What does a Biblical Man look like? | Voddie Baucham

if a man wants to call himself a man from a Biblical perspective these things have to be in place now unfortunately at first we got to do some deep programming here I want you to understand what has happened to us we we Define manhood you know it has been said by the Three B's okay we Define manhood on the ball field in the bedroom and by the billfold in our culture that's how we've been taught to Define manhood on the ball field in the bedroom and by the billfold that's it how does he perform athletically how does he perform sexually how is he with the ladies and how much money does he have that's how we Define manhood in our culture whether we like it or not and unfortunately for those of us who claim to be followers of Christ and in large part because of what we've just heard our definitions are no different we Define manhood by The Three B's and The Homeschool follower father of four my oldest son is not with me today he travels with me I travel about eight days a month any less and be hard for me to feed my family anymore it'd be hard for me to say with a straight face if they're the most important thing in my world but I I travel about eight days a month and my oldest son travels with me he does that full time it's from the time my oldest son became 13 years old I became his teacher when he was 13 he went through a manhood ceremony and one of the parts of that entering into manhood was his mother turned over the books and I became his teacher of all of his subjects and more particularly more specifically his discipler he is my disciple there is no man in the world that it's more important for me to disciple than my son and so as a result of that he spends his time traveling with me and the interesting thing about that is I get a lot of questions several questions I get you know people look at me and they go you know you're pretty big guy you look like you maybe your you know your ball player or something like that so yeah yeah yep yep been there done that okay it's great you know if son you know he's 14 he's you know pretty pretty big kid and I'm just wondering you know with you guys doing this how's he going to play ball when people say that to me here's what I hear I I want to know how your son is going to be able to worship at the altar of the sport God to which I respond who cares I don't it's meaningless it's absolutely meaningless we don't need another ball player we don't we need men with trained Minds we need men with Godly biblical character we need men with multi-generational vision we need men who commit themselves and all their faculties to the glory of almighty God I am raising a warrior for Christ that's what I'm raising not an Entertainer that's not what I'm raising a warrior for Christ who cares well you know team sports they build character really do you really believe that do you really believe that because if you believe that let's test your premise team sports build character that means guys who spend more time in team sports ought to have more character than guys who don't so the guys in this culture with the greatest character ought to be in the NFL in the NBA is that your final answer that's ridiculous it's absolutely ridiculous besides that how how did George Washington build character he didn't play team sports Adams Jefferson I'll give you one better how Jesus build character hmm was it Pop Warner see we think like that why because how do you measure manhood according to our culture ball field the bedroom and the billfold that's how you measure manhood according to our culture and that's how we've learned to measure manhood does that mean I I think sports are evil or that I didn't say that it's not what I said that's not what I said [Music] but once we step back for a moment and ask ourselves some questions we realize that not only is that a limited understanding of what a man is but it also doesn't come close to approaching scriptural truth what is a man and here's what's even less fortunate there are women walking around some of You In This Very Room and you'll be married in the not too distant future and our culture has said to you you measure manhood by what the ball field the bedroom the billfold and that's what you're looking for claiming that you're following Christ but what you're looking for in a man is not a reflection of biblical manhood and biblical character but a reflection of our carnal culture what type of marriage do you think you're going to have how long is the ball field going to satisfy you ladies we don't get to do that long how long is the billfold going to satisfy you ladies certainly all women with Rich husbands are constantly happy yeah right I lost bedrooms gonna satisfy you ladies hmm so if that's the measure that our culture has given us no wonder those who look for that in a man end up with disillusionment quickly but if it's not that then what is it three things we see here even before the fall three things that a man must be committed to if he's going to reflect biblical manhood at least these three and this is the minimalist version here all right we could we could go into a lot more than this but this will Encompass all that we need to understand for here and for now three things number one he must be committed to God honoring labor he must be committed to God honoring labor God does not abide lazy men and neither should we can't say Amen you ought to say ouch he must be committed to God honoring labor [Music] ladies tonight what I'm going to do for you ladies is I'm going to speak to you as a father okay I have a 17 year old daughter we talk about these things a lot my primary goal and my 17 year old daughter's life is preparing her and partnering with her to see to it that she has a biblically qualified well-suited mate for marriage my number one goal in my 17 year old daughter's life it's my job to protect her from unqualified worthless men my job is her father and tonight ladies I'll do that for you just for the time that we have together all right I will play that role for you tonight I will treat you like I treat my own daughter and I say to my own daughter do not Abide a lazy man don't look twice at a lazy man if he is