The Making of a Man Part 2

Good morning, good morning church. I'm gonna read from Psalm 77 this morning. It says, "I will remember the deeds of the Lord." Yes, I will remember your wonders of old. I will ponder all your work, the meditate on your mighty deeds. Your way, O God, is holy. What God is great like our God. The answer's nobody, amen? Nobody is great like him. You are the God who works wonders, and you have made known your might among the peoples. He's made known his might among us. Let's sing of his greatness, his goodness together this morning, amen? Come on, see me. ♪ O Lord my God ♪ ♪ When I in awesome wonder ♪ ♪ Consider all the worlds I have made ♪ ♪ I see the stars ♪ ♪ I hear the rolling thunder ♪ ♪ Thy power throughout ♪ ♪ The universe ♪ ♪ Dispray ♪ ♪ Come all sing from your soul today ♪ ♪ This thing's my slow ♪ ♪ My saving God to me ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ We sing ♪

♪ This thing's my soul ♪ ♪ My saving God to me ♪ ♪ How great You art ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ Know this like You art ♪ ♪ And when I sing ♪ ♪ That God is so not scary ♪ ♪ Since He has to die ♪ ♪ I spare Him taking you ♪ ♪ That all the cause ♪ ♪ I'll burn and gladly bury ♪ ♪ Keep living God ♪ ♪ To take away my silly thing ♪ ♪ This thing's my soul ♪ ♪ My saving God to me ♪ ♪ How great You art ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ This thing's my soul ♪ ♪ My saving God to me ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ We remember all Your words ♪ ♪ Your wonders love You ♪ ♪ See the great together ♪ ♪ Your cross shall come ♪ ♪ With child of aggravation ♪ ♪ And take me home ♪ ♪ What sure shall fill my heart ♪

♪ Then I shall bow ♪ ♪ In humble adoration ♪ ♪ In beautiful clay ♪ ♪ My God, how great Thou art ♪ ♪ How great You art Jesus ♪ ♪ You have to the victory ♪ ♪ Oh, we say, we say ♪ ♪ This thing's my soul ♪ ♪ My saving God to me ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ My saving ♪ ♪ This thing's my soul ♪ ♪ My saving God to me ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ How great Thou art ♪ ♪ I see you all Lord ♪ ♪ And you are great and greatly to be praised this morning ♪ ♪ And so it's your name that we look to ♪ ♪ We've got to do all things ♪ ♪ We've got to do the impossible ♪ ♪ I see you ♪ ♪ Like water in the wilderness ♪ ♪ You're the source of every breath ♪ ♪ Turn my faith aside 'til I'm believing ♪ ♪ You don't know impossible ♪ ♪ Your power undeniable ♪ ♪ And I'm convinced that you will stop ♪

♪ And nothing ♪ ♪ When we sing all things are possible ♪ ♪ All things are possible ♪ ♪ You still do miracles ♪ ♪ I will lift my hands ♪ ♪ To the dark, okay ♪ ♪ Kings and the kings are small ♪ ♪ But you are unshakable ♪ ♪ I will lift my hands ♪ ♪ To the dark, okay ♪ ♪ All you can do ♪ [♪♪♪] ♪ When I'm stuck in unbelief ♪ ♪ You're blood the cure for my disease ♪ ♪ I was sick ♪ ♪ I was sick believing ♪ ♪ For my healing ♪ ♪ No force of hell can separate ♪ ♪ You hold the keys ♪ ♪ You hold the keys to every breath ♪ ♪ You call me dead ♪ ♪ You call me dead ♪ ♪ And send them a temple running ♪ ♪ All things are possible ♪ ♪ You still do miracles ♪ ♪ I will lift my hands ♪ ♪ To the dark, okay ♪ ♪ Keeps it like heat and smoke ♪ ♪ You are unshakable ♪ ♪ I will lift my hands ♪

