The Mandalorian Approach

I can’t say that I have always been a big Star Wars fan. I spent 12 years serving alongside a Pastor who was and he helped me appreciate how unwittingly, George Lucas wove the story and certain truths about the Gospel into the Star Wars Epic.

When I go back and watch the movies now , I can’t help but look for and find the Gospel.

It’s funny how the story of God seems to always find itself at the bedrock of the stories that resonate the most with us.

In recent years, there was a spin off from Star Wars called the Mandalorian.

I’ll bet some of you have a Baby Yoda somewhere in the house today.

The Mandalorian culture had a code they lived by and whenever they rehearsed it among themselves and others, they would conclude by saying ‘This is the Way”

There is a huge part of us as humans that desires deeply just to know THE way. No A way but THE Way.

In

John 14:6 Jesus tells his followers that He IS THE way, the truth, and the life.

John 14:6 NET

6 Jesus replied, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

No one can come to the Father except through Him.

As we progress in this study, you will see that we as men have a very important part to play in the transformation of our hearts. There is an active role that we have in this process.

But, it is vitally important to recognize that all of this hinges on Jesus and the work that he has done for us, which we could never do for ourselves.

He is the WAY!

When the Church of Jesus was newly launched and the Holy Spirit was bring many into the body of Christ, new believers both Jew and Gentile, they had no idea what to call themselves. The where simple those who we IN THE WAY, the were Following Jesus who was THE WAY.

As we discuss the places where God invites us to be co-laborers with him in our transformation, we must never lose sight of the work that God has done through his Son Jesus.

A work that is extended to us by grace alone and not by our actions or our own works.

Dallas Willard in his writings around Spiritual Formation said “ In Evangelical Circles, we aren’t only saved by Grace, we are paralyzed by it”

Hmmm!

He lamented that in the 20th century.... the Church..... helped to create a culture where discipleship was marginalized.

That we had come to see it as something of an option... that we might chose to exercise, ...but if we simply want to believe the truth about Jesus and receive that.... and then just get on with our lives without any discipleship, ....that would be OK.

He said that we had created a place where you could be a Christian Forever without ever becoming a disciple.

The Concept of being a Christian and NOT BEING a Disciple is a LIE.... designed to trap men into thinking that they are safe and that regardless of behavior,.. when they pass on,.. St Peter will welcome them with open arms.

Men, this simply isn’t true and I love you enough to tell you that it isn’t.

There have been entire church doctrines and teachings that have been developed and propagated to lull men to sleep, but you need to know not everything that comes from some place or somebody claiming to be the Church of Jesus, is RIGHT!

Just like everything you read on the Internet may not be right.

Maybe this is good spot to ask what Jesus himself had to say about this.

Matthew 7:21 NET

21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter into the kingdom of heaven—only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.

As the Apostle James put it we are to be Doers of the Word of God and not just Hearers.

According to James if we are just hearers we deceive ourselves.

James 1:22–25 NET

22 But be sure you live out the message and do not merely listen to it and so deceive yourselves. 23 For if someone merely listens to the message and does not live it out, he is like someone who gazes at his own face in a mirror. 24 For he gazes at himself and then goes out and immediately forgets what sort of person he was. 25 But the one who peers into the perfect law of liberty and fixes his attention there, and does not become a forgetful listener but one who lives it out—he will be blessed in what he does.

This idea of paralyzation by grace that Willard spoke of, ...where so-called believers could convinced themselves and others that the transformative work of the Gospel in human’s life was God’s work alone,... by grace through faith..and that if we simply believed,... the transformation would take place,…this is failed idea and reflects what James was talking about when he said that Hearers Only…deceive themselves.

Willard conclude his thoughts with this statement “ If the idea that we must do something to “enable” God to do something... bothers you,...you have just hit a major barrier on the pathway of spiritual formation”

Some of my listeners will know that I’ve been a leader in a mastermind group for men for years now.

We see men come in with all sorts of issues and personality traits and one of these we call the Content Zombie.

The Content Zombie is the guy that listens to every podcast he thinks will help, listens to every Un-F yourself type book he can get on Audible and consumes all the information he can, BUT he never takes ACTION.

He is a Zombie because he THINKS all the listening is changing him BUT is isn’t, he’s still stumbling around, drifting looking for something else to consume.

He, as James said, has deceived himself. He thinks he has LIFE but really he is just the Walking Dead.

Doers of the Word have life, not hearers.

There are things that we must do if we are to experience true transformation.

Once we are in Christ, our heart condition is ready and has become good dirt; their is SEED that must be sown and that seed is God’s Word.

Simply Hearing the SEED isn’t enough. There is an intentionality to cultivate the Seed that must be DONE!

Here is the first of a few practical steps I will offer you and promise that if you will DO this, you will begin to see real transformation.

You ready?

Become a Man who daily engages with God’s Word.

Lose the excuses, The Bible is not that complicated and there are ton of READABLE translations available, not to mention Apps like the You Version Bible App that is FREE and gives you access to thousands of easily read and understood scripture passages.

Use an easy to read, solid translation of the Bible, Like the New English Translation or the New Living Translation and start taking time everyday to read a portion of God’s word.

Read a verse or two, write it out on paper, emphasize different words in the passage.

Ask yourself questions about the passage you’ve read and journal your thoughts around these questions.

Create some SPACE.

SPACE is An Acronym that I was taught by a mentor as a way to have some questions I could use to engage with the Word more intentionally.

Is there a SIN, I need to confess that this scripture shows me?

Is there a PROMISE here that I need to believe and hold on to.

Is there an Attitude here that I need to Adopt?

Is there a Command here that I need to follow as a way of showing Jesus my loyalty and love for Him?

Is the an Example that I need to follow?

I also like asking myself if there is something NEW about Jesus or the Father that the passage I’m considering teaches me.

I promise you that if you will set aside 30 mins a day to engage with the Word of God, Ask these questions as you do and jot down your thoughts around these questions in a journal, the Lord Jesus will reveal himself to you and transform you into the Man, Husband, Father, Son and Leader you have been called to be.

Transformation requires Intentionality MEN, that’s true in the World and it’s true in the Spirit. It is a spiritual law much like gravity is a natural law.

Set intention in your heart today, and ask God by his Holy Spirit to engage with you in this process.

Be Intentional about setting aside time to engage in God’s Word.

Don’t worry about if you are doing it right, just do it.

I personally spent 25 years if my faith journey mostly hearing but NOT Doing.

Be Intentional in your Faith MEN, Engage with the Word, the Logos of God

John 1:1 NET

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was fully God.

Jesus is the Word and He is THE WAY!

Intentionally Following Him, This is the WAY!

Until next week

24 ‘May the Lord bless you

and protect you.

25 May the Lord smile on you

and be gracious to you.

26 May the Lord show you his favor

and give you his peace.’