Phil Beach Jr. emphasizes the call for men to act manly as instructed in 1 Corinthians 16:13, urging them to reject worldly definitions of masculinity that lead to spiritual decline. He highlights that many issues in the church stem from men not fulfilling their God-given roles, and he challenges men to seek true manhood modeled by Jesus Christ. Beach warns against the influence of societal norms and peer pressure that distort the understanding of what it means to be a man. He encourages men to embrace their identity in Christ and to lead their families and communities with godly character. Ultimately, he calls for a commitment to pursue a life that reflects the manliness of Jesus, urging men to take responsibility for their actions and to be examples of righteousness.

Praise the Lord. 1st Corinthians chapter 16. I'm going to read a scripture and focus on four words, four words. 1st Corinthians chapter 16, verse number 13. Watch ye, stand fast in the faith. Quit you like men, be strong. Let's look at the four words, quit you like men. Now the King James Version says quit you like men, but certainly that doesn't mean to give up. It's an archaic way of saying to act manly, to act manly. The Holy Spirit here is saying you men, act like men, act like a man. The Lord's call cannot be fulfilled in our lives, men, unless we're prepared to act like men, to take the call of God serious. Now this was written at the end of the book of Corinthians, and I think it's quite appropriate that this exhortation was written at the end of the book of Corinthians in light of all the things that Paul dealt with in the book of Corinthians. And perhaps most, if not all, of the problems that were in the Corinthian church could have been prevented or corrected if the men in the church were acting like men. So therefore, I would like to say that the absence, the failure for you to act manly, to act like a man, will result in all kinds of problems in your life that will carry over into your family, that will carry over into the church, that will carry over into your workplace, that will carry over into your relationships with other people, that will basically carry over into the lives of your children. Today men don't know what it is to be a man. Many Christians are being seduced today in that they are seeking to be a man based on the world model that the world is telling us men ought to be. Let me say that the world does not have any clue what it means to be a man. The magazines that you read do not have any clue in instructing you on what it means to be a man. The movies that you watch, if you watch them, have absolutely no ability to communicate to you God's thought on how to be a man. Yet, it seems as if men today are using these very things as role models in order to try and become a man. And this is why there is such a major crisis going on in the church today, because men have failed to understand that God has called them to act manly. I would like you for a few moments to think about, in your own minds and in your own hearts, some of the characteristics that you think ought to be in somebody who is manly, somebody who is acting like a man. Now, I want you to think about these characteristics as the world would teach you. Perhaps, let's for a few moments even have a little open forum this morning. Let me say this first, that this is a word from the Lord. This is not a sermon. This is not a sermon. This is a word from God's heart that He breathed into my spirit early on this week and have been meditating upon it. God wants to communicate to you and I the need to be men. He wants to expose those things in our life that we suppose are making us men, that are not, and destroy them and get them out of our lives so that we can be true men of God. God is for men. He is for you being manly. But He is against, very strongly, the ideas that the world is propagating in relation to what it is to be a man. So this morning, by the grace of God, we want the Spirit of Truth and the Word of God and the Spirit of Jesus Christ to come and correct our wrong ideas of what it is to be manly and in their place have truth and proper understanding communicated to us so that our lives can begin to reflect a life of a manly, godly person. Now, what are some of the characteristics that you see in the world that are supposed to be what men are supposed to be like? Anybody. Just yell it out and then I will repeat it so that it gets on the microphone for the tape. A man is a provider. Very good. Macho. Men are supposed to be macho. Men are supposed to be strong. Anybody else? Yes. All right. That's very good. Very true. The idea of a man is supposed to smoke a Marlboro cigarette. Unfortunately, that mindset seduced an entire generation of young men. Now, I don't believe that it's lawful to advertise Marlboro cigarettes on billboards anymore, but nevertheless, there was a whole generation of men who were seduced into thinking that to be a man, to be manly, you had to have a Marlboro hanging out of your mouth. Anybody else? Promiscuity and a total lack of self-control. To be a man. Promiscuity and a total lack of self-control. Anybody else? Strong. Macho. Tough. Anybody else have any thoughts? Very good. Another erroneous idea of what it is to be a man is to pursue gain and to pursue money and to pursue wealth at the expense of anybody, as long as you get what you get. It doesn't matter if you cut through. It doesn't matter if you lie about people. It doesn't matter if you hurt somebody, as long as you obtain what you're after. Anybody else? What about a man is someone who can't admit they're wrong? This is a very, very dreadful idea of what it is to be a man. Men have to put on an image that they're right. They're always right. An inability to admit weakness. An inability