♪ To the dark, okay ♪ ♪ Yes, I will lift my hands ♪ ♪ To the dark, okay ♪ ♪ Oh, yes, you look too low ♪ ♪ You can do anything ♪ ♪ You can do anything ♪ ♪ We say that I can't make a mountain move ♪ ♪ But I know who can ♪ ♪ You can't, I can't make it all from you ♪ ♪ But I know who can ♪ ♪ You can't, I can't make it all from apart ♪ ♪ But I know who can ♪ ♪ You can't, I can't make it all from apart ♪ ♪ But I know who can ♪ ♪ You can't, I can't make it all from you ♪ ♪ But I know who can ♪ ♪ 'Cause I can't make a mountain move ♪ ♪ But I know who can ♪ ♪ You can't, I can't make it all from you ♪ ♪ But I know who can ♪ ♪ You can't, I can't make it all from apart ♪ ♪ But I know who can ♪ ♪ You can't, I can't make it all from apart ♪ ♪ But I know who can ♪ ♪ You can't, I can't wash away my sin ♪ ♪ But I know who can ♪ ♪ You can't, I can't make it all from you ♪ ♪ But I know who can ♪ ♪ You can't ♪ ♪ So I know who can ♪

♪ You can't ♪ ♪ All things are possible ♪ ♪ You still do me recall ♪ ♪ I will lift my head ♪ ♪ To the God who can ♪ ♪ Kings and the Kings fall ♪ ♪ But you are a shape of hope ♪ ♪ So I'll lift my head ♪ ♪ To the God who can ♪ ♪ Go out and lift my head ♪ ♪ To the God who can ♪ ♪ Yes I will lift my head ♪ While we sing this, my God is good Oh, completely good Oh, my God has done more than enough He's so faithful And my God is good Oh, it's completely good Oh, my God has done more than enough I'm so grateful we sing again And my God is good Oh, it's completely good Oh, my God has done more than enough He's so faithful And my God is good He's completely good Oh, my God has done more than enough And I'm so grateful And we look at what the Lord has done God, we look to you

This morning, would you lift your hands all across this room With me to the God who is good Good always, good all the time We do all things and works all things together For the good of those who love Him Lord, it's you that we look to It's you that we call on There's no other name like the name of our God High and lifted up, exalted at the highest place Lord, we turn our gaze to you today Whatever we've come in with Lord, we give it to you You're good all the time, Lord And we love you And it isn't the holy, holy, and precious Name of Jesus that I pray This morning, amen, amen Amen, would you give Him praise Today, He's good And we're so glad you're here Worshiping Him together with us This morning, why don't you take the next few moments Greet the people around you today ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ [Applause] Amen of God, we're doing a special series This month, Two Men.

I told the ladies last week, don't check out You need to listen because there's something in every message for you two. You're gonna learn a lot about your husbands just by listening in And you're gonna learn a lot about what God wants to do in you. And so that's what we're doing part two Of a series we're called The Making of a Man. Joe Man, I want you to stand with me once again At every campus, at every church house If you would just do the kindness Of standing with me, I wanna again Rehearse the definition of what it means to be a man Because this definition gives us a vision It's a destination to run after for all of us This is as a real man rejects passivity Accepts responsibility, leads courageously And expects the greater reward Which is God's reward So gentlemen, say this with me right now In your strongest voice, a real man [Inaudible] Gentlemen, listen carefully, I told you last week I mean this very much, I'm not a better man than anybody here I know what I am apart from Jesus and anything good in me Is only because of Jesus So please know I'm not preaching at you I'm running this race with you Because every single day I have to do this again My heart wants to walk in passivity I naturally want to do what is easy And every single day I have to make the same choice again

To accept responsibility, to lead courageously So I want you to know that I'm grateful for you I'm grateful to be your pastor And I'm convinced the greatest men alive today On the earth are some of them standing right here In this church, in every church house, in every campus Across this city And so right now ladies, we give it up for these men I'm so proud of them I'm so grateful for them [Applause] Gentlemen, you can be seated This series is really more about what a man is This is what a man does leads courageously, expects the great reward, which is God's reward. But more importantly, I wanna talk about identity through this series, because your identity is what drives your activity. In other words, you need to know that who you are is driven by who's you are, because a man that knows who he is cannot be controlled, can't be coerced, can't be intimidated, can't be manipulated. You'll not live in the fear of men, you'll only live in the fear of God, and that's when you can live a courageous, fearless kind of life that God made you to live. And so, we really see this in scripture, like Jesus, God has called every man to be a pastor, priest, prophet, and king.

