"The Measure of a Man"
Psalms 128:1-6
Psalms 128:1 A Song of degrees. Blessed is every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways.
2 For thou shalt eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee.
3 Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine by the sides of thine house: thy children like olive plants round about thy table.
4 Behold, that thus shall the man be blessed that feareth the LORD.
5 The LORD shall bless thee out of Zion: and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy life.
6 Yea, thou shalt see thy children's children, and peace upon Israel.
Introduction: How many of you have lived through a time of shortage? I'm old enough to remember some old-timer's talk about the shortages during WWII when so many things were rationed because of the war effort. Millions of Americans sacrificed to make sure that our armed forces had the materials needed to wage war on two fronts. How many of you are old enough to recall the oil embargo of 1973-74. The 1973 oil crisis started in October 1973, when the members of Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries or the OAPEC (consisting of the Arab members of OPEC, plus Egypt, Syria and Tunisia) proclaimed an oil embargo. By the end of the embargo in March 1974,[1] the price of oil had risen from US$3 per barrel to nearly $12.[2]
The oil crisis, or "shock", caused many global short-term and long-term economic and political effects. I recall the long lines in some parts of the country as motorists lined up to get gas.
In hindsight $12 per barrel seems pretty cheap compared to over a hundred today. When Sis Judy and I got married we were paying under 25 cents a gallon for gas but now regularly pay between $3.25-3.75 depending on where you live.
We don't have many shortages today in terms of material things. America is the richest nation on earth and I'd still prefer to live here than anywhere else. But America is facing a shortage that is more important than almost anything that I know of. Our culture is facing a shortage of men, not just any kind of man but real men, men who will serve God. Not every male is a man obviously for there are many who are born males, but it takes maturity to be a real man. Someone said, "You're a child only once but you can be childish all your life."
What is real manliness, what is the measure of a man? We won't find the answer in popular culture, or from those in the entertainment industry. Justin Bieber, Donald Trump, Rush Limbaugh, Bruce
Springsteen, and not even my child hood hero John Wayne is the place to look for what is the true measure of a man.
Also, if you purchase an appliance or a new automobile you will receive an owner's manual with instructions on how to set it up, operate and maintain it. The only place to really find out what it means to be a man is in the Word of God. In the Bible we find out that in the beginning God made them male and female. There is a basic fundamental difference between men and women and I'm not referring to anatomy either. The world and the devil are doing all that they can to blur the distinctions in the name of equality but God made them different!
In this Psalm we find the real, true measure of a man and I'd like to share that with you this morning and Father's Day. First:
I. A Man Is Measured by His Walk v. 1
a. It is practical
The word "walk" is a metaphor for behavior that is found throughout Scripture. Enoch and Noah walked with God which says something about the nature of the way that they lived.
b. It is principled
We need men who will allow their lives to governed by the Word of God. Men who will strive to live in purity. Men who will behave with integrity and honor.
Headline from the Dothan Eagle dated June 4, 2014 - Two men, one of whom was a longtime deacon of a local Baptist church, were arrested over the weekend and charged with soliciting children for sex, according to the Henry County Investigative Unit. __________, a longtime deacon at Rehobeth Baptist Church, also was charged with transmitting obscene material to a child. According to the investigative unit, ___________believed he was meeting a 14-year-old child.
Statistically speaking, you are probably seated in the pew with someone, be they male of female, who is viewing pornography on line. In the 7 years that I have been pastor of this church I have had two men tell me that they had a problem with pornography. It is epidemic and crosses gender, economic, educational and social lines.
c. It is pleasant
In the last verse of chapter 127 you have the word "happy" and it is the same word that is translated blessed in our text in verse. A man who walks with God and seeks to live his life according to the principles and precepts of God's word will be a happy man. He will be "Happy, happy, happy!" to quote Phil Robertson.
II. A Man Is Measured by His Work v.2
a. The fruits of his labor
I believe that God intends for all able bodied men to work. That was true of Adam before the fall where he was given the responsibility to tend the Garden and then afterwards when he is told by God that he would have to work to feed himself.
Genesis 3:19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
Ecclesiastes 5:18 Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and to drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labour that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him: for it is his portion.
b. The favor of the Lord
The sum of these first two verses is if a man will walk with God and work honestly he will be a blessed man. David describes this man:
Psalms 1:3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
III. A Man Is Measured by His Wife v. 3a
a. His public life
The man that "feareth the Lord" shall have a wife that is a "...fruitful vine..." and for that vine to fruitful it must be cultivated.
"A helpmeet was needed in Paradise, and assuredly she is not less necessary out of it. "He that findeth a wife findeth a good thing." It is not every man that feareth the Lord who has a wife; but if he has, she shall share in his blessedness and increase it." Treasury of David
To a large degree a husband determines whether or not his wife is a "...fruitful vine..." and before there are any snickers in the house, I'm not referring to you being a Jim Bob Duggar. What I'm saying is his treatment of her as he nourishes and cherishes her will help her to grow and be a fruitful person, socially and more important, spiritually. My chief assignment from the Lord where my wife is concerned is to make her a radiantly beautiful Christian.
