Walk Like A Man

We have many ideas concerning what it means to “be a man.”

- power

- independence

- athletic achievement

This is an important consideration for us in our day and age. For the first time in American history, there is great GENDER CONFUSION. Boys don’t know what it means to be boys, and girls don’t know what it means to be girls. We train our BOYS to REJECT their masculine traits of activity, aggressiveness.

When boys act up, we put them on drugs to suppress their behavior. 2005-2010 ... 6% of children were on psychotropic drugs. Twice as many boys as girls. (http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db135.htm).

John Eldredge addresses this societal problem in his book “Wild at Heart.” “Society at large can’t make up its mind about men. Having spent the last thirty years redefining masculinity into something more sensitive, safe, manageable and, well, feminine, it now berates men for not being men. Boys will be boys, they sigh. As though if a man were to truly grow up he would forsake wilderness and wanderlust and settle down, be at home forever in Aunt Polly’s parlor. “Where are all the real men?” is regular fare for talk shows and new books. You asked them to be women, I want to say. The result is a gender confusion never experienced at such a wide level in the history” Eldredge, John (2001-04-03). Wild at Heart: Discovering the Secret of a Man's Soul (pp. 6-7). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.

WHERE do we find a REAL PICTURE of BEING a MAN?

In God’s Word.

After JAMES, I will be preaching on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood.

TODAY is related to this, but we will look more deeply into this in the fall.

KING DAVID is an excellent example of a godly man. He was the killer of bears, lions and Giant Philistines! He was a warrior, Poet, Soldier, Leader. David made Phil Robertson look like a pansy!

Look at how David encourage his son Soloman to be a man!

“When David’s time to die drew near, he commanded Solomon his son, saying, “I am about to go the way of all the earth. Be strong, and show yourself a man, and keep the charge of the Lord your God, walking in his ways and keeping his statutes, his commandments, his rules, and his testimonies, as it is written in the Law of Moses, that you may prosper in all that you do and wherever you turn, that the Lord may establish his word that he spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons pay close attention to their way, to walk before me in faithfulness with all their heart and with all their soul, you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’” (1 Kings 2:1–4, ESV)

Lessons from David’s final words to Solomon

1. INTENTIONALITY. David didn’t leave his final words unsaid.

I wish I had been more intentional in raising my children.

Don’t be passive! “Passivity is one of the main enemies of biblical masculinity and it’s most obvious where it’s needed most.” (Randy Stinson and Dan Dumas, “A Guide to Biblical Manhood,” (28).

David’s CHALLENGE. 2:2 “show yourself a man”

Our boys need to be challenged to me men

Our boys need to be shown how to be a man

They are going to learn it from their dads. They are going to learn it from men in their families and men in the church.

2. OBEDIENCE. 2:3 “Keep the charge of the Lord your God.”

David did not allow his SIN to silence his testimony to Solomon

David remained faithful.

David demonstrates GOD’s FORGIVENESS. The LORD says to SOLOMON..... “And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days.”” (1 Kings 3:14, ESV)

3. REWARD. 2:3 “that you may prosper.”

David showed Solomon that there is BLESSING in following the Lord.

David showed Solomon a picture of the future.

4. LEGACY. David promises Solomon that if his sons followed after him, there would be no lack of godly leaders to uphold God’s testimony and lead the nation.

Let’s put David’s exhortation into contemporary view by examining the biblical characteristics of a man. These 13 points are from an article on manhood by Al Mohler.

What Character Traits describe a real man? Article by Al Mohler.

Before giving this list, please understand that it is DESCRIPTIVE not PRESCRIPTIVE! In other words, this is not a list of things to DO. I share this with you to help us create a picture in our mind concerning true manhood. This is necessary to counter the false picture we have from our culture.

God’s purposes for manhood culminate in the marriage relationship. This does not mean that a single man cannot fulfill all of God’s intentions for manhood. Rather, it demonstrates that all men, whether or married must strive for the personal characteristics that lead to maturity, whether they ever marry or not. Most will marry, but not all!