Original Entry:
December 2, 2008
McMinnville, OR
So that
you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as
long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and
so that you may enjoy long life (Deuteronomy 6:2). Love the Lord your God with
all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength (Deuteronomy
6:5).
And now, O
Israel, what does the Lord you God ask of you buy to fear the Lord your God, to
walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your
heart and with all your soul.
Deuteronomy 10:12
What does
it mean to be a man?
Is it a
successful hunt? Is it that five or six
figure income? Is it living in the biggest home on the hilltop? Is it he who has the most toys? Many men spend their adult lives searching for
the answer to this question, but I believe the answer is somewhere in Deuteronomy 6:1-9. Put on the eyes of a
hunter as you read through these nine verses.
What are
the words “love” (6:5) and “fear” (6:2) doing in this
passage? Doesn’t perfect love castoff
all fear (1John 4:19)? How can I “fear the Lord” (2) and “love
the Lord (5)” at the same time?
Now that
I’ve got your attention let’s get back to the question of, what does it mean to
be a man? The foundation of real
(biblical) manhood is to, “to love him,
to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul”
(Deuteronomy 10:12). The pinnacle of
manhood is radical devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ.
What about
a non-Christian man?
What about
him? He will never be the man God
designed him to be apart from Jesus Christ. He is a shell of a man. He is man with a God-sized hole. He is Humpty Dumpty preparing for a fall. At
best he will achieve finite greatness only to turn and glorify self. Nothing he
does will last.
Nothing.
His life
represents the ultimate tragedy. Manhood begins and ends with Christ. The
greatest man without Christ is less than the least man with Christ. Manhood
begins with those whom “keep all His
statues and His commands. (2).
Read on. A
real man passes on his godly heritage “So that you, your children and their
children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping
all his decrees and commands” (Deuteronomy 6:2). There is no
spiritual success without succession. The Christian man that does not
pass on his Christian heritage is a conflicted man. Even if the world applauds
you know that success never travels alone.
Take your
loved ones with you. Lead from the back!
