 I want to give you today an instruction from a father to his son. It applies to each of us here today, advice from a father to men. And I want to talk to you today briefly about how the example in which you live, the example that you set needs to be, ought to be an example that others can follow. So I want to share a message with you that I have entitled, Provide the Pattern. And would you one more time bow your head with me and ask God to speak to us individually this day. Lord as we are here today, we are here to hear from you. Lord I pray that you would speak to us, that you would tune our ear into hearing your still and quiet voice, that our eyes would be open to seeing you on the pages in your word, that our heart would be opened to your word taking root within our hearts and our lives, that we could be men that would bear much fruit, that all the people around us, our wives for those that are married, our children for those who are fathers, our siblings, our friends, our coworkers, our classmates, they would be able to pick from us and draw from us and what they would get would be evidence of you working in our lives. Lord I understand today that I have nothing to give these men apart from what your spirit would want to speak to them individually. And we thank you God that your word does not return void in the hearts and the lives of your men. And so as we've come here to receive from you, give each of us what we need individually this day. We ask all these things according to your will and in your son's name, Jesus Christ, Amen. As a man, you are called and ordained by God to the ministry. You are called and ordained by God to the ministry of leadership. To lead a godly legacy for those who would be following after you. Whether you realize it or not, you are an example. The only question is what kind of example are you? One is watching you. That may be a Christian brother. That may be a spouse. That might be a child. That might be a neighbor. But there are people that are looking to you. And we are called by God to lead by example. First Peter chapter five verse two says something for you who are seasoned saints speaking to elders. It says, care for the flock that God has entrusted to you. That may be your family, your children, your neighbors, whatever ministry that God has called you to, to care for them. And watch over it willingly, not grudgingly, not for what you will get out of it because you are eager to serve God. We are called to lead by example the ministry of leadership for those who would be following us and we are to do so in a way not out of the benefits that we will get. No pastor, no person, no minister in any capacity should serve in such a way because it's a benefit to me. Because I get this out of it, a true servant is one that gives selflessly. Well, how do you know if you're truly a servant? I've often said that when you're treated like one, it doesn't bother you. That's how you know you're a servant. Sometimes when we're treated like a slave, we don't like that. What do they think I am? Just a slave? You know? Hey, can you do this? Or hey, could you help me with these chairs? Or hey, could you help tear down the tables after? What am I, a slave? You know you're a servant of God when you're treated like one and it doesn't bother you. Whether you are parenting or pastoring your family or the president of marketing in your company, God has called you to lead, to be the example to the flock. In everything that you do, that it would be in such a way an example to those who would be watching. Whether you realize it or not, you have to be, you need to be for people's lives are depending upon it. For you younger men, Paul put it this way as he spoke to his young protege, Timothy. In 1 Timothy chapter 4, verse 12, he said, let no one despise your youth, but be an example, say that with me, an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Paul tells his young protege, Timothy, don't let anybody despise your youth. Paul was not telling Timothy to tell people, hey, don't despise my youth. I'm not going to let you despise me because I'm young. Paul wasn't telling Timothy to have that attitude. What Paul was instructing Timothy is in the way that you live, in the way that you conduct yourself, in love, in purity, in spirit, in the way that you present yourself in speech and as a man of God's word, live in such a way that it would not cause older men to despise you. So young men, you are called to lead and to be an example. Young men, saints, men that have been walking with the Lord, you are called to lead by example. We as believers are called to be an example to the believer. So let me ask you this, if everyone here at Calvary Chapel of the Chino Valley was exactly like you, what type of church would this be? If everyone did exactly like you do, if everyone prayed for Calvary Chapel like you pray for your church, would this be a church continued to be covered in prayer continuously and lifted up before the Lord? And would the Lord bless it and honor it and his favor be poured out on it because the men of this church pray for their church? Would the prayer meetings be overflowing with men that know the importance of prayer in studying God's word and Bible studies packed out or would they be sparse or be canceled? If everyone tithes exactly like you tithe or give financially like you give regularly, obediently, faithfully, would this church be able to continue to accomplish the ministry and make impact in