At the end of first letter to the Corinthians the Apostle Paul gives a five-pointed charge to the church. This series examines those charges and seeks their application to us today. Part 1 is here. Part 2 is here.
“Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.” (1 Cor. 16:13-14)
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When I turned 18 my Mom said I should probably get a job. I didn’t want to get a job. I’d rather continue playing video games and hanging out with my friends. However, I also heard the message Mom sent loud and clear. I was no longer welcome as a child in her house, but would now have to start paying my way. I had transitioned over a threshold from childhood to adulthood in her eyes even if I didn’t necessarily feel it myself.
It would be many more years until I had matured into a man. In many ways the process is still going.
I’m not going to rant on video games and young men, plenty of others have beat that drum. I don’t mind video games actually. I still like to play them occasionally. The markers for manhood are more than choices in entertainment, though those DO matter.
Can you articulate what manhood is?
Our culture doesn’t know what manhood is. Boys are growing up increasingly confused, with no concept of what it means to be a man. Single parent households often mean Dad is gone. The one who should teach young boys how to grow into manhood is absent. This in itself is a failure of manhood. Early on then, boys are learning how to be poor examples of men. This was my experience as well.
Being a man is not physical strength. Being a man is not promiscuity. It is not power or influence. It is not chest hair, facial hair, or when you get older, no hair. Men don’t pick fights that don’t need picking. They don’t steal even if they will suffer. They don’t put themselves first. They don’t cause children to be brought into this world and then abandon them. They absolutely do not seek to have that child killed before birth. They don’t pursue their entertainment with greater vigor than their responsibilities.
However, if you look at what our culture celebrates, all of the above point to our society’s idea of manhood.
What is a man?
Paul in this call to action says to the Corinthian church “Act like men, be strong.” Some translations say “be men of courage.” Again we ask, what does manhood look like?
Biblical manhood is Christ-likeness. Do you want to know what it is to be a man? Study Jesus Christ.
He was obedient, respectful, and kind. He was unwavering before opponents. He was truthful and firm with them. There was no fear of man in him. He was not cruel.
He stood firm in the faith, never doubting his Father. He stood firm to the point of death, counting God worthy of everything, including his life.
He did not back down to the civil authorities and went willingly to the cross. He sacrificed. He put others before himself.
How do we do that?
Yeah, Nick, I got that. I can’t be Christ.
No. You can’t. I can’t. I am not calling you to be Christ, but Christ-like. We are to act like men, to be strong. Strength is far more how much weight you can lift. Daniel was never mentioned as being physically strong. His strength was his unwavering faith in God. He bowed before no idol even to the point of promised death. He sought to serve his God.
Much the same, if you would be a man, trust fully in God. Bow before no idol. Love with the unmatched love of Christ. Be patient and kind.
Manhood is forged in the soul, not the flesh. It is no less arduous a process, however. Read your Bibles, pray, and feel the hammer blows of the Spirit on your soul as you are forged. The refining of precious metal is a painful process. Impurities are burned out.
“I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.” Revelation 3:18
Men, it is time to deny ourselves. Cultural manhood is all about indulgence, but biblical manhood is all about sacrifice. Could the two be more opposed? Your choice is the same in this as in life; will you serve yourself or will you submit to God?