to admit failure. Yes, Kevin? Someone who never cries. Very good. Which would indicate that a man is someone who doesn't let on his feelings. Doesn't allow his weaknesses to be known by anybody. That can be a dreadful thing too, can't it? My, my, my. Okay, this is going real well. Anybody else? Please. Ladies, even though you're not men, perhaps you might have some insights that we don't have. Because you might see some things that... Excuse me? No doubt. Perhaps you see some things that we try and propagate, that we try and display, that you look at and you say, you don't need to be that in order to be a man. So ladies, please feel free, if you have some insights. And husbands, you have to promise that you won't get upset with your wife if you're picturing for her something that is not necessarily what it is to be a man. Okay, anybody else? Yes, Pam. Oh, my hands are going up. Praise the Lord. Pam. Race, you know, race. Uh-huh. Yes. Something about you. Yes. Uh-huh. Pam indicated that oftentimes we as men want to be wise in our own eyes. We want to be wise in our own conceits. We want to be right. We don't want to be wrong. We want to give the appearance that we understand very well. And Pam acknowledges that that's a problem or a flaw in her life, too. I think that's true in all of our lives. This is real true. Anyone else? That would probably, too, unteachable, being unteachable. Oftentimes in the workplace, particularly when you have rank, as I did while in Gulfport Police Department, I noticed that there was a dreadful resentment that was festered in the heart of any officer who had a superior officer come to him and tell him that he was doing something wrong and that he needed to do it a different way. Though because of rank, the officer would most likely cooperate with the instruction of the ranking officer, yet there was always bitterness, gossip. They would slander the officer. They would curse the ranking officer. Which indicates an unwillingness to be taught, an unwillingness to change. So that probably coincides with this idea of wanting to be wise in our own conceits. Anybody else? I saw a hand back there. Yes. Okay. So oftentimes, we as men think that in order to be manly, we can't be sensitive. Actually, sometimes we're insensitive, calloused, not wanting to empathize or sympathize. Well, God willing, in a short time, we're going to get a whiteboard and have it here for instructional purposes, as this would have been a very good opportunity to put this on the board so we can recall all of these various different characteristics that we just mentioned. So we could see here, just in the few minutes that we took, that there's a whole lot of ideas floating around that are affecting us, whether we like it or not, whether we want to admit it or not. And these ideas are affecting us to the point where our actions are oftentimes being governed by our belief in certain erroneous ideas about what it is to be a man. And I believe that we need to be corrected in this area of our life, men. We need correction in this area of our life so that we can put off of our lives those ideas that we have that are erroneous and begin to truly aspire after true manliness, true manhood, true manhood. Anybody else before we go on that might have a thought that they'd like to add here regarding some ideas about men? Okay, drinking and hanging out with bars. That's true. To be a man, you've got to drink a bud and hang out and talk trash, talk trash. Yes, Danielle and Norman. Oh my, that's real good. Right. The kind of job you have, how successful you are, whether you're a VIP or not, whether you have a title, whether or not you are over people. Power. So this connects to power and authority and the pride of life. My, my, my, my. There's a lot here that we could get into. Michael. Uh-huh. Right. Right. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Right. Mm-hmm. Mm. Right. And I would say I would stipulate the product of life more so for the person who's doing it. Possibly look to a crutch of some sort, which would indicate weakness, which would indicate that we're not all sufficient. Right, even if the crutch happens to be a map. So true. And this is a dreadful condition within the human heart, is it not? So here we see a whole lot of ideas about what it is to be manly, what it is to be a man. And for the most part, all of these various different features and characteristics that we all just mentioned, for the most part, really don't reflect what it is to be a man. As the Scripture says here in 1 Corinthians chapter 16, Quit ye like men, or men, act manly. Act manly. Now, if we're going to understand the Holy Spirit's burden to correct our ideas, wrong ideas, about what it is to be a man, we have to focus on the truth of what true manhood is. And if we're going to understand what true manhood is, we have to go immediately to God's own man of His choosing, the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ demonstrates to us exactly what it is to be a man, and to be manly, and to act like a man. The Lord Jesus Christ lived a life while He was on this earth, perfectly demonstrating the manliness of what God wants to work in our lives as men. And only as we can refocus our attention to the Lord Jesus Christ can we be able to know what it is to be a man. So the question I want to ask now is this. How many of us are praying, Lord, I want to be like the Lord Jesus Christ, and the manliness of what He is like. I want that to be in my life. You see, beloved, right now, if you are under the spell of something other than the Lord Jesus Christ as the role model in your life, it doesn't even matter if you say with your lips, I want to be like the Lord. The fact is, you're not going to be pursuing after Him. You are going to be pursuing