Hope For The Home
Psalm 127
1. God Builds (verses 1-2)
2. God Blesses (verses 3-5)
Today is Mother's Day. It's a day in the life of our nation when we honor our mothers.
Mothers Day can be a difficult day, especially for mothers who have lost children, children who have lost mothers, and women that long to be mothers. Perhaps this day is a hard Sunday for you. May the God of all comfort, comfort you in this day.
This morning, I want to honor all of you who are mothers. I want to encourage you. I want to preach a message to you to strengthen you for your task.
Being a mother is not easy. It's a difficult job. In fact, one anonymous author took the time to describe everything that a mother does by way of a job application.
POSITION: Mother, Mom, Mama
JOB DESCRIPTION: Long term, team players needed, for challenging permanent work in an often chaotic environment.
Candidates must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends and frequent 24 hour shifts on call.
Some overnight travel required, including trips to primitive camping sites on rainy weekends and endless sports tournaments in far away cities. Travel expenses not reimbursed. Extensive courier duties also required.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
The rest of your life. Must be willing to be hated, at least temporarily, until someone needs $5.
Must be willing to bite tongue repeatedly. Also, must possess the physical stamina of a pack mule and be able to go from zero to 60 mph in three seconds flat in case, this time, the screams from the backyard are not someone just crying wolf.
Must be willing to face stimulating technical challenges, such as small gadget repair, mysteriously sluggish toilets and stuck zippers.
Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars and coordinate production of multiple homework projects.
Must have ability to plan and organize social gatherings for clients of all ages and mental outlooks.
Must be willing to be indispensable one minute, an embarrassment the next.
Must handle assembly and product safety testing of a half million cheap, plastic toys, and battery operated devices.
Must always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.
Must assume final, complete accountability for the quality of the end product.
Responsibilities also include floor maintenance and janitorial work throughout the facility.
POSSIBILITY FOR ADVANCEMENT & PROMOTION: Virtually none. Your job is to remain in the same position for years, without complaining, constantly retraining and updating your skills, so that those in your charge can ultimately surpass you
PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE: None required unfortunately. On-the-job training offered on a continually exhausting basis.
WAGES AND COMPENSATION: Get this! You pay them! Offering frequent raises and bonuses. A balloon payment is due when they turn 18 because of the assumption that college will help them become financially independent.
When you die, you give them whatever is left. The oddest thing about this reverse-salary scheme is that you actually enjoy it and wish you could only do more.
BENEFITS: While no health or dental insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and no stock options are offered; this job supplies limitless opportunities for personal growth and free hugs for life if you play your cards right.
Such is an accurate portrayal of a mother's task. It is a difficult task. It is demanding. It is thankless. Rare is the mother who has never reached the point of despair.
I'm here today to give you hope. I'm here today to give hope to mothers. If you find yourself today to be worn out or discouraged, my aim is to give you hope. If your day of despair is yet to come, my aim is to prepare you for where to look for hope in the future. My message is entitled, "Hope for the Home." My text is Psalm 127.
As most of you know, we have been looking at the Songs of Ascents -- Psalms 120-134. These are the fifteen songs that Israel sang as they travelled the road up to Jerusalem to worship during their three annual feasts. There is a way that reflecting upon each of these Psalms will enrich our hearts to worship the Lord.
We aren't taking these Psalms straight through. We don't sing the hymns in our hymnal straight through. And so, I have felt the freedom to vary up the order a bit.
With Mother's Day, it seems as if Psalm 127 is the perfect fit. It has a message that is especially applicable for mothers who are working tirelessly to care for those in their home. My hope and prayer is that you mothers will find great comfort in these words. Let's read our Psalm:
Psalm 127
Unless the LORD builds the house,
They labor in vain who build it;
Unless the LORD guards the city,
The watchman keeps awake in vain.
It is vain for you to rise up early,
To retire late,
To eat the bread of painful labors;
For He gives to His beloved [even in his] sleep.
Behold, children are a gift of the Lord,
The fruit of the womb is a reward.
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,
So are the children of one's youth.
How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them;
They will not be ashamed
When they speak with their enemies in the gate.
