On June 19th, Rev. Prince Guneratnam shared about the qualities that make a real man at Calvary Church Kuala Lumpur. “Who is a man?” He asked. “The answer is not a physical answer, but a biblical one. He then turned to Scriptures to see what it says about being a man.
The Scriptures tell us, “The first man, Adam, became a living person.” But the last Adam—that is, Christ—is a life-giving Spirit. (1 Corinthians 15:45)
This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun! (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Men who want to live in accordance with God’s intentions need to decide whether they are in Adam or in Christ. Adam sinned and fell. He did not do what God created him to do. He failed to keep God’s will and purpose. Being born with the sin nature that is the result of Adam’s failure to obey God, we now live in conflict with our flesh. Paul describes our present state this way:
So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it. And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t. I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it. (Romans 7:17-20)
When Adam fell, he faced spiritual death as do all the rest of us who come after him. However, we are not left in a hopeless state because in Christ, the last Adam who is life-giving, we have the chance to be born again.
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
When a man lives like the first Adam, he lives as a fallen man. He is not living the life that God intended for any man to live. Therefore, to fulfill God’s purposes, men must arrive at a place where they measure masculinity in line with who Jesus is.
So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus. Do not let sin control the way you live; do not give in to sinful desires. Do not let any part of your body become an instrument of evil to serve sin.
Instead, give yourselves completely to God, for you were dead, but now you have new life. So use your whole body as an instrument to do what is right for the glory of God. Sin is no longer your master, for you no longer live under the requirements of the law. Instead, you live under the freedom of God’s grace. (Romans 6:11 -14)
“I tell you the truth, those who listen to my message and believe in God who sent me have eternal life. They will never be condemned for their sins, but they have already passed from death into life. (John 5:24)
In Christ, we have moved out of the power of slavery that has been defined by sin. Now in Christ, we are a new creation to fulfill the manhood that God has meant for us to live.
Rev. Prince then gave 4 Defining points that describe a real man—Characteristics that differentiate the sin nature that we were born into, and the new nature that we have in Christ Jesus:
1. A Real Man Rejects Passivity.
God created man, but then saw that he was lonely. So God put him to sleep, took a rib out of him, and made him a woman. When He made the woman, He didn’t just make her and leave her there. He brought her to him and said, “This is your companion.”
Symbolically, that is what we do in a wedding ceremony. When a man walks his daughter down the aisle and gives her away to her husband, it is symbolic of God bringing the woman to Adam.
The man and woman then stand together at the altar and vow to each before God and man to love, honor, and cherish each other. The husband is to protect his wife and provide for her. Everything that is his belongs to her. And she understands, and reciprocates.
So God gave Adam dominion over the Garden of Eden. He was to develop it, cultivate it, and replenish it. He had the freedom to eat from any tree in the garden except for the one tree that God told him not to eat from. Yet, when the enemy twisted the truth and persuaded his wife to sin against God, Adam was right there with her and he remained silent. Passive. A real man cannot remain passive. He embraces his duties and does them well.
In contrast to the first Adam, we have the example that Jesus set:
“You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.” (Philippians 2:5-8)
2. A Real Man Takes Responsibility.
He accepts the will of the Father and acts on it. There are lots of people who accept God’s will but do nothing about it. Jesus finished the work His Father sent Him to do.
Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. (John 4:24)
On the cross, Jesus said, “It is finished,” knowing that He had been obedient and had accomplished God’s purpose for Him.
For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her… (Ephesians 5:25)
Jesus loved the church with His whole life and calls for men to love their wives in the same way. Being a real man revolves primarily around 3 responsibilities:
i. A will to obey God.
ii. Work—not just in his job but at home, in church, and in his community.
iii. To be faithful—whether to the woman God gives him, or in singlehood.
3. A Real Man Leads With Courage.
He takes ownership. He does not leave all the work and decision making to his wife.
But there is one thing I want you to know: The head of every man is Christ, the head of woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. (1 Corinthians 11:3)
We see this in the temptation of Jesus. He took control of His life and did what He knew was right in the eyes of God. The devil came to Him just as he did with the first Adam. But Jesus refused to give in to the devil’s schemes. He took leadership.
4. A Real Man Expects And Looks Forward To Jesus’ Second Coming.
It is the principle of keeping your eyes on the Lord Jesus Christ and knowing that that is the prize—that we will one day see Him face to face. Men who measure their masculinity after the second Adam have a great reward awaiting them.
My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)
Rev. Prince concluded the service by first praying for all the men above 18. He then called all fathers forward with their wives, and prayed for them.
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Wonderful writeup. Here’s the full sermon 🙂
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ufFfu7pm4Mw