Book Review: The Masculine Mandate - God’s Calling to Men

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Book Review – The Masculine Mandate 

God’s Calling to Men

by Richard D Phillips

 

This Western world we live in, is rapidly forgetting about Men. The topic of Masculinity is now counter cultural, and almost ‘taboo’ in our present times. Never before has there been a ‘worse’ time in history to be a Man. In the last 30 or so years, our worldly culture is now drifting away from male authority, masculinity and leadership. Now mainstream media, political parties, sporting icons and Hollywood are embracing and pushing equality in the likeness of the LGBTQ, Feminist and Socialist movements.

 

That’s the world we live in, and we are all impacted by it. Our sworn enemies and the influences of the world are after us Christian Men. Think about it, are we not all confronted by this anti-man ideology? Are we being Leaders in our homes? Do we maintain and promote, discipline, instruction and leadership in the home environment, or more personally in our marriages? What about our Church Community? Do we show the same zeal for the church as for our own earthly kingdoms?

 

So in light of this, a book that I would like you to consider is, The Masculine Mandate, authored by Richard D. Phillips. Phillips does a great job of highlighting where the source of this Godly inspired Leadership comes from. I found this book to be quite ‘catching’ and I really do think that Phillips’ writing style draws the reader in. What’s also enjoyable about this book is that it’s very easy to read. And if you’re like me and not a big reader, not a worry; if you discipline yourself to read it, you will get through it easily. If you find that you really don’t have time to sit down and read, there is an audio version available online, so if you would rather listen to it and ‘read’ it that way, that is a good option.

 

What was enjoyable about ‘The Masculine Mandate’ was how Phillips shows that already in the Garden of Eden, God called Man to show Leadership in the task that God gave Adam. Phillips uses Genesis 2 as the basis for this mandate. And that’s important to note, because that sets the tone of what God calls Man to do. It’s here in Genesis 2 that God’s People should search for the Bible’s basic teachings on Manhood. As the author states clearly in the Chapter 1 of this book; ‘When it comes to practically every question about God’s Intentions for men and women, the answer is almost always the same: go back to the garden.’

(Quote: Chapter 1 Page 5)

That’s the nice part about this book, you realise that this style of leadership which was founded in the Garden of Eden affects every single aspect of our lives, and Phillips goes into great detail on each of those spheres and shows the reader what this looks like.

 

And this brings us to the key themes of the book, specifically the calling of Men; our work, our family and our church; that’s our garden and we are to tend and keep it in the light of what Genesis 2:15 says. Phillips indicates that this is the leadership we are to show, that’s what God commanded us to do, and that’s how we are to live. If we don’t tend and keep our work and our families, how will we ever be able to lead in our Church? I’m sure in our circles most us of would believe in hard work and effort, but do we work just as hard in our families and tend to the hearts of our wives and children? You wouldn’t let your earthly investments and portfolio slip away, so make sure your Families don’t either, and in the same light, tend to the hearts of the people in your church community in the body of Christ. You wouldn’t want that to slip away would you? So, Men, this is our garden, tend and keep it!

 

I would encourage all Men to read this book, after all it speaks specifically to us Men. In my opinion, I think that those suited for this book would be anyone who is at the age where they are making big decisions in their life, leaving school, choosing a career, in a relationship etc. I also do believe that this book would be great for a Father and Son to read together, or for a new and young married man to read to help him in his marriage.  This book is helpful in the big moments of your life as the content sets the foundation to what our mandate is and provides you with the building blocks to grow.

A number of years ago I did a study on this book with a group of men, and one of the real joys of doing this was that it provided us with a number of challenging and wholesome discussions. Out of that experience not only did I enjoy reading and studying a wholesome book, but I also gained some good friends out of it.

 

I also strongly encourage our more experienced Brothers, including those who have served in office, to read and study this book because I think it would do you well. Your wealth of wisdom and knowledge could really be valuable to help lead others. It is you brothers, who need to lead, direct, and encourage those younger men and brothers. May you be known for your Godly character not by how rich you are and what you have. Because if that’s you, do really want to be known for that? Is that service to God, and is that leading by example? That’s tending the garden of our earthly kingdom, and it’s certainly not tending and keeping the garden that our Lord calls you to keep. Rather, it should be your Godly character that sets the example, your love for God and His Church, and your care for your brothers and sisters. All these themes, and many more are expressed by Phillips in this well written and engaging book.

 

So Men, Tend and Keep your garden, your mandate, your calling! And may God be glorified in our work, in our homes and in the Church!

 

Malachi Pleiter , Mundijong