missions and continue to be a movement that has impacted the world? If everyone attended church as regularly as you do, would we see men truly leading in the church by example? Or would there be people here sometimes once in a while when it was convenient, when there wasn't a game on or when there was nothing else to do? If everyone served faithfully in ministry like you serve in ministry, would the ministries be blossoming and flourishing and growing or would the ministries be struggling because there just isn't enough servants in the church? If everyone was exactly like you and if every single person in this church followed your example, what kind of church would this be? Would this be a church, Calvary Chapel of the Chino Valley that would continue to be strong, healthy and moving in the spirit of God? Or would this church cease to exist? If everyone followed your example? Answer these questions honestly within your own heart and you'll have the answer to the essential question, am I being an example of a believer to the believers? And that is what I want to talk to you today about. About the importance for you men truly to provide the pattern, the blueprints, the example that God has given in his word to you so that others can follow it. And in Chronicles, first Chronicles chapter 28, to set the stage for you, David the king is now an old man. He doesn't have long much left to live. So he assembles all of his leaders in the land and he tells them all that he had in his heart to do. David desired to build the temple, a place of worship for God that people could come into the presence of God and meet with God. And David desired his mighty men of valor and the people of Israel to have a place to come and to worship the Lord in. But David was not allowed to build that temple, that place of worship because David was a man of war and he had too much blood on his hand. So God would not allow David to build that temple. But God told David that Solomon, his son, who was in line to be the next king, would be the man that would build what is now known as Solomon's temple. So God gives that instruction to David. So David gathers the leaders and all the people of the nation. And he says to Solomon in front of them, these people as witnesses to this command in 1 Chronicles chapter 28, picking up in verse nine. David said in Solomon, my son, learn to know the God of your ancestors intimately. I wonder as a father, if we give that same instruction to our children, to our little brothers and sisters, to the people around us, the most important instruction we can give them is the exhortation to know God intimately. He says, worship and serve him with your whole heart and with a willing mind for the Lord sees every heart and knows every plan and thought. If you seek him, you will find him. But if you forsake him, he will reject you forever. So take this seriously. The Lord has chosen you to build a temple as his sanctuary. So be strong and do the work. Then verse 11, David gave Solomon the plans for the temple and its surroundings, including the entry room, the store rooms, the upstairs rooms, the inner rooms, the inner sanctuary, which was the place of atonement. David also gave Solomon all the plans he had in mind. David now gives, it says, the plan in verse 11. David gives Solomon, the King James version puts it, the pattern. David provides what is called the plan or the pattern. It's talking about the blueprints for the place of worship, the temple. David gathered everything, all the materials needed. He got the blueprints drawn up. Everything was ready to go, setting Solomon up for success in building this temple that David had in his heart to see flourish and grow. In other words, David said, son, this is what the temple of God is supposed to look like, be like. David couldn't build the temple. It was Solomon's temple to build. But David could provide the pattern to his son in which his son could follow. And then says in verse 19, after David gives detailed instructions throughout the rest of that chapter, he ends the instructions by saying this in verse 19, every part of this plan, David told Solomon, was given to me in writing from the hand of the Lord. Then David continued, be strong and courageous. And do the work. Don't be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord God, my God is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. He will see to it that all the work related to the temple of the Lord is finished correctly. Here's the application, men. Paul said in 1 Corinthians chapter 6, verse 19, don't you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who lives in you and was given to you by God? David couldn't build Solomon's temple. That was Solomon's temple to build. But what David could do was to provide the pattern in which his son was to follow. And you dads, husbands, brothers, leaders, ministers of God's word, you are called to do the same. You might wish you could build your kids' temples to tell them what to do and make their decisions for them, but it will come a time in their lives where they will have to make the decisions for themselves. But here's what you can do. It is your responsibility as men of God to provide the pattern, the blueprints, the plan of what a godly man looks like, what a temple should be built like, so that others who are watching you and looking to you can follow that example. Here's the instructions you would say, given to me in writing by God, follow them. This message is