We see from the superscription that it was written by Solomon. In 1 Kings 4:32, we find out that Solomon wrote 1005 songs. This is one of them. The only other Psalm in the Psalter that he wrote was Psalm 72. Written by Solomon, it comes as no surprise that this Psalm is written much like the Proverbs. In fact, Westermann points out that this psalm could appear in the book of Proverbs "without changing a word, and no one would imagine that they were supposed to be [a psalm]." That's why this psalm has often been identified as a "wisdom" psalm (with 128 & 133).
The wisdom that comes from this Psalm is simple: everything depends upon God's blessing. Your work and toil in the home is useless unless God is with you to bless your work. Your labor to protect the city is useless unless God is with you to provide the protection of the city. Early mornings and late nights are useless unless God blesses your work. Any children that come into the home are a direct result of the blessing of God. Any benefit that these children bring to you is a gift of the Lord. Everything depends upon God's blessing!
This Psalm neatly divides into two parts: The first part comes in verses 1 and 2. The second part comes in verses 3 through 5. As is appropriate, I have two points this morning.
Here's my first point:
1.
God Builds (verses 1-2)
We see this in verse 1, ...
Psalm 127:1
Unless the LORD builds the house,
They labor in vain who build it;
Unless the LORD guards the city,
The watchman keeps awake in vain.
In this verse, we have two identical statements, both of which are identical grammatically. The first statement deals with a house and a home. The second statement deals with a city and its security. They both state the same essential truth: if God does not work, your activity is useless. You can try to build a home, but if God doesn't work, you have built in vain. You can try to guard the city, but if God doesn't work, your watching has been in vain.
You can easily extend this truth to many areas of life. Unless the Lord builds the church, they labor in vain who build it. Unless the Lord builds the corporation, they labor in vain who work there. Unless the Lord gives the military victory, they labor in vain who fight the war. Unless the Lord gives the recovery, the doctors treat the patient in vain. Unless the Lord gives the understanding, the student studies in vain. Unless the Lord gives the skill, the musician will practice in vain. Unless the Lord gives salvation, the evangelist preaches in vain.
This is a common thread throughout all the Scripture:
Psalm 33:16-18
The king is not saved by a mighty army; A warrior is not delivered by great strength. A horse is a false hope for victory; Nor does it deliver anyone by its great strength. Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear Him, On those who hope for His lovingkindness,
Proverbs 21:30
There is no wisdom and no understanding and no counsel against the LORD.
1 Corinthians 3:5-7
What then is Apollos ? And what is Paul ? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth.
Let's dig into verse 1, ...
Psalm 127:1
Unless the LORD builds the house,
They labor in vain who build it;
In Scripture, building a house has several different connotations. First, It can refer to the building of a physical structure -- i.e. homes (Deut. 28:30; Jer. 29:5) and the temple (2 Sam. 7:5; 2 Chron. 2:1). It can also refer to a family. "The wise woman builds her house, but the foolish tears it down with her own hands" (Prov. 14:1). "By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established" (Prov. 24:3).
Whether this verse refers to a building or a family, both are true. Do you remember how those in Babel tried to build "a tower whose top [would] reach into heaven" (Gen. 11:4)? "The LORD came down to see ... the tower" (Gen. 11:5). He confused their language and "scattered them abroad from over the face of the whole earth" (Gen. 11:8). So much for the tower. "Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it;"
Do you remember when David sinned with Bathsheba? The Lord brought a curse upon his household. The LORD said, "The sword shall never depart from your house. ... I will raise up evil against you from your own household" (2 Sam. 12:10-11). "Unless the LORDbuilds the house, they labor in vain who build it;"
And what is true of the family is also true of the city. In the time of Solomon, guarding a city was an important task. Every city was fortified with walls and lookout towers to identify the enemy as he approached. The entire history of Israel and Judah was one of cities being attacked and defended. Do you remember when Israel defeated Jericho (Joshua 6)? It was only with the help of the LORD. I don't care what sort of watchman Jericho posted upon the city walls, the LORD was against the city. And its walls crumbled and it was defeated.
Do you remember when Israel was defeated by Ai (Joshua 7)? It was because the LORD was protecting Ai, not because they had such great watchman. Even the most diligent watchman is no match for God - the city is NOT safe.
