God's Design for Menنموونە

Blameless Men

When my son was young, he was always really good at dealing with issues that arose. If he did something wrong, he would confess without being asked. If he hurt someone, he would say sorry. If he fought with his sister, he would make amends quickly.

He always seemed to want to keep short accounts and ensure any issues were brought out into the open and dealt with as soon as possible.

It's a good example of what today’s verse says about Job: he was “blameless.” The term is used regularly in Scripture, and is always a compliment (e.g., Genesis 6:9; Psalm 119:1; Luke 1:6; etc.).

To be clear, “blameless” doesn’t mean “sinless.” It doesn’t mean that Job was perfect, but it meant that he lived righteously as a rule, and whenever he did sin, he repented and sought the LORD quickly, leaving no sin standing for long.

A blameless man like Job walks in God’s ways to pursue righteousness and holiness. Whenever he stumbles, he confesses his sin without deflection or excuse and seeks the Lord’s mercy and forgiveness.

A blameless man wants to keep short accounts with God and others, pursuing the good and making things right whenever they do go wrong. This man loves God and others well, does his duty, takes care of those in need, keeps his word even when it’s hard, and leans heavily on the grace and mercy of God to forgive his failings.

Jesus, the perfect Man, was obviously blameless in that He always did right and He never sinned (Hebrews 4:15). No man but Him has ever hit that perfect target, but godly men look to Christ as the example to follow in all things, aiming for that perfect target all the same (1 John 2:6).

Men are at their best when they live a life hungering and thirsting for righteousness, living for justice, rooted in love, and leaning on Heaven’s mercy.

God’s design for men is for them to aim for perfection like Christ, and then freely confess and seek forgiveness whenever they miss (1 John 1:8-10), keeping their hearts pure and leaving sin behind as they seek the perfect One.

Prayer: Father, thank You for Your great mercy and forgiveness for my sins because of what Your Son Jesus did. I ask for Your love and compassion to come fresh upon me today, and that You would give me the strength to resist temptation and choose right. Amen.

Reflection: Is there any sin in your life that you need to confess? If so, take some time today to confess it to the Lord, and find another brother in the Lord whom you trust and confess to him as well, asking him to pray for you.