You may have seen the maternity shirt that says, “A man did this to me, Oprah.”
Men are responsible for a lot of things that determine the kind of world we live in, for better or worse. This morning, Father’s Day, I’d like to highlight the “better.” (I’ve never understood why someone would use Father’s Day to beat up on men.) Genesis (5:2) tells us that when God created humanity, he made us in his image. He created us male and female, and blessed us. Each reflection of God’s likeness, masculine and feminine, has its own radiance and blessing. Let’s consider then the tremendous good in God’s distinctive gift of masculinity, and Christian fatherhood as an integral expression of that.
Hear these words from 1 Cor. 16:13-14: “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith. Act like men; be strong. Let everything you do be done with love.” (2X)
First, let me say that I believe in using inclusive language whenever possible. But here, Paul seems to be explicitly addressing men when he says, “Act like men.” (Literally in Greek: “Play the man.” Or “be men.”) “Be strong.” But then verse 14 adds the Christian qualifier, to “Do everything in love.” Masculinity has nothing to do with macho aggression or domination, which are only distortions of the gift. Masculine strength is intended to be used only and always in the spirit of love.
Someone has made the wise observation that if they were a creator of advertising, there’s a type of image they’d employ whenever they could, because it’s one that resonates in the heart of every man, woman or child. It might be the scene of a young man walking along a path holding the hand of a small child. Or a Little League coach modeling the best of manhood to his young team. Or a father leaving the house before daybreak to go to work so he can provide for his family. Those images all represent strength in the service of love. And as such they’re expressions of God’s intrinsic design for masculinity. They speak to our hearts because they reveal God’s goodness woven into the design of Creation.
Some of you might remember the snowstorm that hit right before Christmas in 2005, when almost two feet of snow surprised everyone and stranded thousands of holiday travelers. Diane and I were serving a church just a mile from an Interstate exit, and we were asked by Emergency Management to open our facilities as a shelter.
Our last guests on the second night were four National Guardsmen who were exhausted from working non-stop at pulling vehicles out of snow banks and ditches along the interstate. They slept a little, but mostly they finished off almost all of the remaining food--no mean feat. But it was a blessing to be able to repay the sacrificial efforts of all the emergency responders (the Guardsmen, EMS workers, firefighters and Red Cross) who stepped up in that emergency. And something very similar happened a few years later with the catastrophic ice storm none of us will ever forget, when linesmen from states as far away as NC and WI came to help. If the supreme virtue of masculinity is “strength in service,” as I believe it is, they all demonstrated that blessing nobly. And it was inspiring to witness.
Of course, the world is also seeing the tremendous courage and strong spirit of the Ukrainian men who are standing their ground against the evil invasion and destruction of their country, in defense of their families and their freedom. May God have mercy on them and help them.
But let’s also remember that there’s an even more crucial war being fought in this world, between the forces of good and evil, and that’s what Paul is referring to here.
I don’t think I have to remind anyone that the powers of darkness are very real and very strong in our day. Our culture is under spiritual attack, from sexual immorality, violence, greed, racism, and much more, a general spirit of godlessness. The world has always been a spiritual battlefield, and it always will be, in desperate need of moral and spiritual courage--and that’s as true today as it’s ever been.
So men, consider this as a call to action, if you need one. Every member here promised to serve this congregation with your prayers, your presence, your gifts and your service. If you aren’t already doing so, this is a fresh opportunity to recommit to those vows. Whether it’s volunteering to serve in a hands-on ministry, or pursuing new spiritual growth through a class or small group, or in any number of other ways, this is no time to be passive. Rather, it’s a perfect time to renew your vows and recommit to your faith.
And the blessing of fatherhood, for most men, is a vital part of this, too. I’m not a father, but I had a very good father who not only faithfully provided for and protected our family, but who also cared deeply about my spiritual well-being. I was raised Catholic and attended public schools, but only with my father’s insistence that my three siblings and I attend weeknight religious instruction classes all the way through high school. And when he learned that I wasn’t attending Mass at college, he reacted very strongly. He cared deeply that his children honor our faith. He knew that there’s more to a father’s love than providing for and protecting his family, as important as that is. A father also needs to care for his children’s souls, first and foremost.
I have a theory that mothers and fathers love their children in two different ways. I’m generalizing here, but most mothers instinctively see the child in us, even as we become adults. As a result, they tend to cherish that part of our lives, and their hearts are always inclined towards nurturing. My mother continued giving me an Easter basket until I was in my late 20’s and I finally had to ask her to stop, as hard as that was on both of us. Fathers, on the other hand, instinctively look for the seeds of an emerging adult, even in their young children. And they care primarily about how well they’ll be prepared to face the challenges and sometimes harsh realities of the outside world.
During the Prohibition era, there was a man in Chicago everyone knew as Easy Eddie. Easy Eddie was Al Capone’s lawyer, and he was clever and corrupt enough to keep his client out of jail despite his involvement in bootlegging, murder and prostitution. In return, he was generously rewarded with enough money to live like a king on an estate that covered an entire city block.
Eddie had a son nicknamed Butch, who also received the very best of everything--a good education, clothes, cars, and plenty of spending money. And in spite of his work for Capone, Eddie tried to teach his son right from wrong. He wanted nothing more than for Butch to become a better man than he was.
But the hypocrisy took its toll. Eddie realized that there were two things he couldn’t give his son: an honorable example and a good name. And ultimately, he decided those things were far more important than wealth or its privileges. So he turned state’s witness and testified against Al Capone. He knew he was risking his life, of course, but he decided it was worth it for the sake of his son. And as expected, within a year of his testimony, Eddie’s life ended in a blaze of gunfire on the streets of Chicago.
Butch later became a fighter pilot in WWII and was assigned to an aircraft carrier in the South Pacific. He was on a mission when he realized that someone had forgotten to top off his fuel tank, and that he needed to leave his squadron and return to the ship. But that’s when he discovered a formation of nine Japanese bombers approaching his fleet, which had been left without air cover and dangerously exposed.
In a desperate move to divert them from their attack, and amazingly, he shot down five bombers and damaged several others, forcing them to turn back. As a result, Butch became the first naval recipient of the Medal of Honor in WWII--awarded posthumously, since he died in combat the following year.
After the war, Chicago’s largest airport was renamed O’Hare International, in honor of the bravery of Butch O’Hare, Easy Eddie’s son, who sacrificed his life for a higher cause, in the footsteps of his father’s example.
So would Butch have done that without having his father as the model of moral courage he was? I seriously doubt it. A father’s strength of character and example go a very long way in helping to shape the adult lives of his children. And that’s a vital part of God’s design for masculinity in our world.
So, to our fathers, and to all of my brothers in Christ, and to myself, I say this: God has blessed us with the gift of masculine strength--not only physically, but with a crucial moral and spiritual responsibility--to be devoted to all that is good, and used only and always in the service of love.
And let’s remember that we stand on the shoulders of all those faithful men and fathers who have gone before us. They’ve passed the torch for us to carry and to pass on to the next generation.
Thanks be to God!
Amen.