Now, obviously, our interest today is the Lord building the house (verse 1a). Furthermore, our interest today is to give help to you mothers. Here's what we need to learn, "Mothers -- unless the LORDbuilds your house, you labor in vain trying to build it;"
That's not to say that you shouldn't work hard to build your house. You should. Isn't that what Proverbs 31 is all about? A woman who works hard? The virtuous woman looks for wool and flax (verse 13); works with her hands (verse 13); brings her food from afar (verse 14); gives food to her household (verse 15); purchases the field (verse 16); plants a vineyard (verse 16); girds herself with strength (verse 17); extends her hands to the poor (verse 20); makes coverings for herself (verse 22); makes and sells the linen garments (verse 24); supplies belts to the tradesmen (verse 24). Proverbs 31:27 says, "She looks well to the ways of her household, And does not eat the bread of idleness."
Mothers, you must work. And the dirty diapers and the endless meals and the late nights and the planning and the counseling and the loving and consoling and the trips to Woodmans and the next load of laundry -- they are all part of it. You wrongly understand verse 1 if you think that it means that you are simply to sit back and watch the television and surf the internet every day, because (you reason), God is the one who builds your house. No, that's not right.
Motherhood is a call to work. But, you must have the proper perspective of your work. You need the perspective of verse 2, ...
Psalm 127:2
It is vain for you to rise up early,
To retire late,
To eat the bread of painful labors;
For He gives to His beloved [even in his] sleep.
Again, we see the "vain" word. It occurred twice in verse 1. It occurs here again in verse 2. It speaks of the vanity of working hard.
Now, hard work is good. Proverbs commends hard work. Proverbs condemns the sluggard, who refuses to work. Such a one will come to poverty.
But, here in verse 2, we see a way to work that is vain. It's the sort of work that never stops. It's the long hours where the work never ends.
Remember, God gave the Sabbath to the Israelites for their good. It is good to rest. Solomon said that "The sleep of the working man is pleasant" (Ecc. 5:12).
But, here in Psalm 127, it's the workaholic here that is addressed. Solomon warns the one who tries to "burn the candle from both ends." He speaks of the person who is "always on the go" and is perpetually tired. He is speaking of the one who is always "busy, busy, busy, ..."
Now, many workaholics have good motives. They want to help their children. They want to get ahead. But, in getting ahead, they may lose their children.
Such work is vanity. Solomon spoke of it in Ecclesiastes 2:
Ecclesiastes 2:18-23
I hated all the fruit of my labor for which I had labored under the sun, for I must leave it to the man who will come after me. And who knows whether he will be a wise man or a fool? Yet he will have control over all the fruit of my labor for which I have labored by acting wisely under the sun. This too is vanity.
Therefore I completely despaired of all the fruit of my labor for which I had labored under the sun. When there is a man who has labored with wisdom, knowledge and skill, then he gives his legacy to one who has not labored with them. This too is vanity and a great evil. For what does a man get in all his labor and in his striving with which he labors under the sun? Because all his days his task is painful and grievous; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is vanity.
And too often has the case been that husband and wife had worked and toiled all of their days, only to pass on their riches to their children who squander it all with loose living. Just think of the "spoiled rich kid." He has been given everything in life. He has had everything handed to him on a silver platter. And what does he do? He wastes it.
And you too can work hard and labor night and day, and lose your children. Verse 2 tells us to "go to bed and trust the Lord!" Moms, I want to encourage you this morning to work hard at your labors at home. But, I want for you to know your limits. You don't need to be everyone's hero. You simply need to be faithful, and trust in the Lord.
William Plumer, the old commentator, said it well, ...
God does not require us to kill ourselves, or fret ourselves to death, but only to use lawful industry, and then with quiet confidence in his providence to lie down and sleep. The divine blessing and not our foresight secures success. God is as merciful in giving us sleep, as he is righteous in requiring labor. And he shows his care for us by causing our crops to grow and our affairs to prosper, even while we sleep. [1]
That's what Psalm 127 is about. It advocates hard work, and then a trusting rest. Why? Because "God gives to His beloved [even in his] sleep" (verse 2).
