Amen, so of course there in Genesis chapter 3
might even go where I'm going given the fact that it's Mother's Day today and
You can't be a preacher and not preach a Mother's Day sermon on Mother's Day
I mean, I guess you could but it would be a long ride home back to Phoenix
So not that it's something I have to make myself preach. I think it's a great topic to preach on quite honestly
It's not something. I think that we hear enough preaching about about mothering and parenting in general
I
mean when you think about mothers they think about a lot of the work that they do and
Really how much we should appreciate it
We should appreciate the work of a mother if we were to go around and ask people
What comes to mind when you think about your mother or what what do you think about mothering?
You know you're probably going to recall something that involved her doing something for you
We're doing something for another sibling or something that mothers
Mothers are always very busy helping and serving others, so it's important that we take time
I think at least once a year to step back and really honestly appreciate the work that a mother does
I mean, it's one day of the year, but they really don't have a day off if they're doing it, right
I mean a mother that's working and being a good mother and she's on call 24-7
You know non-stop, so I think one day of the year isn't too bad to step back and express some gratitude
for what mothers do
You know if we understood the realities of what mothers did we might better appreciate that and really that's kind of the direction
I want to go this morning with the sermon is to talk more bluntly about the realities of motherhood
I mean it'd be really nice to get up here and preach the real inspiring
moving and gentle message about and
You know bring up some poetic quotes about motherhood and stuff like that
And I enjoy all that stuff and and have a very touching sermon
But really what's needed today in America is for people to understand the realities of motherhood the the harsh realities
right of bearing children and
Raising children because it's a difficult job. It's a very difficult job, and as we'll see here
There's a lot of people here that would rather prefer just to avoid that work all together
But a mother is somebody who does a great deal of work, and it's something that we need to appreciate
Of course it says there in Genesis chapter 3 verse 16 under the woman
He said I will greatly multiply thy sorrow on that conception and sorrow shall not bring forth children and thy
Desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee so we have to recall of course
We're probably familiar with at least this much of the scripture
You know that in Genesis 3 we have the fall of man where he's Eve has eaten of the knowledge of good and evil and it has
You know
Adam has chosen to eat as well
and they've both fallen into a state of sin and God catches them and calls them on the carpet and
Of course he doles out punishments to those that were guilty he doles out the punishment to the man to the servant and also to
the woman and part of that
Punishment that woman is given here is that she will greatly multiply that he would greatly multiply her sorrow and her conception and
Sorrow shall thou bring forth children now
I don't know before the fall if childbirth would have been something, you know pleasurable at all
That it would be something that is as less painful or less
Of a danger than it is today, but whatever however bad it was then it's even worse now
And that's part of because of the curse that God has put on the earth
And I don't want to say this insensitively or come across the wrong way
We have to understand today that and to some degree mothers are operating as such under the curse of God
You know bringing forth children is part of that
part of that punishment that has been put upon mankind and
You know
That's something that we have to keep in mind because the work of being a mother
Involves some sorrow it involves as it says there that she would multiply
Her conception in sorrow that she would bring forth children in sorrow
So the work of bearing children, of course is probably one of the you know
The primary works that a mother would do of course that's what makes a mother a mother is the fact that she has brought forth
Children so the work of bearing children is the work of mother and of course it says right here that that work of bringing
Forth children is something that is going to be done in sorrow that it is a sorrowful thing now
It's not something that you shouldn't rejoice over or be happy about or be glad to have children
But what's saying is that there was always there's actually going to be some elements of it
You know physically that are very difficult that they're going to bring sorrow into a person's life
And we think about just some of the you know, we have four children now
So we're fairly familiar with the things that go on my wife obviously much more so than myself
Some of the things that go along with bearing children, you know, we think of the morning sickness
That's one of the first signs of pregnancy was when mom suddenly becomes nauseous
Things that used to seem appealing as far as food or how repulsive to her certain smells can trigger this
It's just something she wakes up and has you know and can for some ladies get very intense and go on for a very long
Time and there's and there's certain things that can be helped to remedy that but I think they all experience it to some degree or another
Now, I don't know that right there is enough for me to just get down on my knees and thank God that I'm a man
Right. I get sick and I have a big baby. I get a little I had a little bit of a stomach bug
I think my wife goes through this for weeks months, you know
I think God did that this last Thursday just to remind me on Mother's Day
Exactly what my wife has gone through for me because it's it's intense. I can't imagine it
It's really something that they have to go through. So we would say Oh morning sickness isn't that bad?
