(upbeat music) Hello everyone. I am so glad to have the opportunity to welcome you this morning. I'm Donna Ford, the Director of the Women's Ministry here at First Baptist Atlanta. And today is such a special, special day. I wanna wish all of you moms and grandmoms, a happy, happy Mother's Day. Yes. (congregation clapping) Oh my goodness. You know... I hope that this is the best day ever for each and every one of you. I'm looking forward to spending some time with my family this afternoon, too. We're all 15 to 20 minutes apart. So I get to do daily life with them and it is just such a privilege. I have two girls of my own and three fabulous grandsons. And I have a 92 year old mom that all of you know is Ms. Midge. And I'm telling you, she is a blessing to all of us. And so we're happy to spend that time this afternoon and celebrate her. So I hope you have a wonderful afternoon too. I wanna share something with you this morning. Our theme here at First Baptist Atlanta this year is Always Pray. Now 1 Thessalonians 5:17 has always been one of my favorite verses, it's only two words, "Pray constantly," but it's important instruction from God to us. And when Pastor Anthony told us that that was his theme for this year, it meant so much to me because it reminded me of something my granddaddy said to me, when I was just a child. My granddaddy, my mother's dad was a Baptist minister. And I'm telling you, he was so sweet, but he had this gift about him that he could share wisdom in just general conversation. It just came right out. And one day at a family reunion, you know the ones with all the food, and all the tables, and all the people and softball in the side yard, anybody? It was the good old days. And one time at this family reunion, I remember granddaddy called us off the ball field and he gathered everybody together and everybody was there and the tables were set, and he prayed over the food. And then he prayed over his seven kids and all of us who came from those seven kids. And then when he finished praying and everybody had gone to the tables and we're just laughing and talking and enjoying, he came over and sat under the old oak tree with all of us kids that have been collapsed and exhausted from the ball game. And he sat down and after he had told us how great we played the game, he asked us a question. And he looked into our faces and said, "Do y'all pray?" And one of my youngest cousins looked up at him and he said, "Well, sure, granddaddy, I always pray before I eat, or I always say the blessing. And I never go to bed without saying my prayers." And granddaddy patted him on the leg and said, "That's really good. That's important, don't ever stop doing that." He said, "But I want to tell you something. When you get older, as you grow older, you'll have more things that you pray about. There's gonna be lots of things that you need to talk to God about." And he said, "And just remember that sometimes the answers won't be instant. Sometimes you'll have to wait just a little." He said, it won't always be like when you go running in the kitchen and asked mom, "Can I go outside?" And she answers you just like that and says, yes or no, wait until after dinner. It won't always come like that. He says sometimes you'll have the wait a little bit, sometimes you'll have to wait longer. And sometimes it'll look like nothing's happening. He said, "Let me give you an example. This old oak tree that we're sitting under that's given us all the shade today," he said, "When your grandmother and I moved into this house it was nothing more than a little seedling." And he said, "Look at it today." He said, "Now I could have run out here and I could have checked this tree every single day. And it would have looked like nothing was happening." He said, "But I'm telling you, you look at it now. Every day all day and night, God was working inside of this tree doing all the details, taking care of everything to make it grow up into this strong big oak tree that it is today." He said, "I want you to remember that about your prayers. That when you don't think anything's happening and it doesn't look like anything's going on, you just remember that God is always working, always. And you always pray." I'm telling you those words have meant more to me and helped me more in my adult life and in my growing up years. And so before Pastor Matthew brings us the worship time together today, let's just you and I pray together. Father we thank you for this time together. We thank you for this church. We thank you for the opportunity to come and worship You and get into the Word and know You better. Father we thank you for the message that Pastor Anthony is bringing today. We ask you to tuck it deep in our hearts and help us to remember it and to share it with others. Father, we thank you for each and every one of these precious moms and grandmothers and their impact in the lives of our children. And Father we just pray that bless them richly today and let them feel Your love and presence and know how much they are loved today. And Father, we give you this time and we thank you for who You are, Sovereign Lord, Almighty God and Everlasting Father. And we thank you in Jesus name. Amen. (congregation clapping) Well, good morning. Thank you, Mrs Donna. It's good to see you in the house of the Lord today. We just stand as we worship together. Blessed assurance, Jesus is mine. Let's sing now. ♪ Blessed assurance ♪ ♪ Jesus is mine ♪ ♪ Oh, what a foretaste of glory divine ♪ ♪ Heir of salvation ♪ ♪ Purchase of God ♪ ♪ Born of His spirit ♪ ♪ Washed in His blood ♪ ♪ This is my story ♪ ♪ This is my song ♪ ♪ Praising my Savior ♪ ♪ All the day long ♪ ♪ This is my story, this is my song ♪ ♪ Praising my Savior all the day long ♪ ♪ Perfect communion, perfect delight ♪ ♪ Visions of rapture now burst on my sight ♪ ♪ Angels descending bring from above ♪ ♪ Echoes of mercy, whispers of love ♪ ♪ Perfect submission, all is at rest ♪ ♪ I in my Savior am happy and blessed ♪ ♪ Watching and waiting, looking above ♪ ♪ Filled with his goodness, lost in his love ♪ ♪ This is my story, this is my song ♪ ♪ Praising my Savior all the day long ♪ ♪ This is my story, this is my song ♪ ♪ Praising my Savior all the day long ♪ ♪ This