MEN’S MANUAL

 

MEN’S  MANUAL

 

“And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction.” Malachi 4:6

 

God’s Judgment when men fail to be Spiritual Leaders

 

“The people will oppress one another, man against man, neighbor against neighbor; the youth will act arrogantly toward the elder, and the worthless toward the honorable.” Isaiah 3:5

 

That is happening in our time. Do you understand it’s taking place because the man has not been the Spiritual leader of his home?

 

This study will be of little value unless a man is open to examining what God desires of him and not what his flesh wants.

 

Questions for personal Application

 

How can I learn to be gentle in the way I treat my wife and family?

 

Answer:  Gentleness is a fruit of God’s Spirit.  The more you grow to be mighty in Spirit, the more you will become gentle in your words and actions.  Gentleness is destroyed by pride and moral impurity.  It is replaced by impatience and a judgmental spirit.

 

Do you Know How to Conquer a Judgmental Spirit?

 

To conquer a judgmental spirit, we must learn by God’s grace how to see the relationship between what we judge in others, and what we are guilty of in our own lives.

 

How can I teach my family to be grateful for all the things that I do for them?

 

Answer:  You can teach your family to be grateful for all the things that you do for them by learning how to be genuinely grateful for all the little which your wife children and parents do for you!  The best way to teach gratefulness is to show gratefulness.  They left out the many blessings from our Great God.

 

How can I learn to have a genuine love for each one in my family?

 

Answer:  You can learn to have a genuine love for each one in your family by meditating on God’s definition of love and learning how to apply it to every thought, word, action, and attitude in your life.

 

What is God’s Test of Genuine Love?

 

1.    Love does not lose patience.  As a husband when did you show patience instead of getting angry?

 

2.    Love looks for ways to be kind and helpful.  As a husband when did you go out of your way to be helpful?

 

3.    Love is not envious or possessive .   How have you demonstrated contentment and generosity to your wife and children?

 

4.    Love is not eager to impress others.  When did you demonstrate contentment and generosity?

 

5.    Love is not puffed up or boastful.  As a husband and dad, how have you avoided inflated ideas of your own importance?

 

6.    Love has good manners.  If I were to ask others in and out of your family about your manners what would they say?

 

7.    Love does not pursue selfish advantage.  As a husband and dad, in what way have you not insisted on your own rights?

 

8.    Love is not touchy or resentful.  If we asked your wife when she has seen you overcome resentment, what would she say?

 

Men, these must be lifetime goals, most of us will find it impossible to conquer them quickly, but if you're serious, I mean grit your teeth and ask the Lord to humble you and be obedient, they are attainable.

 

I’ve had this on my bookshelf for many years, and it was of little help until I got tired of acting more like a boy than a man.  It is time to grow up and do things God’s way, maybe you will be willing to become a man in your wife's and family's eyes, that’s my prayer, for all of us who struggle. 

 

A good part of this was taken from a book titled Men’s Manual put out by the Institute in Basic Youth Conflicts.  I did tweak it, and I hope to encourage you in your desire to mentor men.

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

A hymn Job sings about Wisdom

 

 

 

Job 28

 

April 2, 2020

 

 

 

A hymn Job sings about Wisdom, let us begin with verse 12 and it will take 17 verses to find the answer.  “But where shall wisdom be found?  And where is the place of understanding?  Man does not know his worth, and it is not found in the land of the living.  The deep says, ‘It is not in me,’ and the sea says, ‘It is not with me.’ It cannot be bought for gold, and silver cannot be weighed as its price.  It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire.  Gold and glass cannot equal it, nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold.  No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal;
the price of wisdom is above pearls.  The topaz of Ethiopia cannot equal it, nor can it be valued in pure gold.”

