There is a lot of confusion these days on what it means to be a man. This can be highlighted by the fact that executive order 14168, entitled “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” was recently signed by the President of the United States of America.
As Christian men how should we react to the changing landscape of gender politics? I usually am pretty careful not to not talk about topics that may cause division and put up walls between people, but as a man of God I don’t need an executive order by the President of the United States to tell me how to feel about gender.
The Bible is pretty clear about what God thinks about gender, and role of men and women in God’s created order. Genesis 5:1-2 says, “When God created mankind, he made them in the likeness of God. He created them male and female and blessed them. And he named them “Mankind” when they were created.”
The Bible is not vague. There are two sexes, man and woman, and they were created in the image of God. I know that this statement may anger some people, but I would ask those who feel the heat of anger rising within them when they read this statement to pause for just a moment and ask themselves why do these simple, clear statements in the Bible make me so angry?
One of the tactics that our enemy, the devil, uses with great effectiveness is to sow confusion. For example, in the Garden of Eden God was pretty clear about what was permissible to Adam and Eve and what was forbidden. Everything was permissible to them except for one thing.
“The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the Lord God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.” – Genesis 2:15-17
God could not have been clearer in what he expected of Adam and Eve. All was good in paradise until the serpent came along. Satan is a master at taking the simple and straight forward and making it complex and confusing.
“Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?” The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’” “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.” – Genesis 3:1-7
I’m sure that these stories are not new to you and if you want to dig deeper and learn more about Creation and man and woman’s role it it please join us at Fall Creek Church where our pastor, John Newland, is preaching through the book of Genesis right now.
This morning I wanted to focus on another book of the Bible called Nehemiah. Nehemiah was an exiled Israelite who served as the cupbearer to King Artaxerxes I, a Persian king who ruled from 465 to 424 BC, in what is now modern Iran. The book of Nehemiah has been said to be the greatest book on leadership ever written and I think that it can teach us a lot about what godly male leadership looks like.
As cupbearer to the King, Nehemiah was in close contact with the King of Persia, and his primary job was to make sure that nobody poisoned the king’s wine. King Artaxerxes literally trusted Nehemiah with his life.
Nehemiah 1:1-4 says;
“During the month of Chislev in the twentieth year, when I was in the fortress city of Susa, Hanani, one of my brothers, arrived with men from Judah, and I questioned them about Jerusalem and the Jewish remnant that had survived the exile. They said to me, “The remnant in the province, who survived the exile, are in great trouble and disgrace. Jerusalem’s wall has been broken down, and its gates have been burned down. When I heard these words, I sat down and wept. I mourned for a number of days, fasting and praying before the God of heaven.“
The first principle of leadership that Nehemiah teaches us is that godly leaders know what breaks God’s heart and those things break their hearts too.
After Nehemiah spends time mourning, fasting and praying we are told the following;
“ During the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was set before him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had never been sad in his presence, so the king said to me, “Why are you sad, when you aren’t sick? This is nothing but depression.” I was overwhelmed with fear and replied to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should I not be sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins and its gates have been destroyed by fire?” Then the king asked me, “What is your request?” So I prayed to the God of heaven and answered the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor with you, send me to Judah and to the city where my ancestors are buried, so that I may rebuild it.” – Nehemiah 2:1-5
The second principle of leadership that Nehemiah teaches us is that godly leaders don’t run from their fears, they lean into them, by looking to God for the strength and courage. They understand that the only way to face their fears and to stand up for what is right is to go to God humbly and consistently in prayer.
Nehemiah’s prayer and faithful service to the king were rewarded, and he was permitted to return to Jerusalem with the blessing of the king to rebuild the wall of the city.
“After I arrived in Jerusalem and had been there three days, I got up at night and took a few men with me. I didn’t tell anyone what my God had laid on my heart to do for Jerusalem. The only animal I took was the one I was riding. I went out at night through the Valley Gate toward the Serpent’s Well and the Dung Gate, and I inspected the walls of Jerusalem that had been broken down and its gates that had been destroyed by fire. I went on to the Fountain Gate and the King’s Pool, but farther down it became too narrow for my animal to go through. So I went up at night by way of the valley and inspected the wall. Then heading back, I entered through the Valley Gate and returned. The officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, for I had not yet told the Jews, priests, nobles, officials, or the rest of those who would be doing the work. So I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in. Jerusalem lies in ruins and its gates have been burned down. Come, let’s rebuild Jerusalem’s wall, so that we will no longer be a disgrace.” I told them how the gracious hand of my God had been on me, and what the king had said to me. They said, “Let’s start rebuilding,” and they were encouraged to do this good work. When Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshem the Arab heard about this, they mocked and despised us, and said, “What is this you’re doing? Are you rebelling against the king?” I gave them this reply, “The God of heaven is the One who will grant us success. We, His servants, will start building, but you have no share, right, or historic claim in Jerusalem. “ I gave them this reply, “The God of heaven is the One who will grant us success. We, His servants, will start building, but you have no share, right, or historic claim in Jerusalem.” – Nehemiah 2:11-20
The third principle of leadership that Nehemiah teaches us is that godly leaders keep their God-given vision to themselves until the appropriate time. When they do reveal their vision to others and face certain ridicule, they look to God’s strength to accomplish their God-given task, not to their own strength.
