Filed under: Uncategorized
by Mike Plewniak
On the Albert Mohler program yesterday, he addressed the issue of biblical manhood. He said that one of the biggest challenges facing the church today is the eclipse and confusion of manhood. The show walks through what callers would say to young Christian men
What would you say?
Filed under: Devotions
by Caleb Hancock
Now that we have reached the heart of the matter, the fact that God saves the undeserving sinner who repents and trusts in God’s mercy evidenced in Christ, where does that leave us?
Albeit, with these truths in mind, we have sufficient reason to praise God for all of eternity. He has saved us! He not only created each of us, but He has set His mercy on those whom He has chosen to save that we might praise Him forever! But he didn’t just stop with creation or salvation…
by Tyler Thayer
Over a month ago, in my post Assurance through Experience, I told you that I would be doing a series of posts that will dig down to get at our souls. Now that VQ is over, I feel like it is time to make good on what I said I would do. But in order to do so more effectively I have given a name to the series: System Analysis. (Maybe I will get someone to make a special banner for this one, dunno) The goal of this series will be to analyze, scrutinize and bring to light what makes a man, a man. More specifically, though, I want to dive deeper than merely what our culture tells us a man is and explore the parts of the biblical, godly man.
A good friend of mine, who I greatly respect, has had a theory for the past year or so. Regularly, he will point out that sports have become religion in our culture, especially in America. He will compare the stadium to the sanctuary, the balls as relics, and the multitude of teams as gods. Each avid sports attendee will don the sacred robes that represent a team’s colors, and seek at all costs an opportunity to worship at the altar, the field. Now whether or not this describes you, I don’t know, but my friend would say that this describes the hearts of many men who love sports. But is it true?
Where’s the line? At what point does enjoying a sports game, whether competing or watching, become idol worship?
In 1 Corinthians 10:31 Paul challenges us by saying, “whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
Many men love sports, and most men love to be competitive, but can we be competitive to the glory of God? Should men even be competitive? I think this is a very fair question to ask, because if we are called to be on guard and do all things to the glory of God, then shouldn’t we question the very thing that often causes us to curse, hate, and allow anger to fill our hearts?
Perhaps, though, if we love competivtiveness too much, we might become like this:
Edit:
You can check out CJ Mahaney’s take on this subject in his sermon Don’t Waste Your Sports. If you have listened to this sermon, what were your thoughts?
Filed under: Humor
Check out this theological statement on the absence of breakfast in heaven.
—joshcan
Filed under: Devotions
by Caleb Hancock
Is your relationship with God marked by drastic ups and downs? Are you, from day to day, assessing “how you’re doing” as it relates to God dependent on how you feel you’re doing? If you are aware of recent sin, is your relationship with God marked with shame and embarrassment, and you feel that you are not worthy of praising God, praying, or fellowshipping with other believers?
BEWARE! These are the symptoms of legalism. A belief system that is prominent in humanity and seeks to base our relationship with God on our efforts and accomplishments. Not only does this system bring about depression and discouragement when you fall off the bandwagon, but, even more dangerously, it can lead to vehement pride that assumes good standing with God based on obedience to him. Is this You?
If so, the next 3 verses from Titus 3 will be very offensive.
by Justin Day
What makes one a man? Is it being able to tear down and rebuild the transmission of a 69 chevelle? Is it being able drink four cups of black coffee every morning? Is it never laying in a tanning bed?
At Vision Quest we played a very amusing game where we made fun of how most people view manliness (you know a game is a bad judge of manliness when I last longer than our pastor). But the one thing that got me thinking was that we never actually stated what manliness actually is, at least I don’t remember it being said.
So my question for those that are reading this is how should we define manliness? Or in other words, what makes one a man?
Filed under: Devotions
by Caleb Hancock
You guys know what I’m talking about. You pull off of the interstate, you’re about to get to the stop light at the end of the ramp before you make your turn, and you see him. A man stands in the median with a cardboard sign, “Will work for food.”
While we might not be advertising our desires on the back of old boxes, I have found that mine, and I believe, every human heart, has a default setting of trying to earn God’s forgiveness and favor. We recognize that something is wrong in the way we relate to God, and we take it upon ourselves to address the problem. But what does scripture say?
Is it really dependent on our performance how God relates to us? Can we, because of what we do, put God in a place where he is obligated to forgive us and bless us because we have obeyed him?
