Sermon: “Hey, You Better Make Your Momma Proud!”
May 11, 2025
Hannah, who was barren, prayed unto God to look upon her affliction and give to her a son, and promised her man-child to the Lord all of his days. God honored her request and she conceived and gave birth and called his name Samuel, whose name means “Heard of God.” (I Sam. 1:11 &20)
By all accounts, Samuel made Hannah proud as he served God in many ways all the days of his life. Samuel was a key figure in the Old Testament and is known for his roles as the last judge of Israel, a military leader, seer, prophet, and kingmaker anointing both Saul and David.
God worked through Samuel because he was willing to be one thing: “God’s Servant,” just as Hannah’s inner-most desire had been declared unto God. (I Sam. 3:1-11)
Happy Mother’s Day to All Mothers, Especially to Those within the Household of Faith!
Introduction
On this Mother’s Day, I address this Sermon to every born-again Christian within the Body of Christ. Each of us has a mother, or mother figure, who is either alive, or who has gone on to be with the Lord, and they have left us with a rich legacy. By legacy I mean, our mothers have set before us long-lasting impacts of loving events and actions that were borne out of their sanctified and sacrificed hearts to God. In large measure, these events and actions have and are working to shape and mold us into what God has called us to be. That is, “Christs” within the earth.
Like Hannah, the mother of Samuel, in the born-again hearts of every mother is the deepest of all desires for her child; to witness her child “hear and heed to God’s call,” and say “Here am I.” (I Sam. 3:6-8) While it is true in the human experience that every mother wishes for their child’s happiness, well-being, and a fulfilling life, encompassing their health, emotional and financial stability, and the ability to pursue their dreams with love and full support. Even far greater though, within the heart of each Mom, is an eternal ambition that one day her child would be granted a “wise heart” and become the “Servant” of God.
A Christian mother knows her child is a precious gift from God, and belongs to Him alone. (Ps.127:3 & Matt.19:14) From the time the child is born into this world and handed over to her loving arms and bosom, she looks up to heaven and thanks God for the child, and lends them to the Lord for keeping. As such, when we were children growing up, our mothers nurtured and admonished us in the ways of God to prepare us for that Day when we would hear the Master Jesus Christ call us into the fold. (Eph. 6:4 & Prov. 22:6)
We were taken to Sunday school, Worship Services, read the Bible, taught to pray and say the blessing over meals, to give offerings, sing songs unto God, to love God and all people, to forgive those who wronged us, to honor and obey our parents, to be respectful of our elders and those in authority, to be helpful to our neighbors and all people, and when we stepped out of line with a firm hand (and on occasion with the rod, which comforted us) we received correction and were taught to apologize for our misbehavior.
Yes, these events and actions, and so much more, were taught to us with our mother’s inner-expectation, that one Day we would make the wise choice to say to the Lord, “Here I Am.”
“Here I Am” Means Voluntary Service to God Forever
Oh what joy it brings to a mother’s heart to see her child run to the altar of the Church and give their lives to Jesus Christ. A child’s first steps and words, graduations, proms, and wedding day are all great and special events that make a mother proud. But no proud moment in our mother’s hearts exceeds the Day when we give our lives to Jesus, and receive God’s Salvation. To every child born into the world, at the set time known only of God, God begins making the clarion Call to children; the Call to His godly seed to harvest for servanthood all of the days of their lives. We all remember the Day when we came to Jesus, and said literally, or figuratively, said the words “Here I Am.”
The words voluntarily spoken from the heart, “Here I Am,” signifies a humble and complete surrender to God’s Will. It is a declaration of readiness to serve and be used by God as the Lord sees fit. “Here I am” expresses thanksgiving to God for desiring to use us in spite of who we really are. In that most precious and holy moment, we are saying to God, “Just As I AM, Here I Am.”
Sometimes we hear the Voice of Jesus calling us into the fold at a young age and immediately respond, while others may respond much later in life for God never ceases to Call. My “Ace” friend Bishop Larry Dempsey’s father (Willy Dempsey) came to Jesus Christ for the first time in his late 80s. Still, no matter the age when we say “Here I Am,” the Call of Christ must be answered because we were predestinated to belong to the Master and to be molded into His image. (Rom.8:29) This is the real beauty of surrender and the way God uses us. He simply takes broken people, with unclean lips, who are not worthy of His Presence and Anointing, nor to be used; and God says, “I want to use you.”
Even now as I preach, I’m reminded of the Prophet Isaiah’s calling. In II Chronicles 26:16-23, it is recorded that after a 52-year reign of relative peace, King Uzziah of Judah died of leprosy, and in that same year Isaiah began his prophetic ministry. Then, we also find in Isaiah Chapter 6 in more detail how the prophet, through a vision from the Lord begins his ministry for God. In the vision, the Lord asks, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?”(Is. 6:8) Isaiah’s response was to volunteer for service, saying, “Here am I, send me.”
