Wildfire 2010--"Act Like Men: Strong Advice for Tough Times, 1 Corinthians 16:13-14"

Hello all:

This weekend I am teaching break out sessions at a Men's Impact Weekend called Wildfire 2010. The conference meets at Thomas Road Baptist Church. I already had one session (with a room full of men and folks sitting on the floor and standing in the hall!). I have another session this afternoon, but I thought I'd share my notes here for any who may want to see them. Let me know if you have any questions!

Act Like Men
Strong Advice for Tough Times
1 Corinthians 16:13-14

Introduction
What does it mean to be a “man” today?
How about when you were growing up?

The movie “Second Hand Lions” and the “how to be a man speech”

Our passage today is Paul’s version of “how to be a man”
It is strong advice for tough times

All of the statements that follow are commands, they are not options
God expects us to take these things seriously

Corinth
What do you know about the church in Corinth?

These people were a mess:

They had divided on doctrinal issues
They had split into factions determined by slogans and political posturing
They had forgotten what they were taught and become lazy in their spiritual growth/wisdom
They had ceased to serve one another and passed judgment on each other to the point of lawsuits
They had immoral activity in their church
Their marriages were on the rocks
They abused their spiritual liberty and hurt one another with it
They had no spiritual discipline and had become disorderly in their use of God’s gifts
They lost love for one another
They had forgotten the power of God’s love and Christ’s resurrection
They needed some men to lead them

1 Corinthians 16:13-14

1. Act Like Men
Andrizesthe—Greek term (present tense)
a. To behave like a man as opposed to acting like a juvenile
b. Be men constantly, play the man
c. Exhibit positive masculine properties
d. Be mature and be brave

Three characteristics to note here:
a. Spiritual maturity—1 John 2:12-14—John encourages his readers to progress on to a mature position, to leave behind childish things (1 Cor. 13:11-12)—cf. Ephesians 4:13
This maturity comes from the Word of God (1 Peter 2:2; 2 Timothy 3:16-17; 1 John 2:12-14—young men are strong in the Word of God)—this Word of God refers of course to both the written Word (the Bible) and the Incarnate Word (Jesus)—to be spiritually mature requires us to be adept in both (1 Cor. 14:20—the Corinthians need to grow up)

What about us? Where do we need to grow up? Where do we need to stop acting juvenile? What relationships and situations need maturity instead of juvenile selfishness?

b. Courage—John Wesley: “Give me 100 men who fear nothing but sin, and desire nothing but God, and I will shake the world: I care not a straw whether they be clergymen or laymen; and such alone will overthrow the kingdom of Satan and build up the Kingdom of God on earth.”

c. Consistency—a constant process of growth that builds Christ-like characteristics in our lives. God isn't looking for perfectionism, but he desires a consistent growth and process of sanctification. We must continue to become like Jesus!

The rest of this passage reveals for us what it means to “act like men” according to Paul
To act like men requires us to first be on the alert

2. Be on the Alert
“Be watchful”—a military word with a strategy in mind that means to be alert or vigilant
It is the opposite of indifference or apathy
It is an active concern to be aware

What happens when those on guard duty fail their watch?
The enemy sneaks in
Soldiers suffer loss
Someone may die

In the spiritual life of a Christian man, watchfulness must be combined with prayer
Ephesians 6:18; Colossians 4:2

What are the objects of our watching?
The enemy (1 Peter 5:8)
Temptation (Mark 14:38)
False Teaching (2 Peter 2:1; 1 John 4:1)
Opportunities to share God’s good news or to do God’s works (Titus 3:1; 2 Timothy 4:5)
The return of Christ (Matthew 24:42-44)

To act like men means to watch out for each other
Watching out for each other requires a solid foundation in Christ

3. Stand Firm in the Faith
Another “militant” term—Paul is calling on the Corinthians to make a stand, to be recognized, to hold their ground (cf. Ephesians 6:10-11)
1 Corinthians 15:58

There is a connection between being watchful and standing firm
An army on the watch is an army ready to stand
An army caught off guard or on break is an army soon defeated

How do we “stand firm”?
a. Be a disciple/learner—spend time learning the great truths of God from the Bible—be a Berean who searches the Scripture to find God’s plan
b. Know what you believe (2 Thessalonians 2:15)
c. Know why you believe it and be ready to offer a reason (1 Peter 3:15)
d. Once you know what and why, then act on it—do the truth

Standing firm is like a tree planted with deep roots—it is solid because it has a strong foundation—our foundation is what God accomplished through Jesus and the revelation of his truth in the Bible

Our faith (belief and action) should be an anchor for us (2 Timothy 2:15)

To act like men means to make a stand in what God has done
Standing in God’s work requires and results in strength

4. Be Strong
Krataio—refers to a strength in action rather than simply strength in possession
It isn’t how much you bench press, it is how you act when strength needed
The biggest muscles will freeze up if there is no strong character

Ephesians 6:10—”be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might”
Three kinds of strength here—empowerment (be endued with the Lord’s power), strength (a similar word as used in 1 Corinthians), and power (might or muscle)
We must gain power from God, act on what he gives us, and use it to accomplish his purposes

2 Corinthians 10:3-6—we pull down fortresses

What does this strength look like in action? Philippians 2:3-4
God’s power properly applied usually acts on behalf of others

Which brings us to our final point
We have all these “militant” terms, then Paul calls us to love
To act like men, we must be strong—but strength must be always be tempered with love

5. Do All in Love
What’s love got to do with it?
Only everything
God at his most powerful is also God at his most vulnerable

John 1:1-3, 14—God who created all things revealed his glory, grace, and truth by becoming one of us and revealing God among us (i.e., “Immanuel”)

Philippians 2:5-8
Equal with God, but didn’t take advantage
Emptied himself, and became a servant
Incarnated as a human, he humbly obeyed even to the point of dying for our sins on a cross
How did Jesus love? He gave himself so others could live
That’s the love Paul refers to here

To act like men requires us to do all things in love

The Corinthians certainly needed this kind of love (Paul even discussed it in chapter 13 of this book)
Their divisions had caused factions and fighting
They had become rivals instead of brothers
They were engaging in lawsuits instead of love
They were acting like children
They were not watching out for each other
They were not standing firm in the truth Paul had taught them
They were giving in to weakness

Where do we need love? Where do we need to show love?

To act like men, we must learn to do all things in love
That little three letter word is difficult isn’t it?
“All” things—even my marriage? My kids? My job? My business relationships? Even with those who don’t “love” me? Even in situations where showing love could result in a loss for me?

What do you think?

Acting like men is not easy
No one said growing up would be simple
Paul’s advice here is tough

Conclusion
So what do we do? How do we respond to this passage?

Our circumstances are not so different from the church in Corinth
We live in a divided society, live in divided families, even attend divided churches
We have people around us acting like juveniles—blaming others for their problems or only looking out for themselves—we have a lack of “grown ups”—we need some mature men
We have problems creeping in, temptations attacking, people falling, we need someone to be on the watch
Our society and our churches seem at times to be slipping into all kinds of problems or errors or sin. Nothing seems to be solid or firm. We need folks who are on a solid foundation
We need strength tempered by love

Our response to this passage is simple
We must act like men
We must go to our homes, our churches, our neighborhoods and embody the principles Paul has described here

Will we risk it?
If we don’t, who will?

What will our families, our churches, and our world look like if we do?
I’d like to see that!

Thanks for reading!