There are many voices in the world the Bible states (1Cor. 14:10). These voices are constantly trying to be heard. They are continually trying to input into our lives; trying to establish our thinking. The subject matter is varied.  But, one ongoing arena is the identity of man. There are voices that are constantly trying to define what a man is. There are voices trying to define what a woman is. What does the Bible have to say in these areas?

God’s masterpiece of creation!

1 Corinthians 14:10 (AV)
10 There are, it may be, so many kinds of voices in the world, and none of them is without signification.

• Now these areas I am going to mention border the ridiculous as far as a believer is concerned. Nevertheless, this is how the world thinks.
• In Italy, a recent report says that Italian youth admire Mafia members more than government, religious, or industry leaders. The number two choice among youth after criminal celebrities was entertainers. Is that what a strong man or a strong woman is? – Are they those with guns that murder and extort money from people? – Is that what a real man or woman is?
• In Australia, and Central America, ‘the macho male’ mentality has created numerous problems in industry and family relationships. Is that what a man is? – macho male man.
• In the Philippines, there is high incidence of homosexuality because it is a female dominated society (in the rural areas).– The late governor of the Phillipines, Leonard Wood, stated these words, “In the Philippines, the best man is woman.” So does the gay lifestyle define what a man is and what a woman is? Is man just hopelessly confused being about his or her orientation?
• In Nigeria, there is national concern and international embarrassment over Nigerian men flagrantly brutalizing their wives. Abuse is not just a man abusing a women. “In 100 domestic violence situations approximately 40 cases involve violence by women against men. An estimated 400,000 women per year are abused or treated violently in the United States by their spouse or intimate partner. Almost 300-400 thousand men are being abused by women. Is that what man is? -an abuser?
• Then you come to America – and in America the feminist’s are trying to define what a man should be. They don’t even like the word ‘man’ – and there is a segment of people that are trying to eliminate it from the Bible and other writings and seek to replace with neuter terms.Is man neutral? – no difference between the sexes.
• What about the TV shows in America? How many of them are based on one character who is competent helping the incompetent one through life – because he is such a sap that he can’t do it himself.
• What about Hollywood?Are the male and female action hero’s that we see portrayed what a real human is?Is Arnold Swarzeeneger, muscle guy – who terminates people God’s definition of a real man? Is Angelina Jolie God’s idea of a real woman? Is muscles manhood?
• And then you have the self-help industry and the talk shows. They routinely criticize men and what they aren’t doing and ought to be doing; spending time with the family, doing their fair share of housework, being sensitive to their wives. But at work it’s a different story because at work they are supposed to be aggressive in business, perfect the deal, make the sale, create the project, win the contract, negotiate to the last penny.
• Is that what a man is – Phil Donahue at home and Stallone at work?[1]
• And what about a woman? She is supposed to be a girlfriend, wife, lover, mother, grandparent, friend, working, cleaning, cooking, part nurse, part psychologist, chauffeur, screaming fan rooting for her kids at a game. So is that what man is; a bunch of stressed-out, frazzled out, pulling their hair out creatures who just can’t get it done?
• Then, of course, there is that group on the opposite spectrum. I want to spend a little bit of time talking about this particular voice and what they are trying to add to the discussion of what man is.

ATHEISTS!

• What do atheists believe about man?
• A little bit of Big Bang
• Figuring things out with their mind
• A little bit of evolution
• However, really as one of them said, “I accept the fact that I don’t know the answers to the questions of how exactly the universe came about and how exactly life came to be”.
• When I sat back and looked at what they believe the only answer that I could come up with is nothing-ism. Atheists believe in nothing where the origin of man is concerned!
• Nothing-ism is the belief that one day there was nothing and nothing happened to nothing and then nothing magically exploded for no reason, creating everything and then a bunch of everything magically rearranged itself for no reason what so ever into self-replicating bits which then turned into dinosaurs.
• Or said in different words by another atheist, Buddha – “Believe nothing, no matter where you read it or who has said it, not even of I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.”
• As I said, there are many voices in the world and with those voices come choices. Which one is the answer?

