Real Biblical Men have Discipline

I decided that instead of tackling some of the smaller topics of my blog, I’d start with the one topic that I struggle with, probably more than anyone else reading this: Discipline. Now, you wouldn’t think that this would be a big deal to a college student like me. Many times we brush over it, but “Real Biblical Men Don’t Procrastinate” isn’t a blog I’m prepared to write yet….

What is discipline? No, I am not talking about when you were young and your dad pulled off his belt and put red whelps all over your behind. Punishment is not the form of discipline I am referring to in this case. The discipline I am talking about is Biblical Discipline. The best definition I could find was simply this: “Activity, exercise, or a regimen that develops or improves a skill; training.” Or, to put it in terms for this particular blog: “Activity, exercise, practice or a regimen that develops or improves one’s Biblical knowledge and strengthens their Faith and Witness.” Just like the Military has Basic Training followed by regular physicals and drills, so a Christian should be in constant training on the doctrines of his faith and sound Biblical teaching and prayer.

So, what does this look like from a practical standpoint? What things are really important and what things should you be spending less time on? Let’s dive in head first and see what’s what.

Real Biblical Men need to be in the Word of God daily.

Now, right off the bat I’m convicted. Ouch.

This is the single biggest thing I struggle with in my walk. I find it really, really hard to stay in God’s Word daily. I get busy, or I have homework, or want to play video games, or simply just do not want to read the Bible. However, this is one of the most important things Christians are called, actually commanded, to do.

Scripture speaks for itself, so I’ll let it remind us of the importance of getting into God’s word:

Psalm 119:9-11 says: “How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.”

Staying in the Word keeps us from sin. Staying in the Word keeps us on the path to righteousness. Joshua 1:8 says: "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.”

Staying in God’s word creates success and gives us wisdom. Finally, 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says: “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”

God’s word is the life force of Christianity. It is our guidance, the instruction manual for the difficulties of life. It is the foundation of Biblical discipline. In our quiet time, reading God’s word should be the main focus, and it is something to be done daily. Which brings me to my next point..

Real Biblical Men Pray Daily.

The most important thing humans do is communicate. We talk with one another thousands of times a day. In a relationship between a man and a woman the most important thing, the thing that keeps their relationship in working order is communication.

In my own experience, the single thing that can make a problem between me and Jennifer escalate at a pace I never imagined is simple lack of communication. In the same way, a relationship with Christ in which we do not have daily prayer is a dysfunctional relationship. Prayer is the way that we are able to come before a Holy God with our biggest and even our smallest issues and problems.

The greatest man to ever walk the earth, Jesus Christ, prayed constantly and was in direct connection with God the Father. As Real Biblical men, we should be in prayer daily as part of our quiet time in spiritual discipline. But prayer doesn’t just have to happen first thing in the morning during our quiet time, it needs to be a constant thought in our minds. Instead of the long wordy elder luncheon prayer, we need to think of it more as a conversation, asking an old friend for guidance and wisdom in situations that are out of your control.

Pray without ceasing, call on God, be quiet and listen for His answer, and it will benefit your walk greatly.

Real Biblical Men meet their deadlines and manage their time well.

Now we get to the second greatest struggle in my walk currently: discipline in my work and schoolwork, for the Glory of God.

As Christians, we rarely look at the things we do outside of Church as being things that God is concerned with. Often times, I find myself so worried about what I want to do in my down time after classes, that my homework takes a back seat to video games, outdoor activities, or even a nice long nap. Don’t get me wrong, nothing is wrong with these things, but when we let ourselves slide into the comfort of procrastination, we allow ourselves to fall behind in our work or schoolwork.

When we get behind, several things happen. First, we get really frustrated or stressed. Second, we tend to get an attitude with those around us. Finally, we make compromises and cut back on other areas of our lives in order to balance out the time we need to get caught up. For me, this means I often times sacrifice my time in God’s word and in prayer, for my homework that I procrastinated on all week.

This is bad. Really bad. What we are doing is cutting off our lifeline due to our lack of discipline and making it harder for us to hear God, because we are too busy with trivial things.

Hear me now: I’m not slamming video games or naps. They are two of my favorite things, and I don’t think God has a problem with either. I am simply pointing out that God has called us to draw close to Him and follow His will for our lives by honoring Him and performing the tasks set before us to the best of our abilities. We are not glorifying Him when we put them off until the last possible second and then use time set aside for Him to write a paper or put together an assignment.

