I don’t use other peoples works as a rule. However, I read an article written by Officer & Chaplain M.C. Williams for the “Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry and Fellowship of Christian Peace Officers” and feel like I need to share this with everyone. I contacted Mr. Williams and he graciously gave permission for me to use his work. I hope you enjoy it and can take away a message that will help you or someone you know. God has high hopes for all of us.
.It’s Time to “Man Up”
“Be on the alert, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love ”
( 1 Corinthians 16:13-14 , NASB — or 1 Cor. 16:13-14 , Phillips)
This week’s Bible study (and the resources that go with it) is not just for cops but also for men in general (and with an application for both sexes). No doubt, I’m sure to “offend” those out there who have bought into “the world’s” (the enemy — Satan — and a “modern” culture that God has allowed him to control — 2 Cor. 4:4) system that has become antagonistic to God’s plan as revealed in His Word, the Bible. It is also likely to “offend” (God help us) those who have elected to stay in ” lukewarm mode” ( Revelation 3:14-21). Clearly, God’s Word is in fact ” offensive” both to the enemy and the unrepentant unbeliever and backslider, but — with so many ” perishing” ( 1 Cor. 1:18) — it is again with a ” Code 3″ (lights and siren) sense of urgency that I’m staying the course He has set for me both on “the job” and in ministry. Gents — it’s past ” Time to Man Up!”
Modern society (again, “the world”) has given us a highly “skewed” view of men, and I’m not just speaking about some of the more highly publicized cultural issues of our time (skinny jeans and man buns aside — Lord help us — LOL). To the point of this study, the biggest problem with the world’s view is that men are encouraged to remain boys or even be anything but “manly” at all. This world encourages men to be selfish and childish, while God has a very different plan for us. Paul, writing under the direction of the Holy Spirit (with Corinth being a very wicked, worldly place) in 1 Corinthians 13:11, tells us, “When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.” (added emphasis)
With that, let’s look at just 4 main bullet points (real men — and cops in particular — should understand “bullets”-:).
GROW UP!
In order to answer God’s call to “man up,” we must first grow up. Scripture gives us the ultimate example of being a man in Jesus Himself. Dr. Luke tells us in Luke 2:52 that “…Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” Jesus grew up. He matured — He did not remain a little boy (spiritually, not just physically). Now there is nothing wrong with being a little boy for a season, but there comes a time and a place where the boy must become a man — to “man up” — to “act like men” (1 Cor. 16:13), and that time is NOW!
So what does it look like to grow up? Obviously, it includes physical growth. Luke tells us that Jesus increased in stature. The Greek word he used here for stature is “helikia,” meaning either age or stature in height. So clearly there is physical growth involved, but, to our point in this study, Luke also states that Jesus grew in wisdom. Like our Savior, a man (and woman) after God’s heart will seek to gain wisdom. The Greek word used here for wisdom is “Sophia” which means “wisdom, broad and full of intelligence; used of the knowledge of very diverse matters.” God’s plan is for us to grow in Him, including knowing and growing in His Word — “to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord (2 Peter 3:18 — to grow in the wisdom of God).
How do we do that? In Ephesians 4:11-13, Paul tells us that God sent teachers (like me or your pastor, for example), prophets, apostles and the like to help the church (believers) grow; to attain mature, spiritual “manhood.” A truly Godly man will grow in wisdom and stature, he will use that wisdom to train in endurance and patience and gain the strength to endure and resist temptation and be better able to lead (serve and protect) his spouse, children, and others.
WARRIOR UP!
The second aspect of Biblical manhood is God’s call for men to be servant-warriors (not “guardians” or other such nonsense). How did most of us guys (well, us “older” guys) play as kids? It usually involved toy swords and guns (and my dad taught me to shoot before I could walk). God created men to have a servant-warriors heart, and He is Himself a warrior (The LORD is a warrior, the LORD is His name — Exodus 15:3). In Revelation, we find image after image of Christ as a warrior king. Of this, noted Bible scholar and author, Dr. Tremper Longman, wrote, “Virtually every book of the Bible — Old and New Testaments — tells us about God’s warring activity.” God created us as men in His own image. As such, we should also share His servant-warriors heart.
