Well, I have a special message tonight. It's going to be an honor of Mother's Day, but it's actually not addressed to mothers. It's really addressed to children, to anyone who has a mother. And so this is going to be addressed to children, young and old, because the Bible has a lot to say to children about how you ought to treat your mother. I'd like you to turn to Leviticus 19. Leviticus 19. I didn't go back to check, but I can say this, I haven't preached many messages out of the book of Leviticus, but this will be one that we are able to learn from this passage tonight, Leviticus 19. I'll be looking at one through three. Now, when we think about how children ought to treat their mothers and some of the commandments that the Bible gives to children, probably the first one that comes to our minds is that children ought to honor their mother and their father. But it turns out that I've already preached on that one. Some years ago, I preached a message entitled, Honor Your Mother. And I would encourage our young people to go back and to listen to that message because it is very important. that children honor their mother and their father. And so tonight I'd like to focus on a related command. It's kind of closely related to the idea of honoring, but it is a distinctive command. It's a different command than just honoring. And that is the command for children to reverence their mothers. Leviticus 19, I'll read verses one through three. And the Lord spake unto Moses saying, speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel and say unto them, Ye shall be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy. Ye shall fear every man, his mother and his father, and keep my Sabbaths. I am the Lord your God." Let's pray. Our Father, we thank you for your word. We thank you for all of the instruction that it contains, especially for us in this life and how it guides our steps and shows us the path that we are to walk in. And we thank you, Lord, for the instruction that is given to children. And I pray, Lord, that you will speak to all the children in this hour, young and old. Help us all to learn to reverence our mothers. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. As the home goes, so goes the nation, and so goes the world. There's a lot of truth in that statement. Someone well-known once said, quoting now, the strength, the perpetuity, and the destiny of the nation rest upon our homes, established by the law of God, guarded by parental care, regulated by parental authority, and sanctified by parental love. The mothers of our land, who rule the nation as they mold the character and guide the actions of their sons, live according to God's holy ordinances, and each, secure and happy in the exclusive love of the father of her children, sheds the warm light of true womanhood, unperverted and unpolluted, upon all within her pure and wholesome family circle. Those are the words of President Grover Cleveland in his first address to Congress, December 8, 1885. We all ought to have the deepest respect for our mothers. God has given them an honorable job to do, a challenging job to do, and that is to rear us. And so we ought to have the deepest respect for our mothers. And God has commanded children, every son and every daughter, to fear, that's the word that's used in our text, to reverence his or her parents. Now, as we look at verse three, it is kind of curious that mothers are listed before fathers. I did a little research on this, and there are a few other verses in the Bible where mothers are listed before fathers, but this is really one of just a few. Usually it's the opposite order. And here in this verse, it would seem that mothers are in the dominant position here in terms of this command. Maybe this is hinting at the fact that children will lack reverence and respect for mom before they will lack reverence and respect for dad. Maybe this is a warning to children to be careful how you interact and relate to your mother. Make sure that you are always reverencing her, always showing respect for her. So we're told here in this passage that children are to fear both mother and father, but this being, of course, Mother's Day, we're going to focus on reverencing our mothers. And so our theme tonight is this, children of all ages are to reverence their mothers. Tonight we're going to look at, first of all, the meaning of this command, and then the danger of disobeying this command, and then the reward of obeying this command. So first, the meaning. We do have to deal with this word fear. Why do we have that word in this verse? Well, it turns out that the Hebrew word itself means fear. It's one of the most common Hebrew words that's used in the Old Testament, and at its root, at its core, it means to fear. But in this context, as well as in many other contexts, the emphasis is on reverential fear. That is showing that reverence, that respect to a person who is in authority, to somebody who is in a position of power over us. We are to reverence them, to respect them. And so it is that mothers are in a position of authority over their children. And mothers are to be reverenced because that authority is derived directly from the Lord himself. So we have reverential fear, this idea of reverencing, respecting authority. It's really not talking about this fear that you might have in terms of fear of being mistreated or harmed