“Men of Influence: God’s Design for Biblical Manhood

Introduction – The Anchor

Welcome to SSFBC

Great Men’s Breakfast

SS video ministry and website will soon be online.

This message will not take place of our Baptist Men’s Day

Church family, today is Baptist Men’s Day, and even though we’re snowed in and not able to gather in person, God’s Word is not limited by weather or walls.

This morning, I want to speak to something our culture is confused about—and honestly, something the church cannot afford to be unclear on: biblical manhood.

When Scripture calls men to be strong, it’s not calling them to be harsh. When it calls men to lead, it’s not calling them to dominate. And when it calls men to love, it’s not calling them to be weak.

God has a clear, beautiful design for men—one that brings strength to homes, stability to families, and health to the church.

So this morning, we’re going to anchor ourselves in God’s Word, walk through what it means to stand firm, to be strong, and to live that strength through Christlike love—and we’ll see how this applies not just to men, but to every home represented here today.

If you have a Bible, turn with me to 1 Corinthians 16:13–14.

Two Key Verses:

1 Corinthians 16:13–14 ESV

13 Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. 14 Let all that you do be done in love.

Ephesians 5:25 ESV

25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,

Men, this short passage carries tremendous weight. In just two verses, God defines how men are to live, lead, and influence.

This morning, we will begin with this text, walk through Scripture to see what it means, and then circle back—so it doesn’t just inform us, but forms us.

(Read the text again.)

I. “Be Watchful” — A Man Guards What God Entrusts

1 Corinthians 16:13 ESV

13 Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.

“Be watchful…”

God’s design for men begins with vigilance.

Genesis 2:15 ESV

15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.

The word keep means to guard, protect, and watch over. Before Adam was called to provide, he was called to protect.

Men are watchmen over:

Their hearts

Their homes

Their marriages

Their integrity

Proverbs 4:23 ESV

23 Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.

Men rarely fall suddenly. They drift when they stop watching.

A watchful man understands that what he doesn’t guard will eventually be compromised.

II. “Stand Firm in the Faith” — A Man Lives by Conviction

1. Standing Firm Requires a Decision Before the Pressure

Joshua 24:15 (ESV)

“Choose this day whom you will serve… But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

Joshua didn’t make this decision in the heat of crisis. He made it before compromise came.

Men who stand firm don’t decide in the moment—they decide in advance.

If a man hasn’t already settled:

Who he serves

What he believes

Where he stands

Then pressure will make the decision for him.

2. Biblical Men Stood Firm When Culture Stood Against Them

Daniel — Standing Without Applause

Daniel 1:8 (ESV)

“But Daniel resolved that he would not defile himself…”

Daniel was young. He was away from home. He was surrounded by pressure to conform.

Yet the text says he resolved—he set his heart.

Standing firm doesn’t always look dramatic. Sometimes it looks like quiet, daily obedience.

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego — Standing Without Rescue Guaranteed

Daniel 3:16–18 (ESV)

“Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us… But if not, be it known to you… we will not serve your gods.”

This is one of the strongest faith statements in Scripture.

They believed God could deliver. They trusted God even if He didn’t.

Standing firm means obeying God without requiring a favorable outcome.

David — Standing When No One Else Would

1 Samuel 17:45 (ESV)

“You come to me with a sword and with a spear… but I come to you in the name of the LORD of hosts.”

Every other man saw a giant. David saw a faith issue.

Standing firm often means being willing to stand alone.

3. Standing Firm Is Rooted in God’s Word, Not Emotion

Psalm 1:1–3 (ESV)

“He is like a tree planted by streams of water…”

Trees don’t move when storms come. They hold because they are rooted.

Men who stand firm are:

Grounded in Scripture

Anchored in truth

Not ruled by feelings or fear

Emotion shifts. Culture changes. God’s Word stands forever.

4. Why This Matters

Men, when we stand firm:

Homes become stable

Churches become strong

Generations find direction

When men waver, others pay the price.

Standing firm doesn’t require perfection— It requires faithfulness.

III. “Act Like Men, Be Strong” — Strength with Self-Control

1 Corinthians 16:13 (ESV)

“Act like men, be strong.”

Paul does not apologize for that statement—and neither should we.

The world does not suffer from too much masculinity. It suffers from too little godly masculinity.

1. The World Needs Strong Men Because Weakness Produces Chaos

From the very beginning, disorder entered when a man failed to lead.

Genesis 3:6 (ESV)

“She took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.”

Adam was present but passive. He abdicated responsibility—and chaos followed.