is my story, this is my song ♪ ♪ Praising my Savior all the day long ♪ ♪ This is my story, this is my song ♪ ♪ Praising my Savior ♪ ♪ All the day long ♪ I'm thankful for the assurance we have in Jesus today. I'll lead us on this first verse and invite you to sing with us. ♪ Who am I that the highest King ♪ ♪ Would welcome me ♪ ♪ I was lost, but He brought me in ♪ ♪ Oh His love for me ♪ ♪ Oh His love for me ♪ ♪ Who the Son sets free ♪ ♪ Oh, is free indeed ♪ ♪ I'm a child of God, ♪ ♪ Yes, I am ♪ ♪ Free at last, He has ransomed me ♪ ♪ His grace runs deep ♪ ♪ While I was a slave to sin, Jesus died for me ♪ ♪ Yes, He died for me ♪ ♪ Who the Son sets free ♪ ♪ Oh is free indeed ♪ ♪ I'm a child of God ♪ ♪ Yes, I am ♪ ♪ In my Father's house ♪ ♪ There's a place for me ♪ ♪ I'm a child of God ♪ ♪ Yes, I am ♪ ♪ I am chosen, not forsaken ♪ ♪ I am who You say I am ♪ ♪ You are for me, not against me ♪ ♪ I am who You say I am ♪ ♪ I am chosen, not forsaken ♪ ♪ I am who You say I am ♪ ♪ You are for me, not against me ♪ ♪ I am who You say I am ♪ ♪ I am who You say I am ♪ ♪ Who the Son sets free ♪ ♪ Oh is free indeed ♪ ♪ I'm a child of God ♪ ♪ Yes, I am ♪ ♪ In my Father's house ♪ ♪ There's a place for me ♪ ♪ I'm a child of God ♪ ♪ Yes, I am ♪ ♪ In my Father's house ♪ ♪ There's a place for me ♪ ♪ I'm a child of God ♪ ♪ Yes, I am ♪ Well, I'm glad today to be a child of God, chosen, not forsaken. Amen. Lets sing this together. ♪ I am chosen, not forsaken ♪ ♪ I am who You say I am ♪ ♪ You are for me, not against me ♪ ♪ I am who You say I am ♪ ♪ I am chosen, not forsaken ♪ ♪ I am who You say I am ♪ ♪ You are for me, not against me ♪ ♪ I am who You say I am ♪ ♪ I am who You say I am ♪ ♪ Yes, I am who You say I am ♪ ♪ Oh, Who the Son sets free ♪ ♪ Oh is free indeed ♪ ♪ I'm a child of God ♪ ♪ Yes, I am ♪ ♪ In my Father's house ♪ ♪ There's a place for me ♪ ♪ I'm a child of God ♪ ♪ Yes, I am ♪ Amen. (congregation clapping) You may be seated. (orchestral music) ♪ Just when my world caved to nothing ♪ ♪ You came on the horizon ♪ ♪ Shining with Your love so bright ♪ ♪ You came in all of Your glory ♪ ♪ You're re-writing the story now ♪ ♪ I was dead, but now I'm alive ♪ ♪ If You never did another thing for me ♪ ♪ It will always be enough that You set me free ♪ ♪ Always be enough that You gave Your life ♪ ♪ Jesus, You are mine ♪ ♪ If You never did another thing for me ♪ ♪ It will always be enough that You set me free ♪ ♪ Always be enough that You gave Your life ♪ ♪ Jesus, You are mine ♪ ♪ You give Your peace like a river ♪ ♪ When I'm bound, You deliver me ♪ ♪ From Your presence where could I go ♪ ♪ You never sleep, never slumber ♪ ♪ You're so faithful to cover me ♪ ♪ But Jesus, I just want You to know ♪ ♪If You never did another thing for me ♪ ♪ It will always be enough that You set me free ♪ ♪ Always be enough that You gave Your life ♪ ♪ Jesus, You are mine ♪ ♪ If You never did another thing for me ♪ ♪ It will always be enough that You set me free ♪ ♪ Always be enough that You gave Your life ♪ ♪ Jesus, You are mine ♪ ♪ I know You are mine ♪ ♪ All day You are mine ♪ ♪ I know You are mine ♪ ♪ All I ever need ♪ ♪ All I ever need ♪ ♪ I know You are mine ♪ ♪ All day You are mine ♪ ♪ I know You are mine ♪ ♪ All I ever need ♪ ♪ All I ever need ♪ ♪ In a world so unstable ♪ ♪ You keep setting a table here ♪ ♪ Inviting me to rest in Your grace ♪ ♪ To drink of all of Your goodness ♪ ♪ 'Til I'm more like You, Jesus ♪ ♪ You'll never hear the end of my praise ♪ ♪ If You never did another thing for me ♪ ♪ It will always be enough that You set me free ♪ ♪ Always be enough that You gave Your life ♪ ♪ Jesus, You are mine ♪ ♪ If You never did another thing for me ♪ ♪ It will always be enough that You set me free ♪ ♪ Always be enough that You gave Your life ♪ ♪ Jesus, You are mine ♪ ♪ If You never did another thing for me ♪ ♪ It will always be enough that You set me free ♪ ♪ Always be enough that You gave Your life ♪ ♪ Jesus, You are mine ♪ ♪ I know You are mine ♪ ♪ All day You are mine ♪ ♪ I know You are mine ♪ ♪ All I ever need ♪ ♪ All I ever need ♪ ♪ I know You are mine ♪ ♪ All day You are mine ♪ ♪ I know You are mine ♪ ♪ All I ever need ♪ ♪ All I ever need ♪ ♪ I know You are mine ♪ ♪ All day You are mine ♪ ♪ I know You are mine ♪ ♪ All I ever need ♪ ♪ All I ever need ♪ ♪ I know You are mine ♪ ♪ All day You are mine ♪ ♪ I know You are mine ♪ ♪ All I ever need ♪ ♪ All I ever need ♪ ♪ If You never did another thing for me ♪ ♪ It will always be enough that You set me free ♪ ♪ Always be enough that You gave Your life ♪ ♪ Jesus, You are mine ♪ (congregation clapping) Well, I wanna ask you, if you are a woman here today and you either are a mother or you have a mother, I want you to stand. All right. If you are a mother, or you have a mother. All right, that's right. Let's let our ladies know we love them. (congregation clapping) Oh come on guys, give it up, give it up. Come on. (congregation applauding) There you go. (congregation applauding) Thank you so much. You may be seated. And then I would like for all of us to send a shout out to moms across our livestream land, all of our thousands of online viewers. Can we let them know we wish them a happy Mother's Day. Would you do that? (congregation applauding) Absolutely. Well, Pastor Matthew is gonna come in a moment and introduce our guests artists who has some music she has written. You will recognize the songs most likely and they both are a blessing to my heart. I think they're gonna bless all of our moms here today and those watching. And so he's introducing her, but I just got to tell you her name is Babbie Mason, and she is amazing. And she's been a friend of this church for many years. And Dr. Stanley on all of the cruises with In Touch to the Bahamas or to Alaska, she was always one of the featured artists that would share worship music much of which she personally wrote. God has used her for many years and she's been leading me in worship since I got my first cassette. Babbie Mason, that tells you how long ago that is but I'm telling you this boy, I love Mason Babbie. I just got to let you know. So we're going to be so blessed by her. So Pastor Matt, you come and introduce her. (congregation laughing) Well, thank you, Pastor. It truly is a joy though to give