Well, if you had to go through it, you might have a different opinion
So that's part of that sorrow, isn't it that that mothers even just getting pregnant that one that first part of it
Just having to go through the morning sickness or not to mention the discomfort of pregnancy, you know having to you know
That's the child grows and becoming, you know, the clothes don't fit right if you live here in Arizona
You know if you're going through a summer that can be very uncomfortable. There's the back pain
So everything that's going on with her body. That's a very sorrowful thing. It's a very difficult thing. It's not easy
I'm here to tell you this morning that you know being a mother is work from right out of the gate from day one
Before that child's even born mothers are working and there's a lot of sorrow that's involved in it
You know, we think all also of the unfortunate incidents of
miscarriages or worse yet even still burp
I mean we can see what God says here that there's going to be sorrow in a woman's conception
That there's going to be difficult times that it's not what it used to be
and of course we think about maybe other aspects that we can say bless a sorrowful aspect of
Being a mother and that would be I would think of one thing is sleep deprivation
You know a mother has to get up at all hours of night feed that child take care of that child
we have that stomach bug blow through our house and when little Corbin John woke up at
132 o'clock that night and and vomited all over his bedroom
It wasn't me getting up
You know and she got up and she took care of that and she did that and she did that work and I'm grateful for
That but I mean sleep deprivation is a real part of being a mother having to go without the sleep without the rest
That's needed. I was just talking to my sister on the way down here this morning and she expressed that fact to me
She's got a few children of her own now and saying it just seems like I'm in a constant state of never having God
I'm full night's sleep for years and I said I can sympathize to a degree
You know my wife would probably be able to much more so
But this is part of the sorrow that goes along with being motherhood and it just goes to show us that
Being a mother is work that it is something that involves work and sorrow not to mention the fact that it's dangerous
I mean childbirth itself is dangerous and I don't want to frighten anybody
And I don't want to you know, make people nervous about this
But it's the facts it's and this will help us appreciate being a mother even more
I mean we could turn to passages even the Word of God where we see where women had
hard labor and to the point where they even passed away and today in our country, you know as
Safe as it has become with all the medical advancements and all the technology that's out there that even today in America
We still women still suffer from this to the point where they even die
It says that they had about 700 women die each year in the u.s. So, you know, we should never you know
So call your mother
Okay
You know that you don't take the time to express some gratitude at least one day a year towards your mother
Because really when you think about it when your mother gave birth to you, she went through the jaws of death
I mean, I don't say that, you know over dramatically. That's really what happens women
Literally to even to this day in this country
Of approximately 700 died each year for complications in labor or pregnancy
Now you know, I don't want to make you nervous. That's a small fraction about 3.8 million women gave birth in
2017 so do the math. It's a very small
Fraction, but that's not to take it for granted. Of course in times past without those medical advancements
Yeah, I mean people probably took it a lot more seriously. It was a lot more a
Lot more of an act of faith and having to trust in God and making sure everything goes goes well
So, of course, I don't want to dwell on that thought but it is something that needs to be mentioned
and if we're going to think about what mothers go through today and try to
You know stir up some gratitude for our mothers that might even last. I don't know maybe hopefully throughout the week
Maybe month, you know, not just one day of the year
Maybe it would give us a better perspective for mothers for the rest of our lives
We need to talk about these things and the fact is that it's it's sorrowful. It's dangerous and it's also painful
I mean we could we don't have to go into great detail about that and that that
It is a painful thing. I'm not going to you know sugarcoat that I'm not going to do to anybody
What what my mother and aunt did to my older sister when she gave birth the first time and she asked them
Is it painful and they said no dear
The movies exaggerate. It's really not that bad and they were sheltering her from that pain
And of course she found out the reality a little later
And was not appreciated about that. She would rather have just been told so
You know the fact is is that there's a lot that goes in to just and we're just we haven't even gotten the point of
Actually raising the child. We're just talking about conception. What goes along with that
Childbirth what goes along with that and you can see already
You know why it's appropriate to set aside a day and to talk about mothers and what they do for us
It's just the beginning that we've talked about and if you haven't caught on what I'm talking about so far
I'll just go ahead and give you the title, but the title of the sermon this morning is motherhood is work
Motherhood is what work and we see that right out of the gate right out of the gate mothers are already having to
Sacrifice and put themselves through discomfort and even danger to some degree just to bring children into this world
And then we have to talk about of course the work that goes into even raising children
I mean, that's a whole nother world that opens up
Once mothers have you know brought forth their children
And they have you know recovered from that that whole process of recovery from childbirth
Then they get to endeavor in that lifelong pursuit of
Starting to teach those children trying starting to train and raise those children for God. That's a lot of work
I dare say that's more work than anything thus far
We've talked about because that's something that goes on a day in day out until those children are adults and
That's something that requires a lot of work
And it's something that we really need to focus on today because I'll tell you right now godly children of course everyone
you know I would trust in this room that has children would love to see their kids grow up and
Live for God and to obey the commandments of God and to live
Lives that are pleasing to God, but that doesn't happen by accident
You're not just going to wake up one day and have godly children that that is something that has to be done on
Purpose that is something that has to be done intentionally in an adult's life and a great deal of that
Falls on the mother and we think about the roles that men and women are given invite in the Bible
That men are supposed to be the providers
They're the ones that are go out and to earn a living and to provide for their house
By the income so that the mothers can stay home and raise the children
So really a lot of how those children are going to turn out
Falls on the mother's shoulders it falls. It's her responsibility to a great. I'm not saying dad doesn't play a part in this
Obviously he does
But let's face facts
I mean the kids are you know ideally spending most of their time with mom most of their time being taught on mom's lab most
Of the time being schooled by mom most of the time being taught about life in the Bible from mom
That's where they're learning a lot of it because God dad is busy doing the things that he needs to do
Now the Bible says in Proverbs 22 verse 6 train up a child in the way
He should go and when he is old he will not depart from it now
It's an interesting word that it uses there
And it actually is the word train
And we need to think about what that word even means training to be in training that is an ongoing
process that accomplishes a desired goal
Nobody you know we think about if you've ever gotten into any kind of serious weightlifting or anything like that
You'll hear the term of training as opposed to the word exercise
You know there's a lot of things that you can do to go out and exercise
And get nothing accomplished you can break a sweat and get your heart rate up
But you're not going to put on muscle you're not going to gain strength. You're not going to accomplish anything
You're just you know you're just working out as they say you know you could go spend time doing this or that
But if you're serious about gaining strength if you're serious about accomplishing a goal physically you have to have a regimen you have to have a
Structure to that training there has to be a certain day when you're going to do this
And you're going to do this the next day and that the next day you have to watch your diet
You have to make sure you recover
There's a lot of things that go into training when we talk about even just in from exercise routine
Well, there's a lot more that goes into training up a child
I mean, it's the same thing you know children aren't just going to turn out living for God one day
There you know by accident by you just you know not having any purpose not having any goal
Not having any kind of a regimen in your life for those children
What are what is it that we're trying to accomplish with our children? What is it that we are trying to teach them?
