Raising the Bar on Manhood
Striving to be a godly man raises the bar on manhood.
James Greer
Jun 24, 2018 29m
In the sermon Pastor Greer describes some of the characteristics of a godly man. He uses words that start with P's to make these easy to remember. He also discusses traits that decrease a mans effectiveness in his life. He challenges the men of his congregation to raise the bar on manhood. Video recorded at Pineville, Louisiana.
TranscriptionmessageRegarding Grammar:
This is a transcription of the sermon. People speak differently than they write, and there are common colloquialisms in this transcript that sound good when spoken, and look like bad grammar when written.
This is a transcription of the sermon. People speak differently than they write, and there are common colloquialisms in this transcript that sound good when spoken, and look like bad grammar when written.
James Greer: 00:02 Hey, that's not the manhood that we're going to be talking about today. Hey, you know, they said in Jesus' Day, that Jesus sat down, and all the people stood. I'd think that is pretty cool. We're not going to ask you to do that day. Man, I'm so daggone excited to be here today, and some of you know, I've been in the hospital. And then I'm taking some, IV antibiotics for the next four or five weeks. I go in at eight, nine in the morning for two hours, and nine at night for two hours. But you know what, I just thank God that God is so good to me, and so good to Journey church. Hey, I want to tell you something. First of all, I want to say, to all y'all, that have given to the Say Yes Campaign, I want you to know so far we already have $281,000, Amen. And you guys in Alexandria, y'all should be rocking the house, because that was given to where we could go to Alexandra. We can refill. Do you know in Alexandria, they've already baptized eight people this year? I mean in Pineville we baptized 43. I mean sometimes people in churches don't do that in 10 years. We already have a 113 new members this year alone. Amen. And so god is so good to us, and I want to thank you for giving to the Say Yes Campaign.
James Greer: 01:22 But really, I don't want us to forget our theme. I want us to come to church and to learn, but I want us to leave, being the church. Okay Pineville, I want come to church, but I want you to leave, being the church. Hey same thing with Alexandria, same thing. you come to church, but you leave what? Being the church. And we're going to talk about ways that you can be the church today, especially as a godly man.
James Greer: 01:50 In First Corinthians 16:13, it says, "Keep your eyes open for spiritual danger." He's talking about men. If I wanted to give you the whole outline on how to be a godly man, it could be first of all, keep your eyes open for spiritual dangers, stand true to God, stand to God, and then act like a man. I don't think most people know what act like a man means. I mean today, if you watch TV, most of the men act women, and most of the women act like men. I watch all these detectives shows, I have never seen such mean women in my life. These women can beat up 15 men, they can outrun them. they karate them, and they can out shoot them. My goodness and the men? They just come on behind them. I mean it's like manhood, is wimpy-hood today. But it says act like a man, it says be strong, and whatever you do, do it with kindness.
James Greer: 02:45 Now I can tell you what it's like to be a wimp. I was in the hospital, and I'd been in there for awhile, and they said, I'm going to take you downstairs in this waiting room and we're going to give you a PICC line. I said, what's a PICC line? They said, oh, don't worry, we just go up through your vein, and run it all the way almost to your heart. Oh man, I'm just breaking out in sweat now. So they bring me down to the waiting room, this true story. I'm down in the waiting room, and there's a lady next to me. And they said, man, you know what? We've already had to take two liver biopsies, and we hadn't got it yet. I think holy Moses, and they go do it again, those hurt. The person next to me, now let me tell you what, if you're a nurse, thank God for you. But whisper when things aren't going good. The one next to me, they said, man we did PICC line, we're not sure if it worked. Doctor walks by and I say hey doc. He said, yeah man, I saw you the other night. And I said, give me drugs. He came over and shook my hand and laughed, and I said, I'm not joking, I want drugs. So I saw about that time, you know, this nurse came back. Man, I mean nurses, you can be the church, when you're at work. I think her name was Stephanie Williams, or something like that. She walked up and she said, I'm going to be your nurse, I'm going to put that in. I said, listen, I am not joking, give me drugs. She says, aren't you the Pastor at Journey church? I said, yes I am, but I still want drugs. She walks over, and she pats me, and she said, Jesus is going to be your drug, come on. I said, you've got to be joking. True Story. So she takes me back, I am going to tell you, she was so fantastic. She's quoting scripture, she said, what is your favorite scripture? I said, right now, God didn't give me a spirit of fear, but of power, of love and of salvation. She said, well, start quoting the 91st psalm. I said, I can't quote anything you quote it, and she started quoting it. So sometimes, to act like a man, is to be really wimpy. I'm a wimp when it comes to stuff like that. But I thank God, that there's nurses and doctors that don't only come to church, but when they leave, they become the church. I'm going to tell you, the doctors and nurses were so good to me. It was unbelievable. I know what it's like to be anointed, and I know what it's like to be appointed, and God appointed people from day one. From the time I was in the ambulance, to the time I got the emergency room, to the five or six days I was there. It was unbelievable. They were so good to me.
