Hello beloved,
There is a Jason Upton song, called ‘Lion of Judah’, that my church recently started doing. I’ve always liked this song a lot. In fact, I’ve always been fascinated with any biblical reference to lions. The lion, in biblical times, stood for power and victory. When I think of Jesus, as the Lion of Judah, I think of His great power and judgment. Then, when I think of Jesus as the Lamb of God, I think of His great mercy; how He willingly became the ultimate sacrifice for our sins. Jesus is both of these. Don’t forget that. A lot of Christians have forgotten about the Judgment of God and focus primarily on his grace and mercy.
Anyway, I am writing to you today about a section of this song that really got me thinking. Near the end, it says “raise up an army like Joel saw”. That helped me put together some thoughts I have been having about this younger generation. I am speaking mainly of boys, since that is whom I spend time with. In fact, my eyes have been opened to something that I see as a gift from God. The gift is this: they have an inner desire to fight. This is because it is man’s responsibility to go to battle. Joel 3:9 says “Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up:”
Two weekends ago, I went on a Purity Retreat with the boys of my church. They came up with this ridiculous game called ‘Manhunt’. The gist is that they divide up into two teams, one team will hide and the other team will look for the ones hiding. When they find someone hiding they beat each other with sticks. I’m not kidding. I thought it was odd. Yet, the more I watched them, the more sense it made.
You should have seen the preparation that they went through in getting ready for battle. Each one would find the choicest piece of wood and shave it into a weapon. To me, they didn’t look like much more than sticks, but I could see they were much more in the eyes of these young soldiers. I could see that, in their eyes, they were wielding a mighty sword. I saw their desire to be a soldier. Joel 3:10 says “Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong.”
I believe this to be in the heart of every young man. They want to fight.
Another place I saw this, recently, is in video games. Several of these boys made commitments to give up their video games to strengthen their walk with God. However, when they got home, their parents would not let them get rid of them. (How ridiculous!) Well, I thought that they should still be able to give up the games and just not play them, but most were unable to do it. Why not? I couldn’t understand why they were so drawn to these video games. Then it hit me. The main game they were playing is called Halo 3. I used to play Halo, and I know what it’s about…war. This game is just another way for these kids to be warriors. There is a major problem with this though.
An Xbox will not teach our sons to be men of God. Playing ‘Manhunt’ will not teach our sons to become men of God. Fathers must teach our sons to become men of God. Ephesians 6:4 says “And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.” Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that the fathers of these children are not good fathers. I’m not saying that, if your son plays Xbox, you’re a bad father. What I am saying(and with no regret) is that your responsibility, as a father, is to teach him to become that man of God he is called to be. Take that Xbox controller out of his hand and teach him to wield the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. Tell him that it is time for him to become a man. Tell him that, in becoming a man, he must put away childish things. We must teach them to put on the full armor of God. And that, as soldiers, they can’t meddle with the affairs of the world. 2 Timothy 2:3-4 says “Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer.” We’ve got to raise up soldiers that won’t get caught up in the things of this world. We must raise up soldiers that have one desire – to please their heavenly Father.
This might sound hasty, but I have to call it like it is. Men need to be men. Fathers need to be fathers. Unfortunately, this generation of boys is being raised by their mothers, for the most part. Now, you cannot deny that what I am saying is true. There are many problems with this. One problem is that when boys want to go to battle, mothers try to protect them, in fear that they might get hurt. Fathers take them out to battle, showing them how to fight. That is why it is so important that fathers bring their sons to the front lines. I think of a man that comes to the abortion clinic almost every Saturday with his son. He is teaching that boy how to be a man.
So, when our boys want to fight, we buy them an Xbox. Now, I’m not saying that video games are evil. But, if your child is playing that video game until 3:00 am, there is a problem. You need to teach him the Word of God. If he doesn’t feel like reading his bible, make him.
Now, I know I am being harsh on video games. But, that is just what got me thinking all of this. You can apply it to almost anything. I think sports are far better than video games, for children to be involved in. They definitely help with physical exercise, which is severely lacking in our youths. But, sports too, can become a bad thing.
Their are many boys that have more pressure to practice there batting stance than they do to read their bibles. Any young person that knows me, knows that I am constantly asking them if they have been reading their bibles. I just can’t understand why they say no, when I know that they have spent hours that week practicing sports. The problem is that their fathers will praise them more for getting a base hit then they will for reading their bibles. And they will get onto them more for striking out then they will for not reading their bibles. That’s backwards! I see grown athletes, everyday, act like children. Why? Because their fathers were more concerned in teaching them how to hold a bat, as opposed to wielding the Sword of the Spirit.
So, fathers, you can take this for what it is. It’s a call to repentance. Malachi 4:6 says “He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse.” So, beloved, it’s time to become that father that God has called you to be.
I hope that this letter will be taken as an encouragement. Sometimes we have to be reminded of the priorities in our lives. If you are a husband and father, you’re number one priority is serving God. Number two is your wife. Then, your children. And, men, it is your responsibility to teach your wives and your children the Word of God.
So, be encouraged beloved.
In Christian love,
Adam Tennant