Stalin’s Daughter

• Some years ago, when the news broke out that Joseph Stalin’s daughter had defected from Communism and Russia, many people were startled. Her statement given to reporters who met her plane in New York, told why she defected:
• “I found it impossible to exist without God in one’s heart. I came to that conclusion myself, without anybody’s help or preaching. That was a great change because since that moment the main dogmas of Communism lost their significance for me. I have come here to seek the self-expression that has been denied me for so long in Russia.”
• That woman’s struggle was a terrible one. To leave Russia, she had to leave two children in Moscow and realize that it would be, as she said, “Impossible to go back.”[2]
• Brezhnev’s (former Soviet leader) wife made the sign of the cross over her husband’s remains right before they closed his gasket!
• If you want to know what a man should be look at the number one man – the ultimate man – the man Christ Jesus.

John 19:5 (KJV)
5 Then came Jesus forth, wearing the crown of thorns, and the purple robe. And Pilate saith unto them, Behold the man!

‘BEHOLD THE ULTIMATE MAN.’

• So, let us put an end to these voices and choices and define what a man is. We can define what a man is by starting with Jesus.

Who Is Jesus?

2 Corinthians 4:4 (ESV)
4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

Colossians 1:15 (ESV)
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.

• DEFINITION: the word ‘image’ means likeness or portrait or living image.
• Jesus is the image of God
• How does this help us know what man is?

What Is Man?

Genesis 1:26–27 (ESV)
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

Man is the image of God

• Therefore, if you want to know what man is, he is the same image as Jesus who is the same image as God.
• Sounds like we are all of the same family!
• This elevates man to a level seemingly not understood by all these voices that are out there!!!
• You are just a chip off the old block!
• In fact, the psalmist was astounded at the high thoughts God had of man!

Psalm 8:1–6 (ESV)
1 O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. 2 Out of the mouth of babies and infants, you have established strength because of your foes, to still the enemy and the avenger. 3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, 4 what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? 5 Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. 6 You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet,

Man was made a little lower than the heavenly beings

• Elohim is Hebrew plural form of God.
• The verse should have been translated, ‘You have made him (man) a little lower than God!
• Think about the creations of God up to this point. Think about the angels that we talked about last week and Lucifer the week before how he filled up the sum of beauty and wisdom. God makes nothing inferior or second-class.
• Understand that God did not forget how to make astoundingly magnificent things when he got to making man. God did not all of a sudden develop a case of Alzheimer’s when He got to creating you!
• But you wouldn’t think that listening to all these voices.
• The form of man that we now have has been analyzed medically, scientifically, psychologically, socially, and every other ‘ally’ that there is – almost to the point that we have tried to dilute or water down the magnificence of man.
• God does not make junk!
• Man was God’s masterpiece of creation.
• Do not you ever let anyone beat you down!

Ephesians 2:10 (ESV)
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.

• The angels were in shock, they were in awe when God made man. Man had equipment that angels simply do not have.
• Men were the first creation of God that had their own built in ‘will’.
• A man can decide whether he will worship and serve the God that created him; an astounding development to the angelic community!

Man was crowned with glory and honor

• You see these words in reference to the word glory.
• Light, fire, brightness, burning, cloud, thick darkness.
• Man was not just created with skin, bone and muscle.
• The glory was part of man’s anatomy
• Man was a ‘light’ being just like God.
• Man was clothed in light before the fall.
• After the fall, the ‘light’ was put out and that is how Adam knew he was naked.

Genesis 3:7 (ESV)
7 Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked. And they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loincloths.

• But something wonderful happened – Jesus turned the lights back on again!
• Step one of the plan – Get man right on the inside!
• Our spirits became alive again.

2 Corinthians 4:6–7 (ESV)
6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. 7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

• Step two of the plan – Get man right on the outside!
• Our bodies (jars of clay) will be glorified again.
• That is what we once were, glorified beings, and that is where we are headed again!
• There is a glorified body waiting for you.
• What does that mean, a glorified body?
• It means a body with the glory running through it!

Man was given dominion

Psalm 8: 6 (ESV)
6 You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet,

• Birds were created to fly, fish were created to swim but man was created to rule.
• In Christ Jesus, the breadth of this rule, the breadth of this dominion extends to devils demons and evil spirits. Believer’s in Christ Jesus have authority over them through the death burial and resurrection of Jesus.

Conclusions:

• These are some of the things you realize when you ‘Behold the Man’.
• Birds were created to fly, fish were created to swim but man was created to rule.

________

References

[1] ‘On Becoming A Real Man’ – Edwin louis Cole – page 2-3

[2] Galaxie Software. (2002; 2002). 10,000 Sermon Illustrations. Biblical Studies Press.