a personal introduction to my friend and a friend of First Baptist Atlanta. She as a song writer, in fact both of the songs she will sing this morning she wrote. a song writer, a Christian artist, television hosts so much more. She is just a gifted an anointed communicator of God's Word. And we're in for a real treat today as she leads us in worship. I wanna mention if you're blessed by the two songs she will sing, she has a product table just outside of our bookstore this morning, where you can take a lot of her music and resources home with you. I know it will be a great blessing. She's going to come just in a moment after I pray. But before I do, I want us to give a warm First Baptist Atlanta welcome to Babbie Mason this morning. (congregation clapping) Let's go to the Lord in prayer. Father, we are so thankful this morning for your goodness in our lives. Thank you God, for Your keeping power, for the privilege of being called Your children. Today, we ask Your blessing over this service. Be with Miss Babbie as she sings, Pastor Anthony as he preaches. God will you open our hearts to receive the Word of God today and may we leave differently than we came in. And Lord, I do pray a prayer of blessing over every mother in this room and even the women that may not have been mothers but Lord have influence and encouragement in the lives of so many, including my own. I pray today will be a special day for them to feel the warmth and smile of the heavenly Father on all that they do and all they contribute to our lives. We love you, guide us now in the remainder of our service. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen. Would you help me welcome Ms. Babbie Mason. (congregation clapping) Good morning. ♪ All things work for our good ♪ ♪ Though sometimes we don't see ♪ ♪ How they could ♪ ♪ Struggles that break our hearts in two ♪ ♪ Sometimes blind us to the truth ♪ ♪ But our Father knows ♪ ♪ What's best for us ♪ ♪ His ways are not our own ♪ ♪ So when your pathway grows dim ♪ ♪ And you just don't see Him, ♪ ♪ Remember you're never alone ♪ ♪ God is too wise to be mistaken ♪ ♪ God is too good to be unkind ♪ ♪ So when you don't understand ♪ ♪ When don't see His plan ♪ ♪ When you can't trace His hand ♪ ♪ Trust His Heart ♪ ♪ Trust His Heart ♪ ♪ He sees the master plan ♪ ♪ And he holds our future in His hand ♪ ♪ So don't live as those ♪ ♪ Who have no hope ♪ ♪ All our hope is found in Him ♪ ♪ We see the present clearly ♪ ♪ Oh. but He sees the first and the last ♪ ♪ And like a tapestry ♪ ♪ He's weaving you and me ♪ ♪ To someday be just like Him ♪ ♪ Just like Jesus ♪ ♪ God is too wise to be mistaken ♪ ♪ And God is too good to be unkind ♪ ♪ So when you don't understand ♪ ♪ When don't see His plan ♪ ♪ When you can't trace His hand ♪ ♪ Trust His Heart ♪ ♪ He alone is faithful and true ♪ ♪ He alone knows what is best for you ♪ ♪ For you, ♪ ♪ For you ♪ ♪ For you ♪ ♪ God is too wise to be mistaken ♪ ♪ And God is too good to be unkind ♪ ♪ So when you don't understand ♪ ♪ When don't see His plan ♪ ♪ When you can't trace His hand ♪ ♪ Trust His Heart ♪ ♪ When you don't understand ♪ ♪ When you don't see His plan ♪ ♪ When you can't trace His hand ♪ ♪ Trust His Heart ♪ ♪ Trust His Heart ♪ (congregation clapping) Yes. Amen. (congregation clapping) Yes. Amen. Amen church. Oh, I tell you it is so good to be in the house of the Lord today. I am one of those that have streamed the service just about every Sunday for the past year and months. And I thank God for this ministry. I'm one of those that can come back and say thank you to the tech team, to the music team, to Pastor Anthony George, who I love so dearly. I love this brother's teaching and his preaching. His steadfast love for the Word of God. (congregation clapping) Amen. His preaching... (congregation clapping) You're preaching brother is a lifeline. It's not just a blessing, it's a lifeline. So thank you for loving the truth of God's Word and for being a blessing to me. (congregation clapping) Yes. Amen. What a blessing. What a blessing. Yes. What a blessing. (congregation clapping) What a blessing. (congregation clapping) Amen. (congregation clapping) And I join you in praying for him as he preaches the truth, which is not always popular. Amen. Amen. Amen. But it's always right. I grew up in a home with a pastor father who love the Word of God. He's in heaven with the Lord, along with my mother. My mom and my dad served 40 years in one church. And they served diligently and faithfully and deposited a love for the Word of God, a love for music, a love for church, in my heart along with my other four siblings. And my mother who graduated to heaven in 2015 was a wonderful singer. And the song that I'm going to sing for you is actually a duet that she and I recorded and a video lives on YouTube. And I'm gonna encourage you to go to YouTube and watch this video of Babbie Mason and my mother, mother Georgie Wade. Wade is my maiden name. Watch for Georgie Wade and Babbie Mason. As we sing this song called, God Will Open Up the Windows of Heaven and Pour You Out A Blessing. It's inspired by Malachi chapter three, verse 10. And as we give our praise to God this morning, all my heart is so happy to be standing in the sanctuary one more time. So you joined me in just praising God this morning. Put your hands together like this. Let's have a good time in the Lord. ♪ God will open, ♪ ♪ Open up the windows of heaven and ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ God will open ♪ ♪ Open up the windows of heaven and ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ God will open ♪ ♪ He'll open up the windows of heaven and ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ And you will not have the room ♪ ♪ Not because of you, but because He's good ♪ ♪ And you will not have the room ♪ ♪ To receive it ♪ I wanna sing it again. ♪ Well, God will open ♪ ♪ He'll open up the windows of heaven and ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Yeah, God will open ♪ ♪ He'll open up the windows of heaven and ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ I do believe God will open ♪ ♪ He'll open up the windows of heaven and ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Oh, yes he will ♪ ♪ And you will not have the