Gustafson, Bill: Chapel Spring Conference-2007-04 ~ Hope Bible Chpl Ministry

Today, I can hardly wait to hear what you sound like after you've got a couple of donuts under your belt. Tremendous. Our theme this morning in this particular session is the man's role in the home, and in turn the man's role in the local church. We'll read a couple of verses from First Timothy, and then we'll reflect on some of those thoughts in the time that is before us. First Timothy chapter three, if you would, please. In American television today, in only fourteen percent of the times you see a family portrayed in television, is the man held up in a proper role. The rest of the time, he's some sort of a klutzy clown who's just in the way, a clod, if you will. So eighty six out of a hundred times you see a man illustrated on television, he's contradicting what the scripture says the man's role ought to be. So that's not much of an influence. In dramatic contrast, Warren Wiersbe says the man has a dramatic influence in the family. For he says statistics will show us in seventeen percent of the cases where a teenager gets converted in the family, somebody else in the family will come to know the Lord Jesus. In thirty three percent of the cases where the mother comes to know the Lord Jesus, somebody else in the family will come to know the Savior. But in ninety three percent of the cases where the dad comes to know the Lord Jesus, somebody else in the family will come to know the Savior. When the man is in his proper relationship with God, he has an incredible influence in the family, and in turn, in the assembly of God's people. So it's obviously an issue of the relationship with God that is so critical, the indwelling Holy Spirit working through us to empower us to shine for the Savior all our waking hours at home, in the workplace, and the assembly of God's people. We've referred to this little text several times in our studies this week. Let's look at it again, if you would, please. First Timothy chapter three and verse four. You know the passage has to do with elders and deacons in the local church. We're talking about those who are in leadership in the church in the passage, but it's applicable to those who function in leadership in the home as well. Our key to thinking together today in this particular session is the man establishes the role of leadership, the man establishes the tone of love. He does that in the assembly of God's people, he does that in the home where he functions. Whether he's single, widowed, married, w- married with children, makes no difference. He establishes the role of leadership, he establishes a tone of love in the atmosphere where he functions. And so when we read this passage that speaks about elders and deacons, we take that same thing and miniaturize it, and we take it home with us. So God says of this kind of individual, chapter three and verse four, he should be one who rules well his own house. And some have taken that to the extreme and say, okay, that makes him a dictator. That makes him the commanding officer. That makes him the CEO. That's not it at all. And one of the sad commentaries is, in the assemblies, particularly here in the southeast, we have put men in roles of leadership who are incredible in corporate America. And they try to manage the assembly like corporate America, and if something goes wrong, heads are gonna roll. That's not the way it's supposed to be. The assembly is a family. It is not corporate America, and we're not worried about the bottom line, and we're not worried about how the accountants look at it. We're not worried about the stockholders. We're worried about the heart of God's people, you see. And the same is true at home. We have to shift gears when we leave corporate America and we step into the home and when we step into the assembly of God's people and begin to shepherd the saints. And for some dear brethren, that's very difficult. And in all due respects to those of you who've come from a military background, there are some who have come from that background, who've had military authority, and they come in among the Lord's people, and they want to run it like the military. Yes, sir, click your heels and salute, and wait a minute, this is not the military. This is a family, and we have to remember that shepherding heart. And there are some dear brethren among us who seem to think they can just walk around with a great big stick, and they can make their wives jump and their children jump, and they bring that to the assembly, and everybody's g- that's not what it's all about. The phraseology in verse four says, one who rules well. Apparently, the Greek scholars would tell us that simply means one who is able to stand before, one who is able to preside, one who is able to practice what he preaches, one who is an example, brethren. Okay? And that's hard for us. That simply means the buck stops here. In our dwelling places at home and among the saints of the, of the Lord. We need to know something about being exhibit A of the grace of God. All of our waking hours. He goes on to say, verse four, if there are children, the children are to be in subjection. Marvelous little chorus that our friends just sang for us. If you go up to Camp Hope in Delano- Dahlonega, Georgia, and sing that little chorus as a congregation, as a group of young people, as, uh, junior campers, we would have you on your feet singing that chorus. We sing O, B, E, D, I, E, N, C, E, and every time you sing a letter, you're on your feet. So by the time you've sung the chorus through and the two verses through, you've had your