Tag: men

Fathers’ Day: The Patriarchs

Men that couple with a woman, raising their children amid a community, propel us forward not for the sake of progress or order. Instead, it is for what is true, good, and beautiful, a life to pass on to the next generation. They are the facilitators as well as guards, so their families and neighbors may thrive in the blessings of God.

Yes, not all men have embraced the responsibilities expected of them from the Heavenly throne. Too many lack the strength or wisdom to dare engage our fallen world, rather they remain immature in a pseudo-childhood. Thus we have so many men and women forsaking the image of Adam/Eve in favor of mimicking the beasts of the field. Fathers, the Patriarchs, set a standard, a legacy for their household. They are taught to tend to the bountiful garden, denying the hollow pleasure of a forbidden tree.

When our first father, Adam, failed to adhere to our Creator’s commands for a fulfilled life, God the Father Himself made the redeeming sacrifice through Christ His Son, so we may become repentant children of the Almighty. Earthly fathers are likewise given the authority to make such sacrifice for their kin. They serve not themselves but the will of their Creator, Whom exercises power with love alongside justice.

Fathers/Patriarchs wrestle with the world, their flesh, and the devil. They may succumb to the deceit, yet their strength and wisdom can be renewed through the mercy of God. Wicked and/or the cowardly men are unable to ensnare the beloved of their household, when they are instructed to fear only the Lord, to pursue knowledge, most so in what is holy. Free peoples are raised by God-fearing patriarchs, men of heavenly things.

My father’s name means long spear. He has instructed me in the art of offense/defense via body, mind, and spirit. In the long run, his direction has lead me to the foot of the Throne, where our Father may bestow upon my soul strength and wisdom. Indeed, such is the command to patriarchs, the raising of a holier generation.

A blessed Fathers’ Day to all. Honor the patriarchs, the men of heavenly things, in your life. Forgive the man who was not a father. Set yourself before the All Father of Heaven, for He is the source of what is true, good, and beautiful in the days of our lives.

5 “And when you pray, you shall not be like thehypocrites. For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. 6 But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. 7 And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do. For they think that they will be heard for their many words.

8 “Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. 9 In this manner, therefore, pray:

Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10 Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
12 And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
13 And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

14 “For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

Matthew 6:5-15

 

Christian Men & College

There have been a number of articles by Christian women explaining why females of the faith should avoid going to college, though may still obtain a post-secondary education/degree. Examples: https://thetransformedwife.com/godly-men-prefer-debt-free-virgins-without-tattoos/ & https://mrspriceisrighthomeschooling.blogspot.com/2010/05/should-young-women-go-to-college.html

I am going to voice my opinion on why Christian men should likewise be cautious if not opposed to attending college. As a disclaimer, I do not consider this Gospel. It is more so advice to consider like Paul’s preference for celibacy over marriage (1 Corinthians 7:6-7). After all, we are to be in the world but not of it. Often that means refusing to partake in certain matters, this case being how our intellect is formed.

Now, it is apparent to most that higher education is anti-Christ. Worldview, philosophy, and practices are in enmity with the things of God. As fruits of this rebellion, corruption infests the academics, organization, and finances of college institutions. What benefit do the majority of even non-Christian men have “learning” from these proud decadent halls? The primary reason advocated to acquire a degree is economics, not a way to a more intellectually/spiritually prosperous culture.

Get a degree, get a job. In other words, become more able to sell yourself in the market place. Tell me men of God, were you called by your Creator to be a source of goods and services for the wants of our fallen world? I find it vile to be viewed as a resource for the state or a company. We are meant for the glory of the Lord. Our minds are to be endowed with knowledge for His will, not the vain ambitions of men.

Truth in the lecture hall and seminar is a mere product of whatever fancy people have. Competing ideals jockey for influence more than actual instruction in substance. Virtues advocated are inversions of holiness. Social justice is praised, although it requires students to practice diverse types of shallow prejudice revolving around the like of ethnicity/race, sex/gender, age, politics, religion, etc. Good and evil are relative to popular consensus, hence the anarchy of pure democracy warned of by ancient thinkers. Repeated results of math and science are likewise discredited when they intervene with radical agendas regarding the triviality of human life, sodomy, transgenderism, fornication, divorce, environmentalism, profiteering, usury, centralized power, elimination of checks & balances, etc. What is a man to do in the presence of such reckless hate?

Well, according to the general left-right wing perspectives, just accept much as progress, while objecting to some through the power of the ballot and dollar. Or simply try to survive the changing tides, staying above the storm. There is some truth to each, except it falls far short of the courage God expects of us. College more often than not encourages us to be weak, divided by our fears and sinful passions. Yes, pressured to put down the Word, that sword that can behead giants of wickedness, pierce dragons of deception, cast holy light in the demonic darkness. What do I propose as an alternative?

Colleges are not based on truth, marring the perspective of reality of the student body. Public and private funding impair administrative judgement, along with affiliated organizations, hence contributing to the underlying prioritization of money. The majority of advocacy groups support things anti-Christ (Logos) in nature, playing a hand in facilitating a degenerate campus (& contemporary) culture. In and outside the classroom, abstract/esoteric theories tend to supersede facts whether it be literature or the more concrete material of biology. Ah, pride in tandem with love of mammon.

Essentially, this is what Christian men can do: 1. Be very selective attending a still devoutly Christian college, including Catholic and Orthodox. 2. Find an online program to obtain a degree or at least minimize campus attendance. 3. Discernment in choosing liberal arts major, tech program, and/or trade school/apprenticeship (not everyone should go to college). 4. Have an intimate community wherever you go via family, church, friends, neighbors, and co-workers. 5. Live a life in accordance with the two greatest commandments, loving God with all your strength and your neighbor as yourself.

Grow as a man of God, pursuing how He wants His sons to live according to Scripture, supplemented by sound tradition. Neither be steered by mortal ambition nor the anxious uncertainty of your future. Fear Christ, knowing the truth, for it will set you free from false promises and looming insecurities. Raise a home – beloved family, fruitful labor, and nurturing food. If you are going to submit to something, let it be the Cross, not pointless human desire. If you end up choosing to attend any institution, do so in the Holy Spirit, with wisdom and strength. Godspeed, my brethren.

9 What profit has the worker from that in which he labors? 10 I have seen the God-given task with which the sons of men are to be occupied. 11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end.

12 I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives, 13 and also that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor—it is the gift of God.

14 I know that whatever God does,
It shall be forever.
Nothing can be added to it,
And nothing taken from it.
God does it, that men should fear before Him.
15 That which is has already been,
And what is to be has already been;
And God requires an account of what is past.

Ecclesiastes 3:9-15

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”

4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”

5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written:

‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’

and,

‘In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’ ”

7 Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God.’ ”

8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.”

10 Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”

11 Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

Matthew 4:1-11