In the vision Isaiah saw the Lord, “high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple.” (Is. 6:1)
The Lord had a Message to deliver to the nation of Judah, and He expresses His desire for a messenger in Verse 8, Isaiah’s exclamation “Here am I, send me” marked the very beginning of his ministry, the priest was now a prophet, and the Lord’s Message for Judah eventually would become the Book of Isaiah.
However, before Isaiah could say the words “Here Am I, send me,” he had a problem that had to be addressed. In Isaiah 6:5 it states how he was made aware of his own unworthiness, he wrote:
Then said I, Woe is me! For I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.
Standing in the Lord’s Presence, Isaiah is made painfully aware of his sin, and he is broken about it in the same way as were Job (Job 42:6) and Peter (Luke 5:8), when they were confronted with the Presence of the Lord. God was preparing Isaiah for his cleansing and commission.
After Isaiah acknowledges his sin, one of the seraphims in the Temple takes a burning piece of coal from the altar, touches Isaiah’s lips with it, and says, “See this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.” (Is. 6:7)
Some details are important here: Isaiah could not remove his own guilt of sin, the atonement is made possible by the altar; the place of sacrifice, and the purification is specifically applied to the point of Isaiah’s sin—his lips—making Isaiah acceptable as a minister of God’s words.
It is only after Isaiah is cleansed of his sin that he says, “Here am I; send me.” Prior to that point, he saw himself as an unworthy messenger. Once he was forgiven, he immediately desired to serve the Lord in whatever way possible. The Lord’s question, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” God desires willing volunteers in His service—and a grateful and enthusiastic Isaiah doesn’t hesitate in taking the opportunity: “Here am I; send me.” And for the rest of his life, Isaiah serves God who had forgiven and saved him.
In like manner, when we heard and headed the Call and came running to the altar to receive Jesus Christ, our lives were nothing more than sinful filthy rags. But, Jesus, who loved us, washed us from our sins in His own blood, our sins were forgiven past, present, and future; and we were made kings and priests unto God the Father. (Rev.1:5-6) Yes, the Day we were born-again, as our mothers witnessed our testimonies of conversion and water baptisms, they proudly rejoiced that their inner-most prayer had been answered. We were cleansed from all sin and commissioned as Ambassadors of God in Christ Jesus. From that Day forward only what we do for Christ matters and will endure all times.
Mothers Watch Over Our Service with God
Now Saints, let Proverbs 23:25 sink deeply into your souls and thought-life. King Solomon wrote:
Let your father and mother be glad; let her who bore you rejoice. (KJV)
The Message Bible states:
So make your father happy! Make your mother proud!
With the Triune God abiding in us, we can and must make our mothers proud of our Christian service all of our days on earth. Our mothers were made happy the Day we gave our lives to Christ and expression of our willingness to serve the Lord. But, they also understood that our Christian journey had just begun and our commitment to Christ is everlasting. No matter our age, our mothers concern themselves with our spiritual development and maturation in Christ Jesus.
Our mothers are never willing to let us passively live the Christian life and serve God. No, no, no. The Christian mother prays ceaselessly for her child, is always there to provide instruction, correction, and encouragement in accordance with the Word of God.
No matter the problem the child is confronted with, Momma has the solution: With confidence, she boldly declares “God will make everything all right.”
In the born-again heart of every Christian mother there is a bodacious expectation that her child will overcome every trial, tribulation, and/or persecution that comes their way, and that the child is also equipped to endure the chastening of the Lord and remain in complete service to God all the days of their lives on earth. Oh yes, mothers expect to see “all” that she has invested in raising her child come to full fruition.
Now, let me also say a few words to those Saints whose mothers are deceased and present with the Lord in Heaven. I want to comfort and reassure you that they are looking down and cheering you on; to with excellence be all that God has Called you to be in His service.
In my most humble opinion, it seems odd that in Christian Circles, so many Christians assume the Saints, including our mothers, who have made their transition to Heaven and are present with the Lord are completely ignorant of what’s happening here on Earth where the great drama of redemption is unfolding. Dear Lord, wouldn’t we think the citizens of Heaven are far more enlightened about the progression of salvation on earth, not less?
The Apostle Paul wrote at I Corinthians 13:12:
For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.”