What is it?
They need to know in order for them to turn out right and to not depart from God when they are older
Well a big part of that of course if you would turn over to Proverbs 23 because people they need to be reminded this that
this is still in the Bible it hasn't gone away a
Big part of that of course this isn't the only part of it, but a significant part of this is
Discipline in a child's life, and this is a big part of rearing Godly children
This is something that needs to be in place if it's not there. It's not going to work
I don't care how good your homeschooling is I don't care how much Bible reading you're doing
I don't care if you're this part of the element of this element of child rearing is not there
It's not going to work, and that would be of course correction
It says here in Proverbs 23 verse 13 with hold that correction for them the child
For if thou beatest him with the rod he shall not die
Thou shalt beat him with the rod that doesn't sound like a suggestion
That sounds like God expects us to and it uses the word beat
Yeah, okay, and I know today that has a little bit of a different connotation if we say beat
You know we think about slapping someone around the head neck and shoulders right well
That's not what the Bible is talking about here. It's it's talking about using a rod and God has
Provided a place on the the human anatomy
Where the rod of instruction can be applied to the seed of learning as folks often like to say
Alright, and that would be your posterior anatomy
That would be you know the backside. That's what we're talking about your nice soft
Cushiony spot that has a lot of nerve endings that can that can feel a stinging sensation
Without having a great deal of you know permanent damage inflicted on them right we're talking about spanking
Yeah, come on say it. I'm talking about taking a paddle. You know it says here a rod
I don't necessarily think you have to go out and get a rod although
That is the Bible says I think that's what you want to do is they don't do what you want your home
But I think we use a paddle we use a belt that kind of a thing and we spank our children when they do wrong
And then what do we do that because we enjoy it we do that because we like
Hearing our children cry out and seeing their little legs shake
You know they're getting their spanking and having to go through that whole
Traumatic thing sometimes where it's just the it seems like it's in the room. No we don't enjoy it
But I tell you what it's necessary, and if we withhold correction from the child
You know the Bible says thou shalt beat him with the rod and shall deliver his soul from hell
I mean, I certainly would hate to see my children grow up and reject God one day because I couldn't be bothered
To do what the Bible says and simply correct my children
Yeah, and this is something this is an element of child rearing that must be here must be there
And and it falls a lot of others today. It falls a lot of them because again
They're the ones that are spending time with them
They're the ones that are there when the child misbehaves anyone children are little you know you can't you can't wait till dad comes home
Because they forget what they're even getting spanked for
You can't say oh when dad gets home to the two-year-old to the three-year-old
They're not gonna understand. They don't need that the they're like a goldfish right the short-term memory is just it's over
There they don't recall those things easily it has to be done right then and there
So you know that's a big part of it, and you say well, that's difficult
I don't know if I like that well
It's in the Bible first of all so if you don't like it you can go ahead and take it up with God
Yes, but the thing is you think that's hard it and it is isn't it it is hard to do that
And it's a lot easier to just yell at the child. You know it's a lot easier. Just to scream at them
But is that really going to accomplish?
What is that going to deliver their soul from hell is that going to bring them up and in the nurture and the admonition of?
The Lord to teach them right from wrong to teach them that there are consequences severe painful consequences
For for doing wrong
Not as well as a spanking nowhere near it
You know spanking's and are something that God has put there and instituted because it's very effective
And teaching a child that there are direct and immediate consequences for misbehavior
And that's something that needs to be in a child's life. It absolutely must be there
It says thou shalt that is a command. That's the 11th command right we should write that down
You know it's easier to yell. It's easier to just slam something slam your fist on the table
Slam kick scream. Yo, you know I've never gotten to this point
I don't think that I can recall me my wife can correct me later
Actually throwing something maybe not at the child just to get their attention. You know we're much larger than children
It's easy to just be trying to physically intimidate them through fear and show you know make them fear for that in some way
But that's really not what we're trying to instill in our children
We want them to understand that there are consequences for their behavior
Yeah, and when a spanking is not something I think that should be done in anger, and this is why it's hard
This is why it's difficult because spanking is often
Something that you do because the child has angered you you know they've misbehaved
They've done something wrong, and it makes you upset
You know you've told them time and time and time and time and time again
Don't do this and they go ahead and do it because the Bible says that foolishness is bound in the heart of a child
It doesn't anyone. I don't think that's just a little gentle slipknot when it's that foolishness
That's bound in there in the heart of a child. I mean it's bound in there like a knot
I mean it's in there tight some kids more than others
I mean some kids you think that I mean it's it's it's like you think bound. It's cemented
You know I meant to get a jackhammer
Right I know what I used to work with heavy equipment
You know brother probably could relate to this well
We use some tie knots and toe straps and things like that you have to lift something
If you ever wanted to get that knot back out after it's had a heavy weight on it
You can't just pull it apart
I mean we used to have to drive truck tires over just to loosen up that knot and then you can finally start to pull
It apart. What's the same way with foolishness in your child's heart? That's what spanking does it it drives it far from them
It's not a one-time thing. I spank them and now it's over sometimes kids
I know my children have to be spanked the same things over and over and over and over again
And what are you doing? You're loosening up that knot so finally when they get older and as they mature
That foolishness starts to depart from them. They start to understand why they shouldn't do those things not just because
There's a spanking involved, but they see why they shouldn't do that because it's sin or because it's not what is expected
You know just out of out of being a you know a civil human being you know you can't just throw your food on the floor
Every time you go to the restaurant
You know you got to train those kids and teach them that kind of thing
That's what we have we're trying to teach our kids how to behave and how do we do that through discipline?