Now, last week, I told you that every man is a pastor, prophet, priest, and king. But I decided I don't wanna preach on being a priest this week instead of a prophet. Okay, so I get the right to change it, yes? Everybody in? I wanna talk today, what's it mean to say that a man is a priest of God? Now, listen carefully, we're all priests of God. In fact, the scripture teaches in the New Testament the priesthood of all believers. Now, some of you have taught that only priests are those that wear a clerical collar and they've got the right uniform and they've been to seminary. No, I'm telling you, if you've been to a seminary that taught only a few, get to be a priest and you need to get it for seminary. Because the New Testament teaches the priesthood of all believers, men and women. In fact, this is in 1 Peter 2 and verse five that we are a holy priesthood. 1 Peter 2 and verse nine calls us a royal priesthood. It says in Revelation one, and verse 10, that he has made us be both priests and kings. Revelation five and verse 10. He's made us be both priests and kings. But I want you to see today specifically about what it means to be a priest for your family. Specifically, what does it mean for men?

Now, we're all priests of God. That means you have direct access to God. You don't need a mediator. A 1 Timothy 2, 5, it says there's one God and one mediator between God and men. The man, Christ Jesus. Every single one of us are priests, men and women in that sense. But I specifically want men to see what that means in their life for how they lead. We're going back again to Genesis chapter three. What is Genesis chapter three? It's really our origin story of humanity. It's the study of Christian anthropology. Where did we come from? And how did we get here? So in Genesis chapter three, we're looking at the first Adam, the first man. And we are in this series contrasting the first Adam with the last Adam. First Corinthians 15 verse 45 calls Jesus the last Adam because God wants to connect the lines from the last Adam, Jesus, to the first Adam. And all that the first Adam failed, the last Adam, Jesus will finish. The first Adam's commission was canceled by sin. The last Adam's commission will be completed. I want you to see that we can stand as men in the shadow of the first Adam or we can walk every day in the light of the last Adam,

the second Adam, the Lord Jesus Christ. This is in Genesis chapter three and verse six. So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of his fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her and he ate. Now we stopped here a week ago and we saw what happened here. You have the woman who is deceived by the serpent into doing the one thing God told not to do. She's deceived. But Adam we learned first him, the two was not deceived. He's sinned with his eyes wide open. And he's now like in some faraway stretch of the garden somewhere where he comes back not knowing what happened. He's witnessing this whole thing go down. What happened? He failed to reject passivity. He did not accept responsibility. He failed to lead courageously and he went for the small reward of the day. Instead of living for the greater reward that would come someday. See God would have let them eat of this tree in his way, in his time. All sin is trying to get on your own what God wants to give you anyway. That's the nature of sin.

All sin is trying to reach for a legitimate need and fulfill it personally instead of reaching in a way that God gives it to you anyway. It's trying to fulfill a need apart from God, a God-given need. And that's what happens here. They choose to eat of this tree apart from God. And the world is still reeling, Romans 6, 23. The wages of sin is death. Romans five and verse 12, that's by one man's sin that was Adam, death under the world. So Jeff passed on all men for all have sin. I want you to see what happens next. Then the eyes of both of them were opened and they knew that they were naked and they sowed fig leaves together and made themselves covering. Sin always makes you run from God. And that was their first response. Sin had broken the fellowship they had with God. They were made to be at one with God. And now they are running from Him. Now they are hiding from Him. And I want you to see what God does. Listen carefully. They heard the sound of the Lord, God walking in the garden in the cool of the day. They're now hiding from God. The implication here in Genesis three is that God would go on a walk every day for a talk.

Adam was made to walk with God and talk with God. Can you imagine what they talked about on that walk about? And one day he shows up to go on that walk. And Adam's not there. He was missing. And I want you to see what happens and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the prince of the Lord God among the trees of the garden in the Lord God called to Adam and said to him, where are you? Now I want you to notice something. He calls for Adam specifically. Why? Because any time in the word of God, God addresses matters of the family, death who he holds responsible personally. Yes, Adam is the one accountable before God for what has happened. Yes, he's sinned too, but he's responsible for the health of his family. No, ladies, this doesn't absolve you of responsibility. You're an equal part of the equation here. There's no such thing as a healthy marriage apart from a healthy man and a healthy wife. All right, there's no such thing as a godly marriage when only one of you is pursuing God and the other isn't. That's why we need to give each other lots of grace and marriage. 'Cause we're all bunch of broken sinful people trying to have a happy, healthy marriage

