What is a Man?

The Dominion Project Part 2

An unasked and unanswered question
Several years ago, Matt Walsh from the Daily Wire broke the internet and set droves of heads of purple hair on fire with his documentary, “What is a Woman?” It exposed the godless folly of Progressive Wokies in their gender delusion regarding male and female, and it showcased the inevitable reality that humanity exists on a sexual binary – male and female. The end of the documentary had Walsh and his wife define a woman simply as an adult human female. While true in the most basic sense, it misses the deep and profound reality of womanhood as created and purposed by God (but that’s an article for next time).

The question Walsh does not tackle, or really anyone else for that matter, is the mirror question which drove his documentary, and that is, “What is a man?” You would think that this second question is as important as the female version, but alas, it seems as if no one really cares to answer it honestly and intentionally.

I mean, there is no shortage of Red-Pilled Chads who want to offer their own pagan version of what it means to be a “real” man. They will say, in no particular order, that a man, or more precisely, a “high-value man” possesses the following attributes:

1. He has a six-pack and works out regularly
2. He is at least 35 years old
3. He is worth at least $1,000,000 and makes six figures a year
4. He is not married, but he can “commit” to one woman and have children with her
5. He has women on the side to satisfy his natural male drives and desires
6. He never cries in front of people, and rarely expresses his emotions

This hyper-macho description of masculinity seems more like what the Spartans would have embodied. But does it square away with how God created men to operate? Does it jive with Biblical categories and design? No. Not at all, and in no good sense. It seems, as is the Red-Pilled way, that their overreaction to the evils of Feminism have landed them in another unbiblical ideological ditch.

I will offer what I believe to be a robust Biblical definition of what it means to be a man, and I will spend the remainder of my post defending that, as well as showing how this right and proper understanding is essential for doing the work of Dominion. A man:

1. Assumes responsibility
2. Takes initiative
3. Leads courageously
4. Provides and protects

Let’s turn to the Word of God to see more fully and in detail this definition of a man both described and prescribed.

A lesson from Adam
As with all things regarding Dominion, the place to begin is at the beginning, back in the Garden of Eden, at the creation and commissioning of the first man, Adam. Here we see, both in God’s clear commands and in His obvious design, a picture of Biblical masculinity. It’s worth noting that unlike the rest of creation, which the Lord “spoke” into existence (that’s anthropomorphic language, because God does not have a mouth), Adam is created out of the dust of the ground (Genesis 2:7) with God’s hands (again, more poetic language). The Lord takes a special interest in creating humans, who bear His image (Genesis 1:26-27), and are given a special role in Dominion (Genesis 1:26 and 28).

Being made in God’s image means a few things, all of which deserve their own post, so I will mention them briefly here. First, it means that we share in what we call the communicable attributes of God, which are those attributes that both we and the Lord possess, obviously in different measures and qualities. Like the Lord, we can be kind, gracious, loving, and patient. Second, it means that we possess qualities which are similar but not identical to those which belong to God alone. We have minds, we can think and feel, we make real decisions that come from our will and intention, and we have and work out our purposes. Third, it means that we are supposed to “look like” God, in the same way that a good sculpture “images” its source. We should communicate to the world what God is like through our thoughts and actions, and the degree to which we obey and imitate Christ, we image the Lord well.

Back to Adam. The Lord created an ordered and well-kept Garden in the middle of a wild and untamed world (Genesis 2:8). He created Adam first and gave him a unique vocation and purpose – to care for the Garden and make the rest of the world look like this Garden (Genesis 2:15). Before Eve was created, Adam was tasked to work, bear fruit, and engage in Dominion. Adam was also given the Law of God before Eve was created (Genesis 2:16-17), and I believe this is significant (we’ll see that in a minute).

We know that these responsibilities were primarily for Adam, because the Lord said that what Adam needed was a “helper” to enable him to do what must be done (Genesis 2:18). This “helper” would enable Adam to do what he could not do by himself; not by taking Adam’s job or doing the same job, but by fulfilling a unique role, enabling the man to do what God had made him and him alone to do (Genesis 2:20-21).