When men retreat:

Families fracture

Leadership collapses

Moral clarity disappears

Strength is not optional—it is necessary for order.

2. The World Needs Strong Men to Protect What Is Good

Nehemiah 4:14 (ESV)

“Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.”

Godly masculinity includes:

Protection

Courage

Willingness to confront evil

Strong men stand between danger and those entrusted to them.

A society without protectors becomes a society ruled by fear.

3. The World Needs Strong Men Who Can Control Themselves

The Bible defines strength very differently than the world.

Proverbs 16:32 (ESV)

“Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.”

The strongest man in the room is not the loudest. It’s the man who governs himself.

Self-control produces:

Stability in leadership

Safety in homes

Trust in relationships

4. The World Needs Strong Men to Lead with Sacrificial Love

Ephesians 5:25 (ESV)

“Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.”

Masculinity was never meant to dominate—it was meant to sacrifice.

Jesus Christ is the ultimate picture of masculine strength:

Courage to face the cross

Strength to endure suffering

Love to lay down His life

Strong men lift others up rather than push them down.

5. The World Needs Men Who Will Not Quit

Galatians 6:9 (ESV)

“Let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”

Strong men stay:

When it’s hard

When it’s costly

When it’s thankless

Quitting is easy. Faithfulness is strength.

Summary Line

The world does not need louder men, angrier men, or harsher men. It needs strong men shaped by Christ.

Men who:

Stand firm

Guard what matters

Control themselves

Love sacrificially

Refuse to quit

IV. “Let All That You Do Be Done in Love” — Strength Directed by Christ

1 Corinthians 16:14 (ESV)

“Let all that you do be done in love.”

This is not a soft ending. This is the direction of biblical strength.

Strength without love becomes tyranny. Love without strength becomes weakness. Christ brings them together.

1. Christ Redefines Strength for Men

The greatest display of strength the world has ever seen was not a throne—it was a cross.

Mark 10:45 (ESV)

“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Jesus did not lose strength by serving. He revealed His strength by serving.

Biblical masculinity is not about asserting power—it is about laying it down for the good of others.

2. A Man’s First Ministry Is His Wife

Scripture is unmistakably clear here.

Ephesians 5:25 (ESV)

“Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.”

Men, this is not a suggestion. This is a calling.

How did Christ love the church?

Sacrificially

Patiently

Faithfully

Protectively

A strong man:

Protects his wife, not pressures her

Speaks life, not criticism

Leads spiritually, not passively

A man’s treatment of his wife is the clearest window into his true strength.

3. Strength Is Seen in How a Man Uses His Words

Colossians 4:6 (ESV)

“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt…”

Strong men don’t tear down. They build up.

Tone matters. Words linger. Speech reveals the heart.

Men who are strong in Christ speak:

With gentleness

With clarity

With restraint

Harshness is not strength. Control is.

4. Strong Men Serve — They Don’t Demand

Jesus didn’t wash feet because He was weak. He washed feet because He was secure.

John 13:14–15 (ESV)

“If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.”

Men, serving does not diminish leadership—it defines it.

Strong men:

Show up when no one sees

Carry burdens quietly

Serve without applause

The strongest men in Scripture are always the most obedient.

5. Love Is the Measure of True Masculinity

1 Corinthians 13:1–3 (ESV)

“If I have not love, I am nothing.”

You can be strong. You can be capable. You can be respected.

But without Christ-like love, it amounts to nothing.

Summary Line

A strong man is not measured by how many follow him, but by how many are built up because of him.

Christ-formed strength:

Loves sacrificially

Serves willingly

Leads humbly

Illustration

In ancient cities, the watchman stood on the wall. If he fell asleep, the city fell.

He wasn’t flashy. He wasn’t celebrated. But everything depended on his faithfulness.

Men, God has placed us as watchmen:

Over our homes

Over our character

Over our witness

When the watchman is alert, the city is secure.

Circle Back — The Anchor Text Revisited

1 Corinthians 16:13–14 ESV

13 Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. 14 Let all that you do be done in love.

“Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you do be done in love.”

Now we hear it clearly:

Be watchful — guard what God entrusted

Stand firm — live by conviction

Be strong — strength under control

Love — strength aimed outward

This is not cultural masculinity. This is biblical manhood.

Call to Action

Men, you don’t need to fix everything today.

But this week:

Pray intentionally

Open the Word

Speak encouragement

Take responsibility where you’ve been silent

One verse. One standard. One obedient step.

Closing Prayer

“Father, make us men who watch carefully, stand firmly, walk strongly, and love sacrificially—for Your glory and the good of those we lead. Amen.”