What is a Man?

“So God created man in His own image.” – Genesis 1:27

Nowadays there’s a lot of confusion in our culture about manhood. What is a “man” as opposed to a boy? Is there any difference between being a “man” and simply being a responsible adult? And with so much talk about “gender fluidity,” so-called experts can’t tell us in plain English what a man is. But God’s Word cuts through the confusion and reveals what true manhood looks like.

In the book of Genesis, we read that man and woman were created according to God’s kind (Gen. 1:26) – first man, then woman. Since man was created FIRST, and God is a God of order, the clear implication is that man was given the place of headship in the family. Although both men and women are created in the image of God, He designed each of them differently, so that each can more effectively carry out his/her God-given roles.

Ephesians 5 gives us a more detailed description of man’s role in his household. By God’s design, a man is the Patriarch, Pastor, Prophet, Provider and Protector in his family.

Let’s take a quick look at these 5 P’s of biblical manhood:

1. Man has been called by God to be the PATRIARCH of his family. “Patriarch” is defined as “a male head of his family.” In Ephesians 5, we learn what kind of leader God calls a patriarch to be. While married women are to submit to and respect their husbands (v. 22), married men are given two commands: Lead (v. 22-24) and Love (vs. 25 and 33).

2. Man has been called by God to be the PASTOR in his home. To be the pastor in your own home means to be the spiritual leader and shepherd. Men: As the spiritual shepherd, it is YOU who should lead your family in reading the Bible and praying together every day.

3. Man has been called to be the PROPHET in his home. To be the prophet means to be one who speaks and lives out God’s Word with clarity. You must love your wife and kids with a selfless, sacrificial agape love (vs. 25-27). Take the initiative to seek God, listen to His Word, and communicate God’s Word to your family.

4. Man has been called to be the PROVIDER in his home. As the provider, you must work hard to meet the practical and financial needs of your family (v. 29). Now, there is not a “Thou shalt not work outside the home” command for Christian women. But, sadly, far too many men don’t have a valid excuse for shirking their God-given responsibility to provide for the practical needs of their family.

5. Man has been called to be the PROTECTOR of his household. A protector is one who lifts his shield of faith and protects his family from physical, moral and spiritual harm. Paul writes in Ephesians 5:25: “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her.” Jesus’ life and death were all about humble self-sacrifice. In agape love, He gave Himself up for us. And a man must do the same—humbly give himself up for his wife and kids.

In our day, when so many people are confused about manhood, God’s Word provides beautiful clarity. A man is created by God as distinctively male and is called by God to be the leader in his family.

Dane Davis is the pastor of Impact Christian Church in Victorville. Join us at Impact for Sunday services at 9am: at 17746 George Blvd., or at 9 a.m. on Facebook Live or YouTube. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.

Where Is Your Treasure?

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” – Matthew 6:21

Life here on earth is NOT all there is. This is a biblical truth that we all need to hear. You were made to last forever.

 

Because this life is preparation for the next, you must live with eternity in the FOREFRONT of your mind – not the BACK of your mind.

 

Jesus zeroes in on this topic in Matthew 6:19-24. The bottom line of this passage: If your life on earth is wrapped up in money and possessions, you’ll be penniless in eternity.

 

Warren Wiersbe suggests that in these verses, Jesus gives us 3 warnings about money and material possessions:

 

Warning #1: Money and possessions can enslave your HEART (vs. 19-21). Jesus warns us not to chase after temporary, earthly things, but to store up treasure in heaven (v. 20). In Wiersbe’s words, we need “to ‘hang loose’ when it comes to the material things of life … measuring life by the true riches of the kingdom and not by the false riches of this world.” Only what we do for Christ’s kingdom and the glory of God will last in eternity.

 

But being rewarded isn’t the main reason to store up treasures in heaven. Jesus tells us in verse 21, “For where you treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Heavenly rewards are wonderful. But the main reason Jesus wants you to store up treasure in heaven is because He wants your heart. And He knows that your heart will follow your treasure.

 

Warning #2: Money and possessions can enslave your MIND (vs. 22-23). Jesus uses our eyes to make an analogy: “If your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness” (v. 23). When we’re focused on money, it’s like going through life with blinders on. We can’t see or pursue what is good because we’re blind to it. As Wiersbe puts it: “If the eye is properly focused on the light, the body can function properly in its movements. But if the eye is out of focus and seeing double, it results in unsteady movements. It is most difficult to make progress while trying to look in two directions at the same time.”

 

Warning #3: Money and possessions can enslave your WILL (v. 24). You can have two supervisors, but you can’t have two masters. You can have two bosses, but you can’t have two lords. As Jesus says in verse 24, “You cannot serve both God and money.” If you love your money, you will hate it when the Holy Spirit tells you to give it away. But if you love God with all your heart, you will hate it when you see yourself holding your possessions too tightly.

 

Now, it’s important to understand that the Word of God doesn’t condemn wealth or glorify poverty. Money, wealth and material possessions are neutral. What matters is what part they play in your life. A wise man once said, “It’s fine to have possessions – as long as your possessions don’t have you.”

 

If you invest your time, talent and financial treasure in kingdom work, you will have treasure in heaven. Missionary Jim Elliot hit the nail on the head when he said, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.”

Dane Davis is the pastor of Impact Christian Church in Victorville. Join us at Impact for Sunday services at 9am: at 17746 George Blvd., or at 9 a.m. on Facebook Live or YouTube. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.

