Biblical manhood is sorely lacking in our world today, but what does it mean to be a man of God? We’ll examine the basics in this introduction.
Please note: this article only covers the basics. There will be more articles posted to this site soon that deal with different topics related to being a Biblical man. It's a wide-reaching topic with many different avenues to explore!
As a young man myself, Biblical manhood is a topic that sits near and dear to my heart.
What does it mean to be a Christian man? What is Biblical manhood?
Let us cut right to the point: being a man of God is about putting Christ first in everything you do. That may sound like a ‘well… duh!’ statement, but hear me out.
There are two super-broad callings that God assigns to human beings in adulthood. If you’re female, you’re called to be a woman of God. If you’re male, you’re called to be a man of God.
These two callings have a great deal of overlap. Both men and women are called to submit fully to Jesus. Both are called to love sacrificially. Both are called to respect and honor other people. Both are created with equal worth before God, and both are equally vital in this life.
Without Biblical womanhood, things go wrong. Without Biblical manhood, things go wrong.
Now, while both of these roles are very similar in some ways, they’re also very different in others. Here are a few examples:
- Men (as husbands) are called to be the “head” of their households. Women (as wives) are called to submit to their husbands. (Ephesians 5:23-24).
- Men are called to love their wives as Christ loved the Church. Women are called to respect their husbands. (Ephesians 5:25-32).
- Men are called to provide and protect their families (1 Timothy 5:8).
Obviously, these are not exhaustive. There are many further distinctions made between men and women in Scripture. Suffice it to say that (a) the callings of Biblical womanhood and manhood are equally important and are alike in many ways, and (b) these two callings are also different and distinct in many ways.
The Distinct Calling of Biblical Manhood
Many in today’s culture will take issue with the idea that the callings of men and women are separate. However, you cannot get away from this idea in Scripture. If we’re being true to everything the Bible says, we must admit that Biblical manhood and Biblical womanhood are distinct callings of equal importance and equal worth.
Anyone who teaches that there is no distinction between manhood and womanhood is teaching incorrectly. On the other hand, anyone who teaches that manhood is superior to womanhood (or vice-versa) is also teaching incorrectly.
They’re separate, vital, and equal. Both are absolutely essential. Both are necessary. Both have many things in common.
But they’re distinct.
For men, the calling of Biblical manhood is inherently leadership-oriented. We are called to submit fully to Jesus in all that we do, and out of this submission, we are called to lead sacrificially.
If you’re an adult male who believes upon Jesus Christ, congrats: you’re a leader. You may or may not know it yet, but that is what you’re called to be. You may not feel ready for it yet, but that’s what you’re called to be.
Now, don’t get me wrong – biblical womanhood also involves leadership. But it’s generally exercised in a different way.
When I say “leadership,” I mean that men are called to get out in front and plow the proverbial snow off the roads so that others can walk behind them. Biblical manhood is about bearing burdens so that others don’t have to.
The Nature of Biblical Manhood
A man of God is called to lead. But before we can talk about leadership, we have to talk about the essence – or the nature – of genuine Biblical manhood.
To do this, let’s first look at what it is not.
One of the world’s most common misconceptions of manhood is that it is all about rugged individualism, self-reliance, muscle, and testosterone.
Take the American “ideal” of a man: he is tall, muscular, drinks beer, plays/watches sports, dominates at the office, takes home a big paycheck, has a trophy wife (or girlfriend), drives a sleek and sporty car, and puts his own sensual pleasures above all other things.
He needs no one, and – perhaps by association – no one truly needs him. He’s a free agent who can do his own thing on his own time.
How do I know this? I’ve watched a lot of TV, seen a lot of movies, and met a lot of people. If you’ve been immersed in American culture for any significant length of time, you will have to nod your head in agreement with what I’ve just written.
Our culture subliminally tells men that there is something wrong with them if they’re not muscular, sexually promiscuous, fun-loving, and money-oriented. According to the popular culture, a man ought to be someone who can get whatever he wants whenever he wants.
And that has been our ideal – more or less – since the 1950s. But here’s the problem: it’s wrong.
The American ideal of a man is something birthed out of consumerism. If you read back through the description written above, you will find that you can distill it down to one base essence: a man is defined by what he consumes.
This is why you can watch NFL games on TV and every commercial is about beer, cars, and medicines designed to increase a man’s sexual performance. The message is this: your manhood is defined by what you consume.
