children let me say this also mothers to have a sound faith you need to serve others Jesus said the greatest commandment was to love God and to love your neighbor the first and second commandment of God is to love him and to love your neighbor and the greatest way that we love our neighbor is by serving them.

When Jesus gave that commandment, it said that the greatest commandment is to love God, and the second is like unto it, that you love your neighbor, they said, well, who’s my neighbor? And Jesus began to tell the story of the good Samaritan, which really upset the religious elite, because they looked down upon the Samaritans, but Jesus used a Samaritan, he held up a Samaritan as an example to the religious elite who were trying to trap him,

and he said, no, the greatest commandment is to love God, love your neighbor. They said, who is it? He said, well, let me tell you a story about a great, good Samaritan, and here’s what your neighbor is.

Whoever is in need, you see? Whoever is in need. You said, well, my neighbor’s next door. That may be your neighbor, and if they have a need, you ought to help them. But if your neighbor’s crossed town, help them.

If your neighbor, whoever is in need, is across the states, you help them. That’s what we’re called to do. We are called to serve others. We can’t live our life for selves. Moms, we know you sacrifice a lot for your children.

Grandmas, we know you sacrifice a lot for your grandchildren, but I also want them to see you sacrificing for other people. I want them to see you serving God in such a beautiful way that you’re bringing glory to the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The importance of a mother and grandmother is huge in the life of children, and in order for you to grow your influence that’s upon your children and grandchildren, you need to have a sound faith, mom and grandma.

But number two, you need to have a faith that is seen. A mother and grandmother’s faith must be seen. We talked a little bit about this, but Timothy’s grandmother and his mother nurtured him in the faith.

Did you see that? The apostle says, when I called to remember, it’s the genuine faith that is in you. Where did he get it from? He got it from his grandmother. He got it from his mother. It’s not that they somehow saved him because of their own faith.

but the bottom line is this, that they nurtured the young Timothy, the young boy, that he might know Christ. The scriptures teach us again, same point, second Timothy chapter three, that the scriptures are able to make you wise unto salvation.

We have a responsibility to make sure that our faith is seen in the life of our children. Now listen to me moms, the world will tell you that being a mother is the worst calling. But I tell you that the Bible teaches us that the highest calling in the life of any lady is for her to be a mother and a grandmother, to be able to be entrusted with the children and the grandchildren that God has given you.

And that is a great, holy, high calling and there is no career that is more important than that calling. And I know that may upset you. Now listen ladies, I’m not against you having a career. And if you have this unique, incredible skill set, which I know many of you ladies do, a balancing motherhood, as well as with your career, as being able to spend many plates at the same time and impact and influence your children and grandchildren,

then I tell you, go for it. I’m not against it, but just make sure that your job outside of the home, that your roles and responsibilities outside the home, never take priority over your job and responsibility in the home.

And so moms, your Christianity has to be seen at home. Grandmas, your Christianity has to be seen at home. How do you do that? Three things real quickly. A mother’s faith must be seen. A grandmother’s faith must be seen.

Number one, through her priorities. What is most important to you? You see, moms and grandmas, if you put everything else before the church, if you put everything before your relationship with Jesus, if you put everything else before what is most important in life, and that’s faith and family.

It is your faith in Jesus Christ. It is the family God has entrusted to you. Then do not be surprised when your children grow up that faith and family is not a priority to them. Now, a mother’s faith must be seen.

It must be seen through her priorities and it must be seen through her decisions. You see, moms and grandmas decisions are being watched and observed by your children and grandchildren. They’re watching how you handle things.

They’re watching how you to respond to things. They’re watching your decisions. And see, you gotta remember that many times more is caught than taught. More is caught than taught. Number one, glorify God.

And I don’t wanna be a bad example to the children and grandchildren. And this is true even in my life as a pastor. There may be many things that I could do that I could theologically defend But would it be a good example to the children and the grandchildren?

Would it be a good example to the church family? Would it be a good example to all the students at the Cumberland valley christian school? Listen friends your life is either a stepping stone or a stumbling block to the children Your life is either helping your children and grandchildren to step up and be more like jesus christ Or it is a stumbling block causing them to trip over the principles and the truths of christianity And so you want your life and the decisions you make to be about enhancing and equipping and Elevating your children to the next level a mother’s faith must be seen not only in her priorities And not only in her decisions,

but through her actions There needs to be Bible discussions in the home there needs to be spiritual engagement in the home and I know that some of your moms might feel like well Mike you’re always trying to make everything about the Bible well friends first of all I don’t think that’s that bad but number two I want you to know that if you just keep pumping into the head of your children material things temporal things don’t be shocked when that’s their priority and so friends I want to encourage all moms and grandmas through their actions as their daily living that they are demonstrating their love for God and their love for their neighbor children are first influenced by what they see but here’s what you’ll notice about your children as they grow up they start to imitate you and that’s why I say to all moms and grandmas that your children are first influenced by what they see now I’m thankful for the many ladies in our church family that you have a kind of faith that is authentic it is sound it is a faith that loves the Lord and you are a praying woman you are a woman committed to living each day serving God with joy and serving God with a smile and this is the type of a parent that Timothy had he had a mom who loved Christ he had a grandma who loved Christ and when he looked at their lifestyle he could see Jesus were they perfect no but the majority of the time through the power of the Spirit and through the influence of God’s Word upon their life they were spending their time to make sure that their hearts were in alignment with God Almighty and friends a mother’s faith has to be sound a mother’s faith has to be seen and thirdly a mother’s faith has to be shared Eunice and Lois were able to communicate their faith successfully to their child and grandchild Timothy a Again,

the Bible says 2 Timothy 3 verse 14 through 15, but continue thou in the things which thou has learned and has been assured of knowing of whom thou has learned them, and that from a child thou has known the holy scriptures which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

When the apostle refers to Timothy about continuing what he’s learned and to remember those that taught you or you learned them from, he is referring to his mother and his grandmother, and he is reminding Timothy that from a child they saturated his life with God’s word, that from a child they constantly shared the truth of God with him.