Are You Giving God Your Leftovers?

“I will not … sacrifice a burnt offering that costs me nothing.”
– 1 Chronicles 21:24

King David is one of best known, most loved heroes in the Old Testament. He was the only man in the Bible whom God referred to as “a man after My own heart.”

But David was far from perfect. At times, this legendary king messed up royally (pardon the pun). Just like you and me, David was a sinner in need of a Savior.

 

David’s sin with Bathsheba was, to us, the most legendary. He seduced a married woman, then got her husband killed in order to cover up his crime. But surprisingly, God was more upset with David when he allowed Satan to tempt him into ordering a census of all his fighting men.

 

What was wrong with that? We can’t be certain, but it appears that David sinned on two levels. First, he DISOBEYED God by skipping the Lord’s instructions. God instructed Moses that whenever a census was taken, each person was to pay an offering to glorify God (Exodus 30:11-16). The second problem was PRIDE. David didn’t take a census to bring glory to God. He took it to bring glory to himself.

 

But when God rebuked David, David immediately humbled himself and cried out to God for forgiveness (v. 8). As David’s act of repentance, God commanded him to build an altar on the threshing floor belonging to a man named Araunah the Jebusite. Araunah offered to give David the threshing floor and all the land around it, but David refused: “I will not take for the LORD what is yours or sacrifice a burnt offering that costs me nothing” (v. 24). So he paid Araunah, built the altar, and made his sacrifices there – on what he vowed would be the site of the LORD’s temple (v. 22:1).

 

David knew that if he didn’t pay for the threshing floor and the land around it, his sacrifice would be worthless. The same is true for us today: If it doesn’t cost you something, it’s NOT true worship.

 

Today, you and I need to ask ourselves: What is my worship costing me? Many Christians who think they’re worshiping God aren’t really worshiping Him at all. Their worship is cheap and convenient. Instead of giving God their very best, they’re giving God their leftovers.

 

Ask yourself: When I’m in church, am I giving God my full attention? What is my offering costing me? Am I like the poor widow in Mark 12, giving God my first and my best – or am I just giving Him my leftovers? The same holds true of your time of Communion, and of studying God’s Word. Don’t just go through the motions. Don’t just listen politely.

 

God has called you to support your church with your 3 T’s: Time, Talent and Treasures. True worship ALWAYS involves sacrifice. And so, we sacrifice our time for Jesus. We sacrifice our talents for Jesus. And we sacrifice our treasures for Jesus.

 

As Christians, let’s draw a line in the sand. No more cheap, easy worship. No more giving Jesus our leftovers. We need to worship like David—giving God our VERY best.

 

Dane Davis is the pastor of Impact Christian Church in Victorville. Join us at Impact for Sunday services at 9am: at 17746 George Blvd., or at 9 a.m. on Facebook Live or YouTube. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.

2 Big Takeaways from a Life-Changing Letter

"For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” – 1 Corinthians 15:3-4

The Apostle Paul must have felt like a dad who couldn’t turn his back on his kids for one minute.

 

He’d spent a year and a half with the Corinthian Christians, planting their church and teaching them God’s Word. Yet just a short time later, word got back to him: Many of those Christians had already shot down much of what he’d taught them.

 

So Paul, guided by the Holy Spirit, wrote his first letter to the Corinthian church. For 16 chapters he taught them, rebuked them, corrected and trained them in righteousness. And God placed this letter in the Bible because we ALSO need to be taught, rebuked, corrected and trained in righteousness.

 

Reading over this important book, I found 2 key themes: #1) Right DOCTRINE, and #2) Right BEHAVIOR. Let’s take a quick look at what 1 Corinthians teaches us about both.

 

1. The Holy Spirit uses 1 Corinthians to teach us right DOCTRINE. In chapter 15, Paul writes: “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” (vs. 3-4). The core of right doctrine is the Death, Burial and Resurrection of Christ.

 

Without Jesus’ DEATH, you and I would be condemned to hell for our sin. Without Jesus’ BURIAL, we might doubt that Jesus had really died. And without Jesus’ RESURRECTION, you and I would have no hope beyond the grave. No matter how foolish the world thinks this message is, we as followers of Christ must proclaim it over and over again.

 

2. The Holy Spirit uses 1 Corinthians to teach us right BEHAVIOR. The Corinthian church had lots of behavioral problems. Over the course of his letter, Paul rebukes the Corinthians for their disunity and infighting; for their tolerance of perversion in the church; for suing each other in court. He gives them clear instructions on everything from taking the Lord’s Supper to the proper use of spiritual gifts. 1 Corinthians is filled with deep and practical teaching about how we as Christians should behave.

 

But the very pinnacle of this teaching is found in 1 Corinthians 13. Often called “the Love Chapter,” it paints a beautiful picture of how Jesus’ agape love behaves. Through Paul, the Holy Spirit makes it crystal clear that when it comes to right behavior, agape love never fails. Verse 13 tells us: “Now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

 

At home, in our community and at church, you and I must hold fast to these beautiful truths. Believe them. Live them out. And proclaim them to all who will listen.

Dane Davis is the pastor of Impact Christian Church in Victorville. Join us at Impact for Sunday services at 9am: at 17746 George Blvd., or at 9 a.m. on Facebook Live or YouTube. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.