Just for Men

“Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.”  1 Corinthians 16:13

In a day of effeminate men, I am more grateful than I have ever been for real men who have influenced my life.  My grandpa was a real man. He taught me how to get my hands dirty and work harder than I ever thought I could. My dad is a real man. He taught me how to shake hands, how to walk, and how to speak like a man. He also taught me how to treat a lady by the way he treated my mother. Most of all they, along with other godly men, taught me by example what it means to be a man of integrity.

There is a world of difference between being a man and being a man of God. It is possible to be a man in age but fail to be a man in maturity, especially as it relates to spiritual things. We thank the Lord for faithful pastors, and men of God, who set an example for us all. But every man who truly follows Christ should seek to be a man of God.

In Exodus 4:16, God said to Moses that he would be to Aaron “instead of God.” Now we know that no one takes God’s place! The Lord meant that Moses would be the divinely appointed authority over Aaron. He would represent the Lord to Aaron and to all the people. In a very real sense, this is what the Lord called us to do – to represent the Him well in our sphere of influence.

We are to represent the Lord well in our homes. The husband is to represent the Lord Jesus by his sacrificial love to his wife (Ephesians 5:23-25). The father is to represent the Heavenly Father to his children (Ephesians 6:4). Of course, the only way to represent the Son and the Father appropriately is to be filled with the Spirit. Only He can enable us to lovingly lead our homes. When He does, our family comes to know God in a greater way because they see Him in our lives.

We are also to represent the Lord well to the lost. In our business dealings and interactions with people we are to represent Christ.  2 Corinthians 5:20 declares, “Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.” We are to do what Jesus did – live the truth, and give the truth to others.

Being a man of God is not holding a position or carrying a title. It is realizing our position in Christ and carrying His good name to those around us every day.

I am happy that God has given me a son. He is a good boy but I am praying that he will become a godly man. And I know that much of that will be based on what he sees (or fails to see) in me. May God help us to be men of God and to develop a generation of boys who are following in our steps.