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Sermon #B718 -
Praise God For Mothers
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Dr. Byrd: Let me get in the word
now on this Mother's Day sabbath
if you will and share.
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And so I want to take this
opportunity to invite you to
turn to the Book of Proverbs.
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We're going to go to a familiar
passage when we talk about
ladies when we talk about women.
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Today, we talk about mothers
and so I invite you to turn to
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Proverbs 31. Proverbs 31 and
we're going to begin reading at
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verse number 10. Proverbs 31:10
and we're going to read all the
way to verse 31. Someone may
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say, "Pastor, that's a lot of
verses," but they're short
verses so we'll be okay.
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Proverbs 31:10, the word of God
says, "Who can find a virtuous
woman? For her price is far
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above rubies. The heart of her
husband does safely trust in her
so that he shall have no need of
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spoil. She will do him good and
not evil all the days of her
life. She seeketh wool and flax
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and worketh willingly with her
hands. She is like the
merchants' ships; she bringeth
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her food from afar. She riseth
also while it is yet night and
giveth meat to her household and
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a portion to her maidens. She
considereth a field and buyeth
it: with the fruit of her hands,
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she planteth a vineyard. She
girdeth her loins with strength,
and strengtheneth her arms. She
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perceiveth that her merchandise
is good: her candle goeth not
out by night. She layeth her
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hands to the spindle, and her
hands hold the distaff. She
stretcheth out her hand to the
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poor; yea, she reacheth forth
her hands to the needy. She is
not afraid of the snow for her
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household: for all her household
are clothed with scarlet. She
maketh herself coverings of
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tapestry; her clothing is silk
and purple. Her husband is known
in the gates when he sitteth
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among the elders of the land.
She maketh fine linen, and
selleth it; and delivereth
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girdles unto the merchant.
Strength and honor are her
clothing, and she shall rejoice
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in time to come. She openeth her
mouth with wisdom, and in her
tongue is the law of kindness.
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She looketh well to the ways of
her household, and eateth not
the bread of idleness.
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Her children arise up, and call
her blessed; her husband also,
and he praiseth her.
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Many daughters have done
virtuously, but thou excellest
them all. Favor is deceitful,
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and beauty is vain: but a woman
that feareth the Lord, she shall
be praised. Give her of the
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fruit of her hands, and let
her own works praise her in the
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gates." Today, I want to
challenge you on the subject.
Praise God for mothers. Praise
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God for mothers. Father in
Heaven, Lord, right now, as we
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go into your word, we pray that
the power of your holy spirit
will penetrate hearts and minds
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right now. And as we share this
Word with your people, far and
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near, we pray that your
anointing would make a
difference in our lives today.
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Instruct us, inspire us, stir us
and then, oh God, save us,
forgive me of my sins,
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and we praise you in advance for
what you're going to do today.
In Jesus' name. Amen.
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Praise God for mothers. Mothers
are some of the most
underappreciated women in the
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world. They're underappreciated
because the roles and
responsibilities of a mother
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include everything. Mothers do
everything. Praise God for
mothers. Somebody's not getting
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it, let me try this
illustration. An elementary
school teacher was teaching her
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class about the positive and
negative ends of a magnet. And
so she said to her class that
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magnets pick up things, she said
it's the magnets job, there's a
force inside the magnet to pick
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up things. She continued, "Now,
the word magnet," she says, "has
six letters in it, and remember
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the function of the magnet is to
pick up things. The magnet has
positive and negative sides. It
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picks up things." After telling
this to her students, after
drilling this into her students'
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minds and heads, the teacher
then gave them a test and on the
test, she asked them, "What has
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six letters, starts with an M,
and picks up things?" Fifty
percent of the class wrote
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mother. She picks up things.
She's always busy. Somebody
knows what I'm talking about.
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She's always providing. She's
always doing something for the
ones she loves. She's always
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concerned about her family, in
fact, she will neglect herself
to look out for her husband and
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look out for her family. That's
a mother. And so on this
Mother's Day sabbath, I like to
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remind everyone to be good to
their mothers, appreciate their
mothers more because the promise
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of God is, "If you honor your
mother, if your honor your
father, your days will be long
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upon the land which the Lord,
thy God, gives thee." And when
the Bible says, "Your days will
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be long upon the land," it's not
just talking about numerical
years, but what it's saying is
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if you treat your mother right,
if you treat your father right,
you'll have a blessed life. God
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will bless your going out, God
will bless your coming in, God
will bless your finances, God
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will bless your health, God will
bless your marriage, God will
bless your children, God will
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bless you, God will open doors
for you because if you're no
good to your mother, if you're
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no good to your father, then
you're going to be no good to
anybody else. This is Mother's
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Day weekend, the time when
families pay special tribute to
their mothers in various ways.