and live happily ever after. And their days is gonna be really hard. That's why when you took your vows, you said for better or worse, for richer or poorer. And I want you to know, though, what God is doing here. He's calling for Adam. I want you to know to something. Listen, he pursues Adam in the same way he pursues all of us. Yes, we walked away from him, but do you understand that God immediately goes after them? Now, listen, when he says, "Where are you?" I promise you, God is omniscient. He's all knowing he hasn't lost Adam. Adam, come out, come out wherever you are. No, he hasn't lost Adam. This is kind of like, yeah, if you've got a toddler and you tell your toddler, don't touch the vase on the coffee table. And you walk out of the room and then you hear the vase break. You walk back in the room and you say, "What have you done?" Oh, you know exactly what they've done. It's not a mystery to you. What do you want them to do? You want your child to fess up. You want them to come out of hiding on their own. That's what God is doing here. He knows exactly where they are. They're not, yeah, they're not really hiding from God, but he wants them to simply come out of hiding. Listen, instead of running from God,

I will promise when you come out of hiding, God then brings healing. And that's what God wants to do here. He wants to bring healing, but first they've got to come out of hiding and God pursues them and says, "Adam, where are you?" I want to make some observations. Listen carefully as the son of God, Adam worshiped God because he walked with God. That is what's going on. Before the fall of Adam, before there was sin, when you have this perfect creation and perfect perfection, man was meant to be one with God. Adam would walk with God, he would talk with God. I want you to notice something carefully. Listen, he was suddenly separated from God. He could no longer walk with God in the same way. He could no longer talk to God in the same way since separated God and Adam. And this is why Jesus said, "We must be born again." You see, Adam was made in the image and likeness of God. He was meant to reproduce the image of God in his offspring. He was not meant to reproduce sons of Adam. He was meant to reproduce sons of God. But when he sinned, he could only reproduce a son of God. He could only reproduce sons of Adam. Genesis 5-3, one of the saddest verses in the Bible. Adam begat his son Seth in his own image. In his own likeness. And this is why we come into the world physically alive

but spiritually dead. And the moment Adam ate, he died spiritually. And because he died spiritually, he could no longer be one with God almighty. But Jesus said in John 3, "You must be born again." John 3 and verse 3, "You must be born again when you put your face in him, the son of God." Now you're born again as a child of God. You get back the image of God. You get back everything Adam lost in the garden. And 1 Corinthians 15 really gives you the theological commentary on Genesis chapter 3. In fact, as we compare, in contrast, This is in 1 Corinthians 15, verse 22, "As an Adam all die, yet as in Christ all shall be made alive." There's a comparison and the contrast. Adam brought death to his family. It's Jesus that brings life to his family. Adam brought death to his bride. It's Jesus that gives life to his bride, the church, you and I. I want you to see something as a child of God now born again by faith in the Son of God. We get back everything Adam lost in the garden as sons of God. We were made to worship God and walk with God. That's what it means to be a priest. Revelation 5, verse 10, he's made us be both priests and kings. We're going to talk about the king part. A king is for rulership, but a priest is for worship. And everything that Adam should have done had he not sinned. Now he's calling men to do as sons of God born again in the image of God. We are to walk with God and worship God and lead others to walk with God and worship God.

That's what priests are called to do. What does it mean then for a man to be the priest specifically of his family? God's called men to lead their families to worship God and to walk with God. You're the lead worshipper as the priest of your family. Listen, this is one, I want you to understand. When I walk around, let's say at every service, I do this occasionally. On the occasion I get to go to another campus or even a church house. I don't come over here to my seat where I sit before I come up here. I start thumbing through my notes of my sermon and no, just what I'm doing, I'm worshiping. I'm worshiping in the terrace somewhere usually. I'm worshiping out here somewhere. Number of reasons. One, I want to greet you and meet you. I love you and I would talk to every one of you every Sunday if I could. I would, but more importantly is I'm leading worship out there. As the lead pastor, I see myself as the lead worshipper as a bundle of life. I'm not the lead singer by the way. I mean, listen, I can hold a tune. I just can't hold an octave. I start here, then I got to come here, then I'm back up here, holy, holy. Then it hits and I can't reach that and I got to come back down. I'm not the lead singer, but I am the lead worshipper. That's how I see myself. I'm helping lead worship out there where you got Caleb and the others up here and I want you to understand in some way, gentlemen, you may not be a great singer, but God's called you as the priest of your family to be the lead worship. You're the worship leader. You're to lead your family. If you don't have a family, you have a small group. You have a sphere of influence in your life and God's called every man to influence others