after that role model that's in your life. I want to ask you a question now, and I want you to be honest. I want you to ask God to help you to be honest. Right now in your life, who or what are the major role models in your life right now? This is very important, beloved. I can remember, as you've been thinking about that question, let me talk here for a moment. I think about when I first got saved back in 78. I can remember God gave me a desire to go through the Bible and to begin to aspire to be like certain characters in the Bible. And I can remember reading through the stories of the Old Testament, and I would be impressed with the particular characteristic that I saw in a certain character, and then said, oh Lord, I want to be like that. I remember reading through the story of Genesis, and particularly in the life of Noah. And I can remember just these few words. Noah was a preacher of righteousness. And that gripped my heart. So Noah became a role model in my life, particularly the fact that he was known by God as a preacher of righteousness. And how I prayed and longed to be a preacher of righteousness. But not just someone who declares righteousness, but I prayed, God, make me a righteous man. Make me a man that is governed by righteousness. And then I'd go through and read on until I got to Abraham. And oh, I saw such wonderful qualities in Abraham, a man of faith. Then I began to pray, oh God, make me a man of faith. And I found over the years that the Lord so inclined my heart, so asked to entice me to go into the Scriptures and find men in the Bible that could be role models that I could pray and ask God to pattern my life after. You know, a role model has a significant effect and influence upon your life. You have got to be very, very careful. What has captured your attention this morning? Who has got your affections? What are you really after this morning? Who is it that entices you? Who do you want to be like? Beloved, something has captured you this morning. That's a given. And the question that I want to ask you this morning is what has captured you? Whose spell are you under? You know, I think about oftentimes when we would talk about a young couple in love. It would almost be like they're under a spell. You know, they're under a spell. It's like they're in another world. There's so much in love. Beloved, let me tell you something. Someone has got a spell on you. You are captivated by something this morning. What is it? Don't figure out what it is by what you say. But determine what has captured you by your actions, by your goals. Identify right now. Ask God to show you right now. What is your passion in life? What is your passion? Every single human being has a passion, has a life-governing desire. Everyone has a passion. Some people, and I know a man and his dreams were disappointed, but some people are literally obsessed with the thought of becoming a millionaire. They are under the spell that they must obtain money. They must become a millionaire. Everybody has a passion. That is, everybody has a very strong desire, something that they're after. And beloved, the things that you do ultimately reflect your passion. A man will be governed by his passion. That is, a man will engage in a lifestyle that will ultimately, in his own mind, will be the means through which he will obtain his passion. What is your passion this morning? What is the most important thing in your life this morning? Do you think marriages and families and churches would be in such a mess that they are currently in if men everywhere who called upon the name of the Lord would make it their passion to act like men and then to be captured with a revelation of the man in glory as the pattern and the source from which I can act like a man? And then bring that passion down into their family life and into their dealings with their wife and into their dealings with their children and into their dealings with the brothers and sisters that they are in fellowship with and into their dealings in their workplace, among their colleagues. Do you think that there would be such destruction? I think not. Why isn't it true that the most important thing in our lives is to be men, manly? Why isn't it true? What are some of the reasons that you come up with that could be some of the reasons why this isn't true? Why isn't it becoming a man, the most important thing in our life, a man like the Lord Jesus Christ? Why? Anybody? So, what the brother is saying, if I'm hearing correctly, is one of the reasons why there is such a failure to be governed by the ultimate passion of being manly, being a man after God's own heart, like the Lord Jesus Christ, is because when we look at the TV and we look at the things in the media and we peruse through the magazines that are in our houses and on the bookshelves in the stores, these things are not what is being propagated as the most important thing. So really, what we're really saying here is we are much too easily affected by the world that we are living in. Basically, beloved, that is a major heading, too easily affected by the world that we live in. Now, let's break that down. In what ways are we too easily affected by the world that we live in? By the things that we watch, the things that we read. What other ways are we affected that results in failure to make Christ the man in glory our life's passion? Ah, very good. Peer pressure. What is peer pressure? I spoke a lot of times to small and large groups while in Gulfport as a police officer about peer pressure. What is peer pressure? Number one and number two, do adults struggle with peer pressure? What is peer pressure? I'll give you a quick definition. Peer pressure is the pressure that we feel to act like everybody else does for fear that if we are different, we