 

Job’s hymn explains it is not found in your wealth, not in your many degrees, many smart fools say there is no God.  There have always been men who believe they are self-made and have no need for God.  They die and take not one thing with them to the grave.  Once more, Job asks the question; “From where, then, does wisdom come?  And where is the place of understanding?  It is hidden from the eyes of all living and concealed from the birds of the air.  Abaddon and Death say, ‘We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.”

 

He tells us God knows the source of Wisdom, the answer is found in verses 23-28,

“God understands the way to it, and he knows its place.   For he looks to the ends of the earth and sees everything under the heavens.                                When he gave to the wind its weight and apportioned the                                                                                   
waters by measure when he made a decree for the rain and a way for the lightning of the thunder, then he saw it and declared it; he established it and searched it out.   And he said to man, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.’”

 

Where else in Scripture does it state this truth?  Proverbs 1:7, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.”  Proverbs 2:6, “For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;”  Does the New Testament address Wisdom; James 1:5, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”  Colossians 3:16 says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

 

My dear reader, both the New and Old Testaments contain verses about Wisdom.

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

Joe discourse with his three friends

 

 

 

 

Job 27

 

April 1, 2020

 

 

 

The first six verses of Job 27 are directed to his three friends, and it is the last time he addresses these things to them.  “And Job continued his discourse:  “As surely as God lives, who has denied me justice, the Almighty, who has made my life bitter, as long as I have life within me, the breath of God in my nostrils,  my lips will not say anything wicked, and my tongue will not utter lies.  I will never admit you are in the right; till I die, I will not deny my integrity.  I will maintain my innocence and never let go of it; my conscience will not reproach me as long as I live.”

 

One has to wonder; what if God had let him in on what was taking place in heaven, would Job be like my friend who lost his farm to the bank, and was very angry?  When I asked him, who are you mad at, is it not God, at that moment I had moved over a line, and yet though his face was red and I knew he wanted to hit me, I went on and stated we both knew God could have interfered and not allowed it to happen.  He seemed to relax and said, I need to give more thought to who I am mad at.  My friend and I talked about how he was never that excited about farming, but he was now doing the one thing he enjoyed and was making money doing so.  Job never beat around the bush he knew that God took his protection off of him, yet he was a man who was upright before God and man.

 

My second thought on this was if God had let Job in on what was taking place in heaven, would he still blame God for allowing it?  Would it be something any of his three friends would have believed?

 

In verses 8 - 10, Job is telling his friends to get real; they had observed the wicked and knew that they did not look to God in good times or bad.  They will never look to God and so God will not hear their cries when disaster comes on them. “For what hope have the godless when they are cut off when God takes away their life?   Does God listen to their cry when distress comes upon them?   Will they find delight in the Almighty?  Will they call on God at all times?”

 

Let us close with verses 11 – 12, “I will teach you about the power of God;  the ways of the Almighty I will not conceal.  You have all seen this yourself.  Why then is this meaningless talk?  I wonder if I’ve been too hard on Job’s friends in that being men is part of the DNA of playing Mister fix it.  I still believe they had the religion that only bad things happen to the wicked, and so Job had to be evil.

 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Bildad give his closing word

 

Job 25:1-6

 

March 29, 2020

 

“Then Bildad the Shuhite answered and said:  “Dominion and fear are with God, he makes peace in his high heaven.   Is there any number to his armies?  Upon whom does his light not arise?  How then can man be in the right before God?  How can he who is born of woman be pure?   Behold, even the moon is not bright, and the stars are not pure in his eyes; how much less man, who is a maggot, and the son of man, who is a worm!”

It looks as if Bildad has been chosen to give the final or closing argument for the three, and rejects Job’s claims.  That God who established harmony in the original creation and maintained it.  We find Bildad asking a series of rhetorical questions implying negative answers.  One such question is, how can a person be justified before God?  May I take a moment to show you if you’re a searcher or a religious person without a personal relationship with a Holy God?