James Greer: 05:21 But today what I want to talk about is not in your outline, and it's about the P's of manhood, and I want to encourage you to write them down. Because I just learned of this very, very important truth that I want you to know. And they said successful people learn different than average people. They said really 80 to 90 percent of what you learn is wasted. I understand that, I worked for hours and hours on message, and y'all come and of course you forget 90 percent of what I preach, I understand that. But they said the difference between successful people and normal people is, successful people when they're listening, when they're learning. They're trying to say, hey how can I take that knowledge, how can I apply it, and it result in action. What I want is for our people to be more successful, Amen. So every single Sunday when you come to church I want you, men and women, to find at least one thing that while you're learning, you're thinking, how can I put that into action? I don't want to just learn about it, I want to put it into action, that equals results.
James Greer: 06:30 So let me give you some P's of a man who has not raised the bar to manhood. Number one is this. Passive. Non-responsive at the right time. He allows his wife to do most of the things. He's so passive, even when it comes to disciplining the kids, he said, I just love them too much, you take care of it. You're passive, I got another P word, but I will not use it in church. So she disciplines the children, she handles most of the finances. Well, when I was growing up, my dad used to always say, I don't know where the money is, I just bring it home to your little mama. Well get your butt in there, and find out where it's going, Amen. So now she's handled all the discipline because he's passive, she's handling the finances. When it comes to church, she's the one that gets up and says, hey man, we need to go to church on Sunday. We need to be in God's house. She's the spiritual leader. Hey men, quit being so passive, you get off your butt, and you help her. And you be the first one to church, part of being a spiritual leader, is taking the initiative. It's not how much scripture you can quote, is how you can walk.
James Greer: 07:50 Second, they're persuaded. They're persuaded, instead of being persuasive, they're easily persuaded by the devil. See, we're going to find out in Genesis chapter 3 later on, and I can prove what I'm telling you, is Adam was easily persuaded by the devil. He was persuaded by his wife. He was persuaded by the devil. He is persuaded by his wife, even though you understand men, Adam knew it was wrong to do it. Eve didn't, Eve was being deceived. But see that they're persuaded, they're persuaded by the devil, they were persuaded by the kids, they are persuaded by their wives, they are persuaded by other men. If you're not careful, they're persuaded by other women. God has very little persuasive power over them. Some of you men in here today, you got to say, man, I've been too passive. And some of you men have been to easily persuaded, for the wrong things.
James Greer: 09:02 And the third P, is this. Because you've been passive, and you've been persuaded to do the wrong thing, now you panic. Now when I say panic, see when things start going wrong, because you've been so passive and you've been persuaded to do the wrong thing, now you panic. You say something like this. I get angry, I scream, I holler, I cuss, I blame, and I even try to bring shame to the people like my kids, and my wife, because things aren't going right. See, that's not acting like a man. See Donnie's dad was not acting like a man, but I want to tell you something about Donny. Donny didn't allow what his dad did to him, to cause him not to raise the bar on manhood. And see, some of you would like to sit there and make excuses about your dad or your mom, instead of learning insights. The things you don't want to be like him, change it, and raise the bar, Amen. That's what he did.
James Greer: 09:47 See if you're here, maybe you don't have a husband at all. Well, can I tell you something if you hear and you don't have a husband, you're better off not having a husband than having the wrong husband. But always remember what Isaiah said. Isaiah 54:5 says, "The maker will be your husband." See if I was here today, and I wasn't married, and I was a woman. I'd say, thank God, God's going to be my husband, and he's called the one that made the whole world. He's the God that can provide for me, he's the God that protects me. And then for kids that don't have a dad, or don't have a dad that's active in their life. The psalmist said, "I'll be father to the fatherless." So see, God has a word for you as well.
James Greer: 10:35 So how about a godly man? How about a man, that's allowed God to raise the bar in his life? What are some P's in his life? Number one, he's protective. He protects against the devil. See, Adam should have, but he didn't. Adam knew there was a problem, but he didn't protect his wife, and he didn't protect against the devil. So let me give you an insight, men. God has usually given men a supernatural insight to be able to spot the danger, you just got to stand up and stop the danger. See, Adam knew there was a danger, he spotted the danger, but he wouldn't stop the danger. So see, when you raise the bar to manhood, you become the protector of the family. You not only spot it, but you try to stop it. You protect who you, and your family, allow into your family. Because see, wrong influence, is a number one problem with you and your kids. So you protect, you protect, who you allow into your family. You protect against the wrong use of the telephone, and the Internet today, and media. And don't say, well everybody does it, I don't care what everybody else does. You're going to be a godly man, you're going to protect your family, and you're going to stand up, Amen. Be a man, not a wimp. Protect against overspending, and not tithing. Quit letting your wife handle all the finances, and you not help.
James Greer: 12:18 Now, my wife, usually paid the bills. But let me tell you what, when we first got married, for years and years and years. We agreed, neither one of us would ever spend over $25, without talking to the other. We would sit down, and write on a piece of paper, all the bills we had, and all the money that came in. And she'd give me $25 a week, and we just agreed that's the way we had to live, and nobody's going to spend an extra $25. I came home one day, and she had bought a piece of furniture. Not a big deal it was $150, and I just said, honey, I thought we had talked about not doing that. She said, well I'm going to bring it back. I said, please don't bring it back. She said, that was the agreement. I came home the next day, and she had brought the dadgum furniture back. I didn't want her to bring the furniture back. I just want us to have an agreement on how we handled our finances, that was fair for both of us. Say, I know a man the other day. He was so proud. He said, man, I'm going to tell you, we were kind of in a tight, but I went and got me a four wheeler and [inaudible] and I didn't even tell my wife. Big deal, I don't call that manhood, I call that wimpy hood. Wives talk to your husband about it, men talk to your wife. Whether it's a $100, $500, I don't know what it is. But come to an agreement that we're not gonna spend without talking to the other person. We're a couple, we're together, God wants to bless our unity. To men, take the initiative, God says that we're to tithe. Don't wait on your wife to say, hey. You do it. You come in and say, God's word said we should tithe, let's tithe, Amen.
