![]() ![]() Answer the call to be a man of God with great passion and enthusiasm. 1 My brothers and sisters, practice your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ by not favoring one person over another. Be full of passion and fire for God and for others. This is “agape” love, which is sacrificial and unconditional. ![]() Gain mastery over your appetites and desires, so that you have self-control.ĥ) “Love” – Let love be the motive for all action. Exercise your body and mind to be strengthened for defense of your family and faith. Stop acting like little boys still playing with their toys. Be spiritual leaders who never give up.ģ) “Act like men.” – This is a call to biblical masculinity. Protect your families, churches, and neighborhoods.Ģ) “Stand firm in the faith.” – Persevere and grow in faith. There is no shame in that.The apostle Paul closed his epistle to the Corinthians with five instructions for men that are more than applicable today.ġ) “Be watchful.” – Be vigilant, stay awake, stand guard. Women, on the other hand, possess the unique privilege of corresponding to the beloved people of God. It should be no more offensive for God to choose men and not women to typify Jesus' ministerial power, than that he chose bread and not meat, or wine and not milk, as sacramental signs of Christ's work. As I see it, placing women in office wrongly signifies that the Church-and not Christ-is prophet, priest, and king. Men are vested with that responsibility in order to portray Christ (the archetypal man) among his people (the archetypal Woman). Likewise, only men are chosen for ministerial office, not on account of greater inherent worth than their female counterparts, but as embodiments of the husband-spouse relationship that persists between Christ and the church. Godly subjection of wives to husbands stems from Woman being created "from out of Man," and does not cease with conversion. The visible church is organized for this age in a way that accounts for natural order. This does not automatically open the door to women in office. Only in relation to union with Christ, where "there is no longer male nor female," does he apply the battle metaphor to women and men alike. Regarding gender norms, it may be argued from his choice of terms that Paul actually affirms the natural order of fleshly warfare as ordinarily belonging to men. The verse is meaningfully understood as, "act as courageous men," where men are not assumed to be the exclusively courageous sex. In this sense, Paul's admonition is equally valid for both men and women. True manfulness-to imitate the man, Jesus Christ-is to "let all that you do be done in love" (v.14). In saying this, he does not picture chest thumping and worldly shows of power. ![]() In choosing ἀνδρίζεσθε, Paul is not simply telling men to "act like men." As one familiar with both Greek culture and Jewish usage of Greek terms, he is urging both sexes to adopt qualities of self-sacrificing courage and strength for the battle. 14 Let all your things be done with charity. 1 Corinthians 16:1314 King James Version (KJV 1900) 13 Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong. "She dresses herself with strength and makes her arms strong (וַתְּאַמֵּץ)."ġ Corinthians was written to both men and women. 13 Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. In fact, in Prov 31:17, such courage is characteristic of the virtuous woman. 'Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Unlike ἀνδρίζομαι, the Hebrew phrase (אמץ) does not have a male root or specifically masculine connotations. This call to men from God's Word was delivered by Dr. It should be noted, however, that the same verb was chosen to translate Deut 31:7, "be courageous," into the Septuagint. Insofar as Christian life is a spiritual battle, it makes sense for Paul to use this word. Given the nature of ancient warfare, it is not surprising that Greek culture came to associate courage with men. The phrase, "act like men," is translated from one Greek word (ἀνδρίζεσθε), basically a verbal form of "man." The term denotes courageous conduct (BDAG). Either women are not to told to "stand firm in the faith," or in some sense they are to "act like men." In my judgment, Paul affirms a virtue that, while often appearing in men, is appropriate to both parties with respect to spiritual warfare. 1 Cor 11), in this text it seems that linguistic and contextual factors militate against overloading the phrase to exclude women from the charge. While I believe there are characteristically male and female traits and virtues (cf. In fact, I initially investigated this passage just to see if there is a case to be made here for a specific "manliness" that Paul has in mind (distinct from women). I share the concerns of many regarding gender blurring. Let all that you do be done in love." What does it mean to "act like a man"? I noticed that the ESV renders 1 Cor 16:13-14, "Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Here's a language-nugget from my morning studies. ![]()
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