Knighthood Verses
Squires2Knights Ministries is equipping men to mentor our boys. In my book, Squires to Knights, I offer a strategy for mentoring our boys. In both of these resources the teaching topics for manhood training come from three Knighthood Verses.
These teaching topics will provide you and your group with a well-defined set of ideals and a Biblically grounded definition of manhood. They will help you advance your young men from squires to knights.
In order to catalog the devotions and lessons, the twelve topics have been numbered according to the applicable verse: 1, 2, and 3; then by the character trait within the verse; i.e. 1.1, 2.4, 3.2.
.
The Three Knighthood Verses are:
(also posted online, click here)
.
Luke 2:52: And Jesus grew in wisdom, stature, and in favor with God and men.
1 Corinthians 16:13, 14: Be on your guard, stand firm in the faith, act like men (be men of courage); be strong. Do everything in love.
1 Corinthians 15:49: And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven.
.
The following is an expanded version of our teaching topics:
.
1. Luke 2:52: And Jesus grew in wisdom, stature, and in favor with God and men.
“And Jesus grew…” Jesus was twelve years old when his parents found him in the temple courts of Jerusalem with the teachers. His teen-age years of growing and maturing followed.
1.1: Wisdom: From a biblical worldview, we use of our knowledge, discernment, and understanding to take the right course of action.
1.2: Stature: Physical nourishment, growth, strength and health.
1.3: Favor with God: Follow God’s will through faith, discipleship, prayer, love and service.
1.4: Favor with men: Socially competent. Able to gain the respect of people and to influence others.
.
2. 1 Corinthians 16:13, 14: Be on your guard, stand firm in the faith, act like men (be men of courage); be strong. Do everything in love.
2.1: Be on your guard: A call to fight against temptations from Satan, from the world, and from our selves. It also helps guide us toward self-control. Finally, we are called to be alert, always prepared for Jesus’ return.
2.2: Stand firm in the faith: The center of what gives meaning and purpose to our lives through Jesus Christ. Ultimately, it is our faith in Christ as our Lord that assures our salvation and it is our identity in Christ that directs our heart, mind and soul to the nature and character of God.
2.3: Act like men (be men of courage): This is the central theme for our lessons and discussions. This proclamation implores us to pursue our divine roles as men. Biblically, we are to be disciples, servants, husbands, fathers and finally, patriarchs. Not all men will be called to fulfill every one of these roles. Some of these roles will be carried out during different seasons of life. To fulfill these roles, we are called to spiritual leadership and servant leadership. We are to be the provider and protector. In this directive from Paul, the original text refers to a masculine courage.
2.4: Be strong: Strong in faith, strong in character, strong in perseverance, strong in body. This statement dovetails with our roles as leader, provider and protector.
2.5: Do: Implies being proactive, not passive or reactive. “Released from the law…we serve in newness of the Spirit,” proving ourselves “doers of the word.” As the Lord’s Prayer says: “Thy will be done.”
2.6: Everything in love: Sums up the law (Galatians 5:14) and implies a selfless, servant attitude.
.
3. 1 Corinthians 15:49: And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven.
3.1: Adam, the earthly man: We are born as the first Adam (Hebrew for man): self-centered, worldly in our flesh and full of sin.
3.2: Christ, the man from heaven: Our “righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ” and we have “put on a new self” through Christ. No longer “under the law” of the old covenant, our identity “in Christ” directs our heart, mind, and soul to the nature and character of Jesus Christ, the “life-giving spirit.” Christ-likeness
Posted on April 4th, 2008 by Jeff Purkiss
Filed under: Fathering/Mentoring | No Comments »