Our Scriptural Order of Priorities
(Adopted from Dr. Tony Evans)
“The scriptural order of priorities is God, spouse, children, parents, extended family, brothers and sisters in Christ, and then the rest of the world. While sometimes decisions must be made to focus on one person over another, the goal is to not be neglecting any of our relationships. The biblical balance is allowing God to empower us to meet all of our relationship priorities, inside and outside our families.”
https://www.beautifulchristianlife.com/blog/12-wonderful-responsibilities-god-has-given-men
So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them (Gen. 1:27).
Millions of men around the world faithfully strive to honor God in all their vocations in life. Here are ten wonderful responsibilities God has given to men:
1. To Work – The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. (Gen. 2:15)
2. To Be Courageous – “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” (Josh. 1:9)
3. To Be Strong – Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. (1 Cor. 16:13)
4. To Love – And he [Jesus] said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. (Matt. 22:37-39)
5. To Be a Husband – Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. (Gen. 2:24)
6. To Be the Head of His Wife – For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. (Eph. 5:23-24)
7. To Serve Sacrificially – Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. (Eph. 5:25) Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13)
8. To Be a Father – The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice; he who fathers a wise son will be glad in him. (Prov. 23:24)
- Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. (Eph. 6:4)
- It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? (Heb. 12:7)
9. To Be Compassionate – Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered. (1 Pet. 3:7)
- As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. (Ps. 103:13)
10. To Provide – But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. (1 Tim. 5:8)
11. To Be Accountable – But I want you to understand that the head of every man is Christ, the head of a wife is her husband, and the head of Christ is God. (1 Cor. 11:3)
12. To Be Honorable – The righteous who walks in his integrity— blessed are his children after him! (Prov. 20:7)
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. (Phil. 4:8)