Guest post by David Bostrom
Throughout our lifetime, we’ve pretty much ignored Jesus as an example of masculinity.
Part of this has to do with the ‘gentle Jesus meek and mild’ perception that still dominates the church. In other words, by assuming Jesus isn’t really all that masculine, we don’t bother to look to Him as a model for manhood.
Also, there remains a particular fear that keeps some from giving Jesus much attention regarding masculinity. And that’s the fear that following Jesus as a model will somehow overshadow the necessity of His atonement, and we’ll begin to trust in ourselves rather than Him.
But the failure to look to Jesus regarding masculinity has been to our detriment. And it’s left many Christian men turning to secular gurus to try and discover what it means to live as a man in our day.
This is so unfortunate and unnecessary because as the second Adam, Jesus is the ultimate dominion man and the ideal one to turn to when it comes to recovering masculinity – in any generation.
So what can Jesus teach us about being a man? Particularly in today’s scenario?
In his study The Person of Jesus , Paul Miller does a fantastic job bringing to life a full and balanced view of the humanity of our Lord. In so doing, he reveals many traits of Jesus that instruct us about godly masculinity.
Let’s consider three which I believe men need to recover today.
Masculinity Looks and Takes Action
Throughout His ministry, Jesus was alert to what was going on around Him.
He didn’t sleepwalk His way through life. Instead, he paid attention to the people, situations, and needs before Him and then engaged them accordingly to bring hope.
One of the best examples of this involves the widow of Nain (Lk.7:11-17).
When Jesus, with His disciples, encountered a funeral, He didn’t just wait for it to pass by. Instead, he observed what was taking place and took special note of the widow who had lost her son. ‘His heart went out to her,’ the text says, and this led Him to take action that changed the woman’s life.
In a day when so many men have become passive, are conflicted about their duties, and have opted to just check out, this simple account gives a wake-up call.
It says…
Men, pay attention to what’s happening around you! Open up your heart. Consider how you might meet a need and bring hope. And move forward and engage.
Start at home. But don’t stop there. Consider your neighborhood, your church, your community and beyond.
Masculinity Speaks Up with Honesty
A striking aspect of Jesus’s ministry is His honesty. Jesus was not afraid to address what He observed and speak what was on His mind!
He didn’t just do this privately either.
Yes, He shared His most intimate thoughts with His closest friends and disciples. But He didn’t hold back in speaking the truth when those who might be offended were within earshot.
Consider how he referred to hypocritical Pharisees as ‘whitewashed tombs’ and a ‘brood of vipers’ and how he called the power-hungry political leader, Herod, ‘a fox’.
Note well…
Jesus didn’t speak this way to get a rise out of people. No, it was raw honesty. He spoke as He did because He lived with – as Miller puts it – “a commitment to what’s right and the courage to express it.”
Wow, we sure do need that today.
There are too many men who see evil around them and are afraid to speak up. And if they do, they hedge and make sure there’s not too fine a point on what they say, lest they offend.
The masculinity of Jesus instructs us otherwise. It shows us speaking up and doing so honestly is a mark of being a real man.
Masculinity Offers Oneself in Sacrifice
When Jesus walked the earth, His agenda was all about restoring others and advancing His Father’s kingdom. This required Him to humble Himself, sacrifice, and ultimately give up His life.
Jesus freely did this because He saw His life about much more than getting his own way. It was about fulfilling the redemptive mission His Father had for Him. This is why He could say to the Father, “Not my will, but yours, be done” (Lk.22:42).
This perspective is far different from what is typically dished up to men today. That message is basically about helping a man fulfill his own agenda – without any regard to God’s purpose for his life in this world.
When a man acts on this message, it doesn’t reflect real masculinity. It may foster a counterfeit masculinity or machismo – as a guy gets the girl or the income he’s after – but it falls far short of God’s design for him.
Because for any man to fulfill God’s design – as a masculine man – he must first be willing to die and embrace the agenda his Creator has for him.
For it’s in this willingness to die he becomes like Jesus and is in a position to bring life to those around him… while leaving a legacy he never could otherwise.
This is real masculinity.
Sacrificing. Dying. And doing so willingly.
And in hope, knowing God is able and faithful to bring life out of death as He continues to redeem His creation and makes all things new.
Love Makes it Possible
Without a doubt, living out the masculinity seen in Jesus is a tall order. You might even say it’s impossible. And this side of eternity, we will surely fall short of His standard of manhood.
But there is something to remember that makes it possible to consistently become more Christ-like in masculinity: powerfully affecting families, churches, communities and even nations.
And that’s love.
It’s love that makes you attentive to what’s happening around you and emboldens you to take action. It’s love that provides you with the courage to speak up with honesty. And it’s love that gives you the power to turn from your own desires and sacrifice for something much larger than yourself.
Be encouraged, too…
This love is not something you have to muster up on your own. It’s the fruit of Jesus’s work in your own heart, as you live by faith in Him.
Father, help us to recover true masculinity as it’s found in your Son and as we look to Him and consider all He’s done to love us through His humanity.
Having served over 20 years as a church planter and pastor, David Bostrom is now the Director of Made for Dominion Ministries, which helps men find and fulfill their God-given purpose as revealed in the first chapter of Genesis. For more information, visit madefordominion.com.
