Pastor
Larry Bond
Ezekiel
22:30
And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge,
and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but
I found none
Oh, there are plenty of males, and we are overwhelmed
with macho types! But where are the men? Where is the chivalry? Where are the
gentlemen? Where are the men of honor? Our society is devoid of men of character
and integrity, and the way has been led by such men of questionable character as
our former president, Bill Clinton. The social image of a real man portrays him
as macho, but in reality he is irresponsible, self indulgent, proud and
arrogant, a user of others, hot tempered, and even violent. No wonder so many
marriages are in trouble today! The problem is being perpetuated from generation
to generation by irresponsible, self indulgent fathers who are more concerned
about the score of the ball game than whether or not their sons are learning
responsibility. These couch potatoes let their wives do the disciplining,
training, and teaching; the repair work around the house; and when the wife
needs emotional support, they're too tired. When boys do not have the right
father image, they themselves will likely make lousy husbands and fathers.
"I sought for a man…but I found none," said the prophet Ezekiel. It
seems this is the condition in our country today also! To be sure there are a
few MEN, but very few. By enlarge the males in America are macho wimps. America
was not made great by such types, but by great men like our founding fathers who
were willing to give up their reputations, their possessions, and even their
lives for the cause of freedom and to do what was right.
What has caused this degeneration of character in our
men? First, boys are not emulating the right heroes! On their bedroom walls we
find pictures of Hollywood movie stars, rock-n-roll idols, or sports champions.
Hair cuts and color (sometimes pink) and dress style reveal this problem, along
with life style, music, entertainment, and activities. To be cool with their
peers, they must worship "the heroes".
It has been a great blessing for our family to read together the
biographies of great Christians. From George Meuller we learn about godly
character and great faith in prayer; from D. L. Moody what can happen when one
gives himself completely over to God; from Adariam Judson the souls of men are
more valuable than comfort, security, personal safety, or even physical life;
from Gladys Alward God always provides the means to accomplish His call; from
Corry Ten Boom love, joy, and peace in Christ can never be crushed by the
Destroyer; from John Bunyon progress through the Christian life is full of
temptations and hardships but with the beautiful celestial city as our goal; and
from Bro. Andrew God does the impossible to get His Word to hungry souls. These
and many other godly Christians of the past are the heroes our children should
seek to emulate. And of course, our Lord is our ultimate hero for we are to be
conformed to His image (Romans 8:29). What this world needs is another Moody,
Meuller, or Billy Sunday - a man to stand in the gap! When nobody else will take
responsibility, will our sons step forward and say "I'll do it, I’ll go,
I'll lead the way? - Only if they have the right heroes!
Secondly, was it a blessing when farmers moved to the
city no longer needing their sons to help with providing for the family on the
farm? Or, was it a curse? People say "I had it so hard when I was growing
up - I'm soooo thankful my children will have it easier". What a big
mistake! The easy comfortable things of life tend to make us irresponsible,
selfish, weak, lazy, without purpose, and intolerant of others when they
infringe on our comfort zone. But, the hardships are what build godly character
in our children. - As "gold…tried with fire". Ten years ago we moved
to the country. We have milked cows, butchered our meat, planted gardens, built
houses, bridges, a barn, and a shop. The work never ends - praise the Lord! The
first year was really tough. We camped out in the summer while we built a cabin.
It seemed like it rained every day all through August. Keeping warm in our cabin
that winter was a full time job - the pipes all froze, our waterbed became
slushy, and my socks froze to the floor. My sons and I had to do some very
difficult cold things to insure safety and provide an element of comfort for the
girls and my wife. What a blessing it is when young men learn to lay down their
lives for their family. I know of
several Christian families who have moved to farms and some that are planning to
do so soon for this very reason. City life rarely produces men of character.
Certainly it is possible to raise godly young men in the city, but it must be
done on purpose giving them plenty of hard work and responsibility. Tough job
when all their friends have a lot of idle time.
Thirdly, in the past sons worked right along side dad
learning a trade and helping to support the family, but in recent years father's
occupation has become less conducive to the presence of children. Child labor
laws, fear of law suits, liability insurance restrictions, 6-8 hours of school
for the children, etc. are all Satan's tools to destroy the influence of fathers
in their sons lives. God used the recession of the '80's to make us use this
wonderful old tradition. I was unable to make enough income to support the
family myself, so my 4 sons went to work with me. We remodeled houses together,
serviced repossessed houses for mortgage companies, and even sold fishing worms
to stores. Some days would find us all under a house fixing rotted floors. The
smaller boys could get where I couldn't - that was handy. At midnight 5 red
headlamps could be seen in the city parks as we crawled around on hands and
knees picking worms to be sold to the stores the next day. We did it all
together! They learned how to work, and were of vital importance in providing
for the family. And, they knew it! They felt the responsibility, and took to it
like real men! I praise God for those hard years! We played together too, but I
confess not enough. Every summer my sons and I went to a high mountain lake to
fish and camp for a week. We have many fond memories like catching fish as fast
as we could reel them in, camping in snow, and eating fish, fish, fish…
It is not hard to see the degradation of men in the world, but how about Christian men today? Where are the MEN OF GOD? Yes, we have leadership, but all to often it's fallen leadership - fallen to greed, pride, or immorality. What we need are some Elijah's who will do right even though everyone else is doing wrong! Where are the Joshua's that will say, "as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD"? Many Christian homes are suffering terribly because the man is selfish, caving in to his fleshly desires, and shunning his God given responsibilities to meet the spiritual, emotional, and material needs of his family! I Timothy 5:8 declares, "if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel". I thought an infidel was as bad as it gets - this macho wimp is worse!!! Oh, for the self sacrificing MAN of integrity to step up to the plate and hit a homerun!!! There are ugly gaps in the wall of manhood! The Christian family is a crumbling, broken wall! Satan and his demons are charging through the breach attacking the children and wives! The strongman of the house seems to be bound by his selfishness, pride, and negligence. Christian fathers, husbands, young men will you step forward and stand in the gap? God is calling us to be MEN OF GOD! Will you heed the call???
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