And again, it's not something that we should do in anger
It should be something that's done calmly and I know this is a big ask you know
I know this is something that we all have to work on self included that we have to do it
calmly and you know and probably have some kind of a
Reg some kind of a standard of what kind of spanking we're going to do and really I don't want to dwell a whole sermon
This one aspect this this topic of spanking deserves its own sermon
It's that important and it's something that's falling on the wayside today even amongst Christians even amongst Baptists
That are just letting their kids get away with it
There's no consequences and those kids are growing up
And they're going the way the devil or you know they there's parents that are all about the spanking
You know they make it everything about the spanking there is no what you know love. There is no instruction
They just want to run their house like you know a military boot camp, but there's no instruction. There's no love. There's no
Tenderness either, so there's a balance here, and I of course you know I'm already kind of going off on it
and I'd rather just move along in the sermon here, but
Let's not forget the point here that training up a child is
Difficult and that training up a child is work, and it's something that falls
But you know a lot on the mother and something that she has to be willing and able to do
So again just a reminder that you know motherhood this morning is work
You know not just in the actual bringing forth the children
But then going on and training those children's those children in the right way of the Lord and it's something that needs to be
Repeated you know more probably than just once a year because the fact is that today in America
Many women are avoiding this work entirely this work of motherhood
They don't want anything to do with it
There are more interested in themselves and what they're going to do with their lives and what they want and
then what God wants or what God expects of them and
You know there's a thing that's going on now called being child free
This is a new I don't know how new it is, but it's a term. It's new to me
It's just term. I just learned something reading that there's actually a thing out there called being child free. You know they make it sound
You know so great. It's like being cancer free or you know some other
Ailment free right they want to already casting children just by a term alone as if it's like some negative connotation
To even have a child you know I've been stricken with children. You know I'm in I'm in the fourth stages of
Parenthood you know you know it's stage four parenthood with me
You know please pray for me, but you know this whole thing of being child free is something
That's taking off even in America
It says here in the study that I read that being a child free America American adult was considered
Unusual the 1950s, and it used to be it was unusual to not grow up
Become an adult get married and have kids if you didn't do that you were you were the oddball
Right now it seems today like it's almost turned on its head like even if the people say okay
Yeah, go ahead and have kids, but make sure it's only one or two
You know make sure you don't have too many
I mean, I've only got I remember when I had my third up people were already starting comments
I'm like whoa you can start saying that kind of stuff when I have seven or eight
You know that I get it doesn't make any sense when you're saying I have three don't you know what causes that?
Why don't you get a TV? You know?
These kind of dumb comments that people make about having kids
But today, it's just getting you know people who are having children especially people are having multiple children. They're considered the oddballs
Well not too long ago. It was the reverse
It was the people who were living the single life and being child free that were the were the odd ducks
However the proportion of childless adults in the population has increased significantly since the 50s the proportion of
Childish childlessness among the proportion of childlessness among women aged 40 to 44
Was 10% in 1976 it reached a high of 20% in 2005
then declined a little bit in 2014 and
You know it goes on it says here from 2007 to 2011 the fertility rate in the United States declined 9%
the Pew Research Center reporting in 2010 that the birth rate was the lowest in US history and that
Child that child freeness rose across all racial and ethnic groups
To about one in five versus one in ten so like what is that like 50%?
It's a huge increase in it from the 70s the CDC released a
statistics in the first quarter of
2016
Confirming that the US fertility rate had fallen to its lowest point
Says keeping a record in the night in 1909 and that was just a few years removed
That we've gotten to a point in this country where where we're at the low
I mean, there's more people that have lived in this country than any time before we have the lowest fertility rate
You know it's it's it's a it's an epidemic that's taking place, and it's an attitude. That's becoming very pervasive in our
Culture in our society where people are saying they'd rather just not have children
That they'd rather not bear children and say well. What's wrong with that. Well. You know the Bible commands people
Us to have children. It's a biblical command, and if you're one that says oh, I'm going to not have children
You're going to take either remain single
You know and just get on some kind of drug or you're going to take measures into your own hands to prevent
The conception and birth of children you know if you're going against God's commandments
Yeah, you know and I know that makes me some kind of a dinosaur to say that I know that makes me some kind of
The odd duck in the room to just come out and say that but that's what the Bible teaches
Yeah, the Bible is very clear
It says that you're there if you're probably not still there, but if you were there you could go back to Genesis 1 28
I'll read it to you where it says that God blessed them and said of them be fruitful and
Multiply and replenish the earth and subdue it so from the very beginning
God's intent was that man would be fruitful and multiply and you know not just replace himself and his spouse
But actually have multiple children. You know God wants the earth to be full don't buy into this whole all this overpopulation
Nonsense now people are just buying this hook line and seeker that there's just too many people in the world today that our resources are
So strapped that we know that we can't support human life anymore that people need to stop having children
I mean, I'm seeing who saw those two idiot women on Facebook that video that went around
Yeah, you guys saw that this woman is just advocating to saying don't have children the earth cannot support anymore