in some way. No, this is the kind of respect and reverence that we show to someone who's in a position of authority over us. Well, reverence and honor are closely related and yet distinct in meaning. And so if we try to maybe explain that subtle difference a little bit, to honor literally means to give weight to. And so honor is a form of respect that gives weight to the counsel and advice of a mother. And so children are to honor their mothers in that way. And that's a command that would last for a lifetime. You never really stop honoring your mother, even though you may grow into adulthood. So you are to give weight to her counsel and advice. And when children do what their parents advise them to do, they will bring honor to their parents. And so we have a slightly different command here, this idea of reverential fear. It's a form of respect that results in willing submission and obedience. It's recognizing that authority relationship and placing oneself under that, and so willingly submitting and obeying. And so the command would be especially addressed to children who are young and still in the home. Baptist preacher Herschel Hobbes writes this, obeying one's parents produces the byproducts that contribute to the longevity of the nation. Children who learn discipline and respect in the home under the tender care of loving parents are unlikely to have a need to be taught those qualities by the strong arm of the law, he writes. So we are to reverence our mothers. Children are to reverence their mothers. The command is given to every child, regardless of age, to reverence your mother. And if you are a child still living at home, your mother is your God-given authority. She is over you by God's decree. And so it is that you are to reverence her as your authority. You are not to disobey her. You are not to sass back at her or resist her instruction or defy her authority in any way. You're not even to act contrary to your mother's wishes when she isn't there or when you're away from home and she can't see you. You're still to abide by her wishes and thus to reverence her. And even after you reach adulthood and are living on your own, you can continue to show reverence to your mother. She is still your mother. And though you're no longer living at home under her command, if you will, she is still God's gift to you. And you ought to do everything you can to show reverence to her. Proverbs 23, 22 says, hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise not thy mother when she is old. That would be the opposite of reverencing a mother, to despise her. And so the command applies even to us when we're grown and out of the home. After all, for a child to learn to reverence his mother and his father, that's a training ground for learning how to reverence God. A child learns to reverence God by learning to reverence his mother or her mother. And I want you to notice how the command to live a holy life before God is immediately preceding this command, right? We see in verse 2, God says, be holy for I the Lord your God am holy. And then he says, you shall fear, you shall reverence everyone, his mother and his father. So holy living is best taught and caught in the home. I'd like you to turn over to Deuteronomy chapter 4. We're going to look at a few verses in Deuteronomy that kind of speak on this topic of learning to fear the Lord, and one of the places that that takes place is in the home. Deuteronomy 4, and let's look at verses 9 and 10. Only take heed to thyself and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thine heart all the days of thy life. But teach them," notice this, teach them, thy sons and thy sons' sons, specifically, the day that thou stoodest before the Lord thy God in Horeb, when the Lord said unto me, gather me the people together and I will make them hear my words that they may learn to fear me. all the days that they shall live upon the earth, and that they may teach their children." And so it is that parents are to teach, to train their children to fear the Lord. And so learning how to reverentially fear the Lord is taught in the home. It's taught and caught best in the home. And if you'll just turn over to Deuteronomy 5, in verse 29, It says, oh, that there were such in heart in them that they would fear me and keep my commandments always, that it might be well with them and with their children forever. And so for the parents to model this reverential fear of God before the children in the home, that is a blessing that gets passed on then to the children. Again, learning to fear God is better caught and taught in the home. And then also turn over to Deuteronomy 31. Deuteronomy 31, and we'll look at verses 12 and 13. Gather the people together, men and women and children, and thy stranger that is within thy gates, that they may hear, and that they may learn, and fear." There's that word again. and fear the Lord your God, and observe to do all the words of this law. And that their children, which have not known anything, may hear and learn to fear the Lord your God, as long as ye live in the land, whither ye go over Jordan to possess it." So again and again, here's the Lord commanding the people, his people, to teach their children to fear the Lord. And so we come to Psalm 34 verse 11, the psalmist writes, come ye children, hearken unto me. I will teach you the fear of the Lord. And so children