Nehemiah’s vision was contagious and the remnants people who had stayed behind in Israel put Nehemiah’s vision into practice and they worked together to rebuild the broken walls of Jerusalem. When Nehemiah’s vision started to come to life we are then told the following.
“When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became furious. He mocked the Jews before his colleagues and the powerful men of Samaria, and said, “What are these pathetic Jews doing? Can they restore it by themselves? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they ever finish it? Can they bring these burnt stones back to life from the mounds of rubble?” Then Tobiah the Ammonite, who was beside him, said, “Indeed, even if a fox climbed up what they are building, he would break down their stone wall!” Listen, our God, for we are despised. Make their insults return on their own heads and let them be taken as plunder to a land of captivity. Do not cover their guilt or let their sin be erased from Your sight, because they have provoked the builders. So we rebuilt the wall until the entire wall was joined together up to half its height, for the people had the will to keep working. When Sanballat, Tobiah, and the Arabs, Ammonites, and Ashdodites heard that the repair to the walls of Jerusalem was progressing and that the gaps were being closed, they became furious. They all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and throw it into confusion. So we prayed to our God and stationed a guard because of them day and night In Judah, it was said: The strength of the laborer fails, since there is so much rubble. We will never be able to rebuild the wall. And our enemies said, “They won’t know or see anything until we’re among them and can kill them and stop the work.” When the Jews who lived nearby arrived, they said to us time and again, “Everywhere you turn, they attack us.” So I stationed people behind the lowest sections of the wall, at the vulnerable areas. I stationed them by families with their swords, spears, and bows. After I made an inspection, I stood up and said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people, “Don’t be afraid of them.Remember the great and awe-inspiring Lord, and fight for your countrymen, your sons and daughters, your wives and homes.”.” – Nehemiah 4:1-14
The fourth principle of leadership that Nehemiah teaches us is to expect opposition, even the threat of death, when you start to execute a God-given vision to rebuild that which the world has broken.
Despite the fear of death and destruction, Nehemiah and the Israelites pushed forward to rebuild the wall.
“When our enemies heard that we knew their scheme and that God had frustrated it, every one of us returned to his own work on the wall. From that day on, half of my men did the work while the other half held spears, shields, bows, and armor. The officers supported all the people of Judah, who were rebuilding the wall. The laborers who carried the loads worked with one hand and held a weapon with the other. Each of the builders had his sword strapped around his waist while he was building, and the trumpeter was beside me. Then I said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people: “The work is enormous and spread out, and we are separated far from one another along the wall. Wherever you hear the trumpet sound, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us!” So we continued the work, while half of the men were holding spears from daybreak until the stars came out. At that time, I also said to the people, “Let everyone and his servant spend the night inside Jerusalem, so that they can stand guard by night and work by day.” And I, my brothers, my men, and the guards with me never took off our clothes. Each carried his weapon, even when washing.” – Nehemiah 4:15-23
The fifth principle of leadership that Nehemiah teaches us is that we can’t fight evil alone. The only way to push back evil and accomplish a God-given vision is to work together and be willing to fight and build at the same time.
I love the imagery of men rebuilding what is broken in the world, side by side, a sword in one hand and a trowel in the other. Nehemiah teaches us that if you want to inspire men to become true men of God, to rebuild that which is warped and broken in this fallen world, don’t be afraid to speak the truth and present a vision that is so big that it will fail unless God shows up. Acknowledge the fact that when men of God take a stand together, expect opposition.
Fellow men of God. Are we willing to pick up a sword and a trowel to defend and repair that which is broken, or are we too self-absorbed or distracted to even notice the rubble around us? Are we protecting Christ’s bride, the church and our own brides if God has blessed us with a wife? Do our children look at us as warriors in the Kingdom of God? Are we teaching our sons, daughters and grandchildren how to defend, protect and build the Kingdom of God through our words and actions?
The good news is that we serve a merciful and patient God, who is one feeble prayer away from unlocking the warrior within us. Are we man enough to take up the challenge? We are in a war men of God, but it is not with our fellow man. We fight an unseen enemy who will gut you, destroy your marriage and your family if you continue to slumber instead of fight.
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” – Ephesians 6:12
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.- John 10:10
“As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” – Proverbs 27:17
“There was a man all alone; he had neither son nor brother. There was no end to his toil, yet his eyes were not content with his wealth. “For whom am I toiling,” he asked, “and why am I depriving myself of enjoyment?” This too is meaningless— a miserable business. Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor: If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up. Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.”- Ecclesiastes 4:7-12
Manna and Coffee 