James Greer: 13:51 Second, be the provider. You might not make the most money, but you do work. I mean, if you're a man, go to work. Provider is more than just money, but I can tell you money's part of it. Providing is offering guidance, direction, and the correct discipline to your own kids. When you discipline, learn to discipline out of a relationship, not at a reputation. See, when Donnie's dad was disciplining him, he was doing it out of a reputation. He wanted everybody else to think it was funny how he was doing it, instead of building a reputation. So let me tell you what, providing this guidance, this direction, this discipline, is not punching your child. It's not laughing, and giving a child a beer. It's not being absent, it's being present.
James Greer: 14:41 Be a protector, be a provider, and the third P, be persuasive. Be persuasive, not manipulating, but influencing. Leadership is influence. You should be the greatest influence in the home, where your family want your guidance, where they want your direction, where they want your wisdom. Because they see the discipline in your life, they want what you have, so you're the one that's bringing the influence. You're the one that's being persuasive, instead of always being persuaded. Let me tell you there is no wife, no kid, that wants a husband that doesn't have some type of influence in their life. [inaudible] and that comes as a result of never making a stand for what's right, never protecting, never providing. Can I tell you something? That leads to rebellion with your wife, and your children. Men act like a man, Amen. What do we want our men to do? Act like a man.
James Greer: 15:43 Alright, first Corinthians 16. Now we're going to do the message. Hey men, surely out of six P's, you can find one to write down and learn from. Please just don't come to church, and they go home the same way you came. Please don't just come to church, and not leave and be the church. Please don't just come to church, and not put one thing into action. Don't just continue to be a learner, and not an applier. First Corinthians, it says this, "Keep your eyes open." To what? Spiritual danger. Listen men, one of the things that God says, hey, if you want to be a man, if you want to step up your manhood, be aware of spiritual danger. Stand true to the Lord, stand for God, when everybody else is not. Act like a man. Be strong, whatever you do, do it with kindness, and do it with love. So let me tell you the first thing, men. The real true sign of a man, he's tough, and he's tender. See a godly man, you're tough and you're what? Tender. See you're tough because your eyes are open, you're watching for spiritual danger, and you're tough, because you're going to make a stand for what's right. One of the first things he said, have your eyes open, men, spiritual danger. And one of the reasons it says that's first thing we're to do, is because it was the first thing that man did not do, that allowed spiritual danger into the family.
James Greer: 17:18 See, in Genesis chapter 3:1, it talks about, "Now the serpent, which is the devil. He was more cunning, he was the deceiver, than any beast of the field which the Lord had made. Let me tell you something. Did God create all the beasts of the field? Yes. Did God create the serpent? Well, yes and no. God really created a beautiful angel in heaven, who rebelled and got thrown onto the earth, but it was a created being. But Satan said unto the woman, "Has God indeed said, you shall not eat of every tree in the garden." Let me ask you something. Why wasn't he talking to the man? The man was standing right there. So he didn't say anything to the man, he said something to the woman. Women, I'm going to give you a free insight, that you write down, and you learn. If you want your husband to grow, you start asking him questions. If Eve would have stopped right there and said, hey honey, it's not what I'm going to do, it's not because I'm going to do it no matter what. Honey, what do you think about what I should do? What if you start asking your husband, do you think we should buy this, do you think we should do this, what do you think spiritually we should do, how do you think we're doing raising the kids, how do you think we're disciplining? Because when you start doing that, see instead of just having your way, you cause them to grow. Ladies, what's the one thing you can learn today? Ask your husband questions, and it causes him to mature and grow. You're not proving anything by saying, hey, I don't have to ask my husband anything. I hear women say that all the time. Hey, you're just breeding rebellion, and running your husband down, and you're not respecting him. Amen, Brother James. You know what happens after that? See, you talk big and act big, and then you get all frustrated, and upset because you're having to handle everything. Do you want to start growing your husband.
James Greer: 19:21 What if Eve would have stopped right there? Now it was Adam's fault he was a wimp, but some of you all want your husbands to grow you. Not spiritually, but just all areas of their life. When is the last time you stopped and asked him the important questions? How should we spend our money? How should we discipline our kids? What should we buy or not buy? How do you think we're doing spiritually in our life, and our children's life? Not just tell them what you're going to do. Ask him. Because, "The woman said to the serpent, you know, we may eat the fruit of the tree in the garden." Well, yeah, but God said, "You shall not eat, nor shall you touch, less you shall die. Then the serpent said to the woman, you're not surely going to die. God knows, listen, in the day that you eat, your eyes are going to be open". Stop! You know what the devil always tries to get you to do, he tries to make you think God's holding out on you. He's trying to, instead of looking at all that God has given you. He plants the seed about, hey, what is it that you don't have, that you think you should have? No you're going to be like God, and you're going to know the difference between good and evil. So what did she do? Verse 6 tells us, "So when the woman saw that the tree was good, for food, and that it was pleasant for the eyes, and the tree desirable to make one wise." She took the fruit, and she ate it. And what else did she do? She gave it to her wimpy husband, and he ate also. He was passive, was he not? Did he protect her? No. Was He persuaded? Yes.
