by Elder Johnny Kim

This past Mother’s Day, Pastor Patrick preached a fitting sermon entitled, “The Honor of Motherhood” (you can listen to it here). On a day when Mother’s are honored for a whole host of reasons, the Mother’s Day sermon pointed us to what God’s Word has to say about women and the honor that comes to them for pursuing Godly motherhood just as He intended. For all the current mothers, mothers-to-be, and aspiring mothers listening to the sermon, it was no doubt both encouraging and challenging to hear, and will certainly continue to be a challenge as they seek to apply the truths they heard into their lives.

Now for the guys who were listening, the Mother’s Day sermon may have presented a different sort of challenge. Aside from the blessing and enlightenment that comes from hearing any of God’s Word preached, some of the guys might have been wondering about the implications of such a sermon for our own lives. Is there any practical application that a guy can live out in light of a sermon about motherhood? What does this type of sermon specifically mean for guys in terms of how we might need to change? What follows are but a couple points of application that I would encourage all guys to consider in response to the truth about the honor of motherhood.

Application 1: Pursue the Woman Who Pursues Motherhood

For those guys who are not-yet-married, the Mother’s Day sermon provides us with a picture of the type of woman we ought to pursue for marriage. We ought to pursue a woman who in her own life pursues the high calling of motherhood. While the ungodly man might pursue a woman primarily for her academic degrees, career accolades, and other accomplishments out in the world, we ought to value in women the same things that God values in them. After all, He is the one who created them, redeemed them, and gave them purpose according to His perfect plan. If God values motherhood, as is evidenced by the fact that He would use it as a means to restore and bless women (1 Timothy 2:15), then us guys ought to value it as well in our potential spouses. We should desire to marry a woman who exhibits a high view of motherhood and has every intention of being a mother, God willing. If you are a guy who routinely fails to make mention of motherhood when speaking about the important attributes of who you should choose to date or marry, this sermon should rightly elevate your view of motherhood, and you should recognize just how beautiful it is when a woman seeks after and fulfills that role. In the end, if we guys are truly seeking in our own lives to give God the most glory and to be obedient to His Word, then we shouldn’t be able to help but be genuinely attracted to a fellow sister-in-Christ who desires the same for her own life, especially when it comes to a desire for Godly motherhood.

Application 2: Make Decisions That Will Support a Woman’s Desire for Motherhood

Men are called to love and lead their wives out of a desire for their wives to be without sin and to mirror Christ (Ephesians 5:25-27). Husbands have a responsibility to ensure that their wives are living in obedience to God and His Word and living in a way that pleases and glorifies Him. In other words, husbands need to love and lead their wives toward what is their highest calling in the Lord: motherhood. From listening to the Mother’s Day sermon, we can understand that it can sometimes be a challenge for women to maintain a biblical view of motherhood and to strive for it in a God-honoring way. Externally, women face the pressures and influences of a worldly society and worldly thinking that would denigrate motherhood, while at the same time, internally facing the reality of their sinful nature with its selfishness, pride, and worldliness offering up every reason to put off motherhood. The last thing that our wives need is for us husbands to lead them into situations that might make it more difficult for them to pursue motherhood. Husbands, should you lead your family toward the purchase of a new home that can only be paid for with two incomes, leaving your wife with little time for motherhood? Husbands, should you consider accepting a less-than desirable job if it means a more stable income with health benefits for your spouse and family? Husbands, should you consider ditching your dreams of a Ph.D. or medical school so that you can start working now and your wife can start pursuing motherhood now? These are but a few examples of decisions husbands can make that will be either hurtful or helpful to our wives and their pursuit of motherhood.

There are plenty of other points of application that guys can make in response to the Mother’s Day sermon, but the thing to realize is this: the issue of the honor of motherhood is not only an issue solely for women to be concerned with, but one that concerns us guys and implicates us as well. If we truly desire to glorify God and to live out His truth in our own lives, then a high view of His Word should also lead us to a high view of motherhood. As guys, let us continually affirm our fellow sisters-in-Christ; in turn, having a high view of them as they strive for the honor of motherhood.