won't be accepted. Again, peer pressure is the pressure that we feel to act like everybody else does for fear that if we are different, we won't be accepted by them. Now, the second question was what? Are adults affected by peer pressure the same way that children are? Beloved, I believe that adults are far more guilty of peer pressure than children could ever be. And I believe that for the most part, it's the peer pressure and the foolish decisions that we as adults make that makes the way for children to fall into the snare. I believe many times it's the lives that children see adults living that makes the way for them to live the same kind of life as children. They see their parents wishy-washy. They see their parents compromising the standards of truth because of fear of what people might think or fear of the consequences of what might happen in their life if they do things God's way. They might not get everything they want. They might not secure the kind of security that they think they should get. So they compromise the standards of the Word of God. They compromise the way of righteousness. And our children are watching. And many times children don't say anything, but let me tell you, folks, your kids are watching your life. And it's not what you're telling them that they're ultimately going to do, but it's what you are showing them. That's what your kids are going to do. That impacts your children more than what you tell them. So if what you tell them is not the same as what you are, then there's going to be a real discrepancy there. There's going to be a problem. So peer pressure, as Ron said. Now remember, we're dealing with this major topic here. And that is we allow the world that we are living in to influence us far too much. And that's why currently there is a great failure within the church of the living God today among men to rise up and seek to be a man of God that walks in the fullness of God's Spirit and is setting the standard. We need men to arise in the church today who are going to set the standard that God has through a life of fullness in the Spirit of God that will be demonstrated in what they say, what they do, where they go, how they act when they're engaging in their hobbies. We need men of God to stand up and say, that is wrong, you shouldn't be engaging in that, that is wrong, that is unhealthy, that is not right. We need a clear voice in the church today saying this is the way, walk ye in it. We need clarity today. We don't want situational ethics in the church today. We don't want this standard of, well, we're not sure what's right. Well, we're not sure what's wrong. Well, we're just not sure about anything. No, we need men to be like Christ who will demonstrate what it is to be a man in the family. Men need to learn how to be fathers. Men need to learn how to be providers in an honest and a just way. Why is there a need for this? So we're far too easily influenced by the world that we live in. Peer pressure is one of the ways. We feel pressure to be like everybody else. Why do you want to be like everybody else? Why? Makes fun of you. But why are you afraid of people making fun of you? Let's go to the root. I always feel like whenever the Holy Spirit gets a hold of us, he never stays on the surface. The Holy Spirit always goes to the root of every problem. That's one of the, do you ever notice the ministry of Jesus? Whenever he dealt with something, he didn't deal with the surface, he went right into the heart and revealed what was, all right, here's what, we're following this right down to where it's going to lead us, and this is going to be life changing. Peer pressure, why don't we want to be different? And then we had a sister say, because we're afraid that we'll be made fun of. That's true, we will be. All right, now the next question is, why are we afraid to be made fun of? Okay, very good. So we're afraid to be made fun of because we're not sure where we're at inside. We're not really sure what we want. Very good. So I think we're getting somewhere now because we're getting to the heart issue. See, the fear of being rejected, the fear of being made fun of, the fear of not wanting to be different, all of that is surface. That's the fruit. But the root is there's something in the heart. There's something in the heart. Do you think it's true that every human being needs... I think it's true. I think the Word of God teaches us every single human being needs unconditional acceptance by somebody. Somebody. See, I think the reason why peer pressure is such an issue is because the very fundamental truth that in Jesus Christ we have gotten God's ultimate pleasure and favor has been somehow... we have failed to apprehend that. You see, if I come to know in Christ Jesus that I am accepted by God and that I don't need to seek acceptance by people, that God finds total pleasure in me, that begins to liberate me from those things that I'm currently doing that are rooted in a need to be accepted by people. I'm accepted in the Beloved. The ultimate reason why we are tossed with peer pressure is because we have not understood who we are in Jesus Christ, who God is in us, and the ultimate sense of rest that we can have. Paul said, if I yet seek to please men, what? I will no longer be a servant of Christ. What we're going to find out as we get through with this is that ultimately the only way to be a godly, manly person is to refocus, by the grace of God, the very depth of our heart passion back to the centrality and finality of the person of Jesus Christ. Okay, peer pressure. What's another way the world too easily affects us? Anybody? Ungodly wisdom and advice. Excellent. Ungodly wisdom and advice. Now, remarkably... Okay. Wow. Ungodly human wisdom, and then our brother Cary added, even from