called Provide the Pattern. And David, well, he handed off some things to Solomon, in which the way he passed them down to him, it enabled Solomon to have complete success. And I like relating that to sports. Paul did that oftentimes, relating certain spiritual doctrines to sports. He talked about a wrestler, a runner, and a boxer. So I thought I would use the running analogy to give a picture to us today as men, how we ought to hand off what God has given to us, how we need to pass the baton. You know what a relay race is, or a baton race? You have to run the race, and you hand off the baton to the person that's coming after you, that's following after you in this race. You are passing it on to people that will continue the race after you have finished running your leg of the race. It's the very heart of what we hear in 1 Corinthians chapter 9, verse 24. Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it. Oftentimes, we think about our lives as a solo race. I need to run my race. But your race that God has called you to run is not a solo race, it is a relay race. And God has given you His instructions. And like a baton race, a relay race, you have the responsibility to hand off what has been given to you in such a way that those that would be receiving it could run in such a way that they could win their leg of the race. You have the God-given role as men, as husbands, as fathers to pass the baton. That is to arm and equip others for their role to bring godliness to the next generation. And the race that you're running, can I ask you? What is it that you're passing on? What is it that you're leaving behind? What is it that you're giving to others who are following your lead? What legacy are you going to lead when you leave this earth as you have that responsibility as men of God to pass on the biblical instruction and principles that will help the future runner to win the race that they are called to run? It's the heart of what we hear of the proverb in chapter 22, verse 6, to train up your children and the way that they should go so that when they grow old, they will not depart from it. Deuteronomy chapter 6, within that chapter, we are given what is called the great Shema. Jewish fathers would teach their children before the children would learn the ABCs, before they would learn math, before they would learn anything, they would first be taught the great Shema. From a young man, they would grow up learning this biblical principle. It would be the first thing that they would know, Deuteronomy 6, verse 5 through 7. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way, when you lie down and when you rise up. The character of our children tomorrow depends on what we put in their hearts today. And that doesn't only apply to you as fathers, but it also applies to each of you as men, for anyone who would be following your example. You have the responsibility to pass the baton, the godly instruction to those who would be running the race. So I wanna give you a few things today before we leave. The Olympic runners do that we can learn from in running our own race, and running this relay race that we're called to run biblically. First and foremost, you can write this down, number one, you need to run with the baton. If you drop the baton in a relay race, you are disqualified from the race. And so it is for the person of God. If you drop the baton instead of handing it off to the person that's coming after you, that's following your lead, then you too are disqualified from the race that God's called you to run. Men, you are responsible for the Lord to give those the pattern. Ephesians chapter six, verse four says, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger by the way that you treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction that comes from the Lord. In this race that we're running, we are called to impart instruction. And it's easy to drop the baton. You've heard the idiom, don't drop the ball. It means don't handle what's been given to you in a careless way, or by doing something foolish or stupid. And in the same way that we say don't drop the ball, I wanna encourage you men today, don't drop the baton. Don't mishandle in a careless way the instruction that God has given you. You have one of the greatest opportunities as men. Being in this church, Calvary Chapel of the Chino Valley, and sitting in some of the most solid, biblically profound, deep richness of God's word being taught from this pulpit, day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year, now for close to 40 years by pastor David Rosales and his faithfulness in teaching the word of God. But you have the opportunity to pass on what's been given to you. Don't drop the baton. Run your race and hand it off. In the way that you run, are you being careless with the example that you're setting? A study was done in Switzerland, which is not a Christian country by any means on family influence, on Christianity. It says if mom goes to church regularly and dad goes to church occasionally, that is mom going all the time and dad going sometimes, 3% of the children when they grow up and can make their own decision if they will go to church, if mom goes regularly and dad goes occasionally, 3% will make the decision to go. If mom goes regularly and dad never goes, 2% of the children when they grow up will go to church. If mom and dad go regularly together, 33% of children will choose to go to church when they grow up. Now if dad goes regularly and mom goes sometimes, 38% of kids will go to church when they grow up. And this is the most staggering of all the statistics. When dad goes regularly, consistently, faithfully to church and mom never goes to church, 44% of the kids when they grow up will make the decision to go to church. Now that doesn't mean your wives are off the hook from going to church and only the men need to come. But what that's saying is that your children are not looking to the mom to be the example. 