room ♪ ♪ Not because of you, but because He's good ♪ ♪ And you will not have the room to receive it ♪ ♪ Listen, let me tell you about the God I serve ♪ ♪ How He keeps on blessing me ♪ ♪ And He'd still be worthy of all my praise ♪ ♪ If He didn't do another thing ♪ ♪ But He woke me up and He started me along my way ♪ ♪ While the blood is still running warm in my veins ♪ ♪ And in the land of the living for one more day ♪ ♪ God's really been good to me ♪ ♪ Do you believe that God will open ♪ ♪ Open up the windows of heaven and ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Yes, God will open ♪ ♪ I know He will ♪ ♪ Open up the windows of heaven and ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ I do believe that God will open ♪ ♪ I know He is able ♪ ♪ Open up the windows of heaven and ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Oh, yes he will ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ And you will not have the room ♪ ♪ Not because of you ♪ ♪ Not because of you ♪ ♪ Oh, thank you Lord ♪ ♪ But because He's good ♪ ♪ And you will not have the room to receive it ♪ ♪ Now if you don't believe ♪ ♪ You've really been blessed ♪ ♪ Take another look and see ♪ ♪ He put clothes on your back ♪ ♪ And food on your table ♪ ♪ And supplied every one of your needs ♪ ♪ So instead of thinking about the things ♪ ♪ That you don't have yet ♪ ♪ Thank God for what you have ♪ ♪ And what you have left ♪ ♪ I know that you will find ♪ ♪ You've really been blessed ♪ ♪ Oh, God has been good to you ♪ ♪ Do you believe that God will open ♪ ♪ Come on church ♪ ♪ Open up the windows of heaven and ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Yes, God will open up, I know he will ♪ ♪ Open up the windows of heaven and ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ I do believe, God will open, I know he will ♪ ♪ Open up the windows of heaven and ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Pour you out a blessing ♪ ♪ Oh, thank you Lord ♪ ♪ And you will not have the room ♪ ♪ Not because of you ♪ ♪ Not because of you, ♪ ♪ But because He's good ♪ ♪ And you will not have the room ♪ ♪ Not because of you ♪ ♪ Not because of you ♪ ♪ No, no, no But God's really is really good, ♪ ♪ Yes, he has ♪ ♪ You will not have the room ♪ ♪ To receive it ♪ ♪ Oh- oh-oh-oh ♪ ♪ Yeah-yeah-Yeah ♪ (congregation applauding) Amen. Give Him praise and glory. God bless you. I love you so much. Amen. (soft music) (upbeat music) What would you say formed your impression of what family means? Well, we would all say the families in which we grew up whether it was a mom or dad or grandparents who raised you, foster family, whatever it might've been. Our idea of family is shaped by how we grew up. And then we also have relatives who have their households. We go over to visit. They come over to see us. And as we're children we're watching the family dynamics of those who are related to us. Then when you're in elementary school, middle school, high school, you have a sleep over, you go over to your friend's house and you see how their family dynamics are at work. And then you may go on a vacation with a group of families. And that really stresses the relationship not only within a family, but family to family and you come back and hopefully everybody's still friends. But as you're looking at it, you're saying, how do they relate one to another? And all of these things build into our understanding the notions we'll carry with us for the rest of our lives. For me, I spent probably way too much time in front of a television when I was a kid. And so I enjoyed watching reruns of the "Andy Griffith Show" and of "The Brady Bunch" and "Leave It To Beaver" was another favorite of mine. And you look at those things and you think about this is what those families looked like. And then I probably should never been allowed to, but I watched "All in the Family" and that boy that was a family. Was it not? And then one of my favorite shows was "The Jefferson". Do you know, George and Weezy and Florence who kept them all straightened out up there in their penthouse suite. And then it kind of evolved into "Roseanne" and now "Modern Family" and it just seems like we're going down hill with the things that build into us, what family is all about. And the answer is let's look to the one who created family because our own experiences of family, what we've seen in other people's households, and even what you see on television, many times it's far from reality but I can tell you, in most cases it all short of what God's original plan was. And that's really what I want us to think about today, is this idea that God is the One who put this all together and we've got to look to Him. I think there will fast come a time when it will be hard to find anybody on planet earth who really knows what God intended when He created the family. And that's why there are churches like ours, not perfect, certainly not led by perfect people, and certainly not led by a perfect preacher or pastor. But it is imperative in a day when everything is changing that there'd be churches like ours, who call people back to the Bible to say, no matter what you've heard, what you've experienced, what you felt, let's revisit what the God who created all of this has to say about it. Now, when you get to the Bible, there are a lot of encouraging things in the Bible, a lot of discouraging things in the Bible. For instance, it's discouraging when you read what God's plan really is and you realize that both our own fallen natures as well as every force in the universe seems intent on sabotaging God's plan for family life. And we would all say amen. Amen. Strong and healthy families don't come by accident, they come by climbing mountains and knocking obstacles out of the way and keep coming back after failure. But I'll tell you something that I find encouraging. And that is when you open the very first pages. You see that the first group of people who were charged with having a family, Adam Eve and their kids, they blew it. And it ought to help all of us feel good about our situation to be honest with you when you read about it because they did not do a good job. And yet here is this God who made them, who comes back down to where they live. And He insures