Matt Chandler on Biblical Manhood

Matt Chandler is the lead pastor of Village Church in Dallas Texas. He is a gifted leader and preacher with a zeal for the gospel and a passion for the glory of God in all things. Last year he preached a series of three sermons on what it means to be a man biblically. We thought they were well worth highlighting here and listening to in their entirety.

In the first message, entitled "Defining Masculinity," Chandler takes on the key text of Scripture, Genesis 2 and describes the fundamental design of God for men.

God creates the man to be a cultivator. And here's what I mean by that. God creates men, all men, to build and create and to continue the growth of whatever we built and created. We've been designed by God to cultivate, to build things, to sustain them, to make them as big and as awesome as possible. It's what men are. You see it everywhere.

The second message, entitled "Men as Husbands."  Here Chandler turns to Ephesians 5 to unpack God's intention for manhood in marriage.  A climactic moment in the message comes here:

And then [God] goes over to the man and says, "You're going to love your wife like Christ loved the church." And so you start running through it: how does Christ love the church? He rescues her, He saves her, He becomes sin for her, He has His body ripped apart for her, and here's the kicker and here's where I want to spend my time tonight, He does it all, not because the bride asked for it, but He initiates on His own. And that's what I think is so big about this text.

The last message in the series is called "Men as Fathers." Here he gleans for Psalm 78 and Ephesians 6 a great theology of parenting with honor and love.  A lengthy but powerful excerpt will provides keen insight into how parents can disciple their children well:

There's a disjoint between teaching and knowing. And what I mean by that is you can teach all you want, but the knowing is not under your control and that can be frustrating. Because listen, what I'm after is not regurgitation. If my daughter and son can systematically lay out a belief system in God but they don't have hearts that worship Him, I don't think we've won. But here's the thing. I can't make my son or daughter fall in love with Jesus like their mom and I have. I can't do that for them. I can teach them about Him, I can let the joy of Christ flood my home, I can romance and love my wife on good days and bad days, I can walk in the door every night and long kiss their and make them go, "Oh my gosh. Get a room," I can do all that over and over and over again, teach them love, teach them some security, teach them the goodness and grandeur of a creator God and the glory of the gospels, I can teach them those things, but God has to awaken it in their hearts. I can't do that.

So this makes me desperate. This makes me pray. This makes me plead. This makes me plead very honest prayers for them, over them. Which means I have prayed on more than one occasion, held my little daughter's hand as we go to bed at night and prayed, "Please don't let my sins affect my daughter, and please save her soul." To which she's gone, "Jesus is in my heart." So I go, "I'm so glad. I'm going to keep praying though. When you're 40, if I'm still alive, I'll still be praying this." So I want her to hear those things. I want her to hear "I can't make her love You, God. Help her. Stir her heart towards You. Show her that You don't love some future version of her, but You love her right now." Because that's a beautiful piece of the gospel, that God doesn't love some future version of you but you right now..."

Great stuff. Well worth your careful hearing.  May God raise up men, husbands and fathers who rely on the power of God to live out these holy ideals in our day.