13 Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. 14 Let all that you do be done in love.
In these two small verses we see a familiar refrain. We have talked about being watchful, standing firm, and being strong. And verse 14 also hearkens us back to Micah 6:8; doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly. The phrase in the middle is what we want to focus on.
If we look at the Greek text of verse 13, it is only seven words long with two of those being part of the prepositional phrase in the faith. Literally translated, the whole verse goes like this: "Be awake, stand firm in the faith, be manly, be strengthened." We might also add that this is spoken to the second person plural meaning that he is speaking to you all and that each of these are commands.
There is a building up to a climax in this phrase that should tell us a lot about acting like men. First, a man is awake. He is alert. He is not slouched over in his chair in a stupor being half awake and half asleep. He is sober. He does not dull his senses by unnecessary amusements or distractions. He is not lazy, but industrious. Now before the objections arise about leisure and recreation, we should say that there is a time for these things as well. But a man who is awake and alert to his situation knows when those times are and knows when to return to work. Remember, the Lord placed us on this earth to work. Even before the fall, we were to be caretakers of our surroundings. It is just that sin made this work harder than it would have been, and it also makes us want to be lazy. (Prov 6:6-11)
Second, and we have spoken about this at length before; a man is to stand firm in the faith. Before, we spoke of a battle stance of remaining on our feet, ready to do battle. But Paul joins faith to the stance here, and not just any faith, but the faith. Therefore, being watchful, alert, awake, and standing firm is not just founded upon our own strength of will, our ideals, our morals, or our own fortitude. We do all these things with the faith in mind. This faith is spoken of in many places by Paul, but consider what Jude says in verse 3, "Beloved, although I was eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints." It is not just any faith, it is the faith. And it is not a myth or a legend, but has definite origins and specific recipients. This faith that was once for all delivered is a singular system of doctrine, which although it has become broader and more definitive, it is as much the same faith, as a child is the same person in his childhood as he is in his adulthood. This is the faith in which we are to stand firm.
Thirdly, he commands that you, yourself be a man. You are to conduct yourself as a man. Paul says, "When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways." (1 Cor 13:11) Your actions are to comport with that which is a man. All of the things we have described here apply, but let us add this: be as God intended. We are made in His image. He created us to subdue the earth and to exercise a godly, but derived authority over creation. This means that we do not have autonomous authority to do as we please on the earth, but we are to care for our surroundings and use them as He created them. The Psalmist says, "... You have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas." (Ps 8:5-8) We have been made a little lower than the heavenly beings, but we are positionally above all other created things. This gives us great responsibility, but it also means that we should take care to conduct ourselves according to the created order; never apologizing for it, never compromising with those who would usurp it, and never abdicating our proper place in it.
Lastly, Paul commands us to be strengthened. Now, there are many ways to be strengthened in the body and in the spirit. In the body, we eat, we work, and we exercise. All of these help to strengthen us. In the spirit, we worship, we meditate on God's Word, we pray, and we participate in the Lord's Table. This sounds easy, but when it comes down to it, as with physical exercise, it is not always pleasant.
Worshiping, hearing the gospel, reading, singing, and praying God's Word, and taking part in the Sacraments cannot be undervalued. However, there is something else here that takes on a higher plane when it comes to being strengthened. These exercises are mostly done within our churches and our own homes. To be sure, we wrestle plenty with dark spiritual powers just in these realms. But these are rather like the practice arena. Where is our resolve really tested? Where do we find the greatest difficulty taking up the cross of Christ? From whence do many foes advance to attack us? The world has not, is not, and never will be a friendly place for our faith. Did not Jude just explain why he was writing his letter to the saints, so that they could strenously oppose the enemies of the faith? We are being strengthened so that we may be strongly resolved in our faith when these trials by fire come.
Therefore, being alert, battle ready, standing firm in our faith, and taking up our part as men, culminates in our being strengthened. But nothing tests our resolve like waging this battle... in love. Being a strong man-warrior for God is one thing. Doing it with love is another thing entirely. Love is the most crucial attribute of God's warrior, without which we are only noisy children acting a part.
Assignment:
1. Memorize 1 Cor 16:13-14.
2. Journal about what you believe is the hardest part of becoming a man.
3. Write down all your current career choices. Consider how your possible future vocation will help fulfill your becoming a godly man.
