When is a boy a man? Part 2

My last post covered Part 1 of what it means to be a man which was to accept responsibility for a will to obey.

1. Accept RESPONSIBILITY for a Will to Obey

The first thing to know is that as a man there are responsibilities we must accept.  The first responsibility is for a will to obey.

The second quality of a man is to accept responsibility for a work to do

2.  Accept RESPONSIBILITY for a Work to Do

When God placed man on earth He told Adam to work the land.  Genesis 2:15 says that God took Adam to the Garden of Eden to cultivate and keep it.  Adam had work to do!  But it was not hard for Adam, it was a pleasure to tend to the garden the God had given him.

But when sin entered earth in Genesis 3, work that was such a pleasure became labor.  It became hard.  Work was not as pleasing then, but it had to be done.

Fast forward to today.  Work is still needed, but it is not always fun or a pleasure.  But as men of this earth, we were commanded to work by God.

How do we work today?  What kind of work should we do?

I believe there are four places we should contribute to with our work.

Home

First as men we are responsible for the spiritual, mental and physical health of our home and family.  It does not mean we cannot share some of the burdens with our wife and kids, but at the end of the day – the man is responsible as the head of the household.

Church

Men should be responsible for using our Spiritual Gifts to serve others in the church and to glorify God.  I believe that by the time a boy is in high school, God has already given him his Spiritual Gifts if he is saved.  You will not be given any of these Spiritual Gifts until you have accepted Jesus as your Savior and trust Him with your life.

Spiritual Gifts are mentioned primarily in three locations in the Bible:  Romans 12:6-8; 1 Corinthians 12:4-11; and 1 Corinthians 12:28.

Job

In today’s economy I know it is sometimes tough to find a job, but as a man we are responsible for a steady job to pay for our expenses and be a witness for Jesus while there.  As the leader of a family we are also responsible for income of the family.

Community

As a man I believe we are responsible for making a positive contribution in our community.  Either as a school volunteer, youth sports coach, or community clean up, we need to make positive investments into the community where we live.