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My little children for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you. (Galatians 4:19)

In my 55 years of studying and preaching the Bible, this is the most unusual and unique verse I have ever come across. The text was written by a man… a man who was in labor to give birth! Like any mother he is in labor to give birth. Only he’s a man! Men don’t give birth, women do. Women travail; men watch. Paul was WOKE two thousand years ago! He said that he, as a man, was pregnant! Actually in labor pains. He went even further than that – he was having labor pains for his grandchildren!

The title question is not “Who is Your Mother?” but “Whose Mother Are You?” Try not to be like Nicodemus who was totally confused when Jesus spoke to him about being born again in John 3:1-8. He asked, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus was speaking of a spiritual birth, not a physical birth. Same with Paul here. He’s talking about travailing and laboring spiritually, in his heart and soul. Here’s just an interesting thought: We call the birth a “delivery,” but it could just as well be called “takeout.” It depends on one's viewpoint. If you’re the mom it’s a delivery, if it’s the doctor it’s called a takeout.

Another strange thing about this is he is laboring for his “little children” to become pregnant! “I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you!” He is laboring to have grandchildren! And Christ is the grandchild he is laboring for, meaning Christ in another person. Is this not a strange text? He’s writing to his little children for whom he had labored to give birth that they might give birth to their own child which is Christ. Again, all of this is spiritual of course.

They call the travail of a woman about to have her baby labor pains. But that is only the beginning of her labors of love. Any woman can give birth to a baby, but only a mother can raise that baby and care and love it for the rest of her life. All of these are labors of love and it makes all the pain and trouble worth it. Paul was that kind of mother. God wants us to be that way when it comes to our children.

From this I want us to see that all Christians should be mothers! That is, every Christian should be in labor to give birth to children in the faith and then travail for them as Christ is formed in them. This is done through the sharing of the gospel with people and discipling them. All disciples should be making disciples. All believers should be sharing their faith so that others could be born again. In caring for our children, (both physical and spiritual) we should be teaching them the word and praying earnestly for them. This is a high calling and it is not easy.

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