A Nurturing Mother: Teaches Her Children Wisdom
When a mother desires to nurture the
spiritual life of her children, she teaches her children wisdom. She will teach
her children what wisdom is, where to go to find it, and to ask for it.
Wisdom is “not just a skill in
living life, but it is living life with moral excellence.”[1] The Christian mother seeks
to teach her children wisdom, specifically the wisdom of the Lord to live their
life righteously. Wisdom cannot come
apart from the fear of the Lord. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of
wisdom” (Psalm 111:10). So, if we want our children to learn wisdom, we must
teach them to fear the Lord. To fear the Lord means to respect, to reverence,
and to honor. John MacArthur says, “To
fear God is to live in the reality of His holiness, His sovereignty, and His
judgment of sin. It is to love God, respect Him, reverence Him, adore Him, hold
Him in awe, and worship Him.” Christian mothers, we need
to teach our children to “live in the reality of His holiness.” Our children
need to know the character of God, because they cannot fear who they do not
know. Ultimately, we cannot change their
hearts, but we can introduce and teach them about the character and attributes
of God and apply the knowledge of Him and His Word to their lives. Paul in Titus tells us that the grace of God
has appeared “instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to
live sensibly, righteously and godly in this present age” (Titus 2:12). The
knowledge and grace of God are paramount in directing our children to live
wisely, which includes righteously, before the Lord. We must teach them that
without the fear of the Lord, they cannot have true wisdom.
“How blessed is the man who finds
wisdom, and the man who gains understanding” (Prov. 3:13). The Christian mother
teaches her children where to go to find wisdom. After all, the Scriptures tell
us that he who finds wisdom is blessed, and he who finds wisdom finds life and
obtains favor from the Lord (Prov. 8:35). We beckon our children to draw near
to the Source of wisdom and knowledge, God Himself and Jesus Christ His Son.
“Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How
unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out” (Rom. 11:33). In
Colossians 2:3 it tells us that in Christ are hidden all the treasures of
wisdom and knowledge. A mother who desires to see her children grow in their
spiritual walk will continue to point her children to seek after Christ, to
know Him, and to find in Him the wisdom to live godly and righteously. As we
encourage our children to seek after Him, we admonish them to obey what He
teaches them.
A mother who desires to see her children grow in wisdom will instill the Scriptures in them. For it is in the Scriptures that they can gain wisdom. Psalm 119: 97-100, "Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day. You, through Your commandments make me wiser than my enemies;For they are ever with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, For Your testimonies are my meditation. I understand more than the ancients, Because I keep Your precepts."
The Scriptures will give your children more wisdom than their enemies and more understanding than their teachers and the ancients. They must know it, and they need to meditate on it and love it. Then they will have wisdom and understanding.
Finally, a mother who desires to
encourage wisdom in her children will teach them to ask for it. James 1:5, “But if any of you lacks wisdom,
let him ask of God, who gives to all men generously and without reproach, and
it will be given to him.”
Notice that it says, “if any of you
lacks wisdom.” Anytime we have a need for wisdom, or our children lack wisdom,
we are to ask God. For us, we may need wisdom to choose school curriculum,
education choices for our children, life or employment choices, or how to
handle disciplinary issues. The Bible tells us to ask God. Many times, my first reaction is to talk to a
friend or do research online. However, my first response to any situation where
I need wisdom, should be to ask God.
This does not mean that I do not use the resources God has provided to
help inform me so that I can make a wise decision, but I should always first
ask God to give me wisdom on the matter. For our children, they need wisdom for
life choices (what are they going to do after graduation?), friendships, work
choices, obedience to God, class choices. We should set an example for them in
this area of asking for wisdom. Then we
ought to instruct them, when they come to us or they are trying to make
decisions, to ask God for wisdom.
To ask means to beg, to ask continuously. In other words,
to keep asking God. In Acts 3, Peter and John were on their way to the temple
and they passed a lame man whose friends would leave him “every day at the gate
of the temple which is called Beautiful, in order to beg alms” (Acts 3:2). The
word from James 1:5 translated “ask” is translated “beg” in Acts 3:2. Begging
shows an earnestness to the request. We need to teach our children to ask God
earnestly for wisdom remembering that He knows what we need before we even ask
(Matt. 6:8) and He is a good Father who gives good things to those who ask
(Matt. 7:11).
We should teach them to ask in faith
and without wavering (James 1:6). They can ask in faith because they can trust
God to be faithful to keep His promises and to provide. They can ask without
wavering and without hesitation.
Although, sometimes faith requires waiting on the Lord and His timing.
How is God described in James 1:5?
He is described as one who gives generously and without reproach. He gives.
Ps. 84:11, “For the LORD God is a sun and shield; The LORD gives grace and
glory; No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.” He gives
and He withholds nothing that is good for us, to include wisdom. He gives
generously. Generously means bountifully and liberally and He is able to give
in this way because He is good and powerful. He gives without reproach, without
chiding. Chiding is expressing disapproval of and scolding. When we ask for wisdom, God gives it to us
both generously and without disapproval. This demonstrates such a wideness in
the giving of wisdom by our heavenly Father. We can approach Him and ask Him
boldly for wisdom in each and every circumstance because we have this promise,
“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God…and it will be given” (James
1:5). Because we know this promise, as
mothers we ought to teach our children to come to God, who promises to give His
children wisdom when they ask in faith.
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