them in spite of their mistakes, in spite of the way they blew it, that He still loves them, that He still has a plan for them. And that there's no mess that we can make in our families that God cannot help to pick up the pieces and put back together again. That's the God who came back to a broken family in the Garden of Eden. And that's the God who comes to us in our imperfect family situations. And as we focus on one command out of all the others in the Bible, it is a command that comes with what I'm calling The Family Promise, which is the title of the message. And I want you to open to Ephesians chapter six if you brought your Bible. And if you don't have a Bible with you the verses will be up on the screen in just a moment. But in Ephesians chapter six, this passage written by the Apostle Paul, an early leader of Christianity. And he says, "Children, obey your parents in the Lord for this is right." Verse two he says, "Honor your father and mother, which is the first commandment with promise; that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth." It's just three short verses. And I'm not going to take a long time to talk about them. But what I have to say I believe is important because it's based on God's Word. If you brought something to write these notes down with or you wanna take notes on your phone, whatever, but I hope you will really listen closely to these brief points. And the first one is this, we need God's Word to help us understand family relationships. Family relationships, we need the Bible to help us get it. Now, this book we're reading from is a New Testament book but did you notice he quotes from the Old Testament commandments when he says honor your father and your mother. That's from the big 10. You know that Moses came down the mountain with, etched in the tablets of stone. And when we look to the Bible, we find answers to questions such as, how's this family thing supposed to work? What is God's real purpose and plan for it? And by the way, we find also a glossary of terms, like what is the word parent mean? God defines that in the Bible. What is the word son mean or daughter mean? As far as that goes, what does the word male mean and female mean? That's defined for us in the Bible. And let me just say this, I'm gonna try to stay in my lane. It's Mother's Day I've gotta be on good... I need to be on good behavior, I get it. But on Mother's Day, can I just tell you that a woman who bears a child is not a birthing person she has a mom. That's what she is. She's a mom. (congregation clapping) And these people who are redefining every sacred term to suit some agenda that I can't even identify, we are not honoring birthing people here on this Holy day, we are honoring moms, mothers. But when we look to family in the Bible, this is what we can find. We can find the definitions for family and each responsibility within the home. We can find the design. That yes, imagine it, God constructed little boys differently than little girls and He did it on purpose. And He doesn't let us change what He created. We find this in the Bible and not only that, but within the Bible, as we have those definitions in the design spelled out for us, the duties are also spelled out. There are some duties we all share, but there are some specific assignments that fall to a husband or to a wife or to parents and to children. And to children, he says, honor, say honor. Honor. Your father and.. Mother. And today is Mother's Day. So that's why we're talking about this. But it is by looking to God's Word that we can discover these relationships and they make sense. Here's the second thing I want you to write down. And that is we need God's strength to fulfill our family responsibilities. It's one thing to know what the relationships are, it's another thing to know what our obligations are within the family context. And the focus Paul is raising in verse two of chapter six and Ephesians is to the children. Your responsibility is honor your father and your mother. And the point I'm making is that whether it is the children honoring their parents or the parents having the good sense to raise their children, we need God's strength to help us do all the things we're supposed to do in our family life, because it's not easy. That's where every mom wanted to shout hallelujah, amen, you're right, pastor. And when Paul is quoting here, you can find his quote of this commandment among the 10 in Exodus chapter 20 and verse 12 and it is simply out of 10, is commandment number five. You need to know it's commandment number five. You need write it down, etch it in your heart. You need never forget it is commandment number five because when we read commandment number five, Paul comments on it and says that it comes with a promise. And that's the title of the message, the family promise. And what is the promise in verse number three, "That it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth." Now I don't know about you, but I'll sign up for both of those. Yes. I want it to be well for me, not unwell for me. I want it to be good for me in life, Not bad for me in life. And I wanna live a long life. You're giving me a choice, I'd rather live longer than shorter. Oh, come on. I know people get depressed and discouraged and the enemy can deceive you and make you wanna live a shorter life. But within us, is this in coded desire to persevere, overcome and keep living. And he says, this promise is contingent upon obeying commandment number five. And that is to what? Honor father and mother. Io receive the promise blessing we have to obey the divine command. And to obey that divine command often requires divine strength. And I have found in many cases of people I know and in my own life, any responsibility, God gives me He will give us the strength to fulfill that responsibility if we will lean on Him. And we need His strength in family relationships because family relationships will put the concept of honor to the test. Because often in our family relationships there are things that we feel are dishonorable. And yet God says, in spite of how you feel, or in spite of how hurt you might've been, the Holy commandment is, honor your father and your mother. And so I must be honest with