33% will go when mom and dad both go regularly, but 44% will go when mom never goes, but when dad says, as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. It's what we're gonna do. This is what we've given our lives to. We have that opportunity to set the pattern, to give the blueprints the plan for others to follow. And running a relay race, the second thing to make sure that happens is that you are running in stride. Number two, write that down, running in stride. When you're running in stride, when you go to pass the baton, if you ever watch these Olympic runners where the runner in the front is placing their foot, the stride is exactly the same for the runner that's following behind them. They sink their stride perfectly together so that they're running in step. That is, wherever the runner going first places his foot, the runner following him will place his foot in the exact same place. Let me ask you, can your children, your wife, the people in your life that God would call you to lead, can they follow the direction in which you are running your family in? Can they follow the direction in which you are running your life in? There was a story of a man who left to go to the bar and he had a young boy at home and the boy saw his father's footsteps in the snow and so he began jumping in his dad's footsteps, following in his footsteps all the way. And finally, as the man was about to enter into the bar, he heard his young child call out, Daddy, Daddy, wait, wait for me. And he turned around and he ran up to his young son, angry that he wasn't in the safety of his home and said, what are you doing out here? You're not supposed to be going out here. You're not supposed to be coming here. What are you doing? He said, Daddy, I'm just following in your footsteps. And in that moment, that father realized where he was running, the places that he was running to was the place that those who would be following in his footsteps would eventually go. We need to follow in our heavenly father's footsteps because people are gonna be following yours. 1 Peter chapter two, verse 21 says, talking about Jesus said, leaving us as an example that you should follow his steps. We are to be imitators of God following in his footsteps so that we, like Paul the Apostle said, follow me as I follow Christ. We need to be making sure in the way that we run that we're running in the direction that others can follow. And third and finally, you need to pass the baton. Running with the baton and running in stride does nothing if you don't eventually pass the baton. And a couple of things I learned, I talked to an ex-Olympic athlete who was a track star and knew a lot about relay races. And so I picked his brain and I asked him a couple of questions that I wanted to share with you guys today. And I said, well, what are some keys to making sure you pass the baton well? And he said, hand placement. Every Olympic athlete that's in track knows that in order to pass the baton well, it's all about hand placement. Depending on how the handoff goes, it will determine whether you win the race or not. You have the ability to set your wife, your children, or anyone else that is running the race after you and following your example on a trajectory to win the race that God has called them to run in the way that you pass them the baton. Because where you place your hand is where they are going to be reaching. Let that sink in for just a moment because I wanna ask you, what are you putting your hand to? The Bible talks about ministry is putting our hands to the plow. Are you putting your hand to the plow? What are you reaching for? Because what you reach for where you place your hand is where those who are running after you are going to be reaching. Are you serving Jesus with your hands? Are you in church surrendering and raising your hand in church as an example to your children of a man that sold out for the Lord and surrendered his life to the Lord? Pastor, you lost me there. I don't raise my hands in church. I'll look weird. Yeah, but you'll go to a football game, take your shirt off, jiggle your fat belly and paint your face and go, woo! Because that's what manly men do. But raising my hand in church, do you know raising your hands is the universal sign for surrender? You can go anywhere in the world and someone puts a gun to your back, hands are gonna go up in the air. And everyone understands what that means. And so too as a Christian man, raising our hands is a outward act, a physical posture before the Lord of complete surrender. What do you do with your hands? Are you reaching for the word of God or are you reaching for the remote? Are you reaching for the word of God? Are you reaching for your smartphone? Are you reaching for the word of God? Are you reaching for the Bible? Excuse me, the bottle. Do you reach for the Bible or the bottle? Smartphone or the smart word of God? What do you put your hand to? Because where you are reaching is where their hands will be placed. Where you place your