to walk with God and worship God as a priest of God. Listen, as men of God, we only know God and walk with God to the degree we know, the word of God. And this is why knowing the word of God is so important. You cannot have a deep, abiding, walk with God if you have a shallow understanding of the word of God. I think it's one of the number one problems in modern American Christianity, biblical illiteracy. If you have a shallow understanding of God's word, you'll have a shallow faith in the God of the word. Now, listen, I don't want you to be intimidated by this. You don't have to go to seminary. You don't have to have a doctorate of divinity. It's not about having a Ph.D. in theology, but what you do need is a growing knowledge of God's word. For some of us here, our next step might be discipleship one. You want to learn the word of God, you come to the right church. We will teach you the word of God, line by line. We will teach you how to study the word of God for yourself personally. You don't need to be spoon-fed as a man of God when you know how to feed yourself on the word of God. I'm serious. We'll put a mentor with you, somebody to personally disciple you, and help you start learning how to walk with God. There's no excuse if you don't know how to do this. But listen, you don't have to know a lot about God's word to be the priest of your family. I'm going to tell you why, listen carefully, the key to being the family priest or the worship leader is not about how much you know about God, it's about having a heart for God. Because you can teach what you know, but you reproduce what you are, and that's the most important aspect of this.

I want you to think about this. Why is it so much of the time the women actually lead the way in this area? I mean, statistically, I mean, peer research poll after another, one after another, one after another. Historically, check this out. There are more women who profess Jesus than men. There are more women who are Christian. Women are far more apt to be a part of a small group. A group's fair day at Abundant Life and the group's team is out there at every single campus to connect you in small groups so you have biblical community. Historically, more women are involved in small groups than men. Historically, women are far more likely to be involved in personal Bible study. Then men. I mean, truthfully, if this whole Jesus saying was an Olympic sport, it's the women and children that take the gold and the silver. And guys, we get the bronze by default, a distant third. I'm just saying. And I think the reason why is, look, men will naturally retreat from anything that makes them feel weak, anything that they don't understand. This is why Adam runs from God, men have been running from God ever since. Because men will naturally retreat from anything that doesn't make them feel strong, like they're an expert. I know this. It's even harder when we feel like our wives are ahead of us. It often makes us retreat even more. Because men want to be in charge. We want to feel like we're in control. You can see this in so many ways. I mean, I went to a mechanic shop recently. I have my truck worked on. I'm standing in line watching this go down in front of me. And it always happens this way at a mechanic shop. He got the guy in the front of the line. He gets the bill and it always goes down something like this.

He looks at the bill and goes, "Wow! Whoa! A thousand dollars! Why'd it cost so much?" And then the guy behind the counter says something like, "Well, the wiper fluid went dry." When the wiper fluid goes dry, the tie rods come loose. When the tie rods come loose, the carburetor sticks. When the carburetor sticks, I mean, the piston sees up and the piston sees up, the engine blows up. Sometimes the guy's nodding, "Oh, yeah, sure. Oh, okay. Got it. Sure." He doesn't understand a thing the guy just said. But he's nodding the whole time. You know what I'm saying? I mean, we want to feel like we don't want to look stupid. And we don't understand the Bible makes us feel stupid. It's intimidating. Guys, I'm telling you, for some of you, I hear this over and over. I wish my husband would lead the family spiritually. Well, here's the problem. He tried once and you corrected him. If you want him to pray with you, don't correct him when he prays. Let him grow. If he's trying to lead the way spiritually, you know, don't jump in and correct his theology. I mean, unless it's heresy, yes, but, you know, little nuances, if he doesn't get it quite right. Listen, if he's trying to step into his calling, let him lead. You'll be happier. The home will be healthier. It's already intimidating enough. But, gentlemen, I'm trying to tell you, you don't have to worry about how much you know about God. It's about having a heart for God because you can teach what you know. But you will more importantly reproduce what you are. Listen, the church can teach your children what they need to know. We can access the head, but it's in the home alone where you access the heart. And the heart of the problem is always the human heart. I want you to know you can teach what you know, but you will reproduce what you are. Gentlemen, as the family priest, what does this mean? Your children will learn to love what you love. They will learn to value what you value.