 

In Jeremiah 29:13, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”  Roman 3:23,  ^“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”  How we often play the game, I’m better than that person who goes to church.  But the “all” stands, we have all sinned and need to be redeemed.  It has been over 50 years since I agreed with God that I had tried to get my needs met outside of Christ, in religion, and being a nice guy, but as I read the Scriptures I understood I needed to be free from the control of sin.  In a hotel room at age 27 I opened the Bible to Romans 10:9-10, “and ask Jesus Christ to forgive me and become the Lord of my life.  “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.   For with the heart, one believes and is justified, and with the mouth, one confesses and is saved.”

 

In 2 Corinthians 12:9-10, we find the Apostle Paul tells us that the grace of God is not found in our power, education, or human wisdom, but in God, love, and mercy and in our weakness.  He said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.  For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

 

In verse six, of chapter 25, Bildad has this to say about all mankind, “how much less man, who is a maggot, and the son of man who is a worm.”  In Genesis 1:27, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him, male and female he created them.”  If you buy into Bildad’s understanding of man, you must have a very low opinion of God.  We are given so much more information on the value God places on you.  

 

How much are you worth to God the Creator and giver of life?  It is found in a verse you may never have read but have heard or seen on a burger wrapper, a sign, or someone has quoted in your presence.  John 3:16;17 tells how much you are worth to the Father.  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”

 

 

Bildad was wrong about a man and yet he was a religious guy, he did not have an understanding of God's love, and grace.

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

 

You have a Bible-But Job did not

 

Job 24

 

March 28, 2020

 

 

Job is not alone in his question; “Why are not times of judgment kept by the Almighty, and why do those who know him never see his days?”  Many people who go by the name Christian ask the same question when bad things happen.  Does that give them or Job the right to question God’s timing in the judgment of the wicked deeds of people?

 

Job, was not a privilege to have a Bible, but most of us have several, yet we are in the same fix as Job if it is never opened and read.  Sixty-three times God’s judgments on sin are talked about in the Scriptures, in Verses such as; Isaiah 13:11, “Thus I will punish the world for its evil And the wicked for their iniquity; I will also put an end to the arrogance of the proud And abase the haughtiness of the ruthless.”  1 Thessalonians 4:6, “and that no man transgress and defraud his brother in the matter because the Lord is the avenger in all these things, just as we also told you before and solemnly warned you.”

 

What about Matthew 7:15, "Do not judge so that you will not be judged. "For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. "Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?”  And Romans 2:5-6, “But because of your stubbornness and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God, who will render to each person according to his deeds.”  We end this short sample of Scripture with 2 Peter 3:7, “But by His word the present heavens and earth are being reserved for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men.”

 

But Job did not have the Bible you now have lying in your home, so should we give Job a pass?  Job begins to remind his friends of the seriousness of the wicked man's sins.  They move boundary markers, and they take the poor animals they used to provide for their families, and it seems as if one of their targets was the fatherless and the widow.  They have no regard for those who are under-resourced and take advantage of them.  The poor do not have a food bank to turn to, no they look for the leftover in the fields.  Job continues listing all the sins of the wicked, and even their death.

 

But, Job has watched and is sure that God does Judge the evil man, look at verses 22-25, “Yet God prolongs the life of the mighty by his power; they rise up when they despair of life.  He gives them security, and they are supported, and his eyes are upon their ways. They are exalted a little while, and then are gone; they are brought low and gathered up like all others; they are cut off like the heads of grain.   If it is not so, who will prove me a liar and show that there is nothing in what I say?”

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

 

Job, a man in right standing with God

 

Job 23

 

March 27, 2020

 

 

As we read Job’s reply to Eliphaz in these first seven verses, one must ask does this sound like a man who is wicked, or does it sound like a man who loves God, but God has been silent during his time of trials?

 

“Then Job answered and said:  “Today also my complaint is bitter;  my hand is heavy on account of my groaning. Oh, that I knew where I might find him, that I might come even to his seat!   I would lay my case before him and fill my mouth with arguments.  I would know what he would answer me and understand what he would say to me. Would he contend with me in the greatness of his power?  No; he would pay attention to me.  There an upright man could argue with him, and I would be acquitted forever by my judge.”

