Male

So God created man in his own image,
in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
– Genesis 1:27 –

This axiom—that God made mankind as ‘male and female’ is a fundamental truth of the Christian worldview. However, it is not so plain to our Western culture. No longer is gender a biological given, reinforced by a Judeo-Christian ethic. Rather, according to most secular theorists, gender is a social construct, something that each individual discovers through a process of trial and error.

To engage our culture, we need to know what God’s word says about sexuality and gender.

In this week’s sermon, I explore what it means to be made in God’s image, as male and female. The sermon follows the outline of redemptive history—(1) God’s design for men and women in creation, (2) the effect of the Fall on gender, and (3) how redemption in Jesus Christ restores the created order. Let me know what you think.

Male and Female: God’s View of Gender (selected Scriptures from Genesis 1-3)

For the rest of the sermons in this series (‘God’s Design for Sexuality and Marriage’), go to Sermon Audio.

Soli Deo Gloria, dss

I love Biblical Theology that informs daily living, and I love my son, so I have two great reasons to commend Owen Strachan’s three-part series on “A Biblical Blueprint for Manhood.” Owen, a good friend who I greatly respect, traces out biblical wisdom for raising young men who are strong, on the alert, standing firm in the faith, acting like men, and doing all things in love (cf. 1 Cor. 16:13-14). Considering age-graded aspects of biblical boyhood, adolescence, and manhood, these CBMW blogs esteem biblical wisdom over and above anything which the world has to offer. Here is an excerpt:

Many young men about to graduate from college seem to realize that adolescence is getting a bit old. It’s slightly weird to dress and talk and look like a high-school boy while pushing into the twenties. Yet such men have precious little sense about what to do with that realization. So they lose themselves in a sea of self-indulgence, floating with a vague sense of shame and inadequacy. In the past, American manhood was biblically informed and defined by certain events and experiences. Now, many men do nothing but drift. Though the Bible does not spell out in a single passage the way a boy becomes a man, it does include some poignant exchanges that provide clarity in the presence of confusion.

You can read them all here:

A Blueprint for Manhood, Part 1: The Problem, a Solution, and the First Few Years of a Boy’s Life

A Blueprint for Manhood, Part 2: In Adolescence and Beyond, the Importance of Living for Others

A Blueprint for Manhood, Part 3:Maturity, Singleness, and the Legacy Every Man Can Leave

May we be biblically-reformed men, and for those who are bringing up boys, may we pray for and work towards shaping young men who walk wisely by fearing God, loving others, picking up the cross daily to follow Christ–the true man!!!

Sola Deo Gloria, dss