“The central problem of every society is to define appropriate roles for the men” says Margaret Mead, after she performed many studies on a variety of cultures. Indeed, our society needs men of God, it needs fathers who love the Lord and who model walking with God to their sons.
It is one of the most noble yet most perplexing roles for 21st century men.
R. Lewis write that “Modern culture does little to harness the energy and passions of man for good. This may explain why men are responsible for much of our social upheaval: in
- 2002 – 88% of local jail inmates were men
- 2001 – 93.4% of state prison inmates were men
- 1997 – 93% of federal prison inmates were men
- 1996 – 92 % of convicted, violent felons were men
The lifetime chance that a person will go to prison is
- 1.8% for women,
- and 11.3% for men.”
Lewis wrote the book ‘Raising a Modern-Day Knight: A Father’s Role in Guiding His Son to Authentic Manhood’ in order to remind men of their responsibility of modeling for their sons what walking with God is all about. Keeping their sons out of trouble may seem an easy task for some men, but God’s calling goes deeper.
David wrote Psalm 3 when he as the king fled from his son, Absalom. In Genesis 5 we read about Enoch who “walked faithfully with God 300 years… then he was no more, because God took him away.” Gen. 5:21-24.The Bible is full of men who walked with God – that was their focus in life – to be close to God, to be in communion with God as they lived their lives: in raising their kids; resting; eating, working, studying, gathering for corporate worship. For many men all of life was a walk with God.
As a physical exercise walking is recommended today as one of the best ways to stay healthy: walking for 30 to 60 minutes a day, five days a week, reduces stress, the chances of cancer, diabetes, heart disease, anxiety and depression, and it can increase life expectancy too – writes Nicky Gumbel in his commentary on Genesis 5 text, bibleinoneyear.org.
Some couples or families are walking and are listening to the Bible, others are taking walks and have fellowship with one another.
The God of life calls us to walk with him.
The first Adam and his wife, Eve, “heard the sound of the Lord God as he was WALKING in the garden in the cool of the day” Gen. 3:8, but they could not join God in his walk because earlier they decided to walk with the other master, the serpent, as they obeyed his voice.
“Men assume their social responsibility most naturally and effectively when
- it is clear to them that the primary responsibility for the well-being of others rests on them and that others are relying on them, and
- when they have been trained from an early age by the men in their lives to recognize and assume that responsibility faithfully” writes sociologist S. Clark.
The first Adam received three (3) major responsibilities from God, and they continue to be responsibilities for men today:
- a WILL to obey God – “You shall not eat of the tree” (God’s will reveled in Scripture – that’s one reason we read the Bible daily and have a time for devotion)
- a WORK to do (not just the work of his job, but also the work in his home, church, and community – in Adam’s case he was called to take care of the garden)
- a WOMAN to love (his wife – in Adam’s case it was Eve)
Every boy who will be groomed to become a “Modern-Day Knight” must be schooled in these arts, trained from an early age by the mentor inches life: DAD! (R.Lewis).
That is not an easy task for fathers living in the 21st century, but it is a noble call that invites us to be intentional in our walking with God.