And so it made a beautiful impact. Our faith must be shared with our children. There’s too many parents who leave up the spiritual destination and the spiritual future of their children in their own hands.

child left to himself will make a mess of himself mom grandma a child left to himself will go down the wrong path you got to step up to the plate and you got to speak up and you got to share the wonderful truths of Christianity with your children I’m reminded that someone once said mothers write on their hearts of their children what the rough hand of the world cannot erase how important it is for moms to stay involved how do we do that we already talked about it number one by the way you live your life now look I don’t remember a lot of things that people have taught me but I never will forget the lives that people live you see your life has a great impact upon your children and as we already stated you’re writing on the hearts of your children but you also must teach the truths of God’s Word to your children and they must learn this from their grandmother the Apostle reminds Timothy that he learned the true teaching of God’s Word from the scriptures from his grandmother and his mother that moms and dads and grandmas and grandpas need to step up and teach the Bible says train up a child it doesn’t say leave it up to the child you have to train up a child in the way that he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it it doesn’t mean friends that your children will be perfect and always love God but what it does mean is this that you will leave an indelible mark upon the heart and the mind of your children moms and grandmas when you train them the way that they were designed by God and that you train them you see that word train means you have to take the initiative it means you have to be intentional it means you got to step up to the plate and you’ve got to teach your children The expectations you have of your children must be trained and taught to them.

That if you expect your children to be polite, train them to be polite. If you expect your children to read the Bible, train them. If you expect them to go to church, train them. If you expect them to sit quietly in church, train them.

Children will rise to the expectations that they are trained to. And moms and dads don’t wait until the moment of confrontation to train your child to the expectation that you want. This is so essential in your life.

Train up a child. The Bible teaches us. Nurture a child. The Bible teaches us. Over and over parents are called. Moms and grandmas are called. Dads and grandpas are called to step up and take the initiative and be intentional in their training.

it’s important that you train children. Now many of you may have never heard of John and Charles Wesley. Charles Wesley was a very prolific hymn writer. Thousands of songs that he wrote in the 17th century that the church still sings today.

John Wesley, he was the founder of the movement. Thousands of churches were started in America and they were started in Europe because of the teaching and the preaching and the mission and the vision of John Wesley.

John and Charles Wesley were great men of God and they have influenced and they continue to influence Christianity today. But do you know what it is that made them so great? It was their mother. Her name was Susanna Wesley.

Susanna Wesley had a great influence upon John and Charles Wesley. As a matter of fact, I encourage you to read any biography on this young lady and how powerfully she influenced her boys to be so successful for God.

It is said of Susanna Wesley that she prayed one hour every day for her children. One hour. It is said of Susanna Wesley that she was a very strict mother, but she was unselfishly faithful to her children.

She had six rules for teaching her children the priority of the Savior. Number one, subdue self -will in a child. How good is that? Moms and grandmas help your children start out early to learn they’re not the boss.

They’re not running the show. The second thing she taught her children, her second rule was to teach her children to pray as soon as they could speak. Number three, her third rule was give her children nothing that he cries for and only what is good for him when he asks politely.

And I bet Susannah Wesley taught her children how to ask politely. She taught them how to say thank you, how to ask and use the word please. Number four, punish no fault that is confess but let no sinful act go unnoticed.

Redemptive discipline right there, reward good behavior was her fifth rule. She rewarded, she positively reinforced her children when they did the right thing. And number six, she strictly observed all promises that she made to her children.

If she promised them something, she followed through on that. Moms, grandmas, how important it is to be intentional in your training and sharing your faith. Moms, grandmas, have you prayed for your children?

Have you stepped up in a really passionate way to impact and influence the life of your children for Jesus Christ? Moms, you have a promise. And that it is the promise that was given to Abraham that was fulfilled in Christ and has been carried out in the declaration of the gospel that God would save you and your offspring.

Grandmas, you have a promise that God would save you and your offspring. And this promise is fulfilled in Jesus Christ. And we are reminded again in Genesis, Galatians, in the book of Acts, that God loves to not just save a person, but He loves to save a family.

And He loves to save the descendants. And God tells us that we are the descendants of Abraham by faith. And if you have a child that has wandered and you have a child that is strayed and you have a grandchild that is strayed, then I want to encourage you, like Susannah Wesley, like Augustine’s mother, that you would weep for your children and that you would commit in your heart today on this special Mother’s Day to pray for your children and your grandchildren like you have never before until you see it fulfilled in the life of your children and your grandchildren.

The importance of a mother, the importance of a grandmother, let’s pray together. No doubt that in many of our lives that our mothers have really shaped our character. And today we not only celebrate motherhood, but we also say to moms, we challenge you that if you are a mother or grandmother, or maybe God has given you a ministry of mentoring women, then we encourage you to follow these reminders that have been given to us.

I hope that on this mother’s day, no matter what your circumstances are, that you find your hope in the gospel of Jesus Christ and that you continue to make yourself available to be a special influence on those that God puts into your life.

I want to remind you that make sure you check out our website, hopeworthhaving .com. We’ve recently updated our website and there are some new features on there. and new opportunities for you to learn and to grow.

So make sure you go to the website and that you’re keeping it as part of your daily habit of tapping into resources to help you to grow in your faith. This is Pastor Mike Sanders reminding you that in Christ, there is hope worth having.