are commanded by God to reverence their mothers and their fathers. And the mothers and fathers are modeling before their children the fear of the Lord. And so the fear of the Lord is then caught and taught in the home. Reverential fear of parents is a training ground for the reverential fear of the Lord, and the two really go hand in hand. Commentator Gordon Winnum writes this, as far as a child is concerned, his parents are in the place of God. Through them he can learn what God is like and what he requires. It is therefore fitting that in his younger years a child should honor and fear his parents, as in later years he will fear God. And so we are to train up a child in the way he should go. We need to train him or her to fear the Lord. So children of all ages are to reverence their mothers. We've looked at the meaning of this command. We've tried to draw the slight difference between reverence and honor, but the two really do go together quite closely. Now let's talk about some of the dangers of disobeying this command. This command, children, these are for you. to realize the danger of disobeying the command to reverence your mother. And there are several of these that I want to go through. Some of these are rather shockingly strong warnings that the scripture gives to us. And I think that's to get our attention, even as young people, as children, to get our attention. Now, if you're still in Deuteronomy, turn back to Deuteronomy 27 and verse 16. What we see here, this is the first danger of disobeying the command to reverence your mother. Disobedience invites a curse. Deuteronomy 27 and verse 16, that setteth light by his father or his mother. And all the people shall say, Amen." Now this idea of setting light, that is to treat lightly, to treat with disdain, a lack of respect, a lack of honor, to actually shun one's parents. And so there's a curse here for children that would show disdain toward their mother. disobedience invites a curse from the Lord. Second danger that we find, if you'll turn over to Proverbs 15, we'll be back and forth in the Proverbs a few times in this message, many Proverbs that speak wisdom to children. Proverbs 15 and verse 20, Here's the warning. Disobedience to this command displays foolishness. And here's a proverb that contrasts the foolish with the wise. Verse 20, a wise son maketh a glad father, but a foolish man despiseth his mother. This idea of despising a mother is exactly the opposite of revering one's mother. And what happens here is when a child is despising his mother, he or she is displaying their own foolishness. We're told here it's foolish to do so. And it is the foolish child who does this. And so disobedience displays foolishness. A child who despises his or her mother puts their own foolishness on display and shows themselves, proves themselves to be a fool. And of course, a foolish child brings shame on his or her parents. A third consequence of disobeying this command to reverence one's mother is that disobedience contributes to moral degeneration. Now, we need to turn over to Romans 1. Familiar passage. We get to the end of Romans 1, and there's really this downward progression. It's the self-destruction of a society that has turned its back on God. And we get down toward the end of this list, at the end of this downward decline into moral degradation. And I want you to take note of one thing that's mentioned in the midst of all this regarding children. Verse 28, and even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind to do those things which are not convenient. being filled with awe, unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity, whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things." What's the next phrase? Disobedient to parents. And it goes on, without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection. That describes the breakup of the family unit where children no longer show natural affection toward their parents and even vice versa. Implacable, unmerciful, who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them." A lot of the pop culture of our day, a lot of the movies that come out, even so-called family movies, shows the children in charge, and children disdaining their parents. It's all on display, and everyone takes pleasure in this, you see. And so in the midst of all this, we have children who are disobedient to parents. It's part of a moral decline. It contributes to the moral decline of the individual. So children are disobeying the command to show reverence to their mothers. They're contributing to their own moral degeneration. As one writer puts it, quote, disrespectful children become disrespectful teenagers and then disrespectful adults, end quote. So disobedience to the command to reverence one's parents can lead to a lifetime of disregard for authority and all the consequences that come with that. And the result is complete moral degradation. So there's a warning here for children. Don't start down this path. Don't think that it's just okay, you know, that mom just doesn't seem to know much and you know more than she does. And you're going to show disdain for your mother against God's command. And here's the warning from God's Word. You're starting down a dangerous path. And there's a fourth consequence, and this takes us back to Proverbs. And that is disobedience to this command may bring unforeseen