Ask a boy what he wants to be when he grows up. Chances are he’ll give you a manly answer – policeman, fireman or Batman. I wish that every boy would grow up to be a man, but it seems that some boys just grow older without growing up.

So what is a real man? Some say that a man is physically strong or good at sports. Still others think a real man is good at fixing things or popular with women.

It is possible to be a grown up male, but not a good man according to God’s standards. According to the Bible, a righteous man obeys God. He is honest and virtuous. He is not afraid to do what is right. He defends and serves the weak. He is humble and kind.

The best definition of what it means to be a real man is exemplified by Jesus. Jesus was not only God, he was also the best man that ever lived. There is no better model than Jesus.

Jesus was meek. This does not mean that he was weak. To be meek means to have strength under control. His strength was always used for God’s cause, never for selfish gain.

Jesus also was obedient. We often think of “manly men” as being fierce, independent sorts who answer to no one. Jesus submitted to the proper authorities appropriately, whether it was to his parents, to the government or to God. Jesus obeyed God even when he didn’t want to.

He prayed, “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done” (Luke 22:42).

Jesus was humble. He put others first and was not ashamed to do the work of a servant. “Now that I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet” (John 13:14).

A real man isn’t too proud to do lowly work in the service of others.

Jesus was kind and compassionate. But this doesn’t mean that he never spoke his mind. Jesus told the truth, even when it hurt. He corrected hypocrisy when he told the Pharisees that they were like whitewashed tombs, clean and nice on the outside, but dirty and filled with rotten bones on the inside. Jesus also stood up for those who couldn’t speak for themselves. A Jesus sort of man uses his strength, power, courage and convictions in the service of others, not himself.

If you want to be a real man, be like Jesus! “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus, who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. He humbled himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross!” (Philippians 2:3-8). What sort of man are you?