…for Part 1 of this blog, click here.
Scripture helps us answer the question, am I a game-player, or a world-changer? Am I a man following Christ or just a boy playing games?
5 Characteristics of a Godly Man
1. STEP UP: Lead. Initiate. Be a man of action. Hate apathy. Reject passivity. (2 Samuel 10:7, 12; Ezekiel 22:30)
2. SPEAK OUT: Silence in the midst of sin is a sin. Be courageous. Fear God not man. Speak the truth in love. (Proverbs 27:5-6; Proverbs 28:1; 1 Peter 3:15
3. STAND STRONG: Don’t give in when you are challenged, attacked or criticized. (Jeremiah 1:18-19; 1 Corinthians 15:58; 1 Peter 5:8-9)
4. BE HUMBLE: Be vigilant against pride. Get the log out of your eye. Don’t think less of yourself, think of yourself less. (Psalm 141:5, 1 Peter 5:5-7)
5. SERVE THE KING: Seek first His Kingdom, His glory, His righteousness. Hope in the eternal. Live for a greater reward. (Matthew 6:33; Mark 10:45)
(from Todd Wagner, How to be a Godly Man)
Has the reality of the gospel really transformed your life? Are you still living in a me-first and pleasure-first world, or have you broken through to the world of selfless abandon and sacrifice?
As you think about the future, is your mind more dominated by issues of success, appearance, and financial security, or have you actually surrendered your life to God? Biblically, manhood means pursuing God at the cost of anything and above everything. When we pursue the things of God, we can’t pursue anything else, or we stop pursuing him.
Men, in a culture in which boyhood is celebrated and praised, yearn for the things of God. Stand up for truth in hard places where its under attack. Get a solid grasp on the Bible and stand up and teach its hard truths in a way that helps make the truth clear to people who are struggling to get it. Be the kind of man Paul describes in Ephesians 4:13-14: someone who is steadfast and anchored, with a strong grasp of classic biblical truths that have been too long forgotten.
Embrace maturity, strive hard after responsibility, get wisdom. Christ in us is the hope of glory (Colossians 1:27). It is time to live in that reality!