For some reason, the interpreters of the New American Standard translation of the Bible placed a few extra words in this verse, which changes its meaning a bit. If you have a New American Standard, you can see the words in italics. Words in italics are words that the translators have inserted. Usually, they have been added to help the translation be clearer. We see this in Psalm 123:2, "Behold, as the eyes of servants [look] to the hand of their master." But, here in Psalm 127, they actually change the meaning.
Most translations say, "God gives to His beloved sleep," which is exactly what the Hebrew text says, meaning that God gives sleep. But, the New American Standard inserts the words, "even in his," "God gives to His beloved [even in his] sleep," which is a possible translation, but not necessary. This changes the meaning to say that God blesses His children with needed things, even when they sleep.
Certainly, both are true. He gives (and takes away) sleep. Perhaps you remember when God accomplished His purposes through the sleepless night that King Ahasuerus spent (Esth. 6:1). Also, God providentially works out many details of life while we sleep. But, whatever way you take it, the idea is plain. It's futile for you to try to accomplish everything yourself. Do what you can and trust the LORD with the rest.
It may mean that your house isn't perfectly clean, because you simply don't have time to keep up. And you need to go to bed. It may mean that your meals aren't gourmet every night, because you don't have time to make it. And you need to go to bed. It may mean that the sheets on your beds to get changed as often as you like, because you don't have time to do the extra load of laundry every week. And you need to go to bed. It may mean that you can't keep up with the Joneses, because you don't have time to keep up with the Joneses. And you need to go to bed. It may mean that your children can't be involved in every activity that comes their way, because you don't have time to taxi them all around. And you need to go to bed.
When you choose to go to bed, with work undone, you are expressing your trust in the Lord. And it may well be that the Lord will bless your expression of trust with more than would have happened had you remained awake and worked more.
Proverbs 11:24 says, "There is one who scatters, and yet increases all the more, And there is one who withholds what is justly due, and yet it results only in want." We could equally well apply this to the home. "There is a mother who gets her regular sleep, and yet her house abounds in blessing. And there is another mother one who works tirelessly in the home, but her results are few."
This is the way that God works. He gives to those who trust in Him. This is the sovereignty of God in application.
I trust that this comes to you mothers as a great comfort. I know that it has comforted my wife. About 18 months ago, home schooling our children was becoming an increasing burden upon her life. Some of our children were high maintenance and demanded much time from her. Some of our children were a little behind in their reading. Some of our children were not doing well in their studies.
One day, Yvonne was at Hallstrom -- a homeschooling workshop that we attend -- and she was talking with another mother about some of the difficulties that she was facing with some of our children. In the course of conversation, Psalm 127 came up. And it was a great comfort to her in her distress.
That very day, she happened to see this piece of art done by some young student. Yvonne can't remember if it was on the floor or on the bulletin board or on some table. But, it was a bit out of place. I'm guessing that the student was 4th grade? Maybe 5th grade? Anyway, it was a quote from Exodus 4:11, "But the Lord answered, 'Who makes people able to speak? Who gives them sight? Don't you know that I am the one who does these things?"
Instantly, this verse came to her as such a comfort. It is exactly what she needed. God is the one who has made our children. God is the one who gives them ability to speak. God is the one who gives them ability to see. God is the one who gives them ability to learn. God is the one who grows their responsibility.
And, when Yvonne saw this little artwork that was done, she took it. She brought it home and showed it to me. We don't know who made it (there is no name on it). We don't know why it was done. But, it has so helped Yvonne that she is thinking of framing it.
I'm not charismatic, but if ever we received a message directly from the Lord, this paper is it! That's why we have kept this paper for 18 months!
Such is the truth of Psalm 127 that I want you mothers to cherish! You are dependent upon the Lord for everything! And perhaps your best labor for your home comes during the time in your day when you seek the Lord for His blessing in your life.
Paul Miller tells of the time when he discovered that his best parenting came by prayer. He said, ...
It took me seventeen years to realize I couldn't parent on my own. It was not a great spiritual insight, just a realistic observation. If I didn't pray deliberately and reflectively for members of my family by name every morning, they'd kill one another. I was incapable of getting inside their hearts. I was desperate. But even more, I couldn't change my self-confident heart. My prayer journal reflects both my inability to change my kids and by inability to change my self-confidence. That's why I need grace to pray.
