1. Welcome to the assembly of the Vegas Drive Church of Christ Please silence electronic devices www.vegasdrivechurchofchrist.com

2. Lessons Learned From Loving Mothers of the Bible

3. Loving Mothers in the Bible Hagar (Genesis 21:14-21) – Mother of Abraham’s son Ishmael – Driven away by Sarah (vs. 10) into the wilderness – Took courage from the angel of God – Found Ishmael a wife from Egypt – Ishmael fathered 12 sons & a daughter, and lived 137 years (Gen. 25:16-17) – God used Ishmaelites to bring Joseph into Egypt, setting up the growth of Israel (Gen. 37:28) – Made possible because a mother loved her son and persevered through an undeserved adversity

4. Loving Mothers in the Bible Jochebed – Mother of Moses, Aaron, & Miriam (Num. 26:59) – Hid baby Moses from Pharaoh’s executioners (Exo. 2:1-2), by faith in God (Heb. 11:23) – Became Moses’ nurse for Pharaoh’s daughter (Exo. 2:7-11) – Through Moses, God delivered Israel from Egypt and gave them the Law – All because a loving mother, by faith, defied the king of Egypt to keep her son alive

5. Loving Mothers in the Bible Naomi – Widowed mother-in-law of two Moabite women – Earned Ruth’s unyielding loyalty (Ruth 1) – Connected Ruth to wealthy relative Boaz (Ruth 2) – Counseled Ruth on how to approach Boaz for the levirite marriage (Ruth 3) – Sold her land to Boaz so Boaz could marry Ruth (Ruth 4) – Obed, the son of Boaz and Ruth, became the grandfather of King David – All because a loving mother, Naomi, sought security for her daughter-in-law (Ruth 3:1)

6. Loving Mothers in the Bible Hannah, wife of Elkanah (1 Samuel 1) – Had borne no children to her husband, though his other wife had borne him sons and daughters – Prayed fervently for a son and avowed him to the Lord’s service – God answered, and she gave birth to Samuel – She kept her vow (1 Sam. 1:27-28) – Samuel became God’s prophet in Israel – Samuel anointed Saul and then David as king – Hannah prayed for motherhood, and her request was granted, and she kept her vow, resulting in one of the most admired prophets of the O.T.

7. Loving Mothers in the Bible Bathsheba, mother of Solomon (Prov. 31) – Lemuel = “consecrated to the Lord” - possibly Solomon – oracle – answer from a prophet in response to a request – “which his mother taught him” - possibly Bathsheba Lemuel sought advice from his mother, this is her answer – Verses 3-9: wisdom for how to rule – Verses 10-31: wisdom for choosing a wife – Proverbs 31 is not a man’s advice, but the advice of a loving mother who wants her son to rule well and to have an excellent wife by his side

8. Loving Mothers in the Bible We should appreciate our mothers: – They set a standard against which men measure their wives – They set a standard against which women measure themselves – They bear the husband’s offspring, preserving his lineage – They tend to the homes and children – They provide advice to their sons and daughters – They support our fathers, bring them honor – No man can be elder in the Lord’s church without a good wife, who is a mother, by his side (1 Tim. 3:2-5; Titus 1:6) – Ephesians 6:2-3 is a command that applies to all of us – We are commanded to treat all older women in the church as we treat our own mothers (1 Tim. 5:1-2)

9. Remembering Bible Mothers Let us observe the love and faith of these mothers who pleased God and imparted valuable lessons to us today Hagar: persevered through undeserved adversity, and her son became father of 12 tribes Jochebed: defied Pharaoh to save her son, and he became the deliverer of Israel Naomi: a widow who sought security for her daughter who became great-grandmother of David Hannah: desired motherhood, prayed for it, kept her vow, and her son became a prophet to kings Bathsheba: advised her son how to rule and how to choose a wife

10. Lessons Learned From Loving Mothers of the Bible