And Jesus? He is Biblical manhood personified! The horrendous torture and death He lovingly took for us — bearing God’s full and righteous wrath for our sin — was the work of a true servant-warrior. While I do not always agree with John Eldridge, he was correct when he wrote, “Jesus is…no pale faced altar boy with his hair parted in the middle, speaking softly, avoiding confrontation, who got himself killed because he has no way out. He is the Lord of hosts, the captain of angel armies. And when Christ returns, he is at the head of a dreadful company, mounted on a white horse, with a double edged sword, and his robe dipped in blood…” (Rev. 19). Amen to that!
So then what does God intend for Christian (the real kind) men as Biblical servant-warriors? Understand that I’m not just talking about righteous (biblical) physical combat — be it military, law enforcement or lawful defense of ourselves and our loved ones (blood and blue). Rather, God has called us to spiritual warriorhood: to be the spiritual servant-leaders/shepherds of our families, our churches, our communities and yes, even our agencies (even if doing the latter involves some wisdom). Moreover, God intends that our greatest battles be fought on our knees (in prayer). As servant-warriors, we are to be engaged in continual combat against the attacks of a very real enemy (Satan — our common “enemy” whom Peter describes as “a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” — 1 Peter 5:8). To “man up” then means to be in constant training (regular prayer, the study of God’s Word, fellowship with other “all in” Christian servant-warriors) so as to withstand and defeat (with God’s help) a very real enemy!
FIGHT UP!
Another way God calls us to “man up” is in the way we are to treat the women in our lives: our wives, mothers, daughters, and women in general. God has called men to “fight” for them — to protect them, pray for them, lead (serve) them and, as it relates specifically to our wives, being utterly faithful to them (including what we look at on the internet). In Scripture, the description God gives us is the church being the “bride of Christ” for whom He fought for by dying on the cross. As servant-leaders, God has charged us to fight for/defend the women He has placed in our lives to our very last breath, in much the same way He has commissioned us cops to serve, protect and defend the public (Psalm 82:3-4, Romans 13:1-4) — even to the point of our own deaths.
Now understand, our call to “man up” does not make us in any way superior to woman. God’s made woman from a man’s rib — to be our partners and equals, but with different roles (I thank God He didn’t give me the ability to have children — LOL) — and it is our God-commanded role to serve, protect and lead them in the ways of the Lord. And as servant-leaders/warriors, we must be leading those entrusted to us in the ways of the Lord. Sadly, this is a responsibility that man has continually failed at all the way back to Adam. Gents, get in the fight!
LOVE UP!
Finally, and in keeping with the greatest commandment ( Matthew 22:36-40), we must LOVE UP ( agape) in order to man up! Much has been written on the subject of agape (sacrificial) love, and my friend Lt. Col. Dave Grossman — a true warrior — makes love a central theme in his seminars. Our ultimate example? It is found when Jesus speaks of sacrificial love in His Sermon on the Mount where He states, ” Greater love [agape] has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13 — and speaking of those like Himself who would sacrifice their lives so that the loss could come to a saving faith in Him).
Biblical manhood is a central theme in my own speaking/teaching ministry, and there is so much more on this topic that could be discussed here (God’s Word aside, whole books and ministries have been devoted to this issue). However, I’ve hopefully provided you with a “Rock” solid biblical foundation for future study (growth). Bottom line? God commands us as men to grow in wisdom and stature; to be loving, servant-warriors who will spiritually defend themselves and others from a powerful (but ultimately defeated – praise God) enemy; and finally to serve, love, lead and defend the women He has placed in our lives. Will you do that? Will you answer God’s call to man up?
Both for those of us serving in law enforcement and men in general, I’ll close our study by sharing some tough and rightly “in your face” words penned by fellow Christian police author and trainer, Travis Yates, from an article bearing essentially the same title: ” It’s Time to ‘Man Up'”