James Greer: 21:17 You understand that the difference between a man raising the bar, and a man that's in the house, but he's not a godly man. You see it right here. Here's the illustration. You became passive when you knew there was something wrong, you became persuaded to do the wrong thing. And if you kept reading the story when God said, why don't you do that? He said, my wife made me do it. He panicked, and so now he's blaming his wife for what he should've done. So that's what happened. See Adam, he was created in a way to spot danger that comes into his family. Men, you were created with the ability many times to spot dangers in your house. The difference, he could spot it, but he didn't stop it. See, he was passive and he was persuaded.
James Greer: 22:14 How could Adam have acted like a godly man? Well, first of all, he should have addressed the serpent. I'm going to tell you, I don't want some man, when I'm standing there, come up and start talking to my wife and telling her what she should do. I don't want him to tell her what she should buy, I don't want him to tell her how she should dress, I don't want him telling her what she could eat. If he wants to talk to somebody, Buddy, I'm standing right there. Talk to me, Amen. Be careful who you're allowing to influence, not on your wife, but to your kid's life. See men, better be careful. But he could've addressed Satan. Because the Bible says, in James 4:7, he said, "Therefore, listen, submit to God. Resist the devil, and he'll flee." He didn't say he might flee. He said, "Submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." So he should've been tough, should've been tough, against the enemy. He should have resisted the devil. He had already had a word from God, God had already told him not to do that. God had already said, listen, I'm going to give you power over everything that's on earth, everything that walks, everything that crawls, you're going to have power over that. He had already received the word from God. His God told him, tend the garden, That means to work, but not to eat of the tree. So when Satan started saying you could eat. No, no. He said, I'm going to resist the devil and he'll flee. I will say no, based on God's word, God said, we're not to do that.
James Greer: 23:38 Do you understand? When Jesus first temptation, it was also food, and he tempted him with that. And he quoted scripture back to Satan, and he had to leave. Man, if you want to know how to resist the devil, if you know how to resist the devil, he'll flee. You take God's Word, and God's promises, and you quote it back to Satan's lie. And if he does again, you do it again, and then he has to flee. He might come back, but he has to flee. So man, how do you resist the devil? You got to know God's word, to know God's will. And when you know God's word, and you know God's will, you obey God's will. See, Adam knew God's word, he knew God's will, but he didn't obey it. It can change your life. So first of all, he should've addressed Satan. He should have resisted it with the word of God. Second of all, tenderly, he should have talked to his wife. They say, well, I wonder why I didn't talk to his wife? A lot of reasons. One, I mean, my goodness, he was there alone for a long time, and now God bought into this hot looking woman. And he said, man, God, this is just what I've been looking for. Maybe he didn't want to address her, because he thought he was going to lose her. Maybe he didn't want to address her, because he thought there was going to be a fight. See, there's a lot of men that don't address their wives when they know there's something wrong, because they're afraid maybe they'll lose them. They don't address her, because man, they don't want to have a fight.
James Greer: 25:08 Can I tell you the rest of the story? It created the greatest fight in the world. It is what caused the fall of man, and since then we've wrestled with it the rest of our life. See, the real curse, because Adam sinned, was this...That husbands and wives will fight from now on, they'll struggle, who's going to be in charge? They'll struggle, how they're going to handle their family relationships. From that day on, they did. So men, it is worth standing for what's right. See he could addressed his wife tenderly. He could have said, honey, you know, God told us not eat at this. He could have said, honey, do you realize God has given us this whole garden? He could have said, honey, it's not what God's trying to hold back from us, look at what all God has done for us.
James Greer: 26:08 So see, the real truth is, it's not just about manhood, it's about family hood. It's about the men and women themselves, how God wants to use them, and how God wants to bless them. But can I tell you something? The ultimate truth is this. If you'll let God, the father, be your father, he will be your provider, he'll be your protector, and he'll be your savior. The Psalms 18:2 says, "The Lord is my rock. He gives me my strength. He's my rock to stand on. He is my fortress. He's my savior. God is my rock. I'll find protection in him." He's going to protect me. Can I tell you, men, women, boy and girl. Don't worry about it, don't worry about your boss, don't worry about anybody else. You need protection, come to God the father this morning. He's going to be my shield, you no longer have to worry about what anybody else says, or what they think, because he's going to be your shield. He's the power, to save me. When I say save, I mean some of you here today, maybe you're not sure if you died that you'd go to heaven. Man, today is the day to do that. Some of you need your marriages saved. Instead of fighting about who's right and who's wrong, why don't we come together, and why don't we say God's right? Some of you struggle with your finances, instead of fighting over your finances, why don't we come together and say how do you think God would handle our finances? See there's men that have been really passive, and they know it today, and we don't want you to panic and act like...we just want you to start protecting. We want you to provide. We want you to be an influence in their life. Can I tell you the greatest influence in life is Jesus Christ.