This Verse signifies that while on earth our current understanding of God and the world is limited and imperfect, like seeing a blurry reflection, but in the future when we get to heaven, our understanding and knowledge of God and truth will be made much more complete and clear. Further, Paul’s writing speaks of knowing in part in our earthly life, but “knowing fully” in the next, implying a recognition of each other’s character and deeds when we get to heaven. The great hymnal entitled, “When the Morning Comes” says, “By and by, when the morning comes, when the saints of God are gathered home, we will tell the story how we’ve overcome; we will understand it better by and by.”
Praise God, while we cannot fully understand all things from Heaven’s perspective now, the Holy Bible does provide us with clues that suggests that our loved one’s in Heaven are aware and are watching some events that go on in our lives. In the case of mothers, I duly believe that a mother’s love for her children is never forsaken. So rich and deep is her love, compassion, and concern for her children that she is comforted by Christ concerning their security and well-being.
There is no fear in Heaven only faithful fulfillment of the eternal Promises of God. Mother’s in Heaven, I believe, rest in a revealed knowledge that there child is protected and guarded by assigned angels to bring forth their salvation, and so they peer over the balconies of Heaven and cheer their children on to victory.
Here is some of the evidence in the Holy Bible that the Saints in Heaven are aware of events in the earth. For example, Saints please be reminded of the martyrs in Revelation Chapter 6, who knew that God had not yet brought judgment on those who had killed them. It’s likely that they knew many other things about what is happening on Earth. At Revelation 6:9-11 it is written:
“I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. They called out in a loud voice, ‘How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?’
Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed.”
This Passage demonstrates that those in Heaven are the same people; only relocated. There’s continuity of identity from this life to the next. Those we love who are there now are part of what Hebrews 12:23 calls the “righteous men made perfect.”
Notice that the martyrs are aware of what happens on earth when they ask God, “How long… until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” They know those who killed them haven’t yet been judged. That means the martyrs remember their lives on earth; even that they were murdered. Some say people in Heaven can’t remember or see life on earth because knowing of evil would diminish Heaven’s happiness. But that is not so. Saints, the key to Heaven’s joy and our perfection as citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven is not ignorance, but perspective, knowing that our afflictions experienced on earth are not to be compared with the glory revealed in heaven when we meet the Lord and dwell in mansions on high. (Rom. 8:18 & John 14:1-2)
Saints, another example of people aware of events on earth, is when called from Heaven to the Transfiguration, Moses and Elijah “appeared in glorious splendor, talking with Jesus. They spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at Jerusalem.” (Luke 9:31). Moses and Elijah seemed fully aware of what was transpiring on earth, and what God was about to do.
Another excellent witness in Scripture for your consideration is Luke 15:7, where Jesus Christ referred to the “rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents.” Similarly, Jesus said, at Luke 15:10 that “there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” Glory to God, Jesus did not say that the angles are the ones rejoicing, but “in the presence” of the angels of God. Surely this includes Saints in Heaven, who would be overjoyed by human conversions, especially of those they knew and loved on earth. To rejoice over conversions on earth, they must be aware of what is happening on earth, not generally, but specifically.
Furthermore, Hebrews 12:1-2 tells us to “run with perseverance the race that is set before us.” The writer of Hebrews invokes the image of Greek competitions watched by throngs of fans sitting high in ancient stadiums. With the Saints who have gone before us are called a “great cloud of witnesses.” This imagery suggest those Saints, veteran spiritual athletes, watch us and cheer us on from the great stadium of Heaven. Note, that the witnesses are said to “surround” us, not just those who have preceded us.
As such, I submit that the Earth is center stage, awaiting the universe’s climactic event: Christ’s return. In Heaven, our Great High Priest Christ Jesus watches closely what transpires on earth, especially in the lives of believers. (Rev. 2-3) If God’s attention is on earth, why wouldn’t the attention of His loyal citizens of Heaven be here too; faithfully watching over us as we work as Ambassadors for Christ? They all are watching as we perform the works of Christ and greater works.
Make Momma Proud, Become Like Jesus, a Servant of All People
The Holy Bible makes clear that, when we have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, we will desire to serve God. When our hearts are regenerated, we become new creations in Christ, our hearts are made complete with the Spirit of the Life and Mind of Jesus Christ. (II Cor. 5:17 & Col. 3:3-4) Christ lives through us, and inherent in our relationship with God and knowing Him, is the desire to serve Him. Search your hearts right now and prove for your own selves that Christ is in you, and confirm the desire to serve only Him. (II Cor. 13:5) You only have a desire to worship God in spirit and in truth; for we are His true worshippers!
When we look at Jesus’ Life, there’s no denying that He was the “consummate servant” to all people. (Php. 2:5-11) Jesus’ entire life was centered on serving God; by teaching, healing, and proclaiming the Kingdom. (Matt. 4:23) Jesus exclaimed that, “He came not to be ministered (served) but to minister (serve) and give His life as a ransom for many.” (Matt. 20:28).