When Eve was brought to Adam, he sang her a poem because he was so thrilled with what the Lord had done (Genesis 2:23). After this, the Lord tells us that His design includes a man leaving his family of origin, initiating the romantic union with his wife, and taking the lead in their marriage (Genesis 2:24).

Let’s summarize. Adam is given a vocation – working, producing, and providing. Adam is given responsibility. Adam is given the Law. Adam is expected to take the initiative and lead in his marriage. This was all a part of God’s original design, including before Eve was created.

Lessons from the Fall
While we learn much regarding what it means to be a man from Genesis 2, we also learn a significant amount from Genesis 3, a chapter that showcases Adam’s failures. Satan approaches Eve, knowing that her role is not to protect the family, nor is it to be primarily responsible for their well-being. Eve, rather than defer to her husband or tell the snake to speak with Adam, proceeds to step into a role that was never meant to be hers. She is also incorrect about the specifics of God’s Law (Genesis 3:2-3), which tell me that either Adam didn’t do a good job telling her, or she misunderstood; either way, Adam should have stepped in and taken responsibility for the whole situation. Instead, he was weak, passive, and irresponsible. Adam is said to have been standing there like a silent coward, and he follows his wife’s lead in eating the forbidden fruit (Genesis 3:6).

When the Lord engages with His image-bearers, He does not call out to them both, but rather Adam specifically, asking the man, “Where are you” (Genesis 3:9). Adam acts like a coward once again, and rather than owning his sins, he proceeds to blame both God and his wife, failing in all of his roles (Genesis 3:12). Adam is then cursed in such a way that his primary roles will now be difficult. First, he is told his job in providing and protecting will be difficult and exhausting (Genesis 3:17-19). Second, through God’s curse upon Eve, Adam is told that his wife will now quarrel with him, desiring his position and authority in their marriage (Genesis 3:16).

Let’s summarize: Adam failed to protect and provide for his wife; take responsibility for his wife, teach his wife God’s Law; lead his wife with courage and take the initiative in dealing with lies, temptation, and spiritual threats; and take responsibility for his own sin. Because of his failings, God calls out to the man, holding him responsible for the sin of eating from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and cursing his unique roles in Dominion.

It’s worth noting that throughout the rest of the Scriptures, this sin in the Garden is referred to as Adam’s sin, that Adam brought sin and death into the world, and that because we are all under the human headship of Adam, we inherit both his guilt and his curse (Romans 5:12-21; 1 Corinthians 15:21-22).

The Old Testament witness
As we move on from Genesis into the rest of the Old Testament, we see similar patterns of both God’s design for men and the consequences when men fail to do what God has created them to do. For time’s sake, I’ll zoom in on the life of King David, and we’ll see how David failed to be the man God created him to be, and the consequences of his actions also reflect his unique role and responsibility as a man.

David, who should have been on the front lines fighting with his men, decided to be passive and apathetic, opting to stay home and watch a beautiful woman bathe on her rooftop (2 Samuel 11:1-3). Then, rather than be faithful and lead well, he took what he wanted and had sex with Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11:4). David gets her pregnant (2 Samuel 11:5), and rather than take responsibility for his actions, he tries to cover it up by deception (2 Samuel 11:8-13). When that doesn’t work, he continues to not take responsibility for his sins by having Bathsheba’s husband murdered (2 Samuel 11:14-17). David then takes Bathsheba as his wife (2 Samuel 11:27).

Let’s fast forward. David now has several children with different women, which was both forbidden by God, against God’s design, and not in keeping with the role and responsibility of being a man. David’s son Amnon wants to have sex with his half-sister Tamar, which is forbidden (2 Samuel 13:4-11). So, just like his father, Amnon takes what he wants and rapes his half-sister (2 Samuel 13:12-14). Then, in his pathetic shame, he sends her away, having ruined her, and he refuses to take responsibility for his actions, which again, he learned from his father David (2 Samuel 13:15-19).

David’s first-born son Absalom, who was Tamar’s full brother, hears about this. David also hears about it, gets angry, and does nothing (2 Samuel 13:21). How could he? He was as bad as Amnon, and he had failed as a man. Absalom, however, is not content to do nothing. He also takes matters into his hands, and, just like his father David, decides to murder a man in order to get what he wants, which in this case is revenge (2 Samuel 13:28-29). David hears about this, tears his clothes in sorrow, and does nothing about it (2 Samuel 13:31). How could he? He also resorted to murder to get what he wanted, and his failures as a man and father were playing out in the lives of his sons.