calamity. Proverbs chapter 30 and verse 17. As I read this verse, it's a verse that Terry used to use in our home to strike fear into our children. And so Samuel may react to this as we read this verse. Proverbs 30 verse 17, the eye that mocketh at his father and despiseth to obey his mother, the ravens of the valley shall pick it out and the young eagles shall eat it. That's pretty dramatic and it's pretty gross, but it's a very strong warning to children. that you ought not mock your father and despise your mother, going against her instruction, disobeying your mother, because it may bring unforeseen calamity into your life. For there is a God in heaven who knows all and sees all, and he will bring every hidden thing to light, and your sins will find you out. And God is the one who will bring that unforeseen calamity into your life if you despise your mother. God has given you your parents. And loving parents will warn their children of potential calamity. And it's the foolish child who disregards his or her parents' warnings to their own hurt. There's one more consequence of disobedience, and that is that disobedience to this command may even bring premature death. I mean, this is the strongest warning of all that we find in the scriptures. And it's really shocking to realize that under the old covenant, rebellious children within Israel were subject to capital punishment. Let me just read a few verses to you, Exodus 21, 15. And he that smiteth, that is, to strike his father or his mother, shall be surely put to death." Exodus 21, 17, just two verses later. And he that curseth his father or his mother shall surely be put to death. And then Leviticus 20, verses 8 and 9. And ye shall keep my statutes and do them. I am the Lord which sanctify you. For everyone that curseth his father or his mother shall be surely put to death. He has cursed his father or his mother, his blood shall be upon him. Wow, this is pretty strong. I hope you children are glad that we don't live under the old covenant law anymore. Rebellious children are not put to death in our day and age, at least not by the parents or by the church. But it is possible that a child who has rebelled against his or her parents and is living in that rebellion and is stiff-hearted, stiff-necked, and refuses to repent, I think the Lord himself may strike that child In fact, we have a warning in Proverbs 20, 20, whoso curseth his father or his mother, his lamp shall be put out in obscure darkness. I think that's by the hand of the Lord. And so this would be the strongest warning of all to children. Beware of the dangers of disobedience to this command to reverence your mother. Be aware of these consequences. It will invite a curse. It will display your foolishness. It will contribute to your own moral degradation. It could bring unforeseen calamity and perhaps even judgment from God in the form of premature death. And so, children, this is a very serious command. God is not joking around here when he commands you to reverence your mother. Well, enough on the danger of disobeying this command. Let's turn the corner and let's focus now on the reward of obeying this command. And there are several rewards, really, that I've come across in the Scriptures. First of all, you have the reward that your obedience will please the Lord. Sons and daughters, God is watching to see whether you are reverencing your mother. And so it is that we have God watching to see if you are obeying this command. And if you are, then it pleases the Lord. Colossians 3, verse 20. Children, obey your parents in all things, for this is well pleasing unto the Lord. God smiles upon you when He sees you reverencing your mother and your father. So your obedience will please the Lord. Another reward that comes from obeying this command is that your obedience will please your mother. Of course it will. This is an obvious outcome. If you're doing this command, if you're reverencing your mother, you're obeying her and doing what she wants you to do, it's going to bring her much joy and happiness. If you want to turn over to Proverbs 23, in verse 24 and 25. Proverbs 23, 24 and 25. Says, the father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice, and he that begat a wise child shall have joy of him. Thy father and thy mother shall be glad, and she that bear thee shall rejoice. When children are obeying their parents in obedience to God's command, it's going to bring mom and dad much, much joy. And so if you want to live in a happy home, children, then show reverence to your mother. A third reward that comes from obeying this command is that your obedience will lead to a good life. Now, as we've already recognized, there's a close connection between the command to reverence one's mother and to honor one's mother. And so I think the reward of one will go with the other. In fact, I think it's impossible really to do one without doing the other. They both really go hand in hand. And so we have this reward mentioned in Ephesians 6, in verse 2, where children are commanded, honor thy father and mother, which is the first commandment with promise. And here's the reward, that it may be well with thee and that thou mayest live long on the earth. So son, daughter, would you like things to go well in your life? Would you like to live out the fullness of your days? Well, those are rewards that come with honoring and