LORD JESUS MOTHER “MARY” IMAGE FOR ALL MOTHERHOOD!

How Mary; Mother Of The Lord Jesus Christ Is The Greatest Role Model For Mothers?

Mothers are having a deep spiritual dimension. Mary, the mother of Jesus, is the greatest of all mothers. Motherhood has always been a sacred and noble vocation, but Mary raised it to even greater stature when she became the Mother of God. As the mother who is “blessed among women”

(Luke 1:42-44 Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. [43] Why am I so honoured, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? [44] When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. [45] You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”),

Mary gives us the clearest and most inspiring picture of what the ideal mother should look like, and every Christian mother would be wise to take her cues from the one who excelled at motherhood like none other.

Mary was “full of grace,” or put more simply, God lived within her. This came naturally because of her upbringing. All the mothers are taught that to be loving and kind, attentive to God’s Word, and obedient to God’s will. With such a firm foundation, Mary was so favourably disposed to God that when the archangel Gabriel appeared to her and said, “You will bear a son,” with deep faith she trustingly replied, “Let it be done to me according to your word” (Luke 1:31,38 You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. [38] Mary responded, “I am the Lord’s servant. May everything you have said about me come true?” And then the angel left her). Every Christian mother loves God with all her heart and responds favourably whenever God calls.

Mary was overshadowed by the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:35, 40 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the baby to be born will be holy, and he will be called the Son of God. [40] Where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth.); it was by the grace of God that she conceived. Every conception is a miracle, and every Christian mother knows that she is a partner with God in the ongoing work of creation, deeply aware that her child is a gift from God. As a result, when a Christian woman is blessed with a pregnancy, she rejoices in her child as Mary rejoiced in Jesus, she completes her pregnancy rather than end it in abortion, and cares for her unborn child with good nutrition, medical check-ups, and the avoidance of smoking, alcohol, or any drugs that could have a harmful effect.

Once Mary became pregnant, she immediately went to visit Elizabeth, her relative, who also was pregnant (Luke 1:39-45 A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town [40] where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. [41] At the sound of Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth’s child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. [42] Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. [43] Why am I so honoured, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? [44] When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. [45] You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”). Christian mothers do not focus solely on themselves and their own families. Instead, they have the marvellous ability to assist relatives and friends who are in need.

Not long after Mary became pregnant, she offered a magnificent prayer to God, one of the most beautiful prayers in all of Scripture, the Magnificent

(Luke 1:46-56 you are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”

 [46] Mary responded, “Oh, how my soul praises the Lord. [47] How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!

[48] For he took notice of his lowly servant girl, and from now on all generations will call me blessed.

[49] For the Mighty one is holy, and he has done great things for me.

[50] He shows mercy from generation to generation to all who fear him.

[51] His mighty arm has done tremendous things! He has scattered the proud and haughty ones.

[52] He has brought down princes from their thrones and exalted the humble.

[53] He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away with empty hands.

[54] He has helped his servant Israel and remembered to be merciful.

[55] For he made this promise to our ancestors, to Abraham and his children forever.”

[56] Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months and then went back to her own home.).

Mothers who follow Mary’s example are deeply prayerful, and speak to God from their hearts day-by-day.

On the first Christmas Mary gave birth to her Son, and she immediately wrapped Jesus in swaddling clothes (Luke 2:7 she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.), and thereby cared for his physical needs. Christian mothers care the for their children’s physical needs as they feed them, clothe them, change their diapers, rock them to sleep, take them to doctor’s appointments, and nurse them through illness.

Several weeks after Jesus was born, Mary, along with her husband Joseph, presented their newborn Son Jesus to the priest in the Temple.

(Luke 2:22-38 Then it was time for their purification offering, as required by the law of Moses after the birth of a child; so his parents took him to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord.

 [23] The law of the Lord says, “If a woman’s first child is a boy, he must be dedicated to the LORD.”

[24] So they offered the sacrifice required in the law of the Lord-“either a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”

[25] At that time there was a man in Jerusalem named Simeon. He was righteous and devout and was eagerly waiting for the Messiah to come and rescue Israel. The Holy Spirit was upon him

 [26] and had revealed to him that he would not die until he had seen the Lord’s Messiah.

[27] That day the Spirit led him to the Temple. So when Mary and Joseph came to present the baby Jesus to the Lord as the law required,

[28] Simeon was there. He took the child in his arms and praised God, saying,

[29] “Sovereign Lord, now let your servant die in peace, as you have promised.

[31] which you have prepared for all people.

[32] He is a light to reveal God to the nations, and he is the glory of your people Israel!”

 [33] Jesus’ parents were amazed at what was being said about him. [34] Then Simeon blessed them, and he said to Mary, the baby’s mother, “This child is destined to cause many in Israel to fall, and many others to rise. He has been sent as a sign from God, but many will oppose him.

 [35] As a result, the deepest thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your very soul.”

[36] Anna, a prophet, was also there in the Temple. She was the daughter of Phanuel from the tribe of Asher, and she was very old. Her husband died when they had been married only seven years. [37] Then she lived as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the Temple but stayed there day and night, worshiping God with fasting and prayer. [38] She came along just as Simeon was talking with Mary and Joseph, and she began praising God. She talked about the child to everyone who had been waiting expectantly for God to rescue Jerusalem). By doing this, Mary consecrated Jesus to God, she acknowledged that God had a plan for her Son and agreed to do everything in her power to cooperate with God’s intended purpose for him. Likewise, Christian mothers consecrate their children to God in the Sacrament of Baptism, and promise to do everything possible to help their children do what God wants in their lives.

Next, evil King Herod tried to kill Jesus, so Mary fled to Egypt to protect her son (Mathew 2:13-15). Christian mothers keep their children away from evil forces that could harm them:  violent or abusive adults, undisciplined playmates, and bad television programs, to name a few.

Mary and Joseph took their son Jesus to the synagogue in Nazareth each week in observance of the Sabbath (Luke 4:16-19 When he came to the village of Nazareth, his boyhood home, he went as usual to the synagogue on the Sabbath and stood up to read the Scriptures. [17] The scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where this was written: [18] “The Spirit of the LORD is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, [19] and that the time of the LORD’s favor has come.”), and they took him to the

Temple in Jerusalem once a year for Passover (Luke 2:41 Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the Passover festival). For Mary, regular church attendance was automatic. Mothers who follow Mary’s example go to Church every week, and they take their children with them, because it is so important to pray with others and be connected to other faith-filled families.

The gospel says that Jesus was obedient to Mary (Luke 2:49-51 “But why did you need to search?” he asked. “Didn’t you know that I must be in my Father’s house?” [50] But they didn’t understand what he meant. [51] Then he returned to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. And his mother stored all these things in her heart), which implies that Mary was firm and demanding with her Son. Christian mothers do not let their children do whatever they want, but have high standards for Christian conduct, have a set of house rules, and insist upon them.

When Jesus was crucified, Mary stood at the foot of the Cross and suffered with him (John 19:25 Standing near the cross were Jesus’ mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary (the wife of Clopas), and Mary Magdalene). She never abandoned her child, even during adulthood, particularly when things were at their worst. This sort of enduring love is exemplary for Christian mothers. Children get into trouble, sometimes for the right reasons, sometimes not, as children or as adults. Mothers like Mary stand with their children throughout life, especially when things go bad, even if they are unable to alter the course of tragic events, to offer love and support in whatever way they can.