hand, is where they'll be reaching. So to pass the baton, one is hand placement. To pass the baton well, you also have to do it in the change over zone. In a relay race, there's a zone that's marked with lines that you have to pass the baton within. And it has to take place in the change over zone. And in your life, you have a period of time that God has given to you where you have the opportunity to pass the baton. If you wait too long, you're disqualified and the runner can't continue on. You waited too long to do it. And God has given you a period of time with those who are in your life presently, before God takes them somewhere else or they move out or whatever it may be. You have people in your life presently that you have the opportunity to pass the baton too in the change over zone. But if you wait too long, disqualification takes place. So you have to make sure you execute the passing of the baton in the time in which you have. And the third and final point of passing the baton is you need to stay on track. You have to run your race within the lane that God has given to you. If you cross over the line and get out of line, disqualification, if you get out of line in the way that you run your race because you know you're out of line in the way that you spoke and the way that you acted and what you were doing, you know it was out of line. And when you get out of line, you're disqualified and it will keep you from passing the baton to the next person. So my encouragement to you is to stay on track. Keep doing what God has called you to do. Keep running in the way that God would call you to run because no one has ever run a race if they got off the track before the finish line. That's how it works. You're welcome, Captain Obvious. And so too in the race that we're called to run until we cross into the finish line that has passed from this life into eternity, you have to stay on track. There's too many men. There's too many men that could have been used by God because I care about you, because I love you, because you're my brothers. There's been too many men that started to wander off, get out of lane and they got off track. God gave them an effective ministry. God gave them an amazing family and they've squandered it all. And I do not want to see that happen to you because I care about you and I love you. And I want to see you in heaven. And I want to see you live the life that God has called you to live on earth because he's created you for a plan and a purpose that only you can accomplish with the life that God has given to you. So stay on track. Don't lose sight of the finish line and stay in the lane that God has called you to run. You might say though, but Brennan, I didn't have a father that gave me the pattern in which my life was to be built upon. My dad wasn't one that went to church. My dad left our family. I never had a father to begin with or maybe you've been estranged from your father or your father has passed away. And you might say, Pastor Brennan, how can I pass this baton if I've never received the baton? I need to get the pattern to give the pattern. I want to close with this. You have a heavenly father that has given you the pattern to follow in writing in the word of God. Look at verse 19. It says, every part of this plan was given to me in writing from the hand of the Lord. Every part of the plan that God has for your life is given to you in writing in the word of God. The blueprints in which to build your life upon. But you have to be one that says, okay, well, if this is the blueprints and I need to know what the blueprints are saying, how I ought to build my life. And you'll find in Psalm 68 verse five, God declaring he'll be a father to the fatherless. In Psalms 27 verse 10, when my father and mother forsake me, then the Lord will take care of me. And you'll find God will always be the heavenly father that will be the perfect example to you in your life in which to follow. As long as you model your life after Jesus Christ, you have the pattern to be the man that God has called you to be. So now here's the pattern. Here's the plan. Here's the blueprints. But like Solomon, here's a word for us all. You have to do it. Verse 20, David continued, be strong and courageous and do the work. Don't be afraid or discouraged for the Lord, God, my God is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you. He will see to it that the work related to the temple of the Lord has finished correctly. God's going to give you what you need. And it's never too late to start becoming the men that God has called you to be. I've told pastor, I don't know if God can use me anymore. I don't know if God can use me. Well, what's your excuse? Saul, he was a Christian killer. Peter, he had a bad temper. Noah, he got drunk. Jacob, he was a cheater. David had an affair. Jonah ran from God. Gideon was insecure. Mariam, a Gossiper. Martha, a worrier. Thomas, a doubter. Sarah was impatient. Elijah was depressed. Moses stuttered. Zacchaeus was short. Abraham was old. Lazarus was dead. What is your excuse? If you take your life and you place it in God's hands and say, God, if you can take my life and you can use my life, God, I will be the example. I will follow you all the days of my life. And as you follow the Lord with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your might, as you follow the Lord, you'll be the example for others to follow. You Christian man, you give them the pattern and God is going to see them through.