reverencing your mother and your father. So your obedience will lead to a good life. And then finally, your obedience is part of holy living. And so the reward that comes with obeying this command will be that you are doing something that will in fact lead to holy living before God. And we go back now to the context where we started in Leviticus chapter 19. And again, I want to just emphasize this, where the command was given by God, be ye holy for I, the Lord your God, am holy. So we're talking about holy living here, living consecrated lives before a holy God. And notice that the first command that follows this, there's a prominence here. This is first learned by fearing every man, his mother and his father. And so the two go hand in hand. And so your obedience to this command to reverence your mother is part of holy living. Commentator Mark Rooker writes this, the fact that the first admonition regarding holiness entails how to treat one's parents indicates that holiness begins in the home, end quote. And so to the young person who's come to saving faith and they know Christ as their Savior, and now you want to live for Christ, and you want to obey this command to be holy because God is holy, and you want to learn how to live a holy, consecrated life unto your Lord while you start in the home. You don't wait until you grow up and move out and you're on your own and you're an adult and you can do anything you want, which is a fallacy, of course. You can only do what God wants you to do. And if you disobey God, he's going to call you to account. No, you need to start in the home. You need to learn what holy living is as a child in the home while you're still under mom and dad, because you're going to learn how to reverentially fear mom and dad. And that's where you're going to learn how to reverentially fear the Lord. So live as one who is holy and set apart unto the Lord starting in your youth. I think this is especially a message to teenagers who are just itching to spread their wings and to get out on their own and to have some independence. But the reality is you need to learn to live a holy life and that continues when you're in the home and then even when you move out of that home. So our theme tonight is that children of all ages are to reverence their mothers. Children young, little children, before preschool, elementary age, junior high, high school, college, young marrieds. middle age, it just really never stops to reverence our parents, to reverence our mothers, to treat our mothers with the respect that our mothers deserve. So children of all ages are to reverence their mothers. I'd like to conclude tonight by painting a contrast. between a son who reverenced his parents and a son who did not. Both of these sons are adult sons. They're of a marrying age. And in fact, the issue has to do with who they're going to marry. So I'd like you to turn now to Genesis chapter 28, because the two sons I'm talking about are Jacob and Esau. Genesis 28, verses 6 through 9. We won't have time to develop the whole context of this, but here you've got these two boys, now grown up, getting married. Verse 6. When Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob and sent him away to Paddan Aram to take him a wife from thence, that as he blessed him, he gave him a charge saying, thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan. And that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother and was gone to Paddan Aram and Esau. Seeing that the daughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac, his father, then went Esau unto Ishmael, and took unto the wives which he had, Mahalath, the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham's son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife." Jacob and Esau. The son who obeyed and honored his parents and showed reverence toward his mother and his father, honoring their wishes, even in terms of who he would marry. And Esau, the son who despised his parents, brought them dishonor and showed no real reverence for them, went against their wishes and married from among the daughters of Canaan. And so to the teenager who's growing into adulthood, to the college-age person who's contemplating marriage, I want to ask you an important question. Are you going to be a Jacob? Are you going to be an Esau? Which will it be with you? It really comes down to this command, to reverence your parents. You shall fear every man, his mother and his father. Let's pray. Our Father, we thank you for our mothers. We thank you for the great sacrifices that they have made on our behalf. We thank you, Lord, for the gift that they are to us. And we pray, Lord, that even as we grow into adulthood, that we would seek to honor and reverence our mothers as well as our fathers. Lord, help us to pay attention to the warnings that you've given us in your word, warnings to children who would disobey this command to show reverence to their mothers. And Lord, I pray that we would pay heed, that we would realize the seriousness of this matter. And Lord, thank you that there is a reward, in fact, multiple rewards for children who will reverence their mothers. And I pray, Lord, that that would be the case for each and every child here, each and every one who is listening to this message. We pray that you would work in the hearts of young people, that they might reverence their parents.