a Christian context, from within the church. Now, this happens to be one of the very problems that was in the Corinthian church. In the first and second chapter of the book of Corinthians, the Holy Spirit dealt with the wisdom of man versus the wisdom of God. The church in Corinth was filled with man's wisdom. You see, the church of the Lord Jesus Christ ought to be filled with the wisdom that comes from God. Ultimately, that wisdom is the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ is both the power and the wisdom of God, it says in 1 Corinthians. But the wisdom that comes from God in the church ought to come from the Lord Jesus Christ as we are before the Lord in humility, we are before the Lord in prayer, we are to seek the Lord, we are to seek the Lord, we are to seek His Word, and we are to judge all things in our life. The things that we're doing, we're to judge them by bringing them to the Lord and saying, Lord, what is your thought on this matter? What is your thought on this matter? Lord, help me to search your Word until you quicken it to me so that it can address the situation that I have. So, yes, number two, not only peer pressure is one of the ways that we allow the world to affect us, but wisdom that doesn't come from God, knowledge and understanding that doesn't come from God. We are too easily affected by these things. Another one. What other way? Are we too easily affected by the world? The cares for the world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desire for other things? Absolutely. Turn your Bibles, if you would please, to Ephesians chapter 2. Just read a verse here. And we're looking at different aspects of a truth here. Verse number 1 of Ephesians chapter 2. And you who were dead in trespasses and sins. Now, notice verse number 2 and 3. This is important. Wherein in time past ye walked... All right, here we go. According to the course of this world. According to the prince of the power of the air. The spirit that now walketh in the children of disobedience. Brothers and sisters, the word of God right here is not just casually talking about some interesting facts. The word of God here is talking about a spiritual battle that is going on. A spiritual battle that is going on. Rather, until we understand that this call in 1 Corinthians chapter 16, verse 13, quit ye like men. This call by God to be manly, listen, is being fought against by all the powers of darkness that the devil can muster up. So therefore, this whole idea of being manly and the desire to be manly plunges us into a horrendous spiritual battle. The enemy's intention is to prevent us from becoming manly by Ephesians chapter 2, the course of this world. That word course, what this does, this is a comprehensive picture here. The course of this world. The age of this world. Satan is the god of this world and he is behind everything, and I mean everything, that is currently working in this world that is against Christ, that is against what Christ stands for, and that is against everything that would encourage us to seek to be like Jesus Christ. Yes. What's the verses? Romans chapter 1, 29 through 32. Alright, let's read them. Just remember, beloved, yes, verse 29, Romans chapter 1, being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication. Now, notice the list here and see if the age of this world or the course of this world, the things working in this world that come to us through the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life that come to us through the role models that are currently in the world that are being depicted in the magazines that you read, the television programs that are on in the morning, the soap operas, the dreadful programs, the programs that are on at night, the comedies, the dreadful things that are on satellite television that are borne out from hell itself. See if it's true that all of these things basically are festering and promoting and seeking a way for us to manifest these things. Just check this list out. Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness, full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity, whisperers, backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, without understanding, covenant breakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful. That's incredible, isn't it? What an exhaustive list there. Now, remember those verses and place them into the context of Ephesians 2, verse 2, wherein in time past he walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air. So here the Holy Spirit is telling us that there is a prince of the power of the air who is basically controlling the course of this age and creating an atmosphere, spiritually speaking, that promotes all of the things that we just read. All of the things that we just read completely contradicts everything that would be included in the aspiration to be manly. Everything we just read contradicts the manliness of what God is calling us to be. Everything. Beloved, I see something coming together here. Do you see how the Holy Spirit is building something here step by step by step by step? There is a dreadful spiritual decline occurring all over. And unless we recognize this spiritual decline and are enabled by the grace of God to prevent it from having its evil effects on us, it will bring us into spiritual ruin, this decline that is occurring. Let's read on and develop this a little bit further. We've got some time here. It's only 12.10. Let's read verse 2 again. I love this portion of Scripture. Wherein in time past ye walked. You see, beloved, it's talking about ye walked. You followed. You fashioned yourself according to. Now it says in time past. So it's very, very clear to me. It's a clarion call this morning that we walked this way in the past, but now as