 

Job’s right standing with God was his fear of God and his belief in God, this was long before Moses and the Ten Commandments, and what we can learn from this is man has always searched for his Creator, for God has established that in our hearts.  Do you recall Abram who God later changed his name to Abraham?  Genesis 15:6 says this about Abram, “Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” 

 In verses 10-12, we have Job’s reply to the man Eliphaz who has traveled some distance to see Job and has no understanding of Job’s action before God allowed Satan to attack him.  No, Eliphaz is going on what his religion has taught him, not on truth.  So, Job gives him this reply, or we might say his testimony.  “But he knows the way that I take; when he has tried me, I shall come out as gold.   My foot has held fast to his steps; I have kept his way and have not turned aside.  I have not departed from the commandment of his lips; I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my portion of food.”

 

Job ends with the darkness of death has covered him and he is terrified.  I believe it is important to remember the book of Job is all about this man Job and it is believed to have been written by an Israelite by his frequent use of God’s covenant name (Yahweh).  He was a very knowledgeable man on foreign lands, heaven and earth plants, and animals, he had a spiritual sensitivity.  Some believe the Book of Job was written in the days of Moses.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

 

Darkness is simply the absence of Light

 

 

 

 

Darkness is simply the absence of Light

 

October 31, 2011

 

 

Do you like absolutes?  Something that is completely unequivocal and not capable of being viewed as partial.  An absolute is complete and in no way conditional on any future evidence or behavior.  Darkness is the absence of light, light can be measured, but darkness cannot.  So for many who hate absolutes, and try to say there is no such thing, could their problem be they hate the light because the light exposes their deeds?  I must share a disclaimer; my belief system is not based on my thoughts, but on the authority of Scripture and my understanding of it, and the author of the Bible has a lot of ink on the subject of darkness and light.

 

Jesus speaking in John 3:19, 20, “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil.  For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.”  The first chapter of the book of John will introduce you to the light that has come into the world.  If you are a good religious person or a person hiding in the darkness of your heart and have not by faith gone to the light, you are walking in darkness.   Jesus speaks to this in Mark 7:6-8, “And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrine the commandments of men.’ You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”  How often we foolishly believe we are following Christ, only to discover we are full of formalism, bringing meaningless worship with our lips, but our actions are far from the commandments of God; Jesus calls those who do that hypocrites.

 

These are the claims of Jesus: “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12)  Bad things happen to good people in darkness, it could be said that there is danger in darkness.  Jesus also knew that often we are dull in our thinking so the Holy Spirit put these thoughts into the apostle John’s mind to share with us: “Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness.” (1 John 2:9)  Jesus also called us sheep, not some cute little lamb, but sheep that can easily be scattered and become prey for wolves.  Sheep need a shepherd who will give them the protection and the direction they need.  Psalm 119:105, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.”  It is not a light to make the path as if it were day, it is shining right in front of your feet so that you stay on the trail God has for you.  

 

We have entered a time where many will come claiming they have the light we need, “Hope and Change” but like sheep who are not all that smart and do not ask; hope in what and or what changes, and what many hoped was light is not light, but more darkness. Jesus is the light of the world and Christians should not be looking elsewhere else for light or hope; you will not find it in man, only in Christ.

 

It is today February 21, 2025, and many a follower of Christ is hoping that President Trump, Elon Musk, and the Cabinet will be used by God to clean up the darkness in our government.   What we can do as the Church, is pray that they will look to the Lord for wisdom and that we will not put our faith in them, but in what God can do through them.