morning exercises, but you get the point drilled home. There's no better way to prove your love for the Lord Jesus, your understanding of the Word of God than to demonstrate obedience. And we start that in infancy, the earliest days of childhood at home. And we bring that right into the assembly, as we'll see in our lessons later today, and we work that right on into the workplace, and it becomes a lifestyle that characterizes us. And somehow or other, we've missed the mark in that area today. And we point the finger at the children, and we say, look at all these juvenile delinquents. Well, maybe the real problem is the parents who are delinquent, the adults who are delinquent, dads and moms who are not obedient to the word, na- dads and moms who are not submissive one to another, dads and moms who are not obedient to the truths of scripture, and they in turn expect their children to be obedient when they aren't. And the kids today are so smart, they're able to figure that out. Hey, if dad doesn't do it, I don't have to, you know? So the first phrase of the verse says the father is going to set the tone by being an example, then in turn he can expect his children to be obedient. Now, as we've studied together in these last three evenings, we already know that nearly half the homes in America, there's no dad there. And that's why those single mom families need to be involved in a local church, so the mom can turn to the men of that church and say to the children, now that's the kind of dad we need to have in our home, and they can become surrogate dads, and they can help with disciplinary issues in the family, and so forth. That's one of the issues we need in our camps as well. We need dads, we need grandpas who are illustrating the whole ramification of the family for the children who are at the camp. One who rules well his house, having his children in subjection with all gravity or seriousness or honesty or reverence, the New King James says. Those who learn to respect authority. Learn to respect the authority of the word of God, learn to respect the authority of the older generation, learn to respect the authority of the political system around us, and so forth. And then the interesting parenthesis of verse five: If a man know not how to rule his own house, again, it's this issue of standing before, presiding over, being an example. If he can't do that at home, in that little small sphere, how on earth can he take on that responsibility in a much larger sphere? If he can't be an example within the four walls of his own little home, how can he take care of the Church of God? Well, you've got fifty, seventy, a hundred, two hundred sheep instead of just three or four or five. And the phrase take care of is very striking because you only find that one other time in all the New Testament, and it's the fascinating story of the Good Samaritan in Luke chapter ten. When that Samaritan finds this man who's beat up and left beside the road, he picks him up, puts him on his animal, and takes him to the inn, and he says to the innkeeper, you take care of him. When I come back, I'll pay you, we'll settle the account. That's exactly what the Lord Jesus has done for us. He picks up those of us who have been bruised and beaten by sin. He brings us to the inn, which is a picture of the local church, and he says to the leadership in the local church, you take care of him, and when I come back, I'll reward you. It's the same care that you have in a hospital, if you will. It's supposed to be a healing place. We're supposed to get these people all bandaged up and all sewed up and all the bones put back into place and the splint put on and the cast put on and all that, and get them all set so they can get back into functioning in real life, the real world. And that's what the assembly of God's people is all about. That's what their family is all about, the nurturing, the care, so they can function out there in the complexities of the real world today. And if we can't fortify our children to, to be able to deal with that at home, how can we do that for the saints of God in the local church? It's an incredible challenge, isn't it? And what's happening in the so-called evangelical church in America today, the megachurch mentality. We're not giving the saints anything to reinforce them. We're entertaining them. We're trying to figure out how to get the world to come to our church. And so we put on all these entertainment extravaganzas, hoping we'll draw them in. Put out a survey. What it, what would it take to get you to come to our place? Well, how about a circus? Fine, we'll put on a circus. And then somebody down the road has a bigger circus, and everybody packs up and goes there, you know? The church is to reinforce the truths of God, to teach us about worship, teach us about service, give us everything we need for life and godliness, so we can go out and live for the Lord out there, minister for him. Seek to win the lost, bring them in, get them bandaged up, get them, uh, on the road to recovery, so they in turn can go out and live for the Lord in their little corner of the world, you see. And brethren, we practice that at home. The illustration is the Lord Jesus Christ, who is portrayed in scripture as the good shepherd who gives his life for the sheep. In John chapter ten, the Lord Jesus said, I know my sheep and am known of mine. That takes time. And we are so incredibly busy, we are so scheduled today that we don't have time to know much about our sheep. My wife can write you a little book on that, okay? She had to sit me down some years ago and say, there's some