Christians born from above and dwelt by the Spirit of God, we are no longer to walk like we used to walk. That is, in unison with the Spirit that is now working in the children of disobedience. We are not to walk in cooperation with the prince of the power of the air, and we are not to walk in fashion with the course of this world. Beloved, we must ask God to renew our minds, and we must stop allowing the things in this world from seducing us into believing that we are to live according to the course of this world. We are not to live according to the course of this world. We are not to allow the Spirit that works in the children of disobedience to control us. We are not to walk in unison with those things that the world tells us are important. We are called out of the world. We are called to show forth the light of Him who called us out of darkness. It's a warfare, though, beloved. The one thing that Satan hates the most, it is the righteousness and holiness and manliness of the man in glory, the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan hates the righteousness of Jesus Christ. Satan hates the manliness of Jesus Christ. Satan hates the honesty of Jesus Christ. Satan hates the tenderness of Jesus Christ. And certainly the body is one with the head, and therefore Satan is doing everything he can in all of his evil wisdom to try and prevent the body from understanding that as the head is, so are we. And it's God's intention that all the fullness that is embodied in the person of Jesus Christ would be formed and expressed in the body, so that as we look at the body, we see the head. There shouldn't be any difference between the head and the body. We are one! We are one! We are one! The manliness of Christ should be in my life. The manliness of Christ should be in your life. The manliness of Christ should be seen as we gather together. And Satan is trying everything he can to prevent it from happening. You turn on that television, and the chances are you're going to get a spirit that's going to come to you and tell you to do something that contradicts Jesus Christ. You go into any bookstore, any 5 and 10 shop nowadays, and you look on the shelf where the magazines are, any magazine that you pick up and you peruse through it, you're going to get some kind of lying spirit that's going to come to you and that's going to seduce you and going to make you begin to set your heart on something that's not godly. Your heart will get set on something, and if you're not careful, you're going to find that your actions are going to be controlled by the spirit that's got on you. What have you been looking at lately? What have you been reading lately? Beloved, if it's not stuff that's godly, if it's not stuff that's pure, it's going to get in you and on you, and you're going to begin to find that those things, rather than Christ, will become your life's passion. You're going to find your steps are going to be governed to try and get the thing that you got seduced into believing is good for you. This is a warfare that we're in. A warfare that we're in. The devil's a liar. I'll tell you, beloved, everything in my spirit right now, everything in my spirit right now, is crying out by the Holy Ghost, look at the man in glory. That's God's thought for manliness. That's God's thought for righteousness. That's God's thought for tenderness. That's God's thought for purity. And you know, it's not a matter of us trying to have to imitate Jesus with our own power and our own might. It's not a matter of us going to God's Word and saying, Oh God, this is what you command me to do, and I'm going to try it with all my might and all my power. No, it's a matter of falling down before a holy God and saying, I thank thee, Lord, that thou hast made me a new creation in Christ Jesus, and that you've delivered me from the dominion of darkness, and you've transplanted me into the kingdom of God, and now Christ is my life. Now Christ is on the inside. And Lord, I thank you that by the power of the Holy Spirit, you are able to transform me and to change me from earthly to heavenly, from carnal to spiritual. To be a godly, manly person is not something you can do by your own power, but it's something God does as you humble yourself and cooperate with the working of His Holy Spirit. We are in a warfare right now. And the warfare is to prevent God's people from becoming men. What's got a hold of you this morning? What's got you? Think about what you're reading. Think about what you're after. What are your thoughts and meditations on? What are you spending your energy doing? Not so much physical, but what is it that you really want to be? What is it that you're really after? Jesus said, labor not for that which what? Perishes. John chapter 6. Don't labor for that which perishes, but labor for that which endures unto everlasting life. Beloved, again I want to say, what is your heart passion? What do you desire more than anything? Where did the desire come from? Have you identified your spiritual passion? Have you identified the passion that governs your heart? Has God shown you? Verse number 3, Ephesians chapter 2. Among whom also we all had our conversation. That word conversation means way of life. Beloved, listen. The Bible here is telling us that all of us had our way of life enveloped in the course of this world. Enveloped in the prince of the power of the air. Controlled by the spirit that now works in the children of disobedience. The scripture is saying that at one time every single one of us was under the control of the evil pernicious ways of the world. Among whom also we all had our way of life in times past in the lusts of our flesh. All the lusts of the flesh coincide with all of the course of this world. That is, everything that the world is