James Greer: 28:02 So as you stand, let me pray with you, and to pray for you. Father, I thank you that Jesus is our provider, he's our protector. He wants to be the greatest influence in our life. God, you said that if anybody comes, and they're laden, and heavy laden. In other words all stressed out. You said, come unto me, that you could find rest. Some of you need to come today, and find the rest, and the blessing, and the power that God has for you. See, when God created man, he said, hey, I want to bless you. I want you to be fruitful. I want you to multiply. And the only reason we're not being blessed, is because we're disobeying God. And maybe God's put something on your life, today, that you need to stop doing. Maybe God's put something on your heart, today, you need to start doing. Maybe you need to come and join the church. Maybe you need to follow through in public baptism. Maybe you need to rededicate your life. Maybe you need to rededicate your family. Whatever God's called you to do. I pray that you let him have his will and his way. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
Recorded in Pineville, Louisiana.
James Greer: 01:22 But really, I don't want us to forget our theme. I want us to come to church and to learn, but I want us to leave, being the church. Okay Pineville, I want come to church, but I want you to leave, being the church. Hey same thing with Alexandria, same thing. you come to church, but you leave what? Being the church. And we're going to talk about ways that you can be the church today, especially as a godly man.
James Greer: 01:50 In First Corinthians 16:13, it says, "Keep your eyes open for spiritual danger." He's talking about men. If I wanted to give you the whole outline on how to be a godly man, it could be first of all, keep your eyes open for spiritual dangers, stand true to God, stand to God, and then act like a man. I don't think most people know what act like a man means. I mean today, if you watch TV, most of the men act women, and most of the women act like men. I watch all these detectives shows, I have never seen such mean women in my life. These women can beat up 15 men, they can outrun them. they karate them, and they can out shoot them. My goodness and the men? They just come on behind them. I mean it's like manhood, is wimpy-hood today. But it says act like a man, it says be strong, and whatever you do, do it with kindness.
James Greer: 02:45 Now I can tell you what it's like to be a wimp. I was in the hospital, and I'd been in there for awhile, and they said, I'm going to take you downstairs in this waiting room and we're going to give you a PICC line. I said, what's a PICC line? They said, oh, don't worry, we just go up through your vein, and run it all the way almost to your heart. Oh man, I'm just breaking out in sweat now. So they bring me down to the waiting room, this true story. I'm down in the waiting room, and there's a lady next to me. And they said, man, you know what? We've already had to take two liver biopsies, and we hadn't got it yet. I think holy Moses, and they go do it again, those hurt. The person next to me, now let me tell you what, if you're a nurse, thank God for you. But whisper when things aren't going good. The one next to me, they said, man we did PICC line, we're not sure if it worked. Doctor walks by and I say hey doc. He said, yeah man, I saw you the other night. And I said, give me drugs. He came over and shook my hand and laughed, and I said, I'm not joking, I want drugs. So I saw about that time, you know, this nurse came back. Man, I mean nurses, you can be the church, when you're at work. I think her name was Stephanie Williams, or something like that. She walked up and she said, I'm going to be your nurse, I'm going to put that in. I said, listen, I am not joking, give me drugs. She says, aren't you the Pastor at Journey church? I said, yes I am, but I still want drugs. She walks over, and she pats me, and she said, Jesus is going to be your drug, come on. I said, you've got to be joking. True Story. So she takes me back, I am going to tell you, she was so fantastic. She's quoting scripture, she said, what is your favorite scripture? I said, right now, God didn't give me a spirit of fear, but of power, of love and of salvation. She said, well, start quoting the 91st psalm. I said, I can't quote anything you quote it, and she started quoting it. So sometimes, to act like a man, is to be really wimpy. I'm a wimp when it comes to stuff like that. But I thank God, that there's nurses and doctors that don't only come to church, but when they leave, they become the church. I'm going to tell you, the doctors and nurses were so good to me. It was unbelievable. I know what it's like to be anointed, and I know what it's like to be appointed, and God appointed people from day one. From the time I was in the ambulance, to the time I got the emergency room, to the five or six days I was there. It was unbelievable. They were so good to me.
James Greer: 05:21 But today what I want to talk about is not in your outline, and it's about the P's of manhood, and I want to encourage you to write them down. Because I just learned of this very, very important truth that I want you to know. And they said successful people learn different than average people. They said really 80 to 90 percent of what you learn is wasted. I understand that, I worked for hours and hours on message, and y'all come and of course you forget 90 percent of what I preach, I understand that. But they said the difference between successful people and normal people is, successful people when they're listening, when they're learning. They're trying to say, hey how can I take that knowledge, how can I apply it, and it result in action. What I want is for our people to be more successful, Amen. So every single Sunday when you come to church I want you, men and women, to find at least one thing that while you're learning, you're thinking, how can I put that into action? I don't want to just learn about it, I want to put it into action, that equals results.
