Amazing Grace – Mother: A Priceless Gift
Pastor Tan Thai · May 12, 2019
This Mother's Day sermon honors mothers as a priceless gift from God and explores the story of Rahab, a prostitute transformed by amazing grace into an ancestor of King David and Jesus Christ. The message calls the congregation not to despise their mothers, and reminds the church to be a place of safety and love for both mothers and prodigal children.
The sermon opens by honoring mothers as a priceless gift from God to every person. Through vivid illustrative stories — from a fifteen-year-old boy who risked his life hiding in an airplane's landing gear to find his mother in Ethiopia, to prison inmates writing Mother's Day cards with tears — the message portrays the sacred and unbreakable bond between mother and child. Famous quotations from President Abraham Lincoln and a poem about a mother's itemized 'bill of love' further underscore the immeasurable value of maternal love.
The theological core centers on the biblical figure of Rahab in the book of Joshua. Though a Canaanite prostitute despised by society, Rahab hid two Israelite spies and expressed faith in the God of Israel. By amazing grace, she not only survived the fall of Jericho but also married Salmon — son of a leader of Judah — gave birth to Boaz, and through that lineage came King David and ultimately Jesus Christ. Rahab is one of four women named in Christ's genealogy (Matthew 1) and is listed among the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11:31, while James 2:25 uses her as an example of faith demonstrated through works.
The sermon emphasizes the practical lesson that children must never despise or look down on their mothers, especially when she is elderly or in difficult circumstances (Proverbs 23:22; 30:17). The pastor warns that today's generation tends to blame parents rather than accept personal responsibility, and he underscores the Fifth Commandment — the only one accompanied by a promise of blessing (Exodus 20:12).
The final section addresses mothers carrying the pain of prodigal children. The pastor draws on Jeremiah 29:11 and Joel 2:25-26 to reassure them that God has a good plan and promises to restore the years of loss and sorrow. The church is called not to judge or shame mothers whose children have gone astray, but to be a safe place that lovingly welcomes both mothers and wandering children with open arms — like the father in the parable of the prodigal son. The sermon closes with a moving letter from a father in the Italian classic Heart (Cuore) by Edmondo De Amicis, urging children to honor and never be disrespectful toward their mothers.