Late assignments, lack of quiet time, a need for consistent prayer in our lives… I’m preaching to myself.

Sit on this for a while, and ask yourself, what are the areas of your life where you are letting your discipline slide? What corners are you cutting for that extra five minutes in bed or a few more minutes on the 360? God has called us to more!

The first step in answering that call is to quit cutting corners and take an inventory of what our priorities look like. Real Biblical Men have a quiet time that involves daily prayer and time in God’s word, and Real Biblical Men don’t cut corners. They see what they know has to be done, and they do it, no questions asked. That is true discipline. Something for all of us, me included, to think about.

What is a Real Biblical Man?

Where are the Real Biblical Men? Do they even exist anymore? Are they in the gym lifting twice their body weight? Are they under their cars in their garages, elbows deep in grease? Are they working on a delivery truck or perhaps holding down a factory job? All of those things sound pretty darn manly to me. Perhaps the better question is this: Where aren’t the Real Biblical Men?

Real Biblical Men aren’t settling for less.

Real Biblical Men aren’t lazy.

Real Biblical Men aren’t following their own will for their lives.

Real Biblical Men aren’t living for themselves.

In short, Real Biblical Men, have purpose and something to drive toward. Non-Christian men have these qualities too thought. So, what does a Real Biblical Man look like? I struggled to define what this looks like today. But if I could sum it all up, I believe a Real Biblical Man is living a life dedicated to God, through honoring and serving those around him while constantly pursuing what God wills for his life, and leading those around him to do the same.

Think back. In your life, have you been around a man who had a faith that was so painfully obvious that it was hard to ignore it? Maybe you never had that in your life. Maybe all of your life you were surrounded by boys in men’s clothing. My fear is that many of the leaders we are putting in place today are just boys who can shave. Sometimes I feel like I’m guilty of that.

While this question of real manhood is interesting to debate, the scary reality is that there is a war going on right now, bigger than all of the major conflicts we have ever witnessed on earth. This war is a heavenly battle between the spiritual principalities of light and dark, truth and lies, heaven and hell. We are the soldiers in God’s army, called to follow him into battle.

With that image in mind, think: If in 1941, when the U.S. entered WWII, we had called for all able-bodied 6^th graders to pick up weapons and charge at Germany’s finest, what do you think the outcome would have been? To us, this scenario is laughable. We wouldn’t even consider it as a viable possibility. And yet daily, men of all ages and sizes sit and watch as an entire of generation of boys are being thrown into the firing lines. Christian men, charged to lead by example and teach and train these boys, stand by as the world tramples young men at every turn.

The time has come for a few of God’s men, with craziness and passion in their eyes, to set down the video game controllers, quit procrastinating, stop hiding from their creator God behind lusts of the flesh, and to step into field general positions rallying the troops for a clear and present danger. We need leaders, Godly leaders: not afraid of failure, not afraid of losing, not afraid of a puny and defeated enemy, willing to stand in the gap for our future.

Now, let’s use these next few blogs to look into some of the pitfalls and misguided thoughts that entrap boys of the faith and keep them from becoming men of God.

Real Men series.

I am not what I would call an image of true "Biblical Manhood." Some have argued differently, but I tend to feel like I have far too much left to learn to be considered a "Biblical man". I have, however, been privileged to know many Godly men in my short 21 years. My father, my pastors, and some of the elders at my church whom I know well, have all given me amazing examples of what it means to be a Godly man.

I am striving, with all that is in me, to one day achieve the status of Biblical manhood that so many before me have reached. I want to be a shining example to young men around me, as they were to me as I was coming of age. Now that I’m a senior in college, I am coming to terms quickly with the fact that I have quite a ways to go in my journey, and that the time for maturity is now.

So that is what has led me here today. I have decided, as my first installment in this blog, to write a series of short pieces on Biblical manhood, entitling them the "Real Men" series. Among some of the blogs you will read are:

Real men don't flirt.

Real men aren't afraid to work.

Real men honor women.

Real men have discipline.

Real men have accountability.

Real men don't wear pink. (men should be men)

Real men burn their little black book.

In this first installment, I will simply address the fact that there is a lack of Biblical manhood today, and we will question together why men today, especially in the church, are falling short of the things God has for them.

It should be an interesting journey, because half of these are things I'm going to have to work on in my life before I can tell you to do them in yours. (I don't want to write on discipline!)

So hang on tight everybody, this could get really interesting...

John 3:30

Josh