you that when I see someone committed to honoring their father and their mother, it tells me a lot about their character. It tells me that they fear the Lord God and they understand that God blesses those who honor their parents. And you know something else, you can read it in the King James, New King James, New Living, New Paraphrase, New American Standard, Original New American, 1995, but you can read it in every version of the Bible you want to, and when you find it, then the 10 Commandments where it says honor your father and your mother. There is never a footnote, never an asterisk that says, unless you disagree with how they raised you. (congregation laughing) Unless they drank too much, unless they mistreated you, unless they were no count. And unless you they're strong-willed. There is no exception. It is simply unqualified command to honor father and mother. Period. And no one gets an exemption from that obligation before God. So how do we do that? In many cases, it's easy to do that. My case it's easy to do that in your case, it might be but I'm telling you in many real life situations in homes, it is difficult to show the honor that God commands us to show. But God will give us the strength to do it. Here's something else I want you to write down. And that is, we need God's grace to heal our family rifts. Oh, why did you have to talk about that on Mother's Day? Well, because every family has them. Can you say rifts? Rifts. You know what it means, right? I have to look back and say, okay, if he says honor the father and the mother, it's number five in the big 10 for Him to make it a command is His way of saying it's gonna take it being a command for you to do it because there are gonna be times that naturally just the way you're wired you're not gonna wanna honor your family. You're gonna wanna honor your mom or your dad. And so I'm gonna make it a command so it's your anchor that you always know no matter how you feel, no matter if they deserve it or not, I'm telling you I'm God, I made them, I made you, you're just as sinful as your parents are. And I love you, you gotta love her. You gotta love him. You better do it. That's how God looks at it. And what happens is we have rifts in our family that often create dishonor. And sometimes dishonor in our family creates the rift, vice versa. A rift in case you needed to find is a break in friendly relations. Has there ever been an experience in your family life where there's been a break in family relations and friendly relations? Well, unless you will live in a utopian bubble on Mars somewhere, and everybody in your household is programmed like a robot to be perfect. Well, of course there have been riffs. But what I am saying to you today and to myself is that God's grace in our lives can heal the rifts that form in our families. God's grace is the bridge between what we know is ideal and what is real. That's what I was saying a moment ago. When you read the Bible, you say, this is God's ideal. A mom, a dad, beautifully behaved, well-dressed clean and respectful children. (congregation laughing) And a minivan. I mean, I don't know, or an SUV. A cabin on the lake. We think this is the ideal here, but that's not what my reality is. And for many people, this is hard day, Mother's Day and Father's Day. Especially Father's Day, dads hate to break to you but I'll throw that out there so we can make your day happy. But it really is. It can be a painful day because of things that you dredge up and are reminded of on days like this. I was talking to a friend several years ago who said the worst thing in the world is going and buying the right card, and I won't say for which parent they happen to mention, but it's like all of this syrupy gushy, mushy stuff, they're like, nope, not for me. I need one that says, mom, I love you. I'm not feeling great about it, but I love you. You know what I'm saying? Now, again, I'm just sharing with you things that I have heard. But what makes up the difference between what you've always thought is ideal about what a family should be and what your reality was. I'm gonna tell you the difference between ideal and real is the grace of God. Just like it's the difference between God's righteous requirements and our inability to fulfill them. Do you know the difference between God's righteous expectation and our inability to deliver on that it's called grace? Grace bridges the gap between ideal and real. And that's why when we look at our family relationships and we say, okay, this is what I wish it was, this is what I wish it had been, which you can't go back and undo what's been done. You can't go back and relive what's already lived, but you can lean into the grace of God because I'm promising you this, I'm not just telling you this 'cause I went off to preacher school and got a degree and then paid to be a pastor. I'm telling you this because it's in the Bible and because I have lived it out and seen it. I can witness to it. God's grace can make the difference. Amen. It's just allowing God to pour that grace into your situation. And something else that we can find is that prayer can bring about healing and family riffs. We can do on our knees, and one of my favorite songs now, when I fight, I fight on my knees by Phil Wickham. I listened to that all the time because I have seen more mountains moved by prayer, more bridges built across great divides through prayer, and more hearts softened, including my own through prayer. Prayer can do a world of good in family relationships. And you know forgiveness can bring about healing and all of this comes from God. But when we get away from God, it all starts to fall apart. And that's what I'm talking about today. In second Timothy chapter three, the same guy who wrote Ephesians wrote to a young man he was influencing in a great way, Timothy. And he said, "You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days, they're gonna be difficult times." He said people are going to love only themselves and their money. They're gonna be boastful and proud. They're gonna to be scoffing at God. And then look what I've underlined. In the last days, they're going to be what? Disobedient. Disobedient to parents and ungrateful. They will consider nothing