Want to be more manly? Drink this beer.
What to be more manly? Buy this car.
Want to be more manly? Take this medicine and have your share of fun.
Pop culture manhood is about consumption. But Biblical manhood stands in sharp relief to this.
Biblical manhood is about what you PRODUCE.
This is where the rubber meets the road. Men of God are supposed to be givers, not takers. They’re producers, not consumers. A man of God should not ask himself, “What can I get out of this?”
Rather, he should ask himself, “What can I give?”
Biblical manhood is about what you produce; it’s about adding value to others’ lives. Therefore, a Biblical man is first and foremost a servant. Nowhere was this more perfectly modeled than in the life of Jesus Christ, who is our ideal for what true manhood looks like.
Jesus, though He was unlimited in power and incomprehensible in intellect, humbled Himself to the point of dying on the cross for us. He endured not only physical pain, but spiritual anguish and the mockery of the world.
In fact, if you could go back in time to the day Jesus was crucified, you would find that virtually nobody considered Him a “success.” Instead, they would say He died for nothing. They would label Him at the very most a dangerous heretic, and at the very least a blundering fool whose life was marked by delusion.
How could someone with such power – after all, He claimed to be God – meet such a shameful death? Even in the days of ancient Rome, the popular culture’s ideal of masculinity was corrupt.
Jesus did not die a wealthy man. He did not die a powerful man, except in the eyes of those few who truly followed Him. He did not die a glorious death. His end was met on a cross, at the hands of executioners. The Roman ideal for death would have been one of heroic sacrifice in battle, where one laid down his life for the good of his fellow soldiers.
To the eyes of the world, Christ did not die an honorable or glorious death.
He died in shame, in dishonor, and – though He claimed to be God and claimed to bring a new kingdom to the world – was instead arrested, beaten, and killed. To all who watched, it seemed that this man had a mission… and failed in the most miserable and lowly ways possible.
But you and I know the truth.
Did Jesus really fail in His mission? Of course not! His life was not marked by delusion, weakness, and failure (as the pop culture of His day thought), but rather consistent humility, servanthood, and sacrifice. That is our template for manhood.
Truly, we have some big shoes to fill.
What does the life of Jesus Christ teach us about what it looks like to be a man? It teaches us that we do not define success in terms of dollars signs, possessions, or sexual partners. We do not define success in terms of power or position. We don’t even get to define success by what others think of us.
We define our success as Biblical men by one standard only: are we living for Christ, and in doing so, are we laying our lives down for the good of others?
That is the benchmark by which we measure Biblical manhood.
Biblical Manhood is About Leading Well
Leadership – particularly the leadership that should be embodied by men of God – deserves a long article in its own right. I fully plan on writing one soon. But as we near the end of this post, I’d like to simply touch briefly on the necessity of leadership.
Biblical men are leaders. But this leadership is not about “getting your way.”
Because our culture’s ideal of masculinity is corrupted, our culture’s ideal of leadership is also corrupted. Many people believe that leaders are those who always come first, who get the biggest portions, and who receive the most favorable treatment. They believe that leaders are those who, either by seniority or competence, deserve and receive the “best.”
But nothing could be further from the truth.
That is what our culture says leadership is, but it’s not true leadership. The culture’s view of leadership is one where the leader is being served, whereas Biblical leadership is all about serving others.
Jesus is our foremost example in this area. Just as He perfectly modeled Biblical manhood, He also perfectly modeled the Biblical standard of leadership.
As was shown earlier, Christ’s life was a constant example of sacrifice and servanthood. He was the leader of all leaders, the most perfect leader the world has ever seen.
And what did it get Him?
Well, it got Him crucified. Christ’s leadership was a constant laying down of His own interests for others. Christ did nothing from selfish ambition and nothing for the sake of gaining fame or fortune. He did everything out of sincere love and deep sacrifice.
This is our example.
Christ exemplified Biblical manhood, and – in doing so – Biblical leadership. As a man of God, your call is to die to yourself and use your strength to stand up for others. It’s a call to seek the welfare of your family, your friends, and your neighbors before yourself.
It is a call to imitate Jesus, and while we will never perfectly do this, it is up to us to submit to Him as best we can, trusting Him to empower us to live a life of service and worship.
As a last resource, please feel free to check out Paul Washer’s teachings on Biblical manhood. You can find them on YouTube and on other online sites. Here’s a shorter video that serves well as an introduction:
God bless.