Fellows, how do you behave in public where your wife is concerned? Do you show her respect and speak respectfully to her? Do you display genuine affection; are you kind and gentle with her? Do you behave in a gentlemanly way towards her?
BECAUSE I'M A GENTLEMAN
ILL - A middle-aged business executive once approached the front entrance of the office building in which he worked. A young feminist came up at the same moment, so he stepped back and held the door open for her to pass on through. She looked at him and said with annoyance, "Don't hold the door for me just because I'm a lady."
To her surprise, he looked right back and replied, "I'm not. I'm holding it open because I'm a gentleman."
Listen to the words of the Apostle:
Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives...
28 So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself.
29 For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church:
33 Nevertheless let every one of you in particular so love his wife even as himself...
Next, and more importantly, what a man does in his private life plays a large part in his wife's fruitfulness.
b. His private life
Now I know what I'm about to say isn't full proof but most of the time if want to know what a man is really like find out what his wife says about his behavior at home. What is he like in the privacy of his home? Is he selfish? Does his wife seem "beat down" verbally and does he demean her with comments that are intended to make her "small?"
I've had the experience of seeing one side of a man's behavior in public and finding later that he was very different at home. The chairman of my deacon board at the 1st FWB church in Jacksonville, AR was just such a man. He was a high school principal and later became the president of one of our FWB colleges. He had a wife and two daughters and from the outward appearance of things they looked like a model family but I knew that something just wasn't right (I found out later that he gave the appearance of tithing but didn't tithe) because his family was almost subservient to his every wish and whim. I began to suspect that he was not treating his family right and some years later their marriage ended in divorce where it was revealed that he had been physically and verbally abusive to them. I have reconnected with his wife and daughters on FB and renewed our acquaintance. If you want to have a fruitful wife then pay heed to the words of Peter:
1 Peter 3:7 Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.
IV. A Man Is Measured by His Wealth v. 3b-6
Finally, the Psalmist says of the man that feareth the Lord that "...thy children like olive plants round thy table..." So he is to be a god fearing, loving husband but also he is to cultivate his olive trees (children). Look at what the Apostle Paul says about this subject:
Ephesians 6:4 And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
One of the meanings of nurture is the idea of tending a garden and we all know that a garden has to be weeded, watered, watched, and worked. I've read where the average father spends 7.5 minutes per week with his children. I think that we would all agree that you cannot nurture children in 7.5 minutes per week! Josh McDowell made this statement: "Rules without relationship make for rebellion!" The greatest problem facing America today is not rebellious wives (I hope you aren't married to one) or rebellious children (I hope that you aren't dealing with one) but husbands and fathers who are rebels at heart. Men are failing to be the men that they ought to be, that God has called them to be.
BUILD CHARACTER INTO YOUR CHILDREN
ILL - David Kraft was a big, strong man -- all muscle. At the age of 32, he was six feet, two inches tall and weighed 200 pounds. He had been to seminary and ended up working with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, because of his athletic background.
Then he was diagnosed with cancer. It wracked his body, and over a period of time, he dropped from 200 pounds to 80 pounds.
When he was about ready to pass from this life into eternity, he asked his father to come into his hospital room. Lying there in bed, he looked up and said, "Dad, do you remember when I was a little boy, how you used to hold me in your arm close to your chest?"
David's father nodded. Then David said, "Do you think, Dad, you could do that one more time? One last time?"
Again his father nodded. He bent down to pick up his 32-year-old, six-foot, two-inch, 80 pound son, and held him close to his chest, so that the son's face was right next to the father's face. They were eyeball to eyeball. Tears were streaming down both faces, and the son said to his father, "Thank you for building the kind of character into my life that can enable me to face even a moment like this." (Ron Lee Davis, "Introducing Christ to Your Child," Preaching Today, Tape No.92)
Men, I dare you to be that kind of father (or grandfather) to your children. Dare to build into them the kind of character that will enable them to face anything in life. Then you will be a real leader, not only in your home, but among your peers, as well.
(From a sermon by C. Philip Green, Loving Leadership, 6/17/2010)
Conclusion: I want to close this message by dealing with the word wealth that I used in this last point. If I say that you can measure a man by his wealth, what comes to mind? It is a Mercedes in the garage or 5 bedrooms, 4 baths, a patio and a pool? Is it stocks, bonds and annuities? The answer to all this is no! I'll tell you what real wealth is. Ed Wood wrote that, "Children don't make a rich man poor, they make a poor man rich!" The rich man can't take his wealth to heaven but he can take his companion and children (and grandchildren) to heaven with him. A wealthy man "...is a man who lives a life of character, loves his companion and leads his children."
If we were to measure you against the "yardstick" of God's Word today what would we find out about your walk, your work, your wife and your wealth? Would you "measure up" or "come up short?"
