I have been going to different churches in an effort to help
with my learning and understanding in my faith. I have been to 6 in the past 2
months and it has really helped with my growth. One observation I have made is
the lack of men in all of the churches. When I say lack of men I do not mean
the lack of males! Sure everybody is so nice when they see a new face and give
you the “love bomb” and no one talks about anything that may even be slightly
controversial. I understand this as you don’t want to scare a potential new member
away. As I say the following it is an observation and not a criticism. It’s
based on what I have noticed in both going to these different churches and a
lot of reading.
As I sit in each church and I wonder, what if? If a
disturbed armed person were to come in and intent on harming people. Then I
look around again and realize I am pretty much on my own to take any kind of
action. If you don’t think it can happen then think again.
It just seems to me that the church could do a much better
job of attracting and mentoring men. When I was in the Marine Corps and
attended church I was around a bunch of men who carried guns. After service we
picked up our guns ready to do what we had to do. The Pastor/Chaplain knew how
to speak to us as men. We are not doves we are Eagles! We were not sheep we
were sheepdogs. If a pastor were to call me one of his sheep I would laugh in
his face. If God were to call me one of his sheep I would say “Yes sir!”
There are so many stories and examples of men bearing the
sword for God in the bible. Why are those never talked about in any sermon I
have heard. Think of David, Joshua, Gideon, Samson, Joab, etc. Even Peter bore
the sword when they came to arrest Jesus. Think of the 12 spies and how Caleb
and Joshua were the only 2 not afraid of the giants because they knew that God
was with them. I keep looking at the church ministries and have yet to see
anything about training and mentoring men to really become men. I see Youth
ministry, children’s ministry, mom time, soup group, Prayer team, and on and
on.
There is no doubt in my mind that women are the better sex
and definitely more involved in the church. We as men though are failing in one
of the few things we are good at and that is as protectors. It seems many men
in the church are motivated not by virtue, but fear and the passiveness it
creates! It's as though God gave them a keys to a brand new car and it's sits in the driveway because they are afraid to start it until God drops a roadmap from the sky. If the church wants to really attract men to Christ it needs to speak
to them in a way they understand. You can get the transformation I spoke of in
part 1 if we let them know it’s still alright to be a man. Decisive and
courageous in action! Humble , kind, and compassionate in the way he carries
himself! You can agree or disagree with this and then you can ask me if I care!
God bless!
Romans 13:4
for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer.
Psalm 144:1-2
Praise be to the LORD my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for battle. 2 He is my loving God and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me.
It's true, we are to be bold and unashamed of God. It's a fine line however, when it comes to bearing the sword. The old testament warriors who were conquerors were doing so in fulfilling the will of God. Those who charted their own course, who didn't listen to God, were quickly defeated and/or killed. When they were acting under his authority for his will and for his glory, they defeated great armies. When they trusted in their own strength they were routed. This is the narrative we see time and again in the old testament.
ReplyDeleteLet's not forget that Peter was rebuked by Jesus for raising his sword. He was passionate and that was good, but he didn't understand the bigger picture. Jesus tells him that in order for the scriptures to be fulfilled, for God's will to be done, he must go to the cross, not fight against it.
We need to fight for our families, for the church and for our world. But we must not do it at the expense of God's plan, he won't let us, we'll fail in those endeavors.
Peter's passion led Jesus to say, "Upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it." We need to have that same passion, that as Jesus taught us to pray, HIS will would be done on earth as it is in heaven.
God bless you brother.
Jason I see what you are saying. I guess my point was more about how does the church speak to men! How do you attract the lowest demographic in the church and get them to follow Christ. You have to get them in so they can see the light. As you know I am forced to raise the sword as part of my calling. I do understand I do this through his grace and with his strength in me. I do not do this with malice or anger and he is the one that guides me! I just think that with the way society is now that men need mentors on just what it means to be a man! Once we bring them to Christ then they have the perfect mentor. I know Peter was rebuked by Jesus. I believe it just shows how flawed we all are, but it's alright to embrace our masculinity. God bless!
ReplyDeleteJason I would like to add one thing about Peter picking up the sword to defend Jesus. I know he was rebuked, but the only point I was making there was the spirit of protector runs deep in our spirit as men! It just needs to be harnessed with his spirit so we have the self control to never use it out of malice or anger.
ReplyDeleteScott I agree with that last point 100%. The church as a whole doesn't do a great job of defining biblical manhood, and developing men to live fearlessly based not on our own strength, but the Holy Spirit alive in us. We also need to be careful, like we talked about the other night, when we study scripture we don't select verses that back up what we want to be true or already believe , but it is vital that we seek the truth based on what the text says. That way we can keep from promoting our own agenda, and ensure that we are doing all we can to learn, understand, and cherish truth.
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