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We fix them a special brunch, we
take them out for dinner, we buy
fresh flowers for them, we buy
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them special gifts, but the sad
thing is that oftentimes
Mother's Day is really just a
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time when families try to atone
for an entire year of neglect
and disrespect and a lack of
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appreciation. Family Circle
Magazine conducted a poll and
found that 86% of mothers think
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they don't get enough respect
and then 80% of the 86% say that
mothers who stay home get even
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less respect. But today I want
to praise God for mothers.
Today, I want to praise God for
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my wife, my daughter's mother.
Today, I want to praise God for
my mother. Today, I want to
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praise God for my mother-in-law.
Today, I want to praise God for
all the mothers in my life, all
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the mothers in the church, all
the mothers who have made a
difference in all of our lives.
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Now, most people, whether
they're Christians or not would
agree that we are living now in
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a post-Christian era. That
doesn't mean that the church is
dead, that doesn't mean that
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Christianity is dead, but it
does mean that the influence
that biblical Christianity once
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had in our culture has
diminished to a point where it
wouldn't be recognized by
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Christians from 100 or 200 years
ago, and this diminishing
includes morality, family, and
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parenting. Listen to me -
secular humanistic reasoning has
taken the place of biblical
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truth when it comes to setting
the parameters for home and the
family, but a Christian should
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see the home. The Christian
should see marriage. The
Christian should see parenting
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as a frame within the parameters
of God's authoritative word and
the truth of God's word should
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not only shape our beliefs and
practices in all areas of our
lives but the truth of God's
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word, the Bible, should
absolutely guide us through
life. And so our opinions, our
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beliefs are only legitimately
Christian to the degree that
they line up with God's word.
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You see, friends of mine, the
problem today is simply this -
our minds have been darkened by
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secularism and sin and a lot of
folks can't tell the difference
if something is secular or if
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something is biblical. Now, as
Christians, we should expect
that from the world. But sadly,
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we're seeing the same thing in
the church as well. The trend in
the church that we're seeing is
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that church folks are
acknowledging the sufficiency of
God and the Bible but they fail
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to see a need to subject their
personal opinions, reasoning,
and emotions to the guidelines
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of scripture in all areas of our
lives including what happens in
the home. We read Romans 12:2
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where it says, "Do not be
conformed to this world but be
transformed by the renewing of
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your mind." And we read this
text and then we think that this
text only applies to our moral
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behavior but not things like
marriage or raising kids. So we
leave these things up to pop
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culture psychologists and talk
show hosts. But let me be clear
today - before there was Dr.
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Phil, there was God. Before
there was Oprah, there was God
and all of our relationships
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should be directed by the Word
of God, whether it's education,
whether it's finances, whether
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it's our jobs, our marriages, or
our children. When we talk about
a Godly woman, when we talk
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about a Godly mother, we can't
help but go to Proverbs 31 and
these verses are in the form,
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these 22 verses are in the form
of skill for acrostic built
around the Hebrew alphabet of 22
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letters. Verse 10 begins with
the first letter, verse 11
begins in the second letter,
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verse 12 the third letter, and
so on until we get to verse 31,
the 22nd letter. But let's read
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the first verse. Verse number
10, the word of God says, "Who
can find a virtuous woman? For
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her price is far above rubies."
Now, you need to understand this
as we take a look at this text
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and unpacking - virtuous doesn't
mean what we have come to make
the word virtuous mean. When we
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think virtuous, we oftentimes
think pure, we oftentimes think
unblemished, we oftentimes think
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of a woman who has high moral
standards, and while these
attributes are correct relative
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to the application of the word
virtuous, virtuous in this text,
in the Hebrew, means a woman of
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power, which means she's strong,
which means she's sturdy, which
means she's solid. She has a
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strong character, she's not
easily pushed around, she's a
woman of valor, she's a woman of
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great courage in the face of
danger, especially in battle
because a virtuous woman
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recognizing we're fighting
spiritual battles each and every
day. Some translations have even
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said that the virtuous in this
context means the strength of an
army. If we apply these words
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we'll then say, "Who can find a
woman who has the strength of an
army?" Yes, she's pretty. Yes,
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she's beautiful. Yes, she's
attractive. Yes, she smells
good. Yes, she looks good. Yes,
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she's nice but she has the
strength of an army. She's
powerful. She's good-looking,
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but don't cross her. She's
poised, but don't get on her bad
side. She's graceful, but don't
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rub her the wrong way. She's
dignified, but don't take her
for granted. She's virtuous
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because she's strong. She's
sturdy. She's solid. She's
powerful and she has the
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strength of an army. Her price
is above rubies, which means she
can't be bought. No man can buy
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her because she can take care of
herself. Y'all don't hear what
I'm saying. She's married
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because she wants to be married.
