MENTORING MANDATES FOR MOTHERS 2 Timothy 3:13-17

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1 MENTORING MANDATES FOR MOTHERS 2 Timothy 3:13-17 I want to begin this morning by thanking mothers for all you do. THANK YOU! Look to person to the left or right of you and if they are a mother, say, THANK YOU FOR ALL YOU DO. I WANT TO ASK A QUESTION AND WOULD LIKE TO ASK YOU TO RESPOND WITH A RAISED HAND. THIS WILL NOT EMBARRASS YOU. FIRST: My personal story. QUESTION: Was the main spiritual influence and training as you were being raised done by your mother? William Ross Wallace Wallace was born in Lexington, Kentucky in His father, a Presbyterian preacher, died when Wallace was still an infant. Wallace studied law and then practiced in New York City. He wrote several books and many poems. The Hand That Rocks The Cradle Is The Hand That Rules The World Blessings on the hand of women! Angels guard its strength and grace, In the palace, cottage, hovel, Oh, no matter where the place; Would that never storms assailed it, Rainbows ever gently curled; For the hand that rocks the cradle Is the hand that rules the world.

2 MENTORING MANDATES FOR MOTHERS Page 2 of 10 Infancy's the tender fountain, Power may with beauty flow, Mother's first to guide the streamlets, From them souls unresting grow-- Grow on for the good or evil, Sunshine streamed or evil hurled; For the hand that rocks the cradle Is the hand that rules the world. Woman, how divine your mission Here upon our natal sod! Keep, oh, keep the young heart open Always to the breath of God! All true trophies of the ages Are from mother-love impearled; For the hand that rocks the cradle Is the hand that rules the world. Blessings on the hand of women! Fathers, sons, and daughters cry, And the sacred song is mingled With the worship in the sky-- Mingles where no tempest darkens, Rainbows evermore are hurled; For the hand that rocks the cradle Is the hand that rules the world. Abraham Lincoln, The greatest lessons I ever learned were at my mother s knees. Just as William Ross Wallace was raised in a single parent family, so too was the Apostle Paul s favored son, as he called him.

3 MENTORING MANDATES FOR MOTHERS Page 3 of 10 2 Timothy 2:1 You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 Timothy 1:5 5 when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also. Eunice was a single mother in a very unstable world. She was a Jewish believer who had been married to a Greek who had either died or left Eunice as a single parent. ACCORDING TO ACTS 16:1 Acts 16:1 16 Then he came to Derbe and Lystra. And behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a certain Jewish woman who believed, but his father was Greek. Single parenting was not easy then either, but EUNICE DID IT RIGHT. In 2 Timothy 3:13-17, as Paul writes his favorite disciple, we are given some very important information about what helped Timothy turn out to be what would become Paul s SON in the Spirit and the one he most wanted by his side at the end. 2 Timothy 3: But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, 15 and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

4 MENTORING MANDATES FOR MOTHERS Page 4 of All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. Let s face it, there are more pressures on all of us today than ever before. Advertisements Games Sports Dress/Make-up/Hair styles Diet and exercise Money, position, power, FAME AND FORTUNE. WHAT S A MOTHER TO DO? Let s see what we can glean from Scripture. I. THE CHILD S FOUNDATION v from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, knowing from whom you have learned them, From early on childhood bref os infancy (Only in NIV) Timothy s mother gave him a solid foundation for living life from HOLY SCRIPTURES. v.13 But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. knowing from whom you have learned them

5 MENTORING MANDATES FOR MOTHERS Page 5 of 10 whom plural Timothy s mother and grandmother 2 Timothy 1:5 5 when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also. The formal education for Jewish boys began at age 5, but we know that learning begins much sooner than this. SUSANNAH WESLEY had 19 children. She took each child aside for 1 hour each week to discuss and teach them the principles of spiritual living. CHARLES WESLEY AND JOHN WESLEY LETTER TO HER HUSBAND I cannot but look upon every soul you leave under my charge as a talent committed to me under a trust. I am not a man nor a minister, yet as a mother and a mistress I felt I ought to do more than I had yet done. I resolved to begin with my own children; in which I observe the following method: I take such a proportion of time as I can spare every night to discourse with each child apart. On Monday I talk with Molly, on Tuesday with Hetty, Wednesday with Nancy II. THE CHILD S FORMATION v. 14a But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of Thomas Edison said: I did not have my mother long, but she cast over me an influence which has lasted all my life. The good effects of her early training I can never lose. If it had not been for her appreciation and her faith in me at a critical time in my experience, I should never likely have become an inventor. I was always a careless boy, and with a mother of different spiritual caliber, I should have turned out badly. But

6 MENTORING MANDATES FOR MOTHERS Page 6 of 10 her firmness, her sweetness, her goodness were potent powers to keep me in the right path. My mother was the making of me. Thomas Edison III. THE CHILD S SALVATION v. 15 b v. 15 b the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus SUSANNAH WESLEY prayed one hour every day for her children. But she also believed that strict admonition was next to godliness. She had six rules for teaching her children the priority of the Savior: 1. Subdue self-will in a child. 2. Teach him to pray as soon as he can speak. 3. Give him nothing he cries for, and only what is good for him when he asks politely. 4. Punish no fault confessed, but let no sinful act to go unnoticed. 5. Reward good behavior. 6. Strictly observe all promises you have made to your child. IV. THE CHILD S EDUCATION v. 14a But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of) As a parent, you are responsible for your child s education. Get them and give them the best. Bring them to church and let us help reinforce what is being taught at home. Bring them to AWANA.

7 MENTORING MANDATES FOR MOTHERS Page 7 of 10 Scripture clearly teaches that it is our responsibility to teach our own kids the Scriptures. Deuteronomy 6:5-9 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. 6 "And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. Look at what v. 16 says about the Holy Scriptures. v. 16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, INCLUSIVENESS -all INSPIRATION INVESTMENTS - profitable for reproof found only in 2 Timothy 3:16: conviction (of a sinner), punishment, refuting error, reproof. 2. correction - a straightening up again, 3. instruction - tutorage, i.e. education or training; disciplinary correction:

8 MENTORING MANDATES FOR MOTHERS Page 8 of 10 instruction which aims at the increase of virtue: 4. righteousness - "the character or quality of being right or just"; V. THE CHILD S IMPLEMENTATION - v.17 v. 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. thoroughly equipped - exartizo (ex-ar-tid'-zo); to finish out (time); figuratively, to equip fully (a teacher): EXERCISE Serving God putting it all into practice. THE MESSAGE 17 Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us. New Living Translation 17 God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work. The scriptures are the comprehensive equipment of the man of God and fit him fully for all branches of his work. PHILLIPS

9 MENTORING MANDATES FOR MOTHERS Page 9 of 10 Psalms 119:1 Meditations on the Excellencies of the Word of God VERSES WHY????? I. THE CHILD S FOUNDATION v from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, knowing from whom you have learned them, II. THE CHILD S FORMATION v. 14a But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of III. THE CHILD S SALVATION v. 15 b v. 15 b the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus IV. THE CHILD S EDUCATION v. 14a But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of V. THE CHILD S IMPLEMENTATION - v.17

10 MENTORING MANDATES FOR MOTHERS Page 10 of 10 v. 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. 13 But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.