It now is, and always has been the intent of God for men to take their rightful place in the spiritual chain of authority. What makes a man fit for this role is if he is willing to place himself under the divine authority of God. As in any case, whatever actions that are pursued will bring about resulting conditions; whether he does or not.
Not too long ago I noticed a vibration in my car as I drove it. I took it to the mechanic for diagnosis and he told me that my car was out of alignment. He told me that because of this my tires were wearing unevenly. He told me that if it stayed that way that not only would my tires be soon worn out but that it would likely cause damage to other parts of the car. I arrived at the conclusion the just having four tires on the car was not all that is required; the tires themselves were not the problem. I had to have four tires on the car that were aligned in the right direction or there would eventually be destruction that would follow. Destruction of something that I need and depend on was the evidence that something is out of line.
When I look around at the world today I see a lot of wear and tear. I see wear and tear on women who have been wrongfully cast when it comes to responsibility of the amount of maintenance required to sustain the family spiritually. I see children who are walking in a mine-field called life without anyone showing them where the danger is; children who are being neglected, walked away from, and ignored; I see wear and tear in the rules of life which are designed to make sure that there is a future for the next generation. How do we address these factors which are having such a negative impact on so many lives in our neighborhood and even in the world?
One of the causes of these problems is an alignment problem. That is; men not living up to the real definition of manhood. Many of the problems that exist down here begin here. (Not talking about all men. If this does not apply to you then please feel free to disregard what I’m saying.) But for those who have not taken seriously what your short-coming in the lives of the people that you are supposed to be responsible for; “This Bud’s for you”.
Much of what we are travailing with culturally today has to do with many men being out of alignment; and the wear and tear is showing up everywhere else. And until the alignment is fixed the wear and tear will continue.
(LIVING IN THE HOOD)
Men go through a number of hoods: (“Male- hood”, “Boy-hood”, and “Man-hood”).
We start with “Male-hood”. “Male-hood has to do with sexual identity. You know who the male is when they’re born; and now it is determinable prior to birth simply by observing the plumbing. The obvious allows one to determine the “male”. This also establishes that it’s possible to be a male without being a man. It’s possible to have a sexual identity yet understand that that “male” has not graduated to “man-hood”. He is male simply by virtue of his sexual identity.
Then there is “Boy-hood”. “Boy-hood”, where many live; is based on immaturity and dependency. One of the things that you know about “boys” is that they are immature; they don’t make wise decisions, and they are torridly dependent. In other words, if a male is still a boy then he is looking for someone else to do it for him. Somebody else has got to take care of him; somebody else has got to be responsible for him. Ladies, if you have to take care of your man then you are actually taking care of your boy. “Boyhood” is where instead of him taking care of you, he’s sitting at home while you take care of him. If he’s dumping all the responsibility on you it’s because he’s still living in the hood. (Boy-hood)
Now you’re really in trouble if he’s combined “Male-hood” with “Boy-hood”; because he’s immature and irresponsible but he demands “Man-hood” recognition.
The issue is; what does it mean to be a man? In our context; what does it mean to be a Christian man?
One of the ways that you know that a culture is in trouble is when it becomes hard to find a man. Isa. 3: 12 God said that judgment was upon the world because children were running the adults and women were running the men. That inversion of authority is why judgment came upon these people (because it was hard to find a man). God says in Ezek. 22: 30: And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.
I can say without equivocation that this scripture may be one of the most profoundly pertinent scripture of this age. God is saying that there need to be someone doing enough of what He wants done to keep Him from bringing judgment upon the world.
Men of this age imply by their actions that they would be willing to step up when the situation becomes critical. Ezekiel 22:30 says that that time is here.
There are so many distractions in this age that it is easy for the process (or the lack thereof) of becoming a man to go unnoticed. Often, Women in their attempt to compensate for the lack of male influence stifle the maturation of a boy by not requiring the boy to go through the difficult processes that shapes a boy into a man. Without a man’s influence it’s difficult to product another man. Women do a lot of things well, but they have to step over into an area that is totally unfamiliar to them when it becomes their job to produce a man. They can tell you what a man looks like but what they see is the finished product. How that boy became a man was a process that happen over an extended period of time. In fact, a man can’t tell a boy how to be a man; he has to show him how to be a man. Even more importantly, a man can’t tell a boy how to be a Christian man; he must show him. In Exodus 34: 23: Thrice in the year shall all your men children appear before the Lord GOD, the God of Israel.
One of the things that was accomplished in this practice was that boys were specifically designated to be there; placing them in a recognized category that connected them with the male responsibility for the well-being of the nation. At the heart of the transition from male-hood to boy-hood to man-hood is the willingness and capability to receive God ordained responsibility as a man. It was for the purpose of making sure that the” men of God” were in alignment with the will of God so the relationship of all the people with God could be shored up and affirmed by this requirement. It was the responsibility of the men to make sure that all matters between the people and God were what they were supposed to be. The over-arching statement of the response of men was that they acknowledged that there was someone over them that they ultimately had to answer to.
One of the things that keep men from maximizing their man-hood is men often want people to answer to them while they answer to nobody. A man will complain that his wife does not submit to him; but when he’s asked to whom he submits, he has no answer.
There is a divine order that God has established that works perfectly if it is followed. The majority of the ills of this world would be positively impacted if people simply complied with it. This order places the proper persons in the proper positions in order to accomplish the right results. 1 Cor. 11: 3: But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God. God is going to accurately fulfill His role; Christ is going to fulfill His role; all that remains is for men and women to do what they’re supposed to do. Men should conduct themselves so that women can submit to them; women should then submit themselves to the man which would then place her in the position of being the “Help Meet” (Partner) that she was designed to be.
The answers to the problems that confront us and our children will not be solved through the devices of man. We would be wasting time if we disregarded what God has said that He would do if we simply followed the plan.
Exodus 34:23-24
23: Thrice in the year shall all your men children appear before the Lord GOD, the God of Israel. (Men understanding and accepting their roles in God’s plan.)
24: For I will cast out the nations before thee, and enlarge thy borders: neither shall any man desire thy land, when thou shalt go up to appear before the LORD thy God thrice in the year. (Who are the nations that will stand before us?)
The destructive trends that we face every day that are consuming our families, our marriages; our jobs our well-being; God will cast those nations our before us; and He will watch our back while we are busy doing His will. What a blessing it is to watch God do for you what you have been trying to do for yourself. All the stuff that is invading our lives; all the stuff that is threatening us; all the stuff that seems to offer us a constant challenge in our everyday lives; God said that “I will drive it out. I will also expand your capacity to receive more. Biblical man-hood is a male who have submitted himself to divine authority in every area of life. This is not just going to church; this is not just reading the Bible; this is a way of operating.
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