James Greer: 06:30 So let me give you some P's of a man who has not raised the bar to manhood. Number one is this. Passive. Non-responsive at the right time. He allows his wife to do most of the things. He's so passive, even when it comes to disciplining the kids, he said, I just love them too much, you take care of it. You're passive, I got another P word, but I will not use it in church. So she disciplines the children, she handles most of the finances. Well, when I was growing up, my dad used to always say, I don't know where the money is, I just bring it home to your little mama. Well get your butt in there, and find out where it's going, Amen. So now she's handled all the discipline because he's passive, she's handling the finances. When it comes to church, she's the one that gets up and says, hey man, we need to go to church on Sunday. We need to be in God's house. She's the spiritual leader. Hey men, quit being so passive, you get off your butt, and you help her. And you be the first one to church, part of being a spiritual leader, is taking the initiative. It's not how much scripture you can quote, is how you can walk.
James Greer: 07:50 Second, they're persuaded. They're persuaded, instead of being persuasive, they're easily persuaded by the devil. See, we're going to find out in Genesis chapter 3 later on, and I can prove what I'm telling you, is Adam was easily persuaded by the devil. He was persuaded by his wife. He was persuaded by the devil. He is persuaded by his wife, even though you understand men, Adam knew it was wrong to do it. Eve didn't, Eve was being deceived. But see that they're persuaded, they're persuaded by the devil, they were persuaded by the kids, they are persuaded by their wives, they are persuaded by other men. If you're not careful, they're persuaded by other women. God has very little persuasive power over them. Some of you men in here today, you got to say, man, I've been too passive. And some of you men have been to easily persuaded, for the wrong things.
James Greer: 09:02 And the third P, is this. Because you've been passive, and you've been persuaded to do the wrong thing, now you panic. Now when I say panic, see when things start going wrong, because you've been so passive and you've been persuaded to do the wrong thing, now you panic. You say something like this. I get angry, I scream, I holler, I cuss, I blame, and I even try to bring shame to the people like my kids, and my wife, because things aren't going right. See, that's not acting like a man. See Donnie's dad was not acting like a man, but I want to tell you something about Donny. Donny didn't allow what his dad did to him, to cause him not to raise the bar on manhood. And see, some of you would like to sit there and make excuses about your dad or your mom, instead of learning insights. The things you don't want to be like him, change it, and raise the bar, Amen. That's what he did.
James Greer: 09:47 See if you're here, maybe you don't have a husband at all. Well, can I tell you something if you hear and you don't have a husband, you're better off not having a husband than having the wrong husband. But always remember what Isaiah said. Isaiah 54:5 says, "The maker will be your husband." See if I was here today, and I wasn't married, and I was a woman. I'd say, thank God, God's going to be my husband, and he's called the one that made the whole world. He's the God that can provide for me, he's the God that protects me. And then for kids that don't have a dad, or don't have a dad that's active in their life. The psalmist said, "I'll be father to the fatherless." So see, God has a word for you as well.
James Greer: 10:35 So how about a godly man? How about a man, that's allowed God to raise the bar in his life? What are some P's in his life? Number one, he's protective. He protects against the devil. See, Adam should have, but he didn't. Adam knew there was a problem, but he didn't protect his wife, and he didn't protect against the devil. So let me give you an insight, men. God has usually given men a supernatural insight to be able to spot the danger, you just got to stand up and stop the danger. See, Adam knew there was a danger, he spotted the danger, but he wouldn't stop the danger. So see, when you raise the bar to manhood, you become the protector of the family. You not only spot it, but you try to stop it. You protect who you, and your family, allow into your family. Because see, wrong influence, is a number one problem with you and your kids. So you protect, you protect, who you allow into your family. You protect against the wrong use of the telephone, and the Internet today, and media. And don't say, well everybody does it, I don't care what everybody else does. You're going to be a godly man, you're going to protect your family, and you're going to stand up, Amen. Be a man, not a wimp. Protect against overspending, and not tithing. Quit letting your wife handle all the finances, and you not help.
James Greer: 12:18 Now, my wife, usually paid the bills. But let me tell you what, when we first got married, for years and years and years. We agreed, neither one of us would ever spend over $25, without talking to the other. We would sit down, and write on a piece of paper, all the bills we had, and all the money that came in. And she'd give me $25 a week, and we just agreed that's the way we had to live, and nobody's going to spend an extra $25. I came home one day, and she had bought a piece of furniture. Not a big deal it was $150, and I just said, honey, I thought we had talked about not doing that. She said, well I'm going to bring it back. I said, please don't bring it back. She said, that was the agreement. I came home the next day, and she had brought the dadgum furniture back. I didn't want her to bring the furniture back. I just want us to have an agreement on how we handled our finances, that was fair for both of us. Say, I know a man the other day. He was so proud. He said, man, I'm going to tell you, we were kind of in a tight, but I went and got me a four wheeler and [inaudible] and I didn't even tell my wife. Big deal, I don't call that manhood, I call that wimpy hood. Wives talk to your husband about it, men talk to your wife. Whether it's a $100, $500, I don't know what it is. But come to an agreement that we're not gonna spend without talking to the other person. We're a couple, we're together, God wants to bless our unity. To men, take the initiative, God says that we're to tithe. Don't wait on your wife to say, hey. You do it. You come in and say, God's word said we should tithe, let's tithe, Amen.
James Greer: 13:51 Second, be the provider. You might not make the most money, but you do work. I mean, if you're a man, go to work. Provider is more than just money, but I can tell you money's part of it. Providing is offering guidance, direction, and the correct discipline to your own kids. When you discipline, learn to discipline out of a relationship, not at a reputation. See, when Donnie's dad was disciplining him, he was doing it out of a reputation. He wanted everybody else to think it was funny how he was doing it, instead of building a reputation. So let me tell you what, providing this guidance, this direction, this discipline, is not punching your child. It's not laughing, and giving a child a beer. It's not being absent, it's being present.