things going on at home that you don't know about because you're not here. And you need to slow the pace down and deal with some issues. And that's true in the assembly of God's people, particularly here in the South, we love to have men's meetings. We tally up the income, and we tally up the budget, and we look at the air conditioning compressor, and it needs to be replaced, and we need the carpet replaced, and we need to rework the pews, and we need to order Sunday school material, and then we punch out and we go away for a month and come back and see you next month. We did everything we're supposed to do, didn't we? Not exactly. We've never addressed any spiritual issues in the meeting. We haven't talked about the heartaches and concerns of this little family and the struggles of that little couple and the deal, the issues of that dear sister who's dealing with this issue or that. Uh, I wasn't aware. I didn't know. Why not? Because we didn't take time to get to know the sheep. We haven't sat down and visited. We haven't been in their homes. We haven't asked any questions. We haven't listened. We just thought if we had money left in the checkbook at the end of the month, everything was just fine, you know? If you haven't recently read Philip Keller's book, A Shepherd Looks at Psalm twenty three, you need to go back over it again. The complete care of a shepherd is absolutely staggering. It's almost a twenty four-hour-a-day responsibility, you know. Lowe's makes it so convenient today. We can run, get a fifty-pound pound bag of feed, and run over and dump it in the corner of the field and say, there you are, sheep, have at it. I'll catch you on Saturday. There's a whole lot more to it than that. The shepherd is looking to care for the sheep, make sure there's pasture, make sure there's grass, make sure there's shade, make sure there's calm, still water, because they won't drink rushing water. Make sure there's no pests bothering them, annoying them. Make sure there's no adversary trying to attack them. Make sure there's no conflict between them, because if there is, they won't eat. And the list just goes on and on and on. Make sure there's no disease, scab, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. And so it is with the little flock God has given us in our homes. And you know how it is when husbands get caught up with the Super Bowl, or March Madness, or whatever. Over our way, it's a certain golf game that occurs every April, you know? Yes, dear, I'm listening, I'm listening, I hear you, but we're busy watching the game. I'll catch it during the commercial, and then the commercial comes on, and it's some new car, and it's like, wow, I got to see this one. And about three hours later, what was that you said? I don't, I know you talked to me, but I sure don't remember what it was. And it's just like that among the Lord's people. One of the difficulties we're having in a lot of assemblies is just the sheer time to sit down and fellowship and talk, communicate, you know, get messages across. The shepherding responsibility. The man is to be the one who manages, who's the administrator, who leads, and that's a huge task. We know from the business world that a good manager is going to delegate authority. He's going to lay out responsibility. He doesn't have to do everything himself, but he's responsible for the overall picture. That's the whole point. It seems to me that as you look at the scripture, the man's responsibility, first of all, is his relationship with the Lord Jesus, then in turn his wife, if in fact he's married, then children, if there are children in the family, then his responsibility in the local church, and then his responsibility in the business community, and so forth. Not necessarily the number of hours, but those kind of are the priorities, if you will. The number of hours you're primarily going to be in the business world, and that's becoming more and more demanding today, and some of the older saints are having a hard time with dealing with that. They don't understand the pressures that young men are under today, the risk, the fragility of, of, uh, work today. You don't pack up and move to Seattle by Friday, it's like we'll replace you, you know? Different world than we dealt with just a few years ago, a decade or two back. So we have to deal with those kinds of things in the assembly of God's people. But our priority of thinking is our relationship with the Lord and our family and the assembly of God's people, then the business world, even though the business world may to take far more hours out of the week than anything else, if you will. One other passage we need to look at is Psalm seventy eight. We've looked at this or referred to this passage this week as well. Psalm seventy eight. the man, in addition to being the manager, in addition to being the administrator, if you will, in addition to setting the priorities in the home and in the assembly, is also the spiritual leader. He's the priest, if you will. Peter addresses that issue so beautifully in chapter two. We're a holy priesthood for worship, we're a royal priesthood for service. Psalm seventy eight, look at verse five, please. Psalm seventy eight and verse five: he established a testimony in Jacob, he appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers that they should make them known to their children, that the generation to come might make them, might know them, even the children who should be born, who should arise and declare them to their children. See? Generation after generation after generation. And it's the man's responsibility to see