They will learn to celebrate what you celebrate. They will replicate what you replicate. If they see you ambivalent and apathetic toward the things of God, they will grow up, and all likely there's exceptions to everything, but likely they will grow up ambivalent and complacent toward the things of God. Because you teach them what matters. It's about a priority. It's got a priority in your life personally. And if it's not, you have no chance really, apart from a great move of God's grace, and he often does this in spite of us, of your children growing up to know and love Jesus. See, as a priest, you represent your family before God and intercede for them before Him. Now, mama, you do this too, but I'm telling you in Scripture, God has placed a higher mandate on men specifically. As a priest, what? You intercede before your family. You intercede for your family every night when I pray. I'm praying for my children and my grandchildren and my great-grandchildren. I'm praying, God, that their heart would always be turned toward you. I'm praying, God, would you bless them and prosper them? And I'm praying, your grace would be upon them. I'm praying for my family tree. I have not yet even met. You know why? Because I'm convinced as I am. God hears those prayers. He hears those prayers. And every single time a man of God prayed in scripture, it moved the heart of heaven. It moved the heart of God. Because I'm a priest before the living God. I don't want you to know what this means. As the spiritual head of the home, God has given men spiritual authority in the home.

Now what is it with authority? Listen carefully. We live at a time where people hate authority. We live in a society that's going into anarchy because we've rebelled against all forms of authority. God knows where there is no authority. There is anarchy. That's why we're seeing moral, spiritual anarchy in society. We refuse to live under God's moral authority. This is why the average American home is in a place of anarchy because we refuse to live under God's authority. We live at a time where people completely are repulsed by the idea of authority. You need to know everything God does. He does through a chain of command. He's ordered the spiritual realm through a chain of command. He's ordered human civilization through a chain of command. For the flourishing of humanity, for the flourishing of your family. And as long as you're living under that authority structure, it brings peace and prosperity and blessing on the family. But when that man or that woman usurps that authority structure, I'll promise it's going to bring anarchy to the family. Here's that chain of command. First Corinthians 11 of verse three. But I want you to know that the head of every man is Christ. The headship represents authority. Everyone has someone to submit to.

But I will have you know, the head of every man is Christ. The head of the woman is man and the head of Christ is God. I want you to think what we're learning here. We're learning about God's chain of command. In this verse, we learn the headship, that structure of authority. You have God the Father, you have God the Son, you have the man, you have the woman. Now listen carefully. This does not make women inferior to men any more than it makes Jesus inferior to the Father. Jesus the Son of God is equal to God, the Father. Anything else would be heresy. These are co-equal members of the Trinity. But while they are equal, they're not the same. They differ in function. And this is why you have Jesus saying, "I have submitted to the will of the Father." Because although they were equal, Jesus differed in function. He submitted to the Father's will. In the same way that men and women are equal, but check this out, we're not the same. Yet we live at a time that confuses the idea of equality with sameness. This is not about inferiority or superiority. And this is what happens. There's two extremes to be avoided. So historically, men are taught from the word of God that we are the head of the home.

And that concept has often been abused. Listen, when you have authority and you don't walk in humility, you will abuse your authority, handle it irresponsibly. And that is what is commonly called today, male toxicity, patriarchy. And unfortunately, it's true. And churches like ours actually believe the Bible is the word of God. This concept has been weaponized over and over again to manipulate women, control women, coerce women, I'm the head of the home. And I will promise you gentlemen, when you pull out your man badge, you lose your man card. If you've got to announce that you're the one in charge, check this out, you're not. But yet this house has been done over and over again. And sometimes this concept has been weaponized in a way. It's just historic male chauvinism, sexism. And it's wicked and it's sinful. But what has happened in response to historic male chauvinism, often using the Bible, the penniless one way over here now, where we want to completely erase the roles God has given men and women. And ladies, for some of you, you have drank the Kool-Aid of the day. Ain't no man in charge of me. Uh-uh, uh-uh, uh-uh. This is why you've never met a happy feminist. They're all mad.

