What Would Jesus Do?.... Beyond the Bracelet....

Lately God has been convicting me of how I should respond to different situations. Many times we will respond to something that happens or something that is said in a sinful manner, and it is only by the application of the gospel that this can change. The famous phrase, “What Would Jesus Do? (WWJD)”, has been plastered on bracelets and t-shirts and worn proudly by Christians everywhere wanting to be a witness for Christ. Many times though the wearer of such propaganda does not effectively answer the question of what Jesus would actually do in the situation they are facing. If any thought is actually given to what Jesus may actually do the answer is most often found in a subjective perspective by the one asking the question. Gospel truth is seldom applied to such a question, and the person is left to decide for himself or herself, what Jesus may or may not have done.

As Christians though we must come to see that the gospel informs us of how we should respond to every situation life may throw our way. This is because of the way God has already responded on our behalf. From before the foundations of the earth God had prepared a response to the issue of sin. That response was the Cross of Christ. He responds to our sinful rebellion in both a manner that vindicates His holiness, and demonstrates His immeasurable love for the sinner. The cross has two sides to it that we must consider. While Gods love is demonstrated through the cross, His wrath is poured out on the cross. We see this in a scriptural contrast of John 3:16 and Isaiah 53:4-5. This is the gospel in its simplicity, that Christ died for sinners of whom I am foremost (1 Timothy 1:15). In light of the cross, God calls us to respond to every situation in a manner that reflects the truth of the gospel.

Here is a practical example:

I have sinned against somebody, or somebody has sinned against me. The gospel calls me to repent of my sin and go to them to be reconciled. I am also called to forgive them because I have been forgiven much. The gospel tells us that we were once God’s enemies but through the cross we have been reconciled to Him. Believers should be reconciled to one another in the midst of conflict but that is only possible through the cross.
The problem with asking the question of what Jesus would do is that Jesus never had to repent of sin. We on the other hand are commanded to repent. That is why I say scratch the question, “What would Jesus do?” and instead ask yourself “How does the gospel apply?”

" November is our month"

This morning, as I rose from the confines of my covers, and broke free from the shackles of tyranny with which my small extended twin size bed had previously used to enslaved me, I once again began to think. And as I sat on the edge of the newly defeated bed, and tried to reason through what seemed to be a hundred years of sleep, somewhere in the back of my mind I began to remember that I had once(ten hours earlier), been in the process of creating a blog for men.......

So all morning I have deliberated over what would be an appropriate beginning to Solo Masculinity, and of course my first thought was that it would have to be extremely theological, so that the readers would not feel like we were just here to play around. So I began to think(by this I mean I turned the t.v. on), and a movie called "Sweet November" was on. I only caught the last thirty minutes or so, but I was able to obtain the gist of the movie, and before I could fight it I had been captured. I sat there and watched as a terminally ill Charlize Theron runs out of the house, with love struck Keano Reeves following closely behind. He shortly catches up to her, and she begs him to let her go(at this point she is talking about going home to be with her family whom she hasn't seen in years so that she can die).He says he loves her. She tells him in so many words that she needs him to remember her beautiful, because it'll give her strength; to know that someone remembers her that way. He begins to fight back tears. She tells him that they know she is coming and that it's better, that she needs him to do this for her. She takes off her scarf and blind folds him, and she begins to run away. Shortly after, she turns and looks wistfully, and smiles through tears. Keano Reeves begins to walk towards the spot where they last showed her, blindfolded, one foot at a time, with arms outstretched. However when he gets there, he takes off the blindfold, and she is gone.

At this point I am standing, clutching the remote to my chest, and praying she will run back up the stairs at any moment(of course she never does). I turn the t.v. off and throw the remote on the couch, and begin to walk around my house at a fast pace, humming, in an attempt to curb the impending tears. I don't, but I begin to laugh.....they got me.

Now I'm sure your saying, "Alex, why are you revealing this, I'd never tell if that happened to me."
That is the very reason I tell you . I never want to feel that way again as a result of a movie. Not only is it just that, a movie, but it goes against everything i stand for inside as a man. And the website is called "Masculine Alone", not "Masculine Alone and Sometimes Feminine Too!!!"

So I have sat down and made a list of what to look for in a movie title, so that you won't end up in a similar predictament.(just a short note to those of you who are not single:you may have no choice in watching these sorts of things, but you can know ahead of time and prepare)

1.If you catch yourself at home, and a movie comes on, and in the title it has words like sweet, hope, love(obvious),rain, serinity,anything about arms or the word kiss; turn it off.

2.Now if you are not so lucky as to be warned by the title, watch the first fifteen minutes and if you find out something tragic, and there is a main actor and actress in the movie, turn it off.

3.Listen to the music. If you begin to realize that you are getting a little melancholy just from the music that is playing soflty in the background, turn it off.

4.Now if you make it through most of the movie and are still oblivious to the impending danger on your manhood, and all of a sudden she is crying and he has his finger pressed against her lips saying,"don't speak", you may be too late. Do not panic in this situation, simply begin to think about how fake the tree is that they are standing under(or whatever the prop may be), burp, think about how good a bowl of chili sounds, and then turn off the t.v.

Now i realize that there are a few times where you will be sucked in, and you will be sitting there at the end, biting the sleeve of your sweater and blinking through tears, wishing that Scarlet wouldnt have been so mean and perhaps then she'd still be in Red's arms, so in these instances, there are a few things to make sure you do not do.

1. Do not, in any way relate this movie to something or someone that you know.(especially one of your sisters at the church, if this occurs it could be days before you get it all out of your system, not to mention you won't be guarding your heart or theirs')

2. Do not, in a moment of extreme emotional distress, put on your Enya c.d. or listen to anything country(for those of you that are extremely caucasion, refrain from any Sarah Mclachlan, you know who you are

3. This may be the most important one of all,(one of which I have been guilty of more than once) do not talk to anyone about the movie, or tell anyone you saw it(unless you are in the situation where a brother is unaware and is thinking about seeing it, and in this case still downplay your reaction to it to brief moments of sadness but no tears)

Men this is not a laughing matter. Society is throwing everything at us these days to destroy our masculinity, and we can't be caught unaware.

Below i have listen a few movies that could cause these reactions, but are must see anyway

Pride and Prejudice

Gone With the Wind

Fiddler On the Roof

While You Were Sleeping

A Beautiful Life

To Sir With Love

Garden State

Great Expectations(the original not that garbage with Ethan Hawke

Wuthering Heights

Hope Floats

These are just a few, if you know of any that are must sees, let us know we will update this in a few days, and if you have recently been a victim to a movie like Sweet November, let us know of the name too(anonomously of course) so that we can make men aware of these impending dangers!!!!!

May God be with you in your fight!!!

Alex