We need women to stop having children. Yeah, as she's sitting there next to her daughter. Yeah, you know
And just this is but this is the mentality that's out there today, and you know it's being taught in
Institutions like universities and other places where they're teaching women to
You know pursue a career to do other things other than what God has commanded them to do
They said well God you know he didn't command women to just stay at home and have children
That's actually exactly what he commanded them
Yeah, if you would turn over to Titus chapter 2 to this chapter 2 while you're turning Titus chapter 2 by the way in the New
Testament I'll read to you from 1st Timothy chapter 5 where it says I will therefore that the younger women marry
Their children guide the house give
Non-occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully for some that turn aside already after Satan
So he says right there
he says I will meaning I want and of course is the Apostle Paul speaking God speaking through him and
Giving his commands to the New Testament Church and telling us there that the younger women are to marry
Their children and guide the house and to give no occasion the adversary to speak
Now that flat that flies right in the face of today's worldly philosophy doesn't you know they would say boy you guys are a bunch of
oppressive
misogynistic I
Don't know what the other words are masochistic is that one of them that's out there now
I don't know you know that you're just some chest thumping
You know caveman and knuckle dragging caveman that just wants to oppress women
You know we want to press women by actually asking them to do the most feminine thing there is yeah
You know to bear children
You know to do the one thing to do to do something that only women can do which is bear children
you know and to be what God has created them to be and
You know that's not that's not impressive
That's actually liberating and when we think about today what they're telling women what women's live is they'll tell you
Oh, if you want to be liberated as woman go act like a man
Yeah, go cut your hair short and pulling out pair of slacks and get a job and work a nine-to-five
And don't have any kids and act like a man and today. That's what the world calls being a woman right well
That's not being a woman that not according to scripture
And God desires that women marry and bear children, and you know I'm not saying that
That's necessarily easy after all the title of the sermon today is motherhood is work
You know just say that flippantly as if there are you know things that need to be considered?
But that is what the Bible says the Bible to say that women are to bear children and to be mothers
Look here in Titus chapter 2 it says, but speak thou the things which becomes sound doctrine, okay?
Now he's going to give us a list of the things that he wants Titus to speak
You're going to give us a list of things that he classifies as sound doctrine these are bright words
These are wholesome words to live by verse 2 that aged men be sober brave
Temperate sounded faith and charity and patience the aged women likewise that they be in behavior has become a holiness
Not false accusers not given too much wine teachers of good things that they may teach the young women to be sober
To love their husbands to love their children to be discreet chaste keepers at home
Good obedient to their own husbands that the word of God be not blaspheme
So again another command in Scripture of God desires that women would stay home to keep the home and to raise children
And let's not forget today that a woman that is fulfilling that God-given role is a woman who's fulfilling a job
She is working
You know I saw that meme go up on Facebook of her husband he had the audacity
To actually take a nice picture of his wife and put it in a frame and right above it employee of the month and
Hang it
You know to me that looks like the sign of a healthy relationship
She's probably she I think she was even the one that posted it
Maybe not I don't know but it was still up long enough for him to take the picture
Right I thought maybe if I have I bet if I did that my wife would probably get a chuckle out of it
Don't ask me
But you know I thought that looked like a healthy relationship. There's a sense of humor there
They're both fulfilling their roles and happy to do it
You know, but let's not forget that you know it is an employee of the month
You know my wife's the employee of the month every month of the year
You know my wife
I remember when I for my wife from starting setting home and people would ask you say well
What does your wife do does she work?
And I had this bad habit of saying no
She stays at home and raises the kids and it dawned on me one day. That's work
You know that's when she would have give birth
And I'd have to stay for a week or two and help as she recovered I'd realize like this
This is really work. This is a lot goes on here. You do this every single day of your life
feeding and changing diapers
Cleaning up messes and making food and keeping house doing that's a lot of work
And even with all the modern conveniences that we have today
It's still a lot of work to do going out and doing the shopping and everything else that's involved
And you know so I started telling people yeah, my wife works. She works for me
You know she's my best employee all right, and I pay her well least I think I do
Gave her a cookbook for Mother's Day. If you can believe that she wanted all right
Are you should you give your wife a cookbook?
What's the message here? You know she didn't have you to get it? I don't know who is really blessed
She wanted she got it, so you know
Amen to both of us. Amen
But you know God you say well, I don't I don't like that
I don't like that guy would command a woman to go just stay at home and work
you know and I think women should be entitled to go out and put on a name tag and internet and
stand behind a counter and ask you up fries with that or go on and put on a you know fluorescent vests and hold a
Traffic sign for heavy and to stop traffic on road work you know or whatever role
They want to do you know they should be able to do anything that a man does
You know well, then you don't like God. You don't like what God commands woman
That's just that's just the facts and you know we have to understand that God is a God who puts his children to work
You know whether you're a man or a woman God commands. You know it's not just a
Free-for-all, it's not just you know I'm saved now
And I get to loaf until I go to heaven
God wants work out of his children and gives us opportunity to actually earn rewards in heaven and
And praise God for that and equal that includes mothers as well, and you know perhaps more so than most
You know most of God's children
I mean you'd be hard-pressed to find a person who does more work than a mother who's doing it, right?