God answered my prayer. As I began to pray regularly for the children, he began to work in their hearts. For example, I began to pray for more humility in my eldest son, John. (As Jill says, 'The apple didn't fall far from the tree.')
About six months later he came to me and said, 'Dad, I've been thinking a lot about humility lately and my lack of it.' It didn't take me long to realize I did my best parenting by prayer. I began to speak less to the kids and more to God. It was actually quite relaxing. [2]
This is my heart for you mothers. I want for you to have a relaxed heart. Mothers are so concerned about their home and their children that they can so easily be anxious and worried. They may easily find themselves unable to sleep at night because they worry for their children. But, Solomon instructs you to sleep, trusting the Lord to build your house.
Well, that's my first point. God Builds (verses 1-2).
Let's move quickly now to my second point, ...
2. God
Blesses (verses 3-5)
Let's begin in verse 3, ...
Psalm 127:3
Behold, children are a gift of the Lord,
The fruit of the womb is a reward.
This verse begins with the exclamation, "Behold!" This is like Jesus saying, "Truly, truly, I say to you." And here is the reality: Any child that comes into your home comes into your home as a direct result of the blessing of God!
Most translations here in verse 3 say that children are a "heritage" from the LORD. Literally, they are an "inheritance." An inheritance is something that that you receive from your parents, from their wealth. Likewise, we ought to consider our children as coming from the LORD.
They are a "reward" (3b). We often think of children merely as a "gift" from God. And indeed, children are a gift to us. We don't deserve them. The only children that we have are those that have been given to us by God. And there are times when God withholds the gift. Sarah (Gen. 11:30), Rebekah (Gen. 25:21), Rachael (Gen. 29:31), Hannah (1 Sam. 1:2), Elizabeth (Luke 1:4) are a few of those barren women in the Bible from whom God withheld the gift of children for a time. And the pain of barrenness is incredible.
Proverbs 30:15-16 says, "There are three things that will not be satisfied, Four that will not say, 'Enough': Sheol, and the barren womb, Earth that is never satisfied with water, And fire that never says, 'Enough'" In other words, like the earth that will continue to drink the water, and like the fire that will continue to consume the wood, so also will the barren womb will cry out and cry out and cry out until it gets its baby. And so, any child that comes into our home is a total gift of the Lord.
But, let us not back away from the meaning of this word, "reward." "Reward" is usually used to describe the hiring of a person in return for wages (2 Sam. 10:6; 2 Chron. 24:12; Neh. 13:2; Prov. 26:10). Like the Proverbs, it is general truth that God rewards the righteous with children.
That's why it is often the case that godly families are larger families. Verses 4-5, ...
Psalm 127:4-5
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,
So are the children of one's youth.
How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them;
They will not be ashamed
When they speak with their enemies in the gate.
In our society, many children are looked upon as a burden, not a blessing. Those in our country who choose to have many children are often mocked. When they tell others how many children they have, often there is surprise on their face! "Wow!" they say. Sometimes, there are jokes, "Do you know what causes children?" I even know a man who was called selfish for having so many children. He was selfishly consuming more of the world's goods on his own family.
Such attitudes are from the world and do not express the heart of God. God told Adam and Eve to "be fruitful and multiply" (Gen. 1:28). Such has been the heart of God throughout all time. Large families are not a curse. Large families are a blessing!
Look over at Psalm 128 (which we will look at on Father's Day). Verse 3, "You wife shall be like a fruitful vine within your house, your children like olive plants around your table." That's a picture of blessing! That's a picture of happiness and joy and fruitfulness. And let us never diminish such a picture.
We have a picture here in verse 5, ...
Psalm 127:5
How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them;
They will not be ashamed
When they speak with their enemies in the gate.
The picture here is the man who has a household full of children. And when he is out in public, speaking with those in the gate, he will inevitably come upon his enemies -- those who compete with him in the business world, those who have had some conflict with him in the past, those who don't like what he stands for. And when he is out there, his full quiver at home will never give him a reason to be ashamed. Rather, it will be a sign of the blessing of God upon his life.