James Greer: 14:41 Be a protector, be a provider, and the third P, be persuasive. Be persuasive, not manipulating, but influencing. Leadership is influence. You should be the greatest influence in the home, where your family want your guidance, where they want your direction, where they want your wisdom. Because they see the discipline in your life, they want what you have, so you're the one that's bringing the influence. You're the one that's being persuasive, instead of always being persuaded. Let me tell you there is no wife, no kid, that wants a husband that doesn't have some type of influence in their life. [inaudible] and that comes as a result of never making a stand for what's right, never protecting, never providing. Can I tell you something? That leads to rebellion with your wife, and your children. Men act like a man, Amen. What do we want our men to do? Act like a man.
James Greer: 15:43 Alright, first Corinthians 16. Now we're going to do the message. Hey men, surely out of six P's, you can find one to write down and learn from. Please just don't come to church, and they go home the same way you came. Please don't just come to church, and not leave and be the church. Please don't just come to church, and not put one thing into action. Don't just continue to be a learner, and not an applier. First Corinthians, it says this, "Keep your eyes open." To what? Spiritual danger. Listen men, one of the things that God says, hey, if you want to be a man, if you want to step up your manhood, be aware of spiritual danger. Stand true to the Lord, stand for God, when everybody else is not. Act like a man. Be strong, whatever you do, do it with kindness, and do it with love. So let me tell you the first thing, men. The real true sign of a man, he's tough, and he's tender. See a godly man, you're tough and you're what? Tender. See you're tough because your eyes are open, you're watching for spiritual danger, and you're tough, because you're going to make a stand for what's right. One of the first things he said, have your eyes open, men, spiritual danger. And one of the reasons it says that's first thing we're to do, is because it was the first thing that man did not do, that allowed spiritual danger into the family.
James Greer: 17:18 See, in Genesis chapter 3:1, it talks about, "Now the serpent, which is the devil. He was more cunning, he was the deceiver, than any beast of the field which the Lord had made. Let me tell you something. Did God create all the beasts of the field? Yes. Did God create the serpent? Well, yes and no. God really created a beautiful angel in heaven, who rebelled and got thrown onto the earth, but it was a created being. But Satan said unto the woman, "Has God indeed said, you shall not eat of every tree in the garden." Let me ask you something. Why wasn't he talking to the man? The man was standing right there. So he didn't say anything to the man, he said something to the woman. Women, I'm going to give you a free insight, that you write down, and you learn. If you want your husband to grow, you start asking him questions. If Eve would have stopped right there and said, hey honey, it's not what I'm going to do, it's not because I'm going to do it no matter what. Honey, what do you think about what I should do? What if you start asking your husband, do you think we should buy this, do you think we should do this, what do you think spiritually we should do, how do you think we're doing raising the kids, how do you think we're disciplining? Because when you start doing that, see instead of just having your way, you cause them to grow. Ladies, what's the one thing you can learn today? Ask your husband questions, and it causes him to mature and grow. You're not proving anything by saying, hey, I don't have to ask my husband anything. I hear women say that all the time. Hey, you're just breeding rebellion, and running your husband down, and you're not respecting him. Amen, Brother James. You know what happens after that? See, you talk big and act big, and then you get all frustrated, and upset because you're having to handle everything. Do you want to start growing your husband.
James Greer: 19:21 What if Eve would have stopped right there? Now it was Adam's fault he was a wimp, but some of you all want your husbands to grow you. Not spiritually, but just all areas of their life. When is the last time you stopped and asked him the important questions? How should we spend our money? How should we discipline our kids? What should we buy or not buy? How do you think we're doing spiritually in our life, and our children's life? Not just tell them what you're going to do. Ask him. Because, "The woman said to the serpent, you know, we may eat the fruit of the tree in the garden." Well, yeah, but God said, "You shall not eat, nor shall you touch, less you shall die. Then the serpent said to the woman, you're not surely going to die. God knows, listen, in the day that you eat, your eyes are going to be open". Stop! You know what the devil always tries to get you to do, he tries to make you think God's holding out on you. He's trying to, instead of looking at all that God has given you. He plants the seed about, hey, what is it that you don't have, that you think you should have? No you're going to be like God, and you're going to know the difference between good and evil. So what did she do? Verse 6 tells us, "So when the woman saw that the tree was good, for food, and that it was pleasant for the eyes, and the tree desirable to make one wise." She took the fruit, and she ate it. And what else did she do? She gave it to her wimpy husband, and he ate also. He was passive, was he not? Did he protect her? No. Was He persuaded? Yes.
James Greer: 21:17 You understand that the difference between a man raising the bar, and a man that's in the house, but he's not a godly man. You see it right here. Here's the illustration. You became passive when you knew there was something wrong, you became persuaded to do the wrong thing. And if you kept reading the story when God said, why don't you do that? He said, my wife made me do it. He panicked, and so now he's blaming his wife for what he should've done. So that's what happened. See Adam, he was created in a way to spot danger that comes into his family. Men, you were created with the ability many times to spot dangers in your house. The difference, he could spot it, but he didn't stop it. See, he was passive and he was persuaded.