not committed to God honoring labor he is not worthy of your hand in marriage I will not I will not authorize that marriage I'm not signing off on it matter of fact I refuse to allow that kind of man to get close enough for my daughter to even become interested in him well I ain't gonna do that you know when she goes out on these dates and she just she goes out on what find that one in the text [Music] find it in the text find that concept the modern American dating Concept in the text it's not there you have betroble you have marriage you have relationships between individuals who intend to marry you don't have this idea of people who just kick it because they like each other for right now that's how you end up with the wrong one you get involved before you evaluate that's a problem that's a problem and again as a father you know here's the picture that our culture paints our picture paints this culture a father is doing his job if you know when a young man comes over a Suitor comes over for his teenage daughter he sits down you know and he's he's got this intimidating pose and you stick your chest way out and you blow all up you know and you take your rifle out and you're cleaning your rifle you know and you gotta we go get on some snuff right there and you spend your stuff you clean your rifle and stuff and what time you're supposed to have her home you know what time you know you scare him up real good that's our culture's picture and we think a man's doing a good job if that's what he does before his teenage daughter goes out with a young man we just we just change the scenario just briefly just just slightly change the scenario same picture except now I have a two hundred thousand dollar Lamborghini Testarossa in front of my house that's not no 17 18 year old boy who has not yet walked into manhood because our culture hasn't asked them to is going to come over my house to drive my 200 000 Lamborghini Testarossa am I going to be satisfied just cleaning my gun and scaring him real good and then giving him the keys see here's what bothers me our culture has taught you to value a two hundred thousand dollar car more than a man's daughter that's sick you gave your 200 000 car to a 17 year old boy you're an idiot [Music] but when I said that about my daughter you thought I was crazy why you've been lied to that's why [Music] I'd much sooner give up the keys to a two hundred thousand dollar car than to take a chance on some young man manipulating and abusing the emotions of my daughter and since you're playing that role tonight that means you ladies the first thing we're looking for as we partner together it's father and daughter is a man who is committed committed to God honoring labor secondly when we look at the each of these in turn in the text secondly a man who is committed to God's law committed to God's law and I know what you say well wait a minute wait a minute wait a minute this is before the fall there is no law you hold on to that idea all right thirdly man must be committed committed to the priority of the family the priority of the family okay let's look at these three in turn first of all committed to God honoring labor the Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden now this the Garden of Eden is the perfect man is in the perfect environment a lot of people think of work as something evil as something bad as something odious it must be the result of the fall right I mean isn't that isn't that the case no no he puts him in there to work it and keep it there's work before the fall it's not work that's a product of the Fall it's our attitude toward work that's a product of the Fall look with me in chapter three in chapter three you see the fall and after that you see these three curses and look at verse 17 to Adam he said because you have listened to the voice of Your Wife by the way stop there for a moment notice he didn't say Adam because you ate from the fruit of the tree hey I don't write the mail I just deliver it God said because you listened to that woman take it for what it's worth all right because you listen to the voice of your heart by the way I'll explain that later don't worry ladies and have eaten of the tree of which I commanded you you shall not eat of it cursed is the ground because of you in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life thorns and fish thistles it shall bring forth for you and you shall eat of the plants of the field by the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground out of it you were taken for you are dust and to dust you shall return it's the toil and the labor and the hardship of work that is a result of the Fall not work itself not work itself you know you hear about the Protestant work ethic this idea of the Puritan work ethic that in all labor there is gain that labor is a reward in itself that's something that's foreign to us but laziness sloth is sinful it's Godless come with me if you will look to the right with me and look at proverbs we have Proverbs chapter 6. Proverbs chapter 6. in verse 6.

go to the ant o sluggard consider her ways and be wise without having any chief officer or ruler she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food and harvest so here's the ant nobody's saying go do this go do that no Chief no nothing the ant just does it consider the ant think about that [Music] verse 9 how long will you lie thereof sluggard when will you arise from your sleep a little sleep a little Slumber a little folding of the hands to rest and poverty will come upon you like a robber and want like an armed man turn to the right look at chapter 26. in the same book in verse 13. the sluggard says there is a lion in the road laziness will make you a coward are you here laziness will make you a coward you'll always find an excuse not to work ladies and you're running up on men who find excuses not to work or man who always needs somebody to tell them what to do and when to do it um or a man who's diligent which is it biblical manhood is characterized by a love for god-honoring labor look at the next part of this as a door turns on its hinges so does the sluggard on his bed by the way you notice something similar between chapter six and chapter 26.