Large families are not a curse. Large families are a blessing! And so, as you consider how large you want your family to be, I will always encourage larger, rather than smaller.
I remember years ago when we were with my grandmother. For some reason, she was with us at the holiday time, when my brothers and sisters were seeking to "fill the earth." And as she sat there and watched all of her great grand-children running around the house and playing with each other and having so much joy, she commented, "I wish I would have had more children." For whatever reason, she and her husband had only two children. But, when she saw the blessing of God with the many children, she regretted having so few.
I also remember speaking with a godly woman whose children were grown up. She said something to this effect, "I remember when our children were little; it seemed as if the chaos never ended. And there were some hard times. But, now that they are gone, I miss those times. They were such happy times."
So, you will always find me encouraging larger, rather than smaller families. I'm so blessed to be a pastor of a church with so many children. Every time I hear of another family expecting a child, my heart is thrilled, because I know that blessing that will come into your lives. I'm thrilled for Adam and Amy. I'm thrilled for Tim and Wendy. I'm thrilled for Carl and Karil. I'm thrilled for Brian and Jodi. There may be others that I'm thrilled about as well, I just don't know.
Before we leave this topic, may I remind you, that bigger isn't always better. Douglas Wilson has well pointed out, "When the children are disobedient, the more there are, the worse it is. Samuel would not have been more greatly blessed if he had had five sons who took bribes instead of two (1 Sam. 8:3). Joel and Abijah were enough." [3] That is to say, the blessing comes with large, obedient families. "A wise son makes a father glad, but a foolish son is a grief to his mother" (Prov. 10:1). And many foolish children will bring unspeakable agony to any mother.
And so, I encourage you to have large families. I encourage you to have large, obedient families. I encourage you to enjoy your children.
Getting back to the time when my wife was struggling with the overwhelming task of mothering our children, she found great help in these words. "Children are a blessing. They are to be enjoyed. Let us find our delight in serving them and training them."
She was recently speaking with a fellow homeschooling mother, who told her how she reminds her children every day of the blessing that they are to her. Every day, she reminds them of how happy she is to be able to spend the day with the children. Every day, she reminds them of how fortunate they are to have a family that is able to spend so much time together. Such a perspective has helped my wife as well.
Let us finish up by looking at verse 4:
Psalm 127:4
Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,
So are the children of one's youth.
Every single child that you have is like an arrow. You work hard to craft your arrow. In Bible times, they didn't go to Gander Mountain to purchase some arrows. They made their arrows. They fashioned them by themselves. These arrows would sit for a time in your quiver. But, when the time was right, you would take an arrow into your hand and aim and let go.
Let us never lose sight of the fact that our children are to be taken from the quiver and used to shoot at their intended target. I fear those who make such an idol of their families that when the children leave the home, they are devastated. I fear those who so want to control their children, that when their children leave the home, they still seek to exert their control. Hear this: Your joy will be maximized when your children are serving the LORD.
I find myself often returning to 3 john 4, "I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth." Now, in this verse, John is speaking about his spiritual children. He is speaking of those who have come to faith through his ministry, those who he has had the privilege of discipling and training. And yet, the principle can equally apply to parenting. "You will have no greater joy than this, to hear of your children walking in the truth."
In the end, it's not much going to matter to you whether your children climb the corporate ladder and make it rich in this life. In the end, it's not much going to matter to you whether your children obtain some sort of notoriety in this life. In the end, it's whether or not your children have embraced the gospel of Jesus Christ, and are trusting in Him for the forgiveness of their sins, and are walking in that truth." And when they are doing that, all will be well in your household.
So mothers, train your children to that end. Train your children in the gospel of Christ. Read the Bible to them. Pray with them. Pray for them. Tell them the story of Jesus, how He came and died for our sins, that we might be set free from our sins. Press them to believe. Model before them what it means to believe. Fill your home with grace and love and encouragement. May your children give you everlasting joy!
This sermon was delivered to Rock Valley Bible Church on
May 12, 2013 by Steve Brandon.
For more information see www.rvbc.cc.
[1] Plumer, the Psalms, p. 1115