James Greer: 22:14 How could Adam have acted like a godly man? Well, first of all, he should have addressed the serpent. I'm going to tell you, I don't want some man, when I'm standing there, come up and start talking to my wife and telling her what she should do. I don't want him to tell her what she should buy, I don't want him to tell her how she should dress, I don't want him telling her what she could eat. If he wants to talk to somebody, Buddy, I'm standing right there. Talk to me, Amen. Be careful who you're allowing to influence, not on your wife, but to your kid's life. See men, better be careful. But he could've addressed Satan. Because the Bible says, in James 4:7, he said, "Therefore, listen, submit to God. Resist the devil, and he'll flee." He didn't say he might flee. He said, "Submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you." So he should've been tough, should've been tough, against the enemy. He should have resisted the devil. He had already had a word from God, God had already told him not to do that. God had already said, listen, I'm going to give you power over everything that's on earth, everything that walks, everything that crawls, you're going to have power over that. He had already received the word from God. His God told him, tend the garden, That means to work, but not to eat of the tree. So when Satan started saying you could eat. No, no. He said, I'm going to resist the devil and he'll flee. I will say no, based on God's word, God said, we're not to do that.
James Greer: 23:38 Do you understand? When Jesus first temptation, it was also food, and he tempted him with that. And he quoted scripture back to Satan, and he had to leave. Man, if you want to know how to resist the devil, if you know how to resist the devil, he'll flee. You take God's Word, and God's promises, and you quote it back to Satan's lie. And if he does again, you do it again, and then he has to flee. He might come back, but he has to flee. So man, how do you resist the devil? You got to know God's word, to know God's will. And when you know God's word, and you know God's will, you obey God's will. See, Adam knew God's word, he knew God's will, but he didn't obey it. It can change your life. So first of all, he should've addressed Satan. He should have resisted it with the word of God. Second of all, tenderly, he should have talked to his wife. They say, well, I wonder why I didn't talk to his wife? A lot of reasons. One, I mean, my goodness, he was there alone for a long time, and now God bought into this hot looking woman. And he said, man, God, this is just what I've been looking for. Maybe he didn't want to address her, because he thought he was going to lose her. Maybe he didn't want to address her, because he thought there was going to be a fight. See, there's a lot of men that don't address their wives when they know there's something wrong, because they're afraid maybe they'll lose them. They don't address her, because man, they don't want to have a fight.
James Greer: 25:08 Can I tell you the rest of the story? It created the greatest fight in the world. It is what caused the fall of man, and since then we've wrestled with it the rest of our life. See, the real curse, because Adam sinned, was this...That husbands and wives will fight from now on, they'll struggle, who's going to be in charge? They'll struggle, how they're going to handle their family relationships. From that day on, they did. So men, it is worth standing for what's right. See he could addressed his wife tenderly. He could have said, honey, you know, God told us not eat at this. He could have said, honey, do you realize God has given us this whole garden? He could have said, honey, it's not what God's trying to hold back from us, look at what all God has done for us.
James Greer: 26:08 So see, the real truth is, it's not just about manhood, it's about family hood. It's about the men and women themselves, how God wants to use them, and how God wants to bless them. But can I tell you something? The ultimate truth is this. If you'll let God, the father, be your father, he will be your provider, he'll be your protector, and he'll be your savior. The Psalms 18:2 says, "The Lord is my rock. He gives me my strength. He's my rock to stand on. He is my fortress. He's my savior. God is my rock. I'll find protection in him." He's going to protect me. Can I tell you, men, women, boy and girl. Don't worry about it, don't worry about your boss, don't worry about anybody else. You need protection, come to God the father this morning. He's going to be my shield, you no longer have to worry about what anybody else says, or what they think, because he's going to be your shield. He's the power, to save me. When I say save, I mean some of you here today, maybe you're not sure if you died that you'd go to heaven. Man, today is the day to do that. Some of you need your marriages saved. Instead of fighting about who's right and who's wrong, why don't we come together, and why don't we say God's right? Some of you struggle with your finances, instead of fighting over your finances, why don't we come together and say how do you think God would handle our finances? See there's men that have been really passive, and they know it today, and we don't want you to panic and act like...we just want you to start protecting. We want you to provide. We want you to be an influence in their life. Can I tell you the greatest influence in life is Jesus Christ.
James Greer: 28:02 So as you stand, let me pray with you, and to pray for you. Father, I thank you that Jesus is our provider, he's our protector. He wants to be the greatest influence in our life. God, you said that if anybody comes, and they're laden, and heavy laden. In other words all stressed out. You said, come unto me, that you could find rest. Some of you need to come today, and find the rest, and the blessing, and the power that God has for you. See, when God created man, he said, hey, I want to bless you. I want you to be fruitful. I want you to multiply. And the only reason we're not being blessed, is because we're disobeying God. And maybe God's put something on your life, today, that you need to stop doing. Maybe God's put something on your heart, today, you need to start doing. Maybe you need to come and join the church. Maybe you need to follow through in public baptism. Maybe you need to rededicate your life. Maybe you need to rededicate your family. Whatever God's called you to do. I pray that you let him have his will and his way. In Jesus name I pray. Amen.
Recorded in Pineville, Louisiana.
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