Just saying. Because you will never be happy walking in any other identity than what God has given you. You show me a man that's not walking under the authority and submission to God Almighty. He is usurping his head, the Lordship of Jesus Christ. I'll show you a family gone crazy. You show me a woman usurping her head in the home, her husband. You show me a wife that's constantly belittling her husband, berating her husband, disrespecting her husband in front of the kids, I'll show you kids. Gone crazy. A family and anarchy. Yet when a woman is walking in submission and a man is walking in submission, and by the way, Ephesians 5-21 begins this discussion about mutually submitting one to another. They're saying about who's in charge. Check it out. In Genesis chapter 2, we're not going to read it today, but it says, "Before the fall, they were one flesh, the woman and the man. One flesh." And that's God's desire for you in marriage, that you are one flesh. If the man is the head, check this out. The wife is the body. My body is not competing with my head for control. My head is not competing with my body for control. They are both essential parts of the health of this man you see. I can't live apart from either of them. That's the nature of marriage, one flesh operating together. And this is what it means to say, "Gentlemen, you're the head of the home," is that you're the spiritual leader.

You are the priest of that family, and God will ultimately hold you accountable. Even though it was Eve that sin, and she was deceived, notice when God calls, "It's Adam, where are you?" God is saying today, "Men, where are you?" Would the real man stand up and accept responsibility, reject passivity, lead courageously, and expect the greater reward, God's reward instead of the small reward of the day, instant gratification? I want you to see God's authority structure is His way of bringing peace, protection, and blessing on the family. That authority is to protect you from the very same serpent that attacked the first family. And when you're living under God's authority, there is an umbrella of protection over your life, over your wives, over your children. And apart from that, they are vulnerable to the enemy three ways very quickly. You can exercise this priestly ministry that we're called to as men. Listen carefully. He is first the family pastor. He started talking about this last week. What's it mean to be the family pastor? You're the shepherd of that little flock. A shepherd guides and provides. You feed and you lead materially, yes, but not just materially, spiritually. I want you to see what God said about Abraham. Let this be said of you and me. God chose one man to be the father of the Hebrews, the father of the Jews, the people that will one day give us our Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. This is in Genesis 18, 19, for I have known him in order that he may command his children and his household after him that they keep the way of the Lord. I pray that God can look at me and say, I know him. I know that he will lead his family to walk in the ways of the Lord. Gentlemen, listen carefully. There is the way of the world and there is the way of God.

Well, you lead your family as the pastor to walk in the ways of the Lord. That's what God could say about Abraham. That's what it means to be a pastor of your family. As the family pastor, we must teach and train them to know, love, and follow the Lord Jesus Christ. Once again, I want you to see what God says specifically to fathers, Ephesians 6, 4, and you fathers. This is not minimized mothers. We need your mamas. Godly mothers. When God's looking at Godly fathers going, it begins with you. And you fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath. I don't have time to talk about everything I wish I could. I've got four minutes and eight seconds. If I sound bitter, I am. And you fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord. Now this word training, you see here is a very interesting Greek word. It's a Greek word, gem not, from which we get the word gymnasium. What's God teaching here? Gentlemen, in the same way you might be your son's coach and teach him how to hit a baseball or your daughter's coach and teach her how to kick a soccer ball. In the same way you might take your son to a gym and help him get stronger physically, your home is to be a spiritual gemnasium, you're to be their spiritual coach, to teach them the ways of the Lord. You should see your home as a spiritual gemnasium where they're getting stronger spiritually because they're a member of your family. That's what it means to be a family pastor. The church cannot be a surrogate, it must be a supplement. The church was never meant to be a replacement, it's meant to be a reinforcement.

We cannot do in the church house what God intended you to do in your house. you're also a prophet. What's it mean to be the prophet? A wholesome tongue is the tree of life, Proverbs 15 and verse 4. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, Proverbs 18, verse 21. We're going to talk a lot more about this next week as the family prophet, but you need to know the word demand speaks over his wife and children have power. I would even suggest supernatural power because in the end they become destiny. The prophet of the family becomes the destiny of the family and the words that you speak in some ways become a self-fulfilling prophecy. If you treat a child like they're a loser, guess what? They grow up to become a loser. On the other hand, if you teach them who they are, your identity, and you believe in them and speak life into them, you'd be amazed at what they might do in life. Gentlemen, three things you tell your son every single day. Number one, I love you. Number two, I'm proud of you. That's the language of men. And number three, you are good at. I see this in you. Gentlemen, three things you should tell your daughter every single day. Number one, I love you. Number two, you are beautiful. And number three, baby, you are good at filling the blank. You're using your words as the prophet of the family, as the prophet of the home. And the last thing is this, you're the family patriarch. What does a patriarch think of a pillar? You're the pillar of the family. Think of the trunk of the tree. The tree isn't healthy if the trunk is not healthy. Think of a trunk with roots. Good roots bring good fruit. Bad roots bring bad fruit. And as the patriarch of the family, listen carefully, you are setting things in motion that you will never see the sight of eternity. Not just in your children, but your grandchildren and your great-grandchildren and their children. It puts it this way in Exodus 20 and verse 5, you shall not bow down to them idols, false gods, nor serve them for either Lord your God and the jealous God visiting the iniquity of the fathers, not the mothers, the fathers, upon the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing mercy to thousands to those who love me and keep my commandments. I want you to notice every single day as the family priest, as the patriarch, you are leaving a family legacy that will define the future of your family tree. And gentlemen, that happens every time I preach this kind of series. Someone comes up to me as they did last week. Pastor Phil, this is great.