a little sleep a little Slumber you see in chapter six here you see like a door turning on these hinges there's a sluggered in his bed ladies you got a man who doesn't want to get up in the morning hmm I don't write the mail I just deliver it [Music] that's laziness it's ungodly it's ungodly look at the next part of this the Slugger buries his hand in the dish it wears him out to bring it back to his mouth that's just lazy no lazy man that's not biblical manhood secondly not only a commitment to God honoring labor but also a commitment to the law of God back in Genesis 2. and the Lord God commanded the man saying you may surely eat of every tree of the garden but of the tree of the knowledge of Good and Evil you shall not eat for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die that's the law of God we don't even have the Ten Commandments but we've already got a law of God lays down a law right here in the midst of perfection so we don't have the law of God because of imperfection no before the fall we have the law of God before the fall he must be committed to the law of God foreign don't know the law of God [Music] let alone and committed to it they don't know it was one of the little tests here's an interesting little test I want you to think right now in your mind of the Ten Commandments you know him [Music] 95 of Americans do not and that's as true of churchgoers as it is of those who don't go to church do you know the law of God and again I'm not saying everything do you just know the most basic to think you don't get more basic than the decalogue you don't get more basic than the Ten Commandments do you know the Ten Commandments and men if your answer to that is no here's what I want to ask you how are you going to sit up here in my face asking me for my daughter and you don't even know the Ten Commandments [Music] you're supposed to be a Godly Man into whose hands I entrust one of the greatest resources that God has given to me and you don't know the basics of his law get out of my house it's exactly what I'd say to you [Music] and don't come back again unless you at least know that much of the law of God why because you are asking to be the father of my future Generations and they will not be Lawless committed to the law of God committed to the law of God and again for most of us I mean that's just something it's just foreign we just don't know give me half give me five [Music] you see but again I feel bad this is the culture that we live in remember what I told you we've been lied to this is the culture that we live in we sit here going ball field billfold bedroom is he committed to God honoring labor he's a great ball player is he committed to the law of God is he he's got a lot of money if we're interested in biblical manhood we have to be interested in the law of God by the way part of his responsibility is to communicate to you ladies the law of God gives this law to Adam turns around and gives his law to Eve and one of the problems don't know for certain because the text doesn't necessarily say for certain but when Eve communicates the law when she's talking to the servant to Serpent and by the way her husband is there so he's not protecting his wife huge problem chapter 3. now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made he said to the woman did God actually say you shall not eat of any tree of the garden and the woman said to the serpent we may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden but God said You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in in the midst of the garden neither shall you touch it lest you die wow that's not what God Said is it she hasn't been properly discipled that's why in Romans 5 it says through the sin of one man Adam come through the sin of Eve fall comes through the sin of Adam who's responsible there's headship here even here well wait a minute I thought that headship was because of the fall and when there was the curse and God curses Eve and it says that he shall rule over you and that's where we got this whole idea of headship which again is why some egalitarians argue that when we become Christians that that whole idea of headship is no longer relevant because now we've sort of reversed that idea of the fall and because of that we have this egalitarian idea no longer this idea of headship news flash we see headship way before the fall well how do we see headship before the fall who was made first according to First Corinthians chapter 11 Paul says Adam has headship because he was made first by the way Adam is exercising dominion over all of these other creatures by what naming them Eve shows up on the scene what does he do names her headship before the fall [Music] it's what does headship mean remind you woman me say you do no that's not headship headship means you don't get to say God it was that woman that you gave me that's what Adam did he threw his wife under the bus that he tried to throw God under the bus what happened that woman that that you gave me you also see headship because when Adam is cursed what does God say because you listen to your wife you did not exercise the headship that you were given [Music] in Ephesians chapter 5 we see this picture of the husband washing his wife with the water of the word in Ephesians chapter 6 we see this picture of the husband in Ephesians chapter 6 and by the way we get a repeat of part of the law we get a repeat of the fifth commandment in Ephesians chapter six children obey your parents in the Lord for this is right honor your father and your mother which is the first commandment of the promise that it may go well with you and you may live long in the land and fathers do not provoke your children to anger but you bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord can I ask you a question ladies if it's a man's responsibility to disciple his wife and his children why on Earth would you go get a man who doesn't know the law of God why it happens all the time [Music] that's not a man fractured vessel that's not a man and so here you are saying I'm going to be the mother of thousands in generations to come and because I think more about the ball field and billfolds and the bedroom I will sacrifice the spiritual future of generations to come so that I can be satisfied with what the world says is most valuable God help us God help us because that's exactly what women are saying all over the place and claiming to be followers of Christ talking about the possibility of marrying non-believers in in relation ships who are non-believers first of all that's black and white Paul tells us in second Corinthians that's black and white do not be an equity yoke with an unbeliever do not that's a clear-cut command it's not even an option I'm not even talking about that that's not even worthy of discussion if you're thinking about that I'm going back to message number one and I'm questioning whether or not you're even converted I'm talking here not just about whether or not a person is coming into the kingdom by the Skin of Their Teeth I'm talking about whether or not somebody knows the law well enough to teach it to you and to your children until you meet a man that's qualified to disciple you and your children you have not met a man who's qualified to be your husband [Music] did I make that clear enough [Music] do all of my daughters hear that he must be committed to the law of God he has to be he has to be finally this man must be committed [Music] to the Primacy of the family back in Genesis chapter 2.