Pastor's Corner - Oct. 24, 2019

Just a few weeks ago we had a men's barbecue here at the church. At that event, we talked about Paul's short statement in 1 Corinthians 16:13: Act like men. That statement comes in a rapid-fire list of short commands. The primary idea is to be mature, but we can ask our men specifically, "What does a Biblical man act like?"

If the church is to advance or progress, there must be a group of godly men leading the charge. That is not an indictment on women, but a recognition of the reality that men are called to lead the church as well as their homes. If the leadership is weak, then the followers will be weak.

We see this in sports as a great illustration. Great coaches make average players great. Satan knows that if he can chip away at the foundations of leadership (the men), then he will have a strong impact on the Lord's church. Just think about it: Have you ever heard of a church with a 'problem' of too many godly men?

No, usually the problem is that we can't find enough godly men. According to research (The Gospel Coalition) Christian women are routinely more "religious" than men in all kinds of categories. Women read their Bibles more, pray more and attend church more. These are just facts.

But we don't want to slam our men; we want to encourage our men to step up and fulfill the roles that God has ordained for them. That is why this month's book is geared primarily to men. It is called Disciplines of a Godly Man written by Pastor Kent Hughes. Each chapter selects one spiritual discipline and explains how men can better live in this particular area. The areas he covers include fatherhood, prayer, integrity, work, giving, ministry and many others. The simple, straightforward listing of disciplines for men is a tremendous help for any man seeking to know what God requires of him.

This book isn't just special to me because of the content. It is special to me because it was one of the first Christian books I ever read and really had a significant impact on me determining who I wanted to become as a man. It seemed like every single chapter was my pastor friend Kent Hughes discipling me personally through this book, even though I had never met him.

But wouldn't it be the divine providence of God that Kent Hughes came to the seminary where I was studying and taught a weeklong course on 2nd Corinthians during the winter session. That was my first year in seminary and I knew I was going to attend that class because of the effect [BEGIN ITAL]Disciplines[END ITAL] had on my life.

Kent Hughes was just as pastorally astute as he was scholarly. He taught all week on the book of 2nd Corinthians, mixing in story after story of his decades long experience in pastoral ministry. Some of those profound insights still run through my brain today. Kent Hughes was discipling me for a second time during that winter class. If you see a book by Kent Hughes, you should get it. I was so excited when I began preaching through the book of James and found a

preaching commentary from Kent Hughes on James. It did not disappoint.

Since the release of this book, his wife has authored one for women called Disciplines of a

Godly Woman; they even wrote one together called Disciplines of a Godly Family (which I also

highly recommend). I recently saw there is a Disciplines of a Godly Young Man as well.

The

bottom line is this: the home is where the change in the church will begin. And the change must

begin with the men first. Men, let us make godliness our top priority and see what we can

accomplish for the Lord.

Mark Scialabba is pastor of the Congregational Bible Church in Shafter.