But today you know women they don't want any they don't want this they don't want to stay at home
They want the career they want you know their own ambitions and desires
And that don't include being a mother and today. You know many women
They might even go ahead and have the children and then just subcontract the work that they're supposed to do out
They'll just have somebody else to do the work that God has commanded them to do and that's that's the case today as well
in fact I was reading another study or
Article it says that in most US families all of the work of all of the adults work
Fewer than one in three children today have a full-time
Stay at home parent fewer than one in three
Fewer than one in three less than one third today of children in this country and a full-time stay at home parent
And you wonder why our country is in the condition. It's in yeah, because they're not being raised by them
They're not being taught godly principles. They're being taught godlessness
Heathenism wickedness those things which God despises are just being pumped into our children's minds
Just day in and day out just being indoctrinated
You know to the point of where there's less than one third today of children that have a full-time stay at home mom
In 1975 only a generation ago more than half of all children had a stay-at-home parent usually the mother
We've gone from just a few decades from half to less than one third
Now you know that this is something that's just swept over our nation our philosophy our way of thinking like a wildfire
It's our culture has just changed so radically
family or care of family care remains the most common type of
childcare arrangement a cost across all marital and employment statuses
Three-quarters of full-time employed mothers utilize some form of family care at least part of the time
The annual cost of childcare for an infant care center is higher than a year's tuition
At the average four-year public college in most states
It's cheaper to go get a college education
But they have infant care than to drop your kid off and have them watch your kid for a few hours
You can go get a four-year degree at a community college
Low-income families, and this is who's really suffering the most from this low-income families
Spend a much larger portion of their children come on childcare
the average income
For a family making less than 1,500 per month was nine hundred thirty eight dollars to on 2010 now
That's an incredibly low amount of money
I mean I I'd have a hard time making that one living on that when I was single let alone raising a family
And they say half of that that nine hundred thirty eight dollars is spent on childcare
I mean, that's that low-income families are ones really that are very the brunt of this on average
I mean, I mean you wonder why ghettos have some of the worst children the problems with games the most
It's because they're so poor and then they're still they have to go to work, and they're dropping these kids off
They're dropping out, and they're getting into drugs and violence. They don't have moms
They're staying at home, and it doesn't make any sense. It would be cheaper for you to stay at home
Yeah, I mean just from the financial aspect
It would be cheaper in the long run and in the short term for moms to just stay at home and let dad go work
And you know I would rather be the type of man that would be willing to work two jobs
Yeah, my wife at home and to rather come home after a long day
I'd say now
I'm ready to watch out the kids put them to bed feed them while you go off and work another job or vice versa
Or however that schedule is supposed to work. You know or or you know
having for bed actually put my children into some kind of daycare put my children into some kind of
You know place where let somebody else raise them so we can go earn more
You know a lot of people they they they don't have enough money because they're living beyond their means
They want more than they really need
You know I can't afford to raise my kids. We have to go get a job. Why don't you cut off that smartphone?
You know why don't you get rid of the smartphone? Why don't you get rid of the cable television?
Why don't you get rid of the second vehicle?
You know there's a lot of places people could probably cut corners and keep mom at home
And maybe have to eat beans and rice, but at least you wouldn't raise some godless child yeah some child
That's gonna not as going to depart from the ways of the Lord that if I need his soul might even be delivered into hell
Because he never had a mother that would stay home and do the work of a mother and teach him the Bible
Because they're more worried about money
And the ridiculousness of this article is that they turn to the government
That's the that's the whole point of this article
They say more than two-thirds of Americans agree that the government or business should be doing more to help fund child care for working parents
Look at that's not the answer friend the answer is not the government or some private company stepping in and providing you child care
That's not the answer to what you need
You know all that money
All that time off and benefits and paid vacations that a career offers is all going to be for naught
When that precious little baby that you brought into this world
Grows up and doesn't know God doesn't love God doesn't want anything to do with the Bible or church
And it happens happens all the time
You know just bringing kids to church on a Sunday isn't enough
You have to get involved in their lives and the best way to do it is to keep mom at home and let them let her
raise them
The Bible says in Proverbs 29, are you still in Proverbs? Go ahead and turn over to Proverbs chapter 29
Proverbs chapter 29
The Bible reads of Proverbs 29 verse 15 the rod and reproof give wisdom
But a child left to himself bringeth his mother to shame
It's interesting that it says it brings his mom to shame not his father brings his mother to shame
because again
mother is the one that is expected to stay at home and raise the children and to
instruct and to guide and to give the rod and to give the reproof not to say that God or that dad doesn't have a
Time and place to step in and do it when it's appropriate or when he's available
Well by and large if women are fulfilling God the biblical command to stay home to marry
To bear children to guide the house. They're the one that's going to be applying the rod
They're gonna be the ones that are giving the reproof and if they fail to do that
It's going to be to their shame
And it's going to be to their hurt in the long run and you know that that that career is not going to be worth
It when the son or the daughter turns out to be a God here. It's just not going to be worth it
So, you know the title again the sermon is
The work of motherhood or motherhood is work motherhood is work
And I think I've made it pretty clear that you know, it's a lot of work for a mom this morning
They've got a lot on their plate. They have a lot of responsibility
that if there's a great deal that falls on their shoulders as mothers to fulfill that role and
You know most mothers in here probably don't need that reminder this morning, you know, if they're trying to do that
They don't need to be reminded. They're saying
Yeah, captain obvious up there in the pulpit this morning trying to tell me that motherhood is work
you know, you probably have a pretty good grasp of that and
Really who I'd like to really drive this home to is the children this morning
It's a Mother's Day sermon
But really it's the kids that should understand something as I look around and I see mothers that stay at home