that that teaching is being done, the fathers to the fathers, to the fathers to the sons, to the fathers to the sons. Yes, the ladies may do most of the teaching to the children, but it's the man's responsibility to see that it's carefully done. And we have come along in recent years, the last couple hundred years, and invented something called Sunday school. And we have Awana programs, and we have young people's meetings, and we have Bible clubs and kids clubs and all kinds of activities to teach the younger generation the truths of scripture. We need to be careful that we're using good and godly material, that we're using good curriculum, and that we're carefully laying down Bible doctrine for the youngsters who are coming along. I have picked on Veggie Tales already this week. I'll go down that road again just because it's a current buzzword. There are lots of other s- convenient things in the Christian bookstore we could pick on as well. That's good entertainment, but it's not necessarily good Bible doctrine. That's not adequate for Sunday school lesson, right? You just need something to occupy your children for a little while, fine. There's a whole lot worse on television they could be looking at, so give them Veggie Tales, but we can do better for Sunday school, you know. They need the doctrinal truths of the Word of God. Hear a little, there a little precept upon precept, line upon line, start Bible doctrine, the truths of scripture as early as you can possibly get them to sit down. Yeah? And that starts at home, and it comes right into the corporate gathering of God's people where we have children. He established a testimony. He appointed a law. He commanded the fathers. You teach the children so they in turn can teach others, and then the little generations coming along behind them, they in turn can be taught, and we just keep passing it on down the line. Paul said the same thing to Timothy, didn't he? You look for men who are teachable, you teach them, so they in turn can teach others. And we want to constantly be teaching consecutively, carefully, the truths of scripture. We've seen that in our studies together this week, Deuteronomy chapter six, Moses reminding the nation of Israel of the urgency of teaching, training that next generation. And again, what's happening in the megachurch today? They do not have Sunday school. They do not teach the truths of scripture because that's boring. Kids do not carry a Bible today. They're not interested in Bible study. That's a generalization, but that's where they're thinking. They want to be entertained. They want concerts, they want music, so they'll have battle of the bands, and then they get up and go home. That's great if you're looking for entertainment. But the first time somebody comes along and tempts one of those young people to compromise their morals or to start tampering with drugs or something, uh, let's see, what song will help me to answer that problem? It's like, that's not what you need. You need to be able to pull up some scripture and say, thus saith the Lord, you know? And if they've never learned scripture, then we've got a problem. A brother was illustrating that in our hearing just this last week over our way, one of the very large Baptist churches. And this was a young man who was in his late teens that he was talking to, and the kid had no clue about Noah and the flood. Never heard of Noah and the flood. It's like, really? In a Southern Baptist Convention church, and you don't... No, I don't know about that. You know? It's like we have missed the mark. Look at our passage again, seventy eight, Psalm seventy eight and verse five. He established a testimony in Jacob. He appointed a law in Israel, which he commanded our fathers that they should make them known to their children, that the generation to come might know them, even the children who should be born, who should arise and declare them to their children, that they might set their hope in God and not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments. That's what we saw in Deuteronomy six the other evening, isn't it? We want to direct the thinking of our children and our youth to the truths of scripture, so that they in turn can make an intelligent choice to trust the Lord Jesus. As one of the current writers says, we want our young people to be independently dependent on the Lord. Of their own free will and choice, we want them to choose to serve the Lord, to trust him for salvation, to be obedient to him. We'd love to twist their arm and say, OK, you're going to trust Jesus, aren't you? You're gonna, you're gonna, right, right, right? No, we can't do that. We'd like to have household salvation, and the daddy would get up and say, okay, it's for me and my house, we're all gonna be saved tonight. Doesn't work like that. It's an individual choice. We understand that. But we want to do everything we can to bring our children to a point where they can make a clear and intelligent decision because they've seen it worked out in the family, they've seen it worked out in the assembly of God's people. And the only logical decision would be from their part, hey, I'm going to follow the steps of my folks. I'll look at grandma and grandpa and the aunts and uncles in the assembly and all the saints around, and I'm going to do exactly what they have done, trust the Lord and be obedient to him so that I can, I will not forget the works of God. I will set my hope in God. So the man is going to set the pace for us in leadership. He's going to be the manager. He's going to be the administrator, as you will, if you will. He's