sacred. They will be unloving and unforgiving. They will slander others and have no self-control and they will be cruel and hate what is good. This was written 2000 years ago but it sounds a little like 2021. Yes. In the last days, people are gonna be greedy, self-absorbed, arrogant, disrespectful to parents, unthankful and irreverence. And when we look at those words, they don't seem to be causally related like cause and effect and arranged in any particular sequence. But I can tell you they're linked because when nothing is sacred, then everything goes, yes. Yes. And when you have no reverence for God, you have no respect for God's plan. And when you have no respect for God's plan, then you have no honor for the parents that He sovereignly and providentially allowed you to have. And did not give you the vote for. They are the ones He gave you. And you know, one of the things that I had to learn as a teenage kid, as a brand new Christian and one of the things that I've tried to teach, preach and disciple others is that people who are saying they wanna be right with God we understand we're saved by the grace of God not through anything we do. But if you wanna be walking in the fellowship with the Lord, if you're a Christian, you cannot be walking in fellowship with God while your heart is improperly disposition towards your family. When you are not rightly related to your family, not through things they do or choose to say that you have no control over, we talking about you. We talking about you standing in your circle saying me Lord, it's just me. The pathway to being in fellowship with God, of course is to know that you're saved, but it is also to know that in your heart, your heart has a disposition of honor towards your parents. And you say, well, my mother's not even alive anymore. The commandment to honor your father and mother goes beyond their death. That you honor your parents long after they're gone if they proceed you in death. It is a lifetime obligation that we have to honor them. As my grandpa would say, period. Period. Now, before I close, I wanna give everyone an admonition what you owe your mother. And here's the first thing. You owe your mom and I owe mine honor for her position. You know who gave her the position she has called mom? God gave it to her. And God designed her and God created her role. God gave her her title. And mom is the cradle of all human life. Yes or no? Yes. And God says about this special creation and design called mom, He says, you honor, the one I gave you. Because when you don't, you're really upset with me as your God for making her your mother. And one of the most difficult things for us to do is to look at our lives and move beyond challenges that we have to realizing God is the one who sovereignly allows things to happen. Sovereignly allows relationships to form. In my case, I am ever grateful for the mom He gave me, but I have met people who are not. And it is heartbreaking because I don't know their situation or their story. And today we can't sift through all the reasons, but from a heart of love and humility today I wanna say to everyone listening to me, when you honor your mother, you're obeying God and when you dishonor your mother, you're disobeying God. I can't be any clearer than I'm being. And not only this, but you know what you owe your mom? What I owe my mom is gratitude for her strengths. And they are many. Many. What are those strengths? I can tell you most of them go uncelebrated, unsung without the praise that she deserves for those strengths. And if you had to, what would your list of strengths for your mama be? Oh, I bet many of you would have a testimony to share. You know it's fallen on me in the last several years that preach a Mother's Day sermon and since the rise of social media, one of the things I've done in the lead up to the Mother's Day message the past several years is to kinda scroll through social media posts by especially young moms, young millennial moms in particular, 'cause they can be a little salty and they can be a little raw. Unlike the generation before them that would have never uttered those admissions and confessions about the frustrations of motherhood, lest it being an indictment on their sense of adequacy. But the younger generation just kinda lays it all out there. (congregation laughing) And so it's always fun this time of year to read through them. And last week I was thinking if you've got a mom who's virtue of curiosity and exploring the boundaries, is something you'd like to praise. One mother posted this, "I asked to switch seats on the plane because I was sitting next to a crying baby. Apparently that's not allowed if the baby is yours." (congregation laughing) And then this one, this is about a mom's availability. Glad mom's always been around when you need her. Well, this mom posted, "My kids will walk right past their dad sitting on the couch and come bang on the shower door for me to open a fruit snack." (congregation laughing) Every mom knows there's some truth in that as well. And then how many of you have a mom who is patient or was patient? One mom tweeted this definition of patience that says, patience is what you have with your kids when there are too many witnesses. (congregation laughing) And then another mom talked about the cleanliness and she said, "Cleaning with children in the house is like brushing your teeth while eating Oreos." (congregation laughing) And there's truth to that as well. I just mopped the floor. And then moms are always close, they're close to us. We can find them this mom posted on Facebook. If I ever go missing, just follow my kids 'cause they can find me no matter where I am hiding. (congregation laughing) And then if your mom was nutritionally oriented, mine was not. Mine was not. My mother didn't touch a piece of meat. What that she didn't roll it around in egg wash and flour and drop it in grease in an iron skillet. (congregation laughing) I mean, that's how I grew up. We had biscuits and then she made gravy out of the grease and you poured it all over the biscuits. (congregation laughing) How many know what I'm talking about? And then we'd have green beans and black-eyed peas and they'd have ham hock and pork shoulder