Eventually Absalom flees, amasses his own army, comes back to Jerusalem, and he takes the throne from his father David, who flees in a shameful, pathetic manner (2 Samuel 15:13-17). Absalom then does something vile. He has sex with David’s concubines in the open for everyone to see (2 Samuel 16:22). This could have been Absalom’s way of showing how much more of a man he was than David. I guess this makes Absalom one of the first Red-Pilled bros in history.

Eventually David’s men kill Absalom, and David weeps bitterly over the death of his son (2 Samuel 18). Because David failed in his role as a man, the consequences were dire. He did not lead with courage, he did not take responsibility, he did not take godly initiative, and he did not protect. As a result, David ended up with 2 dead sons (3 including the baby he conceived with Bathsheba) and 1 raped daughter. The fallout of godless masculinity is devastating.

Very clear commands
The New Testament does not skip a beat in revealing what is required of men in order to obey the Lord and engage in the work of Dominion.

Men are required to take a primary role in providing for their families, as was God’s original intent as seen in Adam. “If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever” (1 Timothy 5:8). Laziness and apathy are not options for men, not if they wish to obey the Lord and line their lives up with His design and purposes. “For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living” (2 Thessalonians 3:10-12).

Right after Paul commands women to submit to their husbands (Ephesians 5:22-24), him being the leader and primary spiritual authority in their family, he offers men these sobering commands:

“Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband” (Ephesians 5:25-33).

What do we see in that passage? We see the definition of what it means to be a man working out in real time with their wives. He is to assume responsibility, take the initiative, and lead courageously. This is also the case with his children. While children are told to honour and obey both of their parents (Ephesians 6:1-3), fathers alone are told to, “not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4). Now, while moms are integral in this process, Paul wants his readers to know, as per God’s design and purposes, men bear a unique and primary responsibility in these matters.

I don’t want to get into too much detail, or this would be a very long article, but we even see in the life of the local church that God expects men to be leading and taking responsibility (1 Timothy 2:8-15; 1 Timothy 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9; 1 Peter 5:1-4).

Jesus is the model
While all of this may seem daunting for men, especially since the last 40 years have told men that being a man is toxic, or that they need to be effeminate or feminized, or the examples have either been the bumbling buffoon sitcom dad or the hyper-macho action star, we do have the prime example of manhood from someone who was Himself the epitome of masculinity, and that is the Lord Jesus Christ.

No one provided for His Bride and His Body like Christ did. He provided the atoning sacrifice for our sins, becoming the propitiation on our behalf. He provided a way for us to be united to the Father. He provided His continued presence with the sending and giving of the Holy Spirit. He continues to provide prayers and intercession on our behalf to the Father.

No one “took the first step” and initiated more than Jesus did for our salvation. He emptied Himself to take on human flesh, identifying with us, in order to reveal the Father to us in truth and glory. Even now, He is the one who is at work in us. He is the one who draws us to Himself in prayer, in worship, and in thanksgiving. We do nothing on our own, in our own strength, and of our own accord, save for Him doing the work first.

No one assumed responsibility for those under His care more than Our Lord and Saviour. He bore our sins. He took on our grief. He suffered for our iniquities. He drank the cup of God’s wrath for our transgressions. He stood in our place upon the cross. He is the primary agent in our sanctification. Spurgeon was correct, salvation is all of Christ.

No one leads His people more than Jesus leads us. He has led us to Himself, that we might respond to His goodness with faith – a faith that He has provided for us. He led the path of costly obedience to the Father, and He leads us down our own paths of costly obedience for the glory of God. He is the Good Shepherd who leads us to rest, to joy, and to peace, and He often does so against our stubborn desires to wallow in sin or self-pity.

Men, embrace who you were made to be. Embrace a type of masculinity that has been ordained and designed by God, one that has been modeled flawlessly in the Lord Jesus Christ. Reject the weak passivity or Red-Pilled machoism offered by the world. Assume responsibility. Take the initiative. Lead courageously. Provide and protect.

This is how we have Dominion.