going to delegate authority, sure, but he's going to also be the spiritual leader, the high priest, if you, not the high priest, the Lord Jesus is the high priest, but he's going to exercise priestly function in the family and the assembly of God's people. You'll remember Proverbs chapter twenty two. we read in verse number six, train up a child in the way he should go when he's old, he'll not depart from it. The emphasis there is catechism, the training classes, the, the procedure of bringing a child along, not just spiritually, but the physical dimensions of life, the secular education, we're responsible to see that they're a well-rounded, well-nurtured individual. You have the same emphasis in the life of the Lord Jesus. He was trained physically and mentally and spiritually and emotionally. You have that same emphasis in life today in dealing with our children. Remember the writer in the book of Proverbs said, be diligent to know the state of thy flocks and look well to thy herds. You've got to know what's going on at home. You've got to know what's going on in the assembly of God's people if you're going to be in any role of leadership and be any kind of an example. You can't be like Potiphar back in the book of Genesis. He had no clue what was going on at home. He had no idea what his estate was all about. All he knew was he wanted food on the table when he sat down. He turned everything over to Joseph, and maybe that's the reason his wife was looking around elsewhere, because the husband wouldn't pay any attention. He had no idea what was going on. Maybe there are a lot of husbands like that today. Maybe there are a lot of men in the assemblies like that today who are in roles of leadership, having no idea, really, in a practical way, what is going on among the hearts and problems and lives of God's dear people. You remember reading of the house of Stephanas in the book of Corinthians. They were addicted to the service of God's people, to the ministry of the saints. If you're addicted, you can't help it, right? That's stuff what they tell us today. Well, if you're addicted to ministry, if you're addicted to service, that's a good thing. And you and I could learn to do that very, very well, couldn't we, in the truths of scripture. So the man establishes the tone of leadership. You remember in Ephesians chapter five, he is called the savior of the body, small s. He's the protector. He shields the family from the influences of the world the best way he can. He seeks to provide protection and safety for them. Now, let's go back to the New Testament, if you would, please, and we will look at Colossians chapter three, just a verse there quickly. Colossians chapter three. In addition to establishing a role of leadership, the man is the one who sets the tone for love, and we don't normally think that. We would like to think that's the woman's role. You'll remember in the Old Testament scripture, we don't read about a love relationship until we go to Genesis twenty two, Abraham and Isaac, a picture of our father and his love for his son, our savior, the Lord Jesus. Another writer has said, a father's love gives strength to his sons, guidance to his daughters, and protection to the home. He's the most important teacher in their lives because in him his children see the qualities they will look for in other men. Interesting, huh? Colossians chapter three and verse nineteen says, husbands, love your wives and be not bitter against them. Don't be an irritant, in other words. Don't be picking at them, don't be annoying to them, don't be bugging them, don't be hounding them. If they don't make biscuits like your mama's biscuits, don't worry about it. Get in there and help them. Don't keep bugging them. If your mama's biscuits were that good, why did you leave home in the first place, you know? Um, and that's true among the saints, isn't it? Uh, some of the dear brethren can't pronounce Mephibosheth. Don't worry about it. The Lord knows who they're talking about, you know? Ishbosheth or whoever, you know. Let's just get on with the issues that really are important, instead of hounding and annoying and bugging and picking on each other all the time. Now, to to jab one another and have a good time, that's that's one thing, but to become an irritant, the men are good at that, particularly in the workplace. Somebody starts joking about his wife and, uh, everybody laughs, and then that kind of ratchets the thing up, and somebody else gets in on the conversation, so he starts on his wife, and that laugh, and everybody ratchets it up another level, and all of a sudden the conversation has really gone awry. We have to be really careful about that, brethren. We are to establish a tone of love in reference to the context of the family and the family of God. And yes, some of the Lord's people are peculiar people. That's biblical. I mean, you know, some of us are a little different. We won't call any names. There are some around the room, just kind of look around, you know, you can pick out your own. Look in the mirror. I mean, you know. Peculiar people are those whose lives revolve around something. Those whose lives have been purchased at an incredible price. Those whose lives really don't belong to them, they belong to someone else altogether. That makes you peculiar in your world. You're marching to the beat of a different drummer, you know. You're doing things with a totally different perspective and eternal view. So you're going to be the, the standout in the classroom and in the workplace. You're going to be the odd man on the block, sure. But we don't have