I see mothers that desire that for their lives or and are able to do that and
are raising children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord and
If your child today who has a mother who is doing the work of a mother as she ought to you know
Mother's Day isn't enough, you know issues Mother's Day is every day for you and you should be grateful for a mother who works
You know, God doesn't appreciate people mistreating his employees and we're gonna look at that here
I mean God has given a woman a very specific task and it's a lot of work and
When he sees people mistreating his employees God comes down pretty heavy on if you would turn over to Leviticus chapter 19
I want the kids to pay attention to this
Because a lot of kids today that are they have the benefit
I said the benefits and the privilege and the honor of growing up in a godly home this morning
where you know the situation is right where mom has been able to stay home and
And and keep and raise the kids as they desire to do if you're a privileged enough this morning to have that
Don't ever take that for granted and don't ever get an attitude
towards your mother of
Bitterness or anger or talking bad about her or having a wrong attitude in your heart because be all because she's so strict
Well, she's keeping you from from from trying from going after the devil trying to keep you from the things
That were hurt you trying to keep from the things that would pollute you
Or she asked so she wants us to do that and that this and that trying to build character in your life
Try to teach you some principles in life that are gonna help you in the long run
Yeah, help you to be a responsible adult and not a failure in life
That's why there's rules
Now look at Leviticus chapter 19 verse 1 and the Lord spake unto Moses Leviticus 19 verse 1
Lord spake unto Moses saying speak unto all the congregation the children of Israel and say them
Ye shall be holy for the eye of the Lord your God and holy
You shall fear every man his mother and his father and keep my of sadness. I am the Lord your God. I
It's the same breath the same sense as keeping the Sabbath's and God was pretty serious about the Sabbath's
And he says in that same breath that same sentence even that we are to fear our fathers and our mothers
you know, and that's not just you know, uh
That's that's the type of fear where we'd be afraid to cross them or do them wrong or to treat them poorly
Then we should fear them that we should respect them that we should reverence them that we should honor them
look at go ahead and turn over to
Go to Exodus chapter 21
This is this is a heavy one. You're going to Exodus 21. I'll read from Proverbs 23
Harken unto thy father that begat thee and despise not thy mother when she is old
And God expects us to honor our parents throughout our whole life not just when we're children
But even when she is old that we should not despise our mothers when she is old
We should be bitter towards our mothers. Oh, they didn't let me do this and that is child
You know, I didn't get to it, you know, Billy down the street got to do this and do that
I had such a deprived childhood
You know and what you don't see is all the things that little Billy got into later in the way
Yeah, or the way he turned out
You know and you're you're gonna be upset about the way mom and dad raised you because they were a little strict
because they didn't give you the same liberties that some
Unsaved parent is giving to your friend down the street
look here if
Exodus chapter 21 verse 17 and he that cursed his father or mother shall surely be put to death
That's a that's a serious verse
That is an incredibly
Serious verse Bible says I'll read to you in Proverbs 20 and reiterates this
Whoso occurs of his father or his mother his lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness
That's this is this God has not taken lightly when children are starting to mistreat their parents
Even the more so when that mother that a child is
Criticizing or being negative towards is a godly mother who is fulfilling the god-given role that she's been given to do
And let me just say this to all the kids in the room. Don't you ever criticize your parents to anyone ever?
Not even in your own heart. You shouldn't be doing it
You shouldn't be doing it and if you're doing that in your heart this morning as children or even as adults
You need to get down on your knees and confess that to God and forsake it and get it right
And you know the person that's going to go behind their parents backs and openly criticize their own parents to another person
That that's a that is serious business with God
That you should not curse your father and mother and if you did to the point where God would say put them to death
And that's how serious God takes parenthood man how important it is
You know mothers are there's a big ask on moms
You know especially when what they're being asked to do is a countercultural
When it goes against the grain of society
Well, they're gonna get the funny looks at the grocery store because they have you know a few kids in tow and they're in the
Dada and the ladies are all in skirts and
They get the weird look you know
My wife's at the grocery store the other day and some snot-nosed kid said boy, I don't know
I hardly have time for myself. I can't imagine what a mother of four would be like well
You know you know what she doesn't have time for herself
That's what motherhood is it's sacrifice. It's giving up self
It's giving up her ambitions her desires to be a lawyer or doctor or a street sweeper
Whatever it is that women are these grand pursuits that they're out that are out there apparently
for women to endeavor to do
they give up all that to fulfill the
Role that can only be filled by women yeah, which is motherhood
so don't ever take that for granted kids don't ever criticize your parents don't ever have a
Negative attitude towards your parents, especially your mother who would
Especially today right on Mother's Day. They do a lot for us because mother what motherhood is work
And the Bible says in Proverbs if you would turn over to Proverbs 31, we'll close here
Proverbs 31 that would be the wrong kind of attitude to have
Towards your parents towards your mother to be a critical
Spirit to curse your mother or your father
The Bible says here there is a correct attitude to have towards your mother or towards your the mother of your children even it says in
Proverbs 31 verse 28 28 her children arise up and call her blessed
And we've done that lately kids. We rose up and blessed our mother her husband also and praises her yes
Yes, I've done that
Probably not as often as I should to be honest
They're worthy of it. If they're doing it right. They're worthy of it every day of their life
But that that we love that verse. You know it was in the bulletin this morning. It's very nice
It's very it sounds very nice. We like the idea of that of a mother being praised and then they ought to be
But it applies to a very specific kind of woman in the context of this chapter
It's not just doled out to everyone every single woman. It says here go to back to verse 10
Let's look at the type of woman that is to be blessed
By her husband and her children it says in verse 10 who can find a virtuous woman for her price is far above rubies
The heart of her husband does safely trust in her so they shall need no need of spoil
She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life
She seeketh wool and flax and worketh willingly with her hands. She is like the merchant ships
She bringeth her food from afar
She riseth also white as yet night and giveth her meat to her household and apportioned to her maidens
She considered the field and buyeth it with the fruit of her hand. She planted the vineyard
She girded her loins with strength and strengtheneth her arms
She perceiveth that her merchandise is good her candle goeth not out by by night
She layeth her hand to the spindle and her hands to the distaff
She stretches out her hand to the poor day. She reaches forth her hands to the needy
She is not afraid of the snow for her household for all her household are clothed with scarlet
She maketh herself coverings of tapestry her clothing is silk and purple
Her husband is known in the gates when he sitteth among the elders of the land
She maketh fine linen and selleth it she delivereth girdles into the merchant under the merchant
Strengthened honor of her clothing and she shall rejoice into time to come
She opened her mouth with wisdom and in her tongue is a lie of kindness
She looketh well to the ways of her household and eateth not the bread of idleness
Then comes verse 28
After all that and look I believe what we're seeing here is the ideal woman
Something that is to be striven for something that is to be pursued after you know that this is this is you know
as it says there she's
You know her price is far above rubies who could find some virtuous woman
They're very difficult to come by and this is something that a woman should endeavor to be like
I'm not saying every woman is you know, you're gonna fulfill every one of these attributes
But we see that one of the main attributes of this woman this virtuous woman who has deemed herself
Worthy of being praised by her children and her husband rising up early even appraising her that type of woman is woman who works
There's a lot of work going on here
She's not busy as it says there. She looketh well to the house of her household and eateth not the bread of idleness
You know she's not on Facebook for three hours
She's not scrolling YouTube comments
You know she's busy raising children and doing what needs to be done
She is not a self-absorbed woman that cares only about what she can get out of it
It says there in verse 30 it says favors deceitful and beauty is vain, but a woman that feared the Lord. She shall be praised
You know she's she cares more about the well-being of her family
Then you know going to the gym
You know and how she's going to look in a pair of yoga pants. Yeah
And that's out there
They're more concerned excuse me. They're more concerned with their profile pic. Yeah
You know in their avatar on YouTube
You know whether the lights hitting them just right and if the filter is doing a good job
Then they are about their own house, right? They're over in the corner in the computer on the tablet on the phone and
You know little Billy's running around
full diaper and
Peanut butter all over the place and who knows what look I can tell you stories folks. I've known women like this
Come downstairs from doing you know smoking their pot or whatever and found their little three-year-old
I climbed up on top of a stove a gas stove
climbed on top of a gas stove
It got into the cupboards and poured oil olive oil all over the stove
to
Get to some sprinkles
You know some little decorative candy sprinkles. What is this little foot? It turned the gas on the way? Yeah?
What would she have come down and found in her stupor and her you know and her her state of mind? I?
Mean, this is the kind of stuff. Did you know there's terrible things that happen out there?
Because you know women they get distracted they start caring more about themselves
and they do about the children that God has given them and
You know that's not the type of woman that's going to you know be praised in life
That's going to be praised by our children and be praised by her husband
It's giving the one that's watching your children paying attention to your children teaching instructing disciplining or proving
raising those children as she ought to
You know a woman that is willing to sacrifice her body her mind and
Decide and her desires for what for children to raise the next generation for God
And really it's saying that what's great about this passage here
Is that the working mother which is a redundant term by the way the working mother has something to show for her efforts?
You know the the one who doesn't want to raise her children as she ought to you know
You know newsflash. We're all going to get old one day
You know we're all we're all going to be ugly one day, right
We're all not going to look as good as we used to one day
What what are you going to have to show in the end?
Yeah, is it really going to matter how good that profile pic was sorry how much time how many squats you get in the gym?
Or you know you dropped off the kids the daycare, so you could go down to the La fitness
and get with your girlfriends and
And
Try to just get a look. It's not going to matter all right
It's not going to matter, but the working mother was going to sacrifice all those things
She's going to be the one that has something to show for efforts in her old age
It says here in verse 30 favors deceitful and big beauty is vain
But a woman that fear at the Lord she shall be praised not not will be she shall be
Give her the fruit of her hands and let her own works praise her in the gates
Do you know they're going to?
Grow older the children are going to grow up
And what are they going to have to show?
You know the woman is doing the work
She's going to have her own works praising her in the gates it says she shall be praised by who who is it's going to praise
her
It's going to be the fruit of her own hands
It says give her the fruit of her hands that her own works praising her gates. That's who's going to praise her well
Who is that?
That's the children
That is the proof that's who's going to praise her in her old age. That's who's going to honor her in the old age
When all that other superficial stuff no longer matters when it's all that vanity is over and can no longer be achieved
It's going to be her children that honor
You know all women you know like the rest of us just like men we all get old
But not all women are going to be praised at that time. It's going to be the mother who did the work that God give her to
so you know a
Lot of people you know would probably a lot most mothers
I would assume they would desire the praise that a godly mother deserve they would want
the here their children and they're in the gates coming and going from their home is that as when they're adults and
Thanking them and praising them for the childhood and the upbringing that their mother gave them a lot of women would probably desire that
But you have to understand this morning that it comes through sacrifice
And it comes from sacrifices quite frankly that today in this country a lot of women aren't willing to make
They're just not willing to make it anymore
That that kind of praise that a godly woman deserves it comes through work
That many today would rather just leave undone or have somebody else do
Well, you can't you can't have it both ways. You know you got to take the good with the bad
I'm not saying raising children is bad, but it's not easy
You can't just expect the children turn out and come back and praise you in the gates break your own fruit of your hands praising
You in the gates one thing you know and when they're older without having put in the work that he made the sacrifices
It doesn't make any sense to expect otherwise
So it takes work
You know and it's going to be the mother that's doing the work that it's going to be praised
When when she's older let's go ahead have a word of prayer