I wish I would have heard this 30 years ago. Listen carefully, gentlemen, we all have regrets. Nobody leaves this life unblemished. That's why Jesus came. We got grace and we all need a lot of grace. And you cannot change your history, but you can change your legacy. You can change the story. You can change the outcome of the family tree. But listen carefully, there are two great patriarchs of human history, the first Adam and the last Adam. And as a patriarch, you will lean one way or the other. You'll become like one or the other. First Corinthians 15, verse 49, puts it this way, you were born in the image of the man of dust, but you're born again to bear the image of the heavenly man. You have the patriarch, the man made of dust, the first Adam, or the heavenly man, the Lord Jesus, the second Adam. And the first Adam refused to reject passivity. He did not accept responsibility. He would not lead courageously. He went for the small reward of now. This is a greater reward, God's reward that would come later. And I'm trying to tell you today, the way you change your legacy, regardless of your history, is you walk in the light of the last Adam who rejected passivity. He accepted responsibility. He died for you personally. He took the shame, the blame, the stain for every single man, every single woman. And I want you to understand the first Adam left a legacy of disobedience and destruction. The last Adam, the second Adam, obedience and blessing you get to choose, beginning today, what it will be. And God wants to make us all the men of God. He made us to be the priests of our family. So right now, check this out. I'm going to pray. And then I'm going to ask the men to do some We're gonna pray and at every campus, at every church house then, we're gonna stand our feet as men. Ladies, I want you to stay seated, not yet. 'Cause I want your man to lead the way as the lead worshipper. Worship is more than a song. It's not what comes out of your lips. It's a lifestyle, but it is partly a song. It is singing. We're commanded to sing.

And I want the men of our church to lead the way as the priest of their family. So when I pray and say amen, gentlemen, I want you to stand with me and we're gonna sing all by ourselves. Don't leave your pastor hanging up here, okay? 'Cause I'm a lead worshipper, but I'm not a lead singer. Jesus, thank you for the men of God, what you're doing in our church. God, help us to walk in this identity, the lead worshipper, the priest of our family. In Jesus' name, amen. gentlemen, stand together right now at every campus, at every church house. Let's sing a great hymn of the faith. ♪ Holy, holy, holy ♪ ♪ Lord God Almighty ♪ ♪ Early in the morning ♪ ♪ Our song shall rise to thee ♪ ♪ Holy, holy, holy ♪ ♪ Merciful and mighty ♪ ♪ God in three persons ♪ ♪ Blessed Trinity ♪ Ladies, would you encourage your men, would you? Right now, they need it. Men love to be cheered for, by their wives, trust me, they never get so. Ladies, I'm gonna ask you to stand with us right now. Would you join in the worship of the living God with us? ♪ Holy, holy, holy ♪

♪ Though the darkness highly ♪ ♪ Though the hour of sinful ♪ ♪ And the glory made us hear ♪ ♪ Holy, vow our holy ♪ ♪ There is none beside me ♪ ♪ Blessed in power and love and glory ♪ - Would you give Jesus the glory today? (audience applauding) The one the Bible calls for the last Adam has undone the curse of the first. If you don't know him today, today is a great day. I'm gonna ask our response team, would you come right now? These men and women are here every single week to talk to you about anything you want to. The minister, do you pray over you? Maybe today, you wanna know what it means to be a Christian. What's this new birth? What's it mean to be born again? Today is the day to say yes to Jesus. Walk this way, those are going that way. Church, I love you and I hope you have a super blessed Sunday. God bless you, God go with you. (gentle piano music)