to be irritants to one another, all right? Don't have to always be agitating and creating problem in the household or among the saints of God. A similar verse would be First Peter chapter three, please. First Peter chapter three, and we'll just pick up verse seven. First Peter chapter three and verse seven. Peter begins with the interesting little phrase, in like manner, depending on your particular translation, likewise. He's carrying us back to the latter part of chapter two where the Lord Jesus was so ridiculed and so bruised and beaten. He did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile, and so forth. Committed him to himself to him that judges righteously. And based on that lifestyle, that example, then Peter starts chapter three by saying, likewise, wives be submissive. Likewise, in uh, verse seven, husbands dwell with your wife according to knowledge. Or as we would say today, brethren, use your head. Think, you know? Don't be an irritant to the saints of God, to the bride of Christ, to the bride God has given you, if you have a bride. I mean, you're the one who chose her anyway, so let's get serious, you know? If you didn't think she was the best choice, then dummy, you're the one who made the choice, you've got to live with it. So don't be an irritant. And then he says here, use your head. He says, dwell with them according to knowledge. Now that is going to change over a period of time. There are several young couples who plan to be married this year. They think they have found Mr. Perfect and Miss Perfect. Have they got a rude awakening coming when they get home from the honeymoon? It'll take that long, and all of a sudden it's like, hmm. And then about year three and a year five and year twelve and year fifteen and year twenty, it's like, I didn't know that's what you thought. I always thought you like chocolate. Well, I changed my mind. I thought your favorite color was always blue. Well, it was, but now it's red. When did you make that? Well, it's just happened. We do change. And so our understanding and appreciation of one another is going to change, brethren. And it's true among the saints of God too. So we dwell with them according to knowledge, the knowledge we have at this point, and what we know about one another in the family of God will change the more we get to know about each other, the more we can carefully deal with one another. And we may not know one another's hot buttons at the moment, and we go venturing off and waxing eloquent on some issue, and I find out Brother Buddy doesn't like that issue, and I said, whoa, I guess I better not go down that road anymore. I don't want to get Brother Buddy all heated up. So I back off, you see. And in this case, it has to do with the spouse. If she doesn't like to be teased about her weight, then I'd better learn to zip it, see? Dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honor to the wife. Brethren, there's a challenge there because you learn in Ephesians, the children have to honor their parents. Hm. They obey, that's external, that's what we can see on the outside, but they honor, that's internal, and we can't see that. That's their attitude. And they pick that up from their dads very often. And as you and I sit around the table and we listen to the conversation at home or among the saints of God, if we detect that certain of the Lord's people don't honor others, we can pick that up from the conversation, then why should I honor anyone? See? And if the children are sitting there and they detect that dad and mom have a little conflict and tension, and there's no honor or respect, then why should they show honor to their mother? They can sass their mom all week. And the dad comes along and snatches their head off, you know? It's like, hey dad, come on, you talk like that, how come I can't? Husbands dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honor to the wife. Elevating them, treating them with great value and great worth. It's back to the commandments, isn't it? Honor your father and mother. Esteeming them. Please remember, if it weren't for them, you wouldn't be here. Never mind what sorry parents they were. You don't have to obey them anymore, you've left home, but you still honor them. You give honor to them, you give honor to the wife, and the Darby translation says you give honor even to the females, the ladies, whether they're the wife or not. And Paul addresses that issue elsewhere in the epistles. The young men treat the younger ladies like sisters, the older men treat the, you treat the older ladies like your mother. Boy, that would take care of some issues in the assembly, wouldn't it? That'd take care of some moral problems, wouldn't it? If you treat the saints around you like family, which is what we are, that would settle a whole lot of problems. You give honor to them as if they were weaker vessels, as if they were fine bone china from England, the kind that sits on the top shelf and you dust it once every six months. And if you're really gonna have a fancy tea party, you take it down and you serve it to the ladies, and they have to drink tea with their pinky up in the air, you know? Because the little handle's not big enough for anything else. The guys would rather have a mug. Fine bone china, expensive stuff. Styrofoam and Melmac you can throw across the room, but not bone china, you know. Doesn't say they are weaker vessels, it just says as if, see? Because the women have certain strengths in areas that you and I have no ability to understand at all. We have several folks in the medical community here, they can explain that for