offering today has a counterpart in the lusts of the flesh. If the world is showing us a million dollars and a yacht and a life of ease, a life of let us eat, drink, and be merry, and who cares about God, you can be sure that if you're seeing that message externally somewhere in a book, in a magazine, in a television program, you can pretty much guarantee that that message coincides with some kind of an evil desire within your own flesh. The whole reason why Satan masterfully was able to create a world system that's so corrupt is that all he did is simply he looked at what's in himself and all of his evil pernicious desires and those desires which he communicated to man when Adam fell, and in Adam we all fell, and he simply said, I'm going to create a world and I'm going to raise up men and women and I'm going to come up with a mastermind plan in order to captivate man with those things that coincide to his own sinful flesh so as to promote encouragement for them to let go and be free to express all the desires of their flesh. The only hope that Satan has is that we continue to look with our natural eyes, continue to listen with our natural ears. That's why the whole world is in the power of the wicked one because everything in the world coincides with what the nature of sinful flesh is. That's why it's so easy to walk down the street and if we're not full of the Holy Ghost and if we're not on guard and if we're not all covered in the Lord Jesus Christ, it's so easy to look with our eyes and be enticed. It's so easy to listen with our ears and be enticed. It's because everything in the world coincides with the flesh. All that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, it's not of the Father, but it's of the world. So the whole warfare that we're in can find a place in us if, in fact, we fail to see that in Christ we're dead to the flesh. We're alive to God. Christ is now our life, among whom also we all had our conversation in the time past in the lust of the flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind. And we're by nature the children of wrath, even as others. So remember this subtitle, The World Too Easily Affects Us. We show different ways that the world's affecting us, and now we capture the whole thing and gather it all up in one inclusive statement. Here's why. The world and all the powers in the world are too easily affecting us because the lust of the flesh. And that which is in us that has fallen, we are allowing that to control us and govern us. Instead of the truth that Christ is now my life and the Word of God is now what I live by. Quit ye like men. Quit ye like men. The call to be like a man is a call to follow Jesus and forsake everything else, man. Quit ye like men is a call to accept the death sentence that God has placed upon us as men after the flesh. That we are to no longer live a life fulfilling the lust of our flesh, but we are called and apprehended and chosen by God to set our heart and our desires and our affections on the man in heaven and say, Lord, I want to be like him. Men, I'm not through, but I will stop. But I want to end with a holy challenge from God. A challenge that I pray every single man here will accept. Will you make it your life's ambition, your life's goal, and your life's passion to quit ye like men? Or in other words, men, will you aspire with all that is in you to act manly? The manliness that we see in the person of Jesus Christ. And will you let this aspiration and this desire govern every decision that you make, every action that you take in your home towards your wife, towards your children, towards the decisions you make? Can everything that you are currently doing go through the sift of this desire and be found acceptable to God? If not, then I would encourage you, beloved, to consider the costliness of pursuing after that which is not profitable and stop it. There's going to come a day when these words, hear this, beloved, will come to each one of us standing before God. I'm telling you, it'll happen. You're going to hear these words, quit ye like men. And at that day, we're going to be held accountable from a loving Savior who's going to say, that day you heard, quit ye like men, what did you do? How did it affect you? And did it become the all-consuming desire in your heart? And if you can say yes to the Lord at that day, I promise you, by the authority of God's Word, that His response to you will be well done. Because there is no man that can say yes with sincerity to the call of God to act like a man and to come before God and say, Lord, make me a man like Jesus Christ. There's no way that you can accept that call and pray it into existence and pray it into maturity and end up living a life unfruitful to God. But on the other hand, if in fact that day comes and you hear these words, quit ye like men, and God brings back this auditorium and brings back every face that was sitting in here and says, that's when you heard it. What did you do with it? And you said, well, Lord, it's like this. I believed it, and I said amen, and I knew it was true, but Lord, it was too costly for me. I didn't want to give up my life, Lord. I'm speechless. Well, John talked about two kinds of responses, and I'm closing. 1 John. 1 John. If you have your Bible, turn to it. This is an appropriate close from the Lord. 1 John 2, verse number 28. This is written to Christians, not Christians and unbelievers. Christians. Verse 28, chapter 2. 