Filed under: Devotions
by Caleb Hancock
I recently had the pleasure to eat dinner with a man who has been in Christian ministry for over 50 years. While it was an honor and privilege to hear this man’s experiences and to hear his views on important theological and ecclesiological concepts, it was more encouraging to simply view this man’s love for God’s word. How he was daily benefitting from spending time reading the Scriptures and preaching the gospel to himelf. This reminded me that, as a young man, the battle will rage and continue to be important until my dying day to remember what is of first importance. It’s not what impact I can make on my church or family, it’s not how badly I have screwed up and trying to minimize it, it’s not the daily tasks and roles that I fill. Rather, the most important daily task that I can and should contemplate and remind myself of is the good news of God’s grace shown to ill-deserving sinners like myself through the cross of God’s son, Jesus. Because He lived without sin as my representative, because He hung on a cross experiencing the full weight of God’s holy wrath against sin, and because God graciously opened my eyes to see and believe these truths, I am forgiven of all my sin and credited with Christ’s perfect record! This is the gospel! And there is no more important truth to apply to one’s own soul than this. It brings peace, joy, humility, true-wisdom, and unsearchable other benefits as well! I now have peace with God, not based on my performance!
Seeing this older man’s love for these truths, and the life of faithful service, motivated by God’s grace that resulted, fired me up to want to finish well. Whatever my future holds, whatever God has planned for me in the days remaining to me here on earth, I want to pursue holiness with the cross of Christ always before me.
Let me encourage and exhort you to the same mission. Let’s follow this man’s example, as the example of so many Christian leaders in years past and present, and finish our course well!
Application:
- If you’re in school, seek to finish this semester excellently for God’s glory. Be faithful to study and diligent in your school-work that you might excel.
- If you are an employee, seek to honor and support the leadership of your boss and to be a faithful and diligent worker, as unto the Lord.
- If you are the head of a household, seek to serve and lead your family toward godliness, through laying your life down for them.
- For all, serve in your local church! Serve with joy and humility the body that God has blessed you to be a part of.
In all these things, look to Christ, the author and perfecter of your faith and run with renewed strength each day.
by Justin Day
In his epic work Proslogion St. Anselm of Canterbury argued that God was a necessary being and that he could show it. Anselm said that God, given his nature, must exist. His argument went as follows:
- It is a conceptual truth (or, so to speak, true by definition) that God is a being than which none greater can be imagined (i.e., the greatest possible being that can be imagined).
- God exists as an idea in the mind.
- A being that exists as an idea in the mind and in reality is, other things being equal, greater than a being that exists only as an idea in the mind.
- Thus, if God exists only as an idea in the mind, then we can imagine something that is greater than God (i.e., a greatest possible being that does exist).
- But we cannot imagine something that is greater than God (for it is a contradiction to suppose that we can imagine a being greater than the greatest possible being that can be imagined.)
- Therefore, God exists.
So what do you guys think? Does it show that God exists? Is it a trick of words?
by Tyler Thayer
Have you ever laughed at the differences between men and women? You should. On ManSpeak we often jest about the “realms of men” and the “realms of women.” But aside from cultural stereotypes, jokes, and the basic miscommunication between sexes, the Church debates about how significant gender roles are. Usually, people fall into one of two categories: egalitarianism or complementarianism.
Complementarianism bases its argument in Genesis 2, the creation story. In verse 18 God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.” Though verse 18 says that woman was made to be a “helper fit for him,” it does not state that woman has any less value or claim to the image of God than man does, and vise-versa. Instead, complementarianism holds that men and women are equal in value, because both their identities are found within the image of God (Genesis 1:27). In addition, their inheritance is equal, and both are sealed by the Spirit as a guarantee of their inheritance and transformed heart (2 Corinthians 1:22).
At the same time, complementarianism brings a distinction to the roles of men and women. Men and women are equal in image and value but distinct in role. Titus 2:1-6 teaches,
“But as for you, teach what accords with sound doctrine. Older men are to be sober-minded, dignified, self-controlled, sound in faith, in love, and in steadfastness. Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good, and so train the young women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled. Likewise, urge the younger men to be self-controlled.”
Scripture further teaches that the marriage between a man and woman should reflect the marriage between Christ and his bride, the Church.
“Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.” (Ephesians 5:22-24)
We at ManSpeak believe God sees us, men and women, as equal bearers of his image, yet the roles we take on in the church, family, and the world are distinct.
ManSpeak wants to know what your questions are. We want to know what questions are going through your mind on the subject of gender roles and complementarianism.
Challenge us…ask us anything that comes to mind when you think about this subject.
[This is not just for the guys, but all ladies who read the blog, what questions and/or doubts do you have?]
Manspeak 