​

 From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Eliphaz, sound like a name it and claim it preacher

 

 

 

 

 

 

Job 22: 21-30

 

March 25, 2020

 

 

“Agree with God and be at peace; thereby good will come to you.  Receive instruction from his mouth and lay up his words in your heart.  If you return to the Almighty you will be built up; if you remove injustice far from your tents, if you lay gold in the dust, and gold of Ophir among the stones of the torrent-bed, then the Almighty will be your gold, and your precious silver.  For then you will delight yourself in the Almighty and lift up your face to God.  You will make your prayer to him, and he will hear you, and you will pay your vows.  You will decide on a matter, and it will be established for you, and light will shine on your ways.   For when they are humbled you say, ‘It is because of pride’;  but he saves the lowly.  He delivers even the one who is not innocent, who will be delivered through the cleanness of your hands.”

 

If I’ve been cynical about these three guys who showed up claiming to be friends, and if that bothers you do not read today's paper.  Now you have been warned and if you are still reading it is not my fault.

 

Eliphaz is talking as if Job will just agree with him, then all will go well with him and he will be in right standing with God.  If you have an Eliphaz in your life do not trust one word coming from his mouth.  So far, we have not heard God speak about any of these three men, but we have been privileged to hear God’s thoughts about Job.  All three of these guys believe themselves to be morally and spiritually superior to Job.  In their religion, they had a god they understood, and if harm came to you then you had sinned, I hope you’re not a member of that Church.

 

Verses 23-27 remind me of a TV preacher, or also in the old West a long time back they called them snake oil salesmen, whatever problem you had they had the cure in a bottle.  The modern-day T.V. preachers, not all but many also have the answer to all your problems, but it is not Jesus Christ, it is seeking after your gold and silver and God will shine on you, and you will be broke, but happy.  They forget to tell you they live in a fine home and have an airplane, but no church.  I laughed when I read this and wondered how fast the god they worship would tell them to pick up all that gold and silver Job was to get rid of.  I told you I was going to get cynical, and it’s not fun, we still have a few people like Eliphaz in our churches.

 

Eliphaz has moved to the name it and claim it preacher, in verse 28, I am not sure about you but I’ve made a few decisions and at the time believed they were centered in God’s will only to have the Holy Spirit open my mind to the truth, it was my will but not God’s.  I’m so thankful to be under a pastor who teaches from the Scriptures and encourages us to get into the Word of God and check out what we are being taught.

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice

But you say, ‘What does God know?

 

 

 

 

Job 22: 12-20

 

March 24, 2020

 

 

“Is not God high in the heavens?  See the highest stars, how lofty they are!   But you say, ‘What does God know?  Can he judge through the deep darkness?  Thick clouds veil him so that he does not see, and he walks on the vault of heaven.’  Will you keep to the old way that wicked men have trod?  They were snatched away before their time; their foundation was washed away.  They said to God, ‘Depart from us,’ and ‘What can the Almighty do to us?’  Yet he filled their houses with good things— but the counsel of the wicked is far from me. The righteous see it and are glad; the innocent one mocks at them, saying, ‘Surely our adversaries are cut off, and what they left the fire has consumed.”

 

As I read this it became very clear that the enemy of our souls loves nothing better than to have a follower of Christ be his accuser.  I’ve been in the role of Judge and Jury and I’ve had a brother or sister in Christ confront me, that I need to pray not to condemn.  My Bride will always say, Bob as long as a person has life they can be redeemed, and never were truer words spoken.  Read Revelation 12: 9-12, and do not be part of the devil's schemes.

 

And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.  And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God.  And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death.  Therefore, rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath because he knows that his time is short!”

 

As I made the case in defense of Job yesterday, God was the star witness, and it was clear that Job had a very healthy fear of God, and that God is very clear in His statement that Job is one of a kind on this earth.  As a follower of Christ, ask the Lord to fill your life with the fruits of the Spirit, you will find them in Galatians 5:22-23.  “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, and self-control. Against such things, there is no law.”

 

That is a prayer you can pray for this brother, trying to give up his tuning into Channel One (the deceptive channel).

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice