The Marks of Manhood - Part 4

"When does a boy become a man?" With this question, Al Mohler embarks on a thorough, fair, and convicting journey of what constitutes true Biblical manhood. With the launch of our new men's group Propel, I thought it would be good to look at one quality per week from Dr. Mohler's article titled The Marks of Manhood.

Mark 4

Physical maturity sufficient to work and protect a family.

Unless afflicted by injury or illness, a boy should develop the physical maturity that, by stature and strength, marks recognizable manhood. Of course, men come in many sizes and demonstrate different levels of physical strength, but common to all men is a maturity, through which a man demonstrates his masculinity by movement, confidence and strength.

A man must be ready to put his physical strength on the line to protect his wife and children and to fulfill his God-assigned tasks. A boy must be taught to channel his developing strength and emerging size into a self-consciousness of responsibility, recognizing that adult strength is to be combined with adult responsibility and true maturity.

Copyright © 2005 Dr. Albert Mohler. All rights reserved. International copyright secured. This article was published on Boundless.org on October 30, 2009.

The Eyes of a Tiger

The following thoughts were written by Mike Osborne, who is pastoring with Dan Lerro at Trinity Church of Smyrna. He has graciously allowed me to post them here on our blog. This is a great lesson for us as men, and the thoughts themselves are a great example of how we the redeemed are to be interpreting the daily events of the world around us in light of the Gospel.
Thanks for the guest post, Mike!

____________________

The Eyes of a Tiger

Tiger Woods is a monumental sports figure. Perhaps no athlete is better known on planet earth; we know for sure that no other athlete makes as much money. His stature as both a world class athlete and as an excellent businessman make the recent events of his adultery all the more prolific. At the outset let me say that this article is not intentionally passing judgment on him. I am not Tiger's judge- Jesus is. Jesus is also my judge, and He says that whoever looks at a woman in lust to have her has already committed adultery in his heart. I am guilty of that. So, by Jesus' reckoning (the only reckoning that matters!) both Tiger and I are in the same boat. So, no, I am not judging Tiger Woods.

Rather, I am commenting on his situation for two reasons. First, I want to highlight the truthfulness of God's warning against adultery. I want Tiger's situation to be a warning to all men to flee adultery! Proverbs 5:32-33 says, "He who commits adultery lacks sense; he who does it destroys himself. Wounds and dishonor he will get, and his disgrace will not be wiped away." Is this not true in Tiger's life now? He has destroyed his life/image. He is being publicly shamed and humiliated in a variety of media (Jim Rome & Kornheiser to name a couple)- the once so noble Tiger is now an alley cat, brought low by a cocktail waitress (no offence to cocktail waitresses). He will bear this mark the rest of his life. The humbling of a mighty man affirms another proverbial warning, "for many a victim she (the adulteress woman) has laid low, and all her slain are a mighty throng"- a throng Tiger is a part of now. So, Tiger's cicumstances verify the Ancient Wisdom of God: flee sexual sin.

The second reason I wanted to comment on this is to see the idolatry of the human heart. What was going on in Tiger's heart that would cause him to do this? He has all the honor one could want. He has power and influence all over the world. He has all the money one could want, and all the finest things money could buy. He has a super model for a wife and two beautiful, happy/healthy kids (one boy one girl). On top of that he is healthy and strong. In effect, he is living the American Dream. What is the sense of committing adultery with a cocktail waitress?

Again I go to the proverbs for he answer. Proverbs 27:20, "Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied, and never satisfied are the eyes of a man." Tiger's eyes confirm this proverb. He has it all, at least by the world's standards. But obviously having it all is not enough! The eyes of man,in this case Tiger, always want more.

The fact that Tiger has all this world has to offer and is still not satisfied bears witness to the Scriptures testimony that only God Himself can satisfy all the desires of our lives for all time. "Whom have I in heaven, but You? And on the earth there is nothing I desire besides You." let this instruct us all! Even if we had it all- all of it would not be enough.

Tiger ( and all of us) has another problem. Not only is has his heart been unsatisfied and led him to shame, but he has also offended the glory of God. In effect Tiger has been treating himself as supreme. Golf, money, pleasure, image, and all the rest are his gods that bring honor to himself. This brings the ire of the True God. Tiger has set himself up in contention with God. Yes, Tiger's image and life in this world will "recover" somewhat, but he cannot cover the disgrace he brings upon His Creator for His idolatry. Nor can the glory of God which he has despised be treated so lightly. He, along with all who despise God's glory, will be held eternally accountable.

This is why Jesus is such good news for all the world- even Tiger. Jesus solves both of our problems. He removes the ire between us and God through His death. Jesus lived the life we should have lived before God, and died the death we should have died in our place. His death was sufficient to restore the honor of God's glory that we had despised in one way or another. This death frees us from our sins and their penalty, and empowers us to come to God Himself- the only One who can satisfy our hearts all the way all the time!

Our response to Jesus' act of love for us should be to renounce all the things that we treat as our god, and entrust our lives to Him. Jesus did all the work. Our response is only to receive. Such a response humbles us to our core, but in gaining Christ we gain all!

Tiger's circumstances are a warning and a lesson, not a reason to pronounce judgment. The warning: Adultery leads to shame and ruin. The lesson: Your heart and my heart will never be satisfied with anything other than God Himself, and to seek such satisfaction in other places despises His glory. Actions that result in drawing His judgment on your life forever. Let me encourage you to turn your eyes from beholding the glory of things that can't satisfy, and turn your eyes to the glory of Jesus Christ- crucified and risen for you, and Tiger.

Can You Spot a Church-Dater?

I've been skimming through Joshua Harris's book Stop Dating The Church in preparation for a youth retreat in January, and came across this section soon after Pastor Stacy's message on Sunday morning:

Today we live in an increasingly fragmented world. That mindset has influenced the way we approach our relationship with God. Faith is a solo pursuit. These days, experts describe America as a nation of "believers" but not "belongers"--and the numbers confirm it. According to pollster George Barna, while the adult population in the United States increased by 15 percent during the nineties, the number of adults who either didn't attend church or only went on major holidays increased by 90 percent!

Can you spot what I'm calling a church-dater? Here's a quick profile. Do you see one or more of these characteristics in yourself?

First, our attitude toward church tends to be me-centered. We go for what we can get--social interaction, programs, or activities. The driving question is, "What can church do for me?"

A second sign of a church-dater is being independent. We go to church because that's what Christians are supposed to do--but we're careful to avoid getting involved too much, especially with people. We don't pay much attention to God's larger purpose for us as a vital part in a specific church family. So we go through the motions without really investing ourselves.

Most essentially, a church-dater tends to be critical. We are short on allegiance and quick to find fault in our church. We treat church with a consumer mentality--looking for the best product for the price of our Sunday morning. As a result, we're fickle and not invested for the long-term, like a lover with a wandering eye, always on the hunt for something better.

Take my friend Nathan. He attended two churches on Sundays--one because he liked their music, the other because he liked the preaching. And his involvement in both went no deeper. At the first church he'd slip out just before the last song wound down and drive to the other church five minutes away. He even factored in time to stop by McDonald's for an Egg McMuffin. He timed it so that he'd be walking into the second church just as the pastor started to preach.

I guess you could say Nathan was two-timing.

If you see yourself in any of these descriptions, I want you to hear from a former church-dater: God has something better for you and me than dating the church. . . .

. . . consider what is lost when church dating becomes a way of life. The plain fact is, when we resist passion and commitment in our relationship with the church, everyone gets cheated out of God's best. You cheat yourself. You cheat a church community. You cheat your world.

Quote taken from: Harris, Joshua. Stop Dating the Church! Multnomah, 2004 (pg. 16-18)

The Marks of Manhood - Part 3

"When does a boy become a man?" With this question, Al Mohler embarks on a thorough, fair, and convicting journey of what constitutes true Biblical manhood. With the launch of our new men's group Propel, I thought it would be good to look at one quality per week from Dr. Mohler's article titled The Marks of Manhood.

Mark 3

Economic maturity sufficient to hold an adult job and handle money.

Advertisers and marketers know where to aim their messages — directly at adolescent boys and young men. This particular segment of the population is inordinately attracted to material goods, popular entertainment, sporting events and other consumer options. The portrait of young manhood made popular in the media and presented as normal through entertainment is characterized by economic carelessness, self-centeredness and laziness.

A real man knows how to hold a job, handle money with responsibility and take care of the needs of his wife and family. A failure to develop economic maturity means that these young men often float from job to job, and take years to "find themselves" in terms of career and vocation.

Once again, an extended adolescence marks a huge segment of today's young male population. Slothfulness, laziness and economic carelessness are marks of immaturity. A real man knows how to earn, manage and respect money. A Christian man understands the danger that comes from the love of money, and fulfills his responsibility as a Christian steward.

Copyright © 2005 Dr. Albert Mohler. All rights reserved. International copyright secured. This article was published on Boundless.org on October 30, 2009.

The Marks of Manhood - Part 2

"When does a boy become a man?" With this question, Al Mohler embarks on a thorough, fair, and convicting journey of what constitutes true Biblical manhood. With the launch of our new men's group Propel, I thought it would be good to look at one quality per week from Dr. Mohler's article titled The Marks of Manhood.

Mark 2

Personal maturity sufficient to be a responsible husband and father.

True masculinity is not a matter of exhibiting supposedly masculine characteristics devoid of the context of responsibility. In the Bible, a man is called to fulfill his role as husband and father. Unless granted the gift of celibacy for gospel service, the Christian boy is to aim for marriage and fatherhood. This is assuredly a counter-cultural assertion, but the role of husband and father is central to manhood.

Marriage is unparalleled in its effect on men, as it channels their energies and directs their responsibilities to the devoted covenant of marriage and the grace-filled civilization of the family. They must aspire to be the kind of man a Christian woman would gladly marry and children will trust, respect, and obey.

Copyright © 2005 Dr. Albert Mohler. All rights reserved. International copyright secured. This article was published on Boundless.org on October 30, 2009.