THE FAITH OF A MOTHER 

2 KINGSS 4:20-31

          The title of this morning’s message is “The Faith of a Mother”.  (Tell the story of how the Shunammite woman became friends with Elisha, how she came to be mother of her son and how he became ill.)  I want us to look at how this mother cared for her son; how through her faith and persistence her son was restored to her.  Here in this passage Elisha represents God and the relationship between Elisha and the woman, symbolizes the relationship between us and God.

          In verse 20, no doubt when this sick boy was brought to his mother she did everything that she knew to do to ease his pain and return him to good health.  However, no matter what she tried the boy did not get better and finally died.  Sometimes we are just like this woman. We see those that we love struggling and in agony and we do all that we can to help them but to no avail.  We find that with all of our efforts we cannot make things better.  We can do all that we know to do, give them all of the care that we know how to give, but still destruction comes.  However, I want us to focus on the faith of this woman in a time when many would have said that there was nothing more that could be done.

First of all this woman knew where to go when she had done all that she could do.

Verse 22 – In this desperate time she did not call for her husband to come home.  He was no healer.  If he had been then he would not have sent the sick boy home to his mother in the first place.  This woman knew that she needed help from God.  She went to her husband to get from him what he could give, a mule and a servant to go with her as she went to find the man of God.  She did not dump the problem on him and expect a miracle from him.  Yes he was the father, but this was something that no earthly father could fix.  As parents we must know when to seek the help of other humans and when what is needed can only be done by God.  This mother was wise enough to know that only God could help in this situation.

Verse 23 – When asked why she wanted to go and find the man of God she did not even bother to answer the question.  Here this mother made a faith filled statement.  She said “It shall be well”.  Had it not been necessary to ask her husband for the mule and the escort she probably would have gone without ever bothering him.  Now keep in mind that his is the only son and in fact the only child that this woman has.  He is dead, but she has faith to believe that if she can just get to the man of God all would be well.  She had such a relationship with Elisha that she knew that he would move heaven on her behalf.  She had served him, above and beyond the call of duty, asking nothing in return.  She knew that this child had been given to her by God as a gift for her service to the man of God.  This child was God’s will for her.  If she could get to the man of God she was confident that Elisha would and could help her.  This is the relationship that we should have with Jesus.  When we have committed ourselves to serving him beyond that which is our reasonable service; when we know what the will of God is for us, then we should have confidence that Jesus will move heaven to bring about God’s will for us.

Verse 24 – She jumped on her mule and told the servant going with her to ride as fast and as hard as he could.  “Don’t worry about me, I will let you know if it becomes too much”.  Good mothers endure great hardships for their children.  A mother has little room for selfishness because the needs of the children supersede her needs from birth and many times even through adulthood.  This is one reason why I believe that it is very difficult for very young girls to be good mothers.  They are still too focused on themselves and what they want.  A mother must be willing to sacrifice her own self interest for the child.  When you still have a child’s mentality it is hard to behave like an adult and be self sacrificing.   The Shunammite mother sacrificed her own comfort for the sake of her son.

Verse 26 – When asked by Gehazi about her family she says “It is well”.  She refused to speak negative about the situation.  This I believe is where we often go wrong.  We spend too much time repeating the negative about our children, focusing on what they are doing wrong rather than what they are doing right.  We forget that Proverbs 18:21 says that death and life are in the power of the tongue.  We must train ourselves to see and speak the positive.  I am not saying that we should lie and deny that problems exist, but rather that as we face the problems we should do it in a positive manner. 

Verse 27-28 – Here I see in the Shunammite mother persistence.  She pressed right on pass Gehazi to Elisha.  There was no need to address her need to Gehazi.  She had come to see Elisha and she intended to present her problem to him.  Again we must learn to be more like this mother.  She went to seek the one who could help her and would not give up until she found him and spoke with him

Verse 29-30 – This mother refused to settle for anything other than the best for her son.  Maybe Gehazi with the staff of Elisha would have been able to revive her son.  But truth be told, her confidence was not in Gehazi nor was it in Elisha’s staff.  Her confidence was in the man who represented God.  He was the man to who God had responded on other occasions.  God had given her a son simple because this man had asked it of him.  Maybe Gehazi could do it, but she was not willing to take the risk.  She wanted Elisha, the man of God; the man to whom God responded.  We must be careful not to accept any old solution to the problems we face with our children. When we serve God with our whole heart he promises to lead us in the path that he would have us to follow.  His leadership is extremely important as we shape the character, hearts, and minds of our children.  We can not settle for societal methods for they may in some ways be good, but they are rarely ever best.  We must seek God and be persistent about obtaining the best option available for our children.