in there. And now I have a cholesterol problem. (congregation laughing) And I have some moderate blockage. And I'm supposed to change at 51, I don't think so. (congregation laughing) But anyway, I digress. This mom posted, "Parenthood is telling your kids they can't eat brownies for breakfast, then eating brownies for breakfast after they leave for school." (congregation laughing) One mom tweeted, this is a mom's helpfulness. Moms can be so helpful. "Currently helping my son search for his chocolate that I ate last night." (congregation laughing) Then we can thank God for our moms and their understanding. One mom said, "Some days my kids can do no wrong. And other days I understand why some animals eat their young." (congregation laughing) One mom wrote about her state of mind. She says, "I smile because my kids think I'm crazy. I laugh because they don't know it's hereditary." (congregation laughing) Runs in the family. And then this mom felt she should apologize for raising her voice to her kids. So she left them a note and it says, "Dear kids, sorry I yelled. In my defense, you were acting like a bunch of psychos. (congregation laughing) Love, mom. Well, you probably have some similar stories, it may even be more brutal than that, but I can tell you this. You can find some reasons for which to be grateful for your mother. And if she's still alive, you ought to tell her what those are. And one of my favorite verses about what children should do for their mom is Proverbs 31:28 where it says, "Her children rise up and call her blessed." Her children rise up and say good things about her. And what I want to challenge you to do, if you have a lot of unfortunate memories from your past, the longer you live and the older you grow, release them more and more and simply focus on and talk about the things for which you're grateful about your mom Amen. Oh, come on, she can't do all the amen today. It's gotta be some male voices out there. But there's something else that we owe our mom. Are you ready for it? Forgiveness for her faults. Forgiveness for her faults Of course a mom has fault. You don't have to read very far in the Bible to find moms who were imperfect. And everyone who's alive can point out something that maybe they could find wrong in their mother. I've met a few people said not me, I have a perfect mom. And here here's the thing. Are you gonna carry whatever it is you have held against your mother for the rest of your life. Just a few days ago, I went through the Publix here in Dunwoody. I was buying what bachelors eat. I told you how I grew up. I'm trying to be good. And we were talking and she was very friendly, and she taught me about Mother's Day weekend. And I said, well, what are you doing on Mother's Day? And she said, "I'm going to my moms." And I was like, how do I follow up on this? I said, well, I'm sure she'll love that, but how are you feeling about it? She says, well, I don't wanna go. I hate going over to her house. I'm only going to support my brother 'cause he thinks we should go. There was a line behind me, six feet apart. But I got to my car and I sat there and I thought, that is heartbreaking to me. Because everything in me wanting to go back in there and say, can I just wait here to you clock out. I wanna sit down and have a talk with you. That life is too short and too sweet for you to have that attitude and that disposition. And she might say, but you have no idea. And I would say, I don't have to have any idea but I can tell you, God doesn't want you living the rest of your life angry with your mother. And not pointing out her strengths and grateful for her contribution to your life. I have found that there are moms who apologize without putting it into words. But if you have discernment, you can hear a mother's I'm sorry, whether she ever says it. I have found that there are many moms who don't even know what it is for which they need to apologize because you live in a home where you don't talk about stuff like that. But what I want to say to you before closing today, is that with God's help, you have the power to grant forgiveness to an apology that is never requested. You can forgive before it's ever requested of you to forgive. You say before anybody asked? Before anybody ever asked. Because God can give you the strength to take whatever it is that you think is so important, that it's hurt you so much and do what Elsa in "Frozen" sings about. And you know the answer, don't you? Why? Let it go. Let it go. Let it go. Let it go. It's time to let it go. And I wanna ask you before we pray, if you're willing to let it go, do you realize how much God has been willing to let go of what he could have held against you? I'm asking you to release it today. God wants you to release it. And if you want this family promise that we're talking about, that it may be well with you, that you may live long in the land. You need to step up to the plate, embrace number what? Five. Five, and honor your father and mother 'cause today is Mother's Day. Let's pray together. Lord, we thank you that we've been able to talk so plainly and rather simply today about basic trues that all of us including me need to revisit in the pages of Your Word. I pray that every mom here today will feel celebrated because she is worshiping You. And for every mom, with those whom she is birthed or helped raise or influence sitting near her, bless her with the crown of Your favor. And for anyone else here today, who's got a struggle they're carrying, a burden, a broken heart, may something that was said or sung today, minister to their heart and bring about the healing that You want to accomplish. And I pray all of that for our online viewers as well in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Thank you for being here today. (congregation clapping) We wish we give out flowers to everybody, gift cards to Cheesecake, Maggiano's, J.Alexander's, but hopefully you got some plans made but this has been a very special service for me for so many more reasons than I have time to share. And one of them is because it's my first Mother's Day to be pastor at the church and my heart is overflowing. Happy Mother's Day. God bless you. (congregation clapping) (soft piano music)
