Mothers for our Salvation

The book of Matthew begins by recording the genealogy of Jesus Christ beginning with Abraham. The interesting thing about this genealogy is that five women are included. Four of these women were not Israelites. Apparently, Matthew wanted his audience to understand that Jesus came to save people from every ethnic group, not just Jews as many Jews believed. Knowing that Matthew included women in the genealogy of Jesus caused me to think about the importance of women in our salvation. Generally, we think of the fathers, but a closer look at scriptures shows us that mothers are just as important as fathers. In this article I want to lift up three women that played a very prominent role in Christian salvation history. The first mother that I want to lift up is Eve. God created the man and placed him in the garden to take care of it. God knew that the man needed someone to make the human race complete; so God created the woman to help the man. Now, generally speaking Eve is given a bad rap sheet. She listened to the serpent, ate the forbidden fruit, and convinced her husband to eat also. Somehow Eve is blamed for humanity’s problems. Evidentially, this is not how God sees it because God cursed the man and the woman, and God had mercy on them and extended grace to both of them by allowing them to live and covering them with garment of skin (Gen. 3:21). What is it about Eve that makes her so important to our salvation? When God called out the man for his sin He cursed the serpent, the woman, and the man. Let us not overlook a key statement that God makes to the serpent. God cursed the serpent and told him that there would be enmity between the seed of the serpent and the seed of the woman (Gen. 3:15). Scholars generally agree that this is a prophecy about Christ who is to come to save people from their sin by dying on the cross. This statement is understood more fully when we read what John writes about the Word that was made flesh (John 1:14). John writes: “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believed in His name, who was born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12-13, NASB). The seed of Eve that bruised the serpent’s head was born without the involvement of men. Eve, whose name means “mother of all living” is the necessary vehicle for all human life; and especially the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. While we tend to blame Eve for our sin, the writer of Genesis tells us that Eve starts the process whereby the Savior is born. The second woman that I want to lift up is Sarah, the wife of Abraham. In Genesis 6 God destroys the world by a flood. He saves human life through Noah and his family. Noah obeys God and builds an ark that saves life of all creatures on the earth Gen. 7). After the flood God calls Abraham to take his wife and leave his country. Abraham is to go to a land that God will show him. God promises to bless him with many descendants (Gen. 12:1-2). The crown of God’s promise to Abraham is found in Genesis 12:3. “And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed” (NASB). So you say that God made the promise to Abraham, and you are right. However, this is not the entire story. Sarah was beyond childbearing years. Abraham and Sarah agreed that Abraham should father a child for Sarah though the Egyptian maid Hagar (Gen. 16:1-4). God did not allow Hagar’s son Ishmael to be a part of the promise made in 12:3 although He did bless Ishmael (Gen. 16). In Genesis 18:10 the angel says to Abraham. “‘I will surely return to you at this time next year; and behold Sarah your wife will have a son”’ (v. 10). Sarah gave birth to a son, and his name was Isaac (21:1-8). Ishmael mocked Isaac and Sarah insisted that Abraham put the boy and his mother out (21:10). Abraham was hesitant but God said to him: “‘Do not be distressed because of the lad and your maid; whatever Sarah tells you, listen to her, for through Isaac your descendants shall be named’” (21:12, NASB). God was not abandoning Hagar and Ishmael. God had chosen Sarah to be the mother of Isaac the ancestor the Israelites and of Jesus Christ. God chose Sarah, a barren wife. God activated Sarah’s reproduction system showing that Sarah is God’s sovereign choice in salvation. The third mother that I want to lift up is Mary the wife of Joseph and the mother of Jesus. Mary was engaged to Joseph. Before the marriage was consummated through their coming together for sex, Mary is visited by the angel Gabriel who tells her that she is highly favored by God. God favors her to give birth to a son. ‘“And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. “He will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end’” (Luke 1:31-33, NASB). Matthew tells us of the angel visiting Joseph who was thinking about putting Mary away because he was thinking that she had been unfaithful since she was with child. In a dream the angel tells Joseph that the child is conceived by the Holy Spirit. He is to marry Mary and give the child the name Jesus (Matt 1:18-21). His birth will fulfill what was spoken by the prophet (vv. 22-23). Joseph awakes from his dream and does what the angel says (vv. 24-25). In conclusion we say that God made a sovereign choice of these three women to have key roles in the genealogy of Jesus Christ. They are indeed mothers for our salvation. Let us not forget our mothers who gave all of us life, and for many of us they are the instrument used by God to bring us to Christ so that we could be forgiven of our sins and have eternal life in God’s kingdom.