1 John. And now, little children, abide in him, that when he shall appear, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before him at his coming. We will either have confidence, boldness at his coming, or we will be ashamed. And that word ashamed, actually, I read, could have the connotation of drawing back with our head down and being ashamed to look into someone's eyes. It's almost the idea of one morning I might get up and go into the bathroom, and there I look, and my son has shaving cream all over his face. He's got the razor, and he's going like this, and he sees me, and he goes like this. Because he knows that he's doing something that he shouldn't be doing. That's the idea there. I'm going to ask Colette if you'll come. Can you play that chorus, I'll say yes, Lord, yes. And as we close in prayer, we'll softly sing this, and we will just provide the next few moments with a time before the Lord where we will accept the challenge from God to be like men, to let God deal with us as men, to put off our childish ways. Men, it's time to grow up. It's time to grow up and stop living in darkness. It's time to stop expecting everybody else to do it. It's time to stop blaming everybody else. Stop blaming everyone for your problem and start accepting responsibility. God is giving the power to perform this morning to everyone. I will cry out to him. Father, I pray in Jesus' name that you'll make your word fruitful and that you'll give us a harvest of men, Lord, who will be godly men, righteous men, holy men, just men, tender men, righteous men, caring men, men with standards, convictions, and character, who will not be ashamed, but will walk in this world as light, exposing darkness, not being overcome by darkness. Men who will arise in their families and say, family, come here. Let's get on our knees and pray to God. Men, do you pray in your family? Do you pray? Do you teach your children and wife how to pray? It's time that men be men. God is waiting for men to arise. Lord, do it in Jesus' name. As we all sing it together, I'll say yes, Lord, to this call. I'll say yes, Lord, yes, to your will and to your way. I'll say yes. When it speaks to me, my answer will be yes, Lord. God is saying to each one of us men that he'll teach us how to be men. I believe this reflects some of the heart cries that we have had before God. I believe maybe almost every one of us have cried out one time or another, Lord, I want to be a man. I don't want to be a wimp. I don't want to be a phony. I want to be, Lord, I'm a man. You created me a man. I want to be a true man. God has shown us the way this morning to be a man. He has shown us the lies that the world is telling us about manhood. I believe God will teach every man here who earnestly prays, not only how to be a man, but I believe that there's a great need right now that you men would learn how to be men and then befriend other men and teach them how to be men. Young married couples are in great need for older couples to come into their life and to model patience and gentleness and long-suffering and kindness. Oh, what it would do to a young whippersnapper husband who's so harsh and critical toward the bride of his youth and so arrogant and uncaring to see an old man of God with his old woman-of-God wife come over for dinner and see him kiss her and hug her and say, Sweetheart, I love you today. And she say, Honey, I love you today. More could be done at the table with this young whippersnapper who's just got such a mission for God that he's forgotten about his wife. He's forgotten about the flowers. He's forgotten about the birds. He's forgotten that his wife is just wanting a hug. She's just wanting a touch. But he's too spiritual. He doesn't have time for that. Bless God. Don't you want to be a man of God? Oh, man of God, Paul called Timothy. Don't you want to be a man of God? I want to be a man of God. A man of God. Of God. Man of God. From God. Out of God. I want to be a man that's like God. Thank God that I know a man. His name is Jesus and he shows me the way. I am the way, the truth, and the life. Men, show your wives the love of Jesus Christ. Men, please tell your wife you're sorry. Say, I'm sorry when I'm wrong. Don't deny it. The sweetest words out of a man's mouth in the presence of his children is a gentle touch to his wife. I'm sorry, sweetie, I was wrong. You want your children to grow up and make it in this world? Teach them how to say I'm sorry. You want your children to grow up and be basket cases, not being able to fit in anywhere? Then teach them how to be arrogant and not say you're sorry. I'm quite convinced that as a father of six and one in a few months, God be willing that the most important lesson my children can see when they watch their daddy is two things. Number one, the divine passion working in this earthen vessel to know God and to make God known more than anything else in this world. But secondly, it's to see the divine grace working in this earthen vessel when the earthen vessel fails and the earthen vessel blows it. They can see the grace of God working in it and making things right. Brothers and sisters, if you can demonstrate those two qualities to your family, your family will make it. But you've got to have both. Some men, they only want people to see the passion after God, but they don't want people to see I'm sorry. I was wrong. Other men, all they want everyone to see is oh, I'm so sinful. Oh, I'm such a failure. Forgive me, forgive me. And they never see God grabbing hold of them and them being able to aspire after godliness. Get the two working. That's your children. Children, don't you want to see in your parents a love for God? Don't you want to see in your daddy a love for God? I'm sure you do. I'm telling you, beloved, God is offering us this today. And with every offer that God makes, He gives a whole bunch of grace. It's ours. Reach after it. And say, I receive. In Jesus' name, I receive. I'm going to trip sooner or later. Hallelujah. Our heart is just filled with assurance from God. God's going to do it. We can sing that now. Go ahead. Hallelujah. Hallelujah.