Biblical Masculinity: Jesus Promised Storms

3 MIN READ ◦ DOUG GILES

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.” When Jesus had finished these words, the crowds were amazed at His teaching.

- Matthew 7:24-28

So what’s masculine about the above? I can hear the nasally critical tinkerpot carp. Well, Dinky, it’s these three ditties:

Jesus promises pain.
Not everyone makes it.
His preaching had a punch.

Let’s look behind Door Number One shall we? It’s crystal clear, at least to me, that Jesus promises pain. He doesn’t say if you get hit by a storm, but when you get hit by a storm.

In contrast to Christ’s clear teaching regarding the promise of pain in this life, we have our current crop of ear-tickilin’ …butt-kissin’ effeminate ministers who lie to believers telling them once they say ‘yes to Jesus’, life will become an uninterrupted lite beer commercial of trouble free living, one of non-stop pixie dust and candy canes.

Jesus nuked that heretical notion in His first podcast.

Everyone gets a storm.

Everyone will have bad things happen to them.

What’s masculine and refreshing about this promise of pain is:

It’s nonsense free. Jesus forewarns folks of impending, could be calamitous, trials heading towards everyone who strolls this terra firma and they could be devastating if you’ve been playing games in a Christian Disneyland, not erecting your life on His eternal principles. That’s man stuff.
This shock-and-awe, reality based revelation, laid to the psyche of those who have ears to hear causes them to prepare accordingly and build their lives well. Forewarning equals forearming to the shrewd follower of the Galilean. Here Jesus is being a drill sergeant slapping His troops around and getting them ready to rumble in a spiritual war that’s about to hit them in the kisser.
Effeminate pastors who love to be loved, don’t brand their congregation with such an austere wakeup call because that type of intel thins their herd and they need that herd to buy their bunkum because BMWs can be oh, so expensive these days.

Another masculine aspect that Jesus leveled on the listener is something you don’t hear too much of nowadays, namely: God is a tester and not everyone passes the test.

In our effete days of extreme wussification, we omit stringent testing of the kiddos in schools because they’re deemed to be mean and could shame your stupid kid for being a moron who’s been playing around instead of paying attention.

Indeed, in our times we give participation ‘trophies’ to clods who rocked up in 9th Place or ran the wrong way in a relay race.

Not so with Jesus.

He gives it to the crowd straight: The storm/test is coming and it will reveal whether or not we have built according to His word. If we have, then we’ll be fine. If we haven’t, well …don’t blame God or your mommy … or anybody else. Blame yourself.

And lastly, Jesus wowed the crowd because He spoke with authority. His preaching had a punch and I pray to God that there’s video in heaven of Him preaching back in the day because I would love to see how he preached compared to the sweeties today that fill pulpits around our nation.

I travel a bit, preaching around our country, and I’m disturbed by the lame, nicer-than-Christ, Sons of Charmin who’re supposed to be Sons of Thunder.

There are too many that lack authority.

They lack gravitas.

They’re like sappy Christian versions of Jimmy Fallon.

They don’t scare people.

They don’t convict the congregation.

They’re puppets, not prophets.

They’re echoes and not a voice.

They’re not John The Baptist, they’re Juan The Babetist and it is some sad and pathetic junk.

The prophets, apostles, and the Chief Dragonslayer Himself, Jesus spoke with authority. They branded the listener. They spoke on behalf of God, not a denomination and not from their fragile little ego that needs lukewarm sheeple to lavish mad praise on them because they live for the approval of men rather than the approval of God.

I read the bible cover to cover a few years ago as a new Christian. To me it reads more like the movie 300 than the lazy, feel good bs I hear at the church we go to. Believe it or not, I liked church less after actually reading the bible. But, this book basically told me why. It lets me know that I am not alone in thinking Christ was not a weak-hipster. Instead he was a man, with passion, fortitude, and unwavering strength. Read and enjoy this book. And, thank you to Mr. Giles.