She's married not because she
has to be married. And then if
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she's unmarried, if she's by
herself, if she's single, that's
okay too, because she still has
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the strength of an army. In
fact, by herself, she's still
powerful. By herself, she's
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still strong, she's still
sturdy, she's still solid. For
some women, they understand that
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it's better to be happily
unmarried than to be unhappily
married. Her price is above
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rubies but look at verse number
11, "The heart of her husband
does safely trust in her so that
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he shall have no need of spoil."
Put another way - her husband
trusts her and he never has a
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reason to regret it. This is not
just that he can trust her
because she's not a flirt or an
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adulterer, but he can trust her
and he can speak to her about
anything because she always has
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the best interests of the one
she loves constantly on her
mind. She wakes up thinking
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about her loved ones, she goes
to bed thinking about her loved
ones, she puts her loved ones
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before she puts herself. Sadly,
we are living in a world today.
We are living in a new
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contemporary modern society
where many mothers only want to
look out for themselves. They're
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sharp, they're dressed, they
look good but their children
look a mess. Hair not combed,
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clothes not clean, teeth not
brushed, elbows not lotioned.
You've got children now but you
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only care, some ladies, about
themselves. You say, "I want to
have some fun now," but let me
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help somebody understand that
when you have children. your
days for fun, your days for
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hanging out, your days for
kicking it are over. It's not
about you, it's about your
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children. Your days for finding
yourself and discovering who you
are, are over. You should have
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discovered yourself before you
got married. You should have
discovered yourself before you
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started having children. Now,
you've got to put yourself on
the back burner and give your
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whole self to your children. Are
you hearing what I'm saying?
Because a Godly woman is
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trustworthy. Stop being on
social media all day. Stop
taking selfies all day long. You
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have a different responsibility
now. Your children and your
family - they must come first
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because the text says that this
woman is trustworthy. Verse
number 12, "She will do him good
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and not evil all the days of her
life." In other words, she, as a
habit of life does good for her
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husband and her family. This is
in contrast to the foolish woman
in Proverbs 14:1 where it says,
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"The wise woman builds her house
but the foolish woman tears it
down with her hands." The
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foolish woman tears down her
husband. The foolish woman tears
down her children, tears down
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her household with her own
hands, instead of doing and
providing good things for them.
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But this woman in Proverbs 31,
because of her price, because of
her trustworthiness, because of
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her goodness, she's a blessing
to her family. She's not just
looking out for herself but
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she's looking out for her
husband and her children. Verses
13 through 19. They let us know
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that not only is she trustworthy
but verses 13 through 19 let us
know that she's an industrious
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woman, she's a working woman,
she's not a lazy woman. Verse 13
says, "She seeketh wool and flax
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and worketh willingly with her
hands. She is like the
merchants' ships; she bringeth
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forth her food from afar. She
riseth also while it is yet
night and giveth meat to her
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household and portion to her
maidens. She considereth the
field and buyeth it: with the
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fruit of her hands, she planteth
the vineyard. She girdeth her
loins with strength and
00:18:07.62\00:18:14.19
strengtheneth her arms. She
perceiveth that her merchandise
is good: her candle goeth not
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out by night. She layeth her
hands to the spindle, and her
hands hold the distaff." What
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are these verses saying? They're
letting us know that this woman
is industrious in the home. This
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woman is industrious for her
family. A Godly woman works, a
Godly woman labors. She serves.
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A Godly woman makes sacrifices.
She gets up early, she stays up
late, she gives her children
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time. You see, it's a new day
today. Back in the day, it used
to be that the family would sit
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down together at the dinner
table to eat together every
night, talk to each other, "How
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was your day? How did things go
today?" But we don't talk
anymore, we're too busy, we're
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on our phones, we're too busy
texting, Facebooking, and
Instagramming. We're too busy
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tweeting. We go to the gym. We
go shopping. We hang out with
friends and we're too busy to
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talk to our children. But a
Godly woman takes time for her
children. A Godly mother talks
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with her children. Verse 20
through 22, "She stretcheth out
her hand to the poor; yea, she
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reacheth forth her hands to the
needy. She is not afraid of the
snow for her household: for all
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her household are clothed with
scarlet. She maketh herself
coverings of tapestry; her
00:19:42.54\00:19:49.05
clothing is silk and purple."
While she is caring for her
home, a Godly woman, a Godly
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mother also has a mind for the
poor. She's compassionate. She
extends her hands to care for
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the needs of her family, but she
also uses those same hands to
reach out to the less fortunate.
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She's not self-absorbed. She's
not about me, myself, and I but
she helps others. Verses 23
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through 25, "Her husband is
known in the gates when he
sitteth among the elders of the
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land. She maketh fine linen, and
selleth it; and delivereth
girdles unto the merchant.
00:20:16.28\00:20:23.72
Strength and honor are her
clothing, and she shall rejoice
in time to come." All right, I
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like this part. This couple says
that her husband is respected at
the gates. Her husband is
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respected in the city. She has a
husband who is worthy of
respect. Back in the day when
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this text was written, marriages
were arranged, marriages were
not like they are today. But in
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today's day, a woman has
choices, a woman can pick a good
man instead of a fool, she can
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pick a winner instead of a
loser, she can pick a worker
instead of a whiner, she can
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pick a lover instead of a liar,
she can pick an encourager
instead of an excuse-maker, she
00:21:09.10\00:21:14.27
can pick a Jesus-follower
instead of a Jesus-faker, she
can consider and contemplate -
00:21:14.30\00:21:24.58
will he be a good husband? Will
he be a good father? It's not
arranged, you have a choice.
00:21:24.61\00:21:35.49
Verse 26, "She openeth her mouth
with wisdom; and in her tongue
is the law of kindness." I'm
00:21:35.52\00:21:43.23
going to take some time on this
one. "She openeth her mouth with
wisdom and in her tongue is the
00:21:43.26\00:21:51.47
law of kindness." In other
words, a Godly mother knows how
to talk. She's not loud. She's
00:21:51.51\00:22:01.95
not uncouth. She's not cussing,
but she's a lady. I wish I had a
witness in his place. The Bible
00:22:01.98\00:22:07.46
is teaching us in this verse,
verse 26, that when a lady
speaks, she has something
00:22:07.49\00:22:13.90
worthwhile to say and she knows
how to say it kindly. I told you
a couple of weeks ago that every
00:22:13.93\00:22:18.40
young woman needs to cling to an
older, godly woman. Every Ruth
needs a Naomi to learn
00:22:18.43\00:22:25.67
something, to learn. Somebody
needs to tell you how to present
yourself as a respectable woman.
00:22:25.71\00:22:33.05
People aren't hiring you on a
job with this piercing here, or
this piercing there, tattooed
00:22:33.08\00:22:38.29
all up and your body is exposed
to all that. People ain't trying
to hire people like that. When
00:22:38.32\00:22:43.32
you apply for a job, listen to
me, when you submit your job
application. When you submit
00:22:43.36\00:22:47.86
your resume, the employer at the
job you're applying to looks at
your Facebook page, looks at
00:22:47.93\00:22:54.97
your Instagram account, and they
will then ask you about it. And
if you're half-naked in a
00:22:55.00\00:22:59.87
picture, how are you going to be
applying for a job teaching
children and you're
00:22:59.91\00:23:08.92
half-dressed? If you're going to
be on your Facebook page, if you
want to be going off your
00:23:08.95\00:23:15.49
Instagram page, telling all your
business, how can that business
trust you with their business?
00:23:15.52\00:23:21.26
I'm trying to help somebody.
Teach our young children some
respect, teach our young
00:23:21.30\00:23:29.77
children some discipline. Back
in the day, our mothers, they
taught us. Back in the day, our
00:23:29.80\00:23:36.21
mothers, they taught us about
religion. What do they say? "You
better pray that stain comes out
00:23:36.24\00:23:42.28
of that carpet." They taught us
how time travels, "If you don't
straighten up, imma knock you
00:23:42.32\00:23:48.49
into the middle of next week."
They taught us logic, "Because I
said so, that's why." They
00:23:48.52\00:23:54.23
taught us irony, "Keep crying
and I'll give you something to
cry about." They taught us
00:23:54.30\00:23:59.13
anticipation, "You just wait
till we get home." They taught
us receiving, "You're going to
00:23:59.17\00:24:04.61
get it when we get home." They
taught us Medical Science, "If
you don't stop rolling your
00:24:04.64\00:24:11.21
eyes, your eyes are going to get
stuck like that." They taught us
the circle of life, "I brought
00:24:11.25\00:24:15.88
you into this world and I'll
take you out." They taught us
genetics, "You act just like
00:24:15.92\00:24:20.52
your father." They taught us the
science of osmosis, "Shut your
mouth and eat your food." They
00:24:20.56\00:24:29.60
taught us how to become an
adult, "If you don't eat your
vegetables, you'll never grow
00:24:29.63\00:24:35.50
up." They taught us stamina,
"You're going to sit there until
that spinach has gone." They
00:24:35.54\00:24:49.32
taught us about the weather,
"That room looks like a tornado
went through it." They taught us
00:24:49.35\00:24:54.92
about envy, "There are millions
of less fortunate children in
the world who don't have
00:24:54.96\00:24:59.69
wonderful parents like you do."
They taught us wisdom, "When you
get to be my age, you'll
00:24:59.73\00:25:06.17
understand." They taught us
justice, "One day, you'll have
kids, and I hope they turn out
00:25:06.20\00:25:15.24
just like you." Teach your
children. I said, teach your
children. Teach your children
00:25:15.28\00:25:22.92
respect. Teach your children
discipline. and we need mothers
right now on this last and evil
00:25:22.95\00:25:35.06
day who know their children \
and he will walk up to their
children and when their children
00:25:35.10\00:25:41.50
aren't living right, when
they're acting up, they will
discipline them and say, "Say
00:25:41.54\00:25:45.74
something else." You got to put
the fear of God in them. You got
to teach them some respect. You
00:25:45.77\00:25:50.08
got to give them discipline
because if you raise them at
home, the probability is greater
00:25:50.11\00:25:55.35
that they won't be killed in the
streets. Discipline is love. God
chastises those whom he loves.
00:25:55.38\00:26:00.76
Praise God for mothers. But then
the text closes in verse 27,
"She looketh well to the ways of
00:26:00.79\00:26:06.13
her household, and eateth not
the bread of idleness. Her
children arise up, and calls her
00:26:06.16\00:26:14.60
blessed; her husband also, and
he praiseth her. Many daughters
have done virtuously, but thou
00:26:14.64\00:26:22.58
excellest them all. Favor is
deceitful, and beauty is vain:
but a woman that feareth the
00:26:22.61\00:26:33.15
Lord, she shall be praised. Give
her of the fruit of her hands,
and let her own works praise her
00:26:33.19\00:26:40.60
in the gates." That's the King
James version but I like how The
Message Bible puts it. The
00:26:40.63\00:26:45.80
Message Bible puts it this way,
"She keeps an eye on everyone in
her household. She keeps them
00:26:45.83\00:26:53.98
all, busy and productive, her
children respect and they bless
her. Her husband joins in with
00:26:54.01\00:27:00.62
words of praise. Many women have
done wonderful things but you've
outclassed them all. Charm can
00:27:00.65\00:27:05.39
mislead and beauty soon fades,
but the woman to be admired, the
woman to be praised is the woman
00:27:05.42\00:27:10.66
who lives in the fear of the
Lord." The Message Bible close
it out like this, "Give her
00:27:10.69\00:27:20.20
everything she deserves. Adorn
her life with praises." You see,
friends of mine, a Godly woman
00:27:20.24\00:27:24.94
loves the Lord. A godly mother
loves the Lord. A Godly mother
knows how to raise her children
00:27:24.97\00:27:30.65
in the fear and the admonition
of the Lord. A Godly woman knows
how to take time with their
00:27:30.68\00:27:36.35
children. A Godly woman knows
how to speak. A Godly mother
knows how to pray. A Godly
00:27:36.38\00:27:42.12
mother knows how to discipline.
Praise God today for mothers. I
said, praise God today for
00:27:42.16\00:27:53.74
mothers. If I didn't have my
mother, I don't know where I
would be. If you didn't have
00:27:53.77\00:27:56.64
your mother, you don't know
where you would be. But praise
God for mothers. While you
00:27:56.67\00:28:02.18
weren't praying for you, your
mother was praying for you.
While you weren't saving for
00:28:02.21\00:28:05.75
you, your mother was saving for
you. While you weren't thinking
about you, your mother was
00:28:05.78\00:28:16.76
thinking about you. Praise God
for mothers and more than
anything else, your mother wants
00:28:16.79\00:28:24.73
to see you saved. But more than
your mother, Jesus, He wants to
see you saved. John 15:13,
00:28:24.77\00:28:39.78