Leadership Library Spotlight
by on Aug 26th, 2010 at 10:12 pm
Book: The Masculine Mandate: God’s Calling to Men
Author: Richard D. Phillips
“That is the Masculine Mandate: to be spiritual men placed in real-world, God-defined relationships, as lords and servants under God, to bear God’s fruit by serving and leading.” p. 9
Many Christian books on manhood will offer descriptions of what real men are supposed to do, but they fail to construct a prescriptive idea of who a man is supposed to be. Readers are given a treatment on rules, regulations, and behaviors without a proper understanding of why these rules, regulations, and behaviors should even exist and how they work together to form a man.
Fortunately, Richard D. Phillips attempts to avoid this mistake by concentrating on the reasons for man and the elements that form him. In this book, Phillips bases his definition of manhood on the first man, Adam, and the initial mandate that God gave to this initially sinless person. His reason for existence is directly linked to the fact that he bears the image of God. Man is, therefore, to rule over the world and cultivate its resources in a way that would demonstrate who God is to this same world.
Even though this mission is impossible to complete without God’s provision of woman, Phillips still notes that men have been given two unique responsibilities that show themselves in every activity and area of life: relationships, marriages, parenting, the church, work, etc. These unique responsibilities are the call to work and keep.
Working involves activity. Men are designed and expected to be active in leading the world. Every task, however menial or important it might seem, is supposed to bring glory to God and benefit mankind. Passivity, laziness, and purposeless living are all ruled out of a real man’s life by the very nature of God’s original mandate in Genesis 1-2.
Men are also keepers, which is to say they are protectors. Men should protect what matters to God: His message, His people, and His creation. There is no stage of life in which men cannot be seeking to protect the spiritual, physical, and emotional health of those who have been put under their care.
What makes this book valuable to the primary readers of this site (single men, 18-26yrs of age), is the attention he gives to issues beyond marriage and family. I know that when I was young and single, I did not really want to spend what little money I had on books about a stage of life that I did not experience. Many books on manhood also seem to double as books on marriage or parenting, and you might not be in that place yet. While you would be a wise person to think and plan ahead for these phases of life, you will be able to gain wisdom for your stage of life now from this book.
However, Phillips’ book also sets aside portions that concentrate on marriage and parenting, so you will be able to pull this resource off your shelf many times in the future and still find valuable instruction from it if/when those days arrive in your life. Personally, I was challenged by his chapter on discipling children, especially when they are still young (pp. 93-105).
So, if you want a book that will deal with the questions of “why” and “what” before launching into the issue of “how,” this resource would be a good start.