Then, on the night of His arrest, Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, leaving them with a final teaching to serve one another: “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.” (John 13:12-17) Since Jesus’ Public Ministry on earth was all about serving, and God has predestinated us to be conformed to the likeness of Jesus, then our walk with Christ must be all about service to God and one another. Jesus and all of the witnesses in Heaven are watching us serve others in unfeigned love and obedience to the Word of God.
Genuine service cannot be separated from love. We can go through the motions of serving God, but if our hearts are not in it, we are missing the point of the Christian life. First Corinthians 13 makes it clear that, unless our service is rooted in love, it’s meaningless. Serving God out of a sense of obligation or duty, apart from love for God, is not what He desires. Rather, serving God should be our natural love-filled response to Him who loved us first. (I John 4:9-11)
The Apostle Paul is a great example of how having a relationship with God through Jesus Christ results in a life of service. Prior to his conversion, Paul persecuted and killed believers, thinking he was serving God. But after he encountered Jesus on the road to Damascus, he immediately devoted the rest of his life to truly serving God by spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ. (Acts 9:20) Paul describes this transformation in 1 Timothy 1:12-14, writing:
“I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me trustworthy, appointing me to his service. Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.”
Once Paul became aware of the love and grace that God had given him, his response was to serve God. Indeed, the Holy Bible offers many motivations for our service. For example, we want to serve God because “we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken,” (Heb. 12:28) because our service supplies “the needs of the Lord’s people,” (II Cor.9:12), because our service proves our faith and causes others to praise God (II Cor. 9:13), and because God sees and rewards our labor of love. (Heb. 6:10) Each of these is a good reason to serve God and not grow weary and faint. (Gal. 6:9)
Saints, we can give away only what we’ve first received. The reason we can love and serve God is that He first loved and served us through Jesus Christ. The more we are aware of and experience God’s love in our own lives, the more prone we are to respond in love by serving Him and in turn others. If you want to serve God, the key is to get to know Him by spending earnest time in study of God’s Word and prayer. This is what the events and activities our mothers exposed us to in our youth were intended to accomplish.
Ask the Holy Ghost to reveal more of God to you, and as your relationship with God deepens in love and affection, God will bring you into assignments of service to accomplish Divine Purposes. (John 16:13). When we truly know God, who is love, our natural response is a desire to love and serve Him in return. And, to each act of service required of us, we will say “Here Am I, send me.” (1 John 4:8) Every believer in Christ has been called and anointed to do the works of Christ and greater works, (John 14:12) and also called into specialized services to the local Church. Here are a few examples:
• Sunday School and Bible study teachers
• Children and youth leaders
• Administrators
• Secretaries
• Janitors and maintenance workers to upkeep the building and grounds
• Transportation workers for children or others unable to drive
• Outreach workers
• Ushers and greeters
• Choir members and soloists
• Musicians
• Music directors, song leaders, etc.
• Audio and video technicians
• Website administrators and social media coordinators
• Treasurers and accountants
• Kitchen workers
• Nursery workers
Every member of a Church or Ministry should be serving in some way, and every servant of the Lord should remember that it’s more than just serving others; it’s loving them. Paul wrote, “Serve one another humbly in love.” (Gal. 5:13) Serving within and outside of the Church walls can take on many forms: babysitting for a young couple to give them a night out, preparing a meal for a family struck by illness, visiting the elderly or housebound widow, or just picking up a phone and saying, “I was thinking about you today.” Christians may busy themselves in tasks of service like the ones listed above, but endless performing, without love, is meaningless. (I Cor. 13:1-3) As we go about serving God and others, let us do so with a spirit of humility and brotherly love. (Php. 2:1-4) For in doing these things we are pleasing in the sight of God, will be rewarded in Heaven, and we make our mothers proud.
In closing, the Apostle Peter addresses the importance of serving God in I Peter 4:10-11 wrote:
“Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.”
Peter makes it clear that we have received our gifts from God for two purposes; to serve others and to bring praise to God. Serving is not about us receiving attention or glory; it is for God to receive glory.
This is what our mothers are expecting from our walk with the Lord; to do good works that bring glory to God the Father. When we are converted, we are required to strengthen our brothers and sisters. (Luke 22:32) Our mothers are watching, so make them proud with becoming a personal “Christ” for all people. Amen for the preaching of the Word of the Living God.
Please send your tithes and offerings in support of Exousia Ministries, Inc. to the PayPal link below. May God exponentially multiply your cheerful and hilarious giving to our Ministry and ever take you deeper into the knowledge of Himself.
http://www.paypal.com/donate?hosted_button_id=H928GMBX3YG8S