Verse 37 – After ministering to the child a couple of times, Elisha saw the life return to the child. This mother’s faith was rewarded.  Though death had grabbed a hold of her child, she did not give up.  When the wickedness of this world tries to latch on to our children we must be like this Shunammite  mother; persistent in our faith, trusting in God that he will hear our prayers, reward our faith and bring deliverance on behalf of our children.  This woman’s faith was rewarded.  The story ends with her showing her gratitude by bowing at the feet of Elisha.  We must be thankful not only for the children that God gives us but also for the strength, energy, and faith that he gives us as we endeavor to raise our children.  This mother showed great faith in a time of adversity and her faith was rewarded.

          But a good mother should not only have faith in God, she must also past that faith on to her children.  They too must be prepared to face adversity. 

2 TIMOTHY 1:5

          Here as Paul opens his second letter to Timothy he is moved to remind Timothy of the great faith that is housed in him.  Paul states that he is sure that Timothy has this faith because it was first found in his grandmother Lois and then in his mother Eunice.  Paul is convinced that this same faith has been passed on to Timothy.  Acts 16:1 let’s us know that Timothy’s father was a Greek and since no mention is made of him, it is quite likely that he was not a believer and thus had not contributed to Timothy’s spiritual upbringing.  We are not told Timothy’s age at this point but we do know that in 1 Timothy 4:12 Paul encourages him to stand strong in the ministry even as a young man by saying to him “Let no man despise thy youth, but rather be an example to the believers in word, in lifestyle, in love, in spirit, in faith and in purity.  Paul shows great confidence in young Timothy mainly because of the upbringing that he has had. 

2 TIMOTHY 3:14-15

          Here Paul encourages young Timothy to continue living as he has been taught, understanding by whom he has been taught.  He explains that even from a small child Timothy has been taught the Holy scriptures, which makes one wise and brings salvation to the soul.  Who taught Timothy the scriptures?  Well there is no evidence that his Greek father had anything to do with it, and Paul attributes his upbringing to his faithful and faith filled mother and grandmother.  A mother of faith passes on her faith to her children.

DEUT. 6:6-9

          It is the responsibility of the parents to teach the children the Word of God.  We are to constantly talk      about the Word and put it before them as often and in as many forms as possible.

PROVERBS 22:6

This is perhaps the best-known verse in Proverbs on child training. The Hebrew word for train (ḥānak̠) means to dedicate. It is used of dedicating a house, the temple, an image, and of the dedication of an altar. Only here in Proverbs 22:6 is the verb translated “train.” Ḥānak̠ seems to include the idea of setting aside, narrowing, or hedging in. The word is sometimes used in the sense of “start.” Thus Child-training involves “narrowing” a child’s conduct away from evil and toward godliness and starting him in the right direction. Gleason L. Archer points out that this Hebrew verb is similar to the Egyptian hnk which means “to give to the gods” or “to set up something for divine service.” He suggests that verse 6 gives “the following range of possible meanings: ‘Dedicate the child to God,’ ‘Prepare the child for his future responsibilities,’ ‘Exercise or train the child for adulthood’” (Encyclopedia of Bible Difficulties. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1982, p. 252).

Train a Child in the way he should go. But what does “the way” mean? Scholars have interpreted this differently. Some say “according to the way he ought to go either vocationally or morally”. While others have suggested that it means “according to the demands of his personality, conduct, or stage in life.” But  since nowhere else in Proverbs is way translated to mean personality or stage in life, it would be improper to decide that it should mean this in Proverbs 22:6.  Thus it is preferable to say that “way” means proper way, the path of the wise, godly living, basically the way of wisdom which is emphasized frequently in Proverbs. It is from this proper behavior pattern or godly lifestyle that he will not turn from when he is old, when he is grown or attains adulthood.

Some parents, however, have sought to follow this directive but without this result. Their children have strayed from the godly training the parents gave them. This illustrates the nature of a “proverb.” A proverb is a literary device whereby a general truth is brought to bear on a specific situation. Proverbs do not express promises that are always binding. Though the proverbs are generally and usually true, occasional exceptions may be noted. This may be because of the self-will or deliberate disobedience of an individual who chooses to go his own way—the way of folly instead of the way of wisdom. It is generally true, however, that most children who are brought up in Christian homes, under the influence of godly parents who teach and live God’s standards, follow that training.

          The truth is that as parents we can attempt to influence the lives our children will live when they leave our homes by the way we raise them when we have them at home.  However, they like us will one day become adults and have the right to make their own decisions.  We can only pray and trust God that the Word of God that we have sown in them and the character of God that we have lived before them, will guide them to make wise decisions.  What this means is that even as they enter adulthood, we must continue to be Mothers of faith, entrusting them into the hands of God; having faith that even as he has shaped us, so will he also shape them into young men and women of God.