us, maybe. They are weaker in certain areas, and they are stronger in certain areas, and so it is with the men. That's why they complement one another. As if this was the weaker vessel. Because we're heirs together, there's the equality. We're not dealing with superiority, inferiority, we're simply dealing with godly order in the home and godly order in the assembly of God's people, and the world doesn't want to hear that today. That's chauvinistic, you understand, that the men have the role of leadership and the ladies are supposed to follow. That's ridiculous. No, that's God's order. That's all. The ladies may be far more educated, they may be far more skilled, they may be great teachers, but they have a role of submissive service in the assembly of God's people that God has spelled out in scripture. We're heirs together, co-equal when it comes to the issue of salvation, but we have different spheres of service in the home and different spheres of service and ministry in the assembly. And the bottom line, brethren, is that we don't want our prayer life to be hindered. That's the issue. That's the last thing you need in this culture. If your prayer doesn't get any higher, higher than the ceiling fan, then you've got problems. We need access to the throne of grace instantly, any hour of the day or night, the culture in which we live. It's not like, well, I'll store these up and go to Wednesday night prayer meeting. No, we need to be able to pray instantly. It's not like I got to run home and get things straightened out with the wife. I got to call one of the saints and get things straightened out so I can pray. It's a little late then. When you're on Interstate four fifty nine or whatever, you got to be able to pray instantaneously. You don't even have time to close your eyes, you know. You don't want your prayer life to be hindered. And if things aren't right at home, and in turn with the saints of God in the assembly, your prayer life is going to be hindered. That's the point. The men set the tone for leadership in the home. The men set the tone for love in the home, and in turn in the larger family, the gathering of the saints. What is love? Someone has defined it as an unselfish concern that freely accepts another and seeks his or her good. First Corinthians chapter thirteen, if you will. Not trying to change that individual, you understand. I want them to be like me. It's not exactly where we want to go. That freely accepts another and desires their good. That's what real love is. Now, Hollywood has not defined it like that, neither has the paperback novel industry. And so today's young people have no clue what love is all about. We have to redefine it for them. God so loved that he gave. Herein is love, not that we loved him, but that he loved us and gave himself for us. I was raised in western North Carolina in the mountains, and they say the old mountain preachers up there used to say, I told my wife when I loved, when I got married, that I loved her, and if I think she needs to know again, I'll let her know. It's not exactly like that. And isn't it like that in our relationship with the Lord? I told him I loved him. And if I think he needs to know, I'll tell him again. No. He wants us to gather weekly around the table for worship and remembrance. My Jesus, I love thee. I know thou art mine. And how many of the saints absent themselves from the worship meeting because, um, let's see, like teenagers, they don't get anything out of the meeting. The same three brethren give out the same three hymns every week. The same man starts the same prayer every week. Um, um, um, wait, why are we coming to the time of worship? To hear those three men, to sing those same two hymns? No. We're coming to express our love and appreciation to this one who loved us unconditionally. And it should be like that at home, it should be like that among the saints of God, you know. We love because he first loved us. Seeking the best in the other, seeking their well-being. The man is the one who's going to set the tone. And we have a very unique opportunity in the New Testament assembly, as we define it, to express our love and appreciation, and we begin the Lord's Day like that. Sets the tone for our week. And what an example for the family, for our children to sit and observe and listen to the dads and the aunts and un- or the uncles and the grandpas get up and express their appreciation, you know? What an example. And they learned something about the love of God. And they learned something about the appreciation of God's people for worship. Love is something you and I determine, with the Lord's help, to do. Husbands, love your wives. Ephesians chapter five. Well, in the next session, we'll look at the wife's role a bit. In the meantime, we'll have some donuts and coffee and visit together. Our Father, we're thankful for the privilege of being together today, and we pray for thy blessing on the sessions that are before us. Thankful for safety in bringing us together and for thy word, which gives us such practical truths for everyday living, both at home and among the saints of God as we gather week by week. We pray for thy blessing as we consider some of these truths together. Use the word to minister to the needs of our hearts and encourage us as we grapple with some of these issues that are so important. We're thankful for the Savior who knows everything about us and loves us anyway and gave himself for our sin at Calvary's cross. Bless our time of fellowship, we pray, and guide through the remaining sessions of the day as we give our thanks in Jesus' name. Amen.