Good: The Joy of Christian Manhood and Womanhood

by David Mathis, John Piper, Joe Rigney

Christian complementarity is the conviction that God created men and woman as his image-bearers — equal in dignity, but distinct in roles.

Contrary to popular opinion, these distinctive roles of men and women are not the cultural fads of a bygone era, but integral aspects of God’s good design for humanity, and therefore integral aspects toward humanity’s end — to glorify God by enjoying him forever.

Good: The Joy of Christian Manhood and Womanhood is a unique volume from 14 different contributors who set out to cast a vision for manhood and womanhood that is rooted more in beauty than mere ideology, more in gladness than mere position. This book’s aim is to capture and highlight this indispensable accent for an emerging generation of Christians.

Genres: Theology, Christian, Nonfiction, Christianity, Relationships, Marriage

113 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

David Mathis (MDiv, Reformed Theological Seminary Orlando) is executive editor at desiringGod.org and an elder at Bethlehem Baptist Church in the Twin Cities of Minnesota. His seminary experience includes Reformed Theological Seminary and Bethlehem College & Seminary, where he now serves as adjunct professor.

Reviews

[Miranda · Rating 3 out of 5]

It would have received a 4 for a generally good appeal to Biblical gender roles and even addressed transgender issues in a logic way without overly-emotional ranting.

But, the chapter on "feminism" slid back into the more common trope of Christian writers bashing on topics they don't agree with nor fully understand - the writer of this chapter paid brief lip service to feminism's role in securing the vote and allowing women to escape subservience/abuse. She then quickly pivots to assume that all modern "feminists" are the same self-centered, workaholic, man-hating, and snappily angry women she is based purely on personal anecdotes. She then gets to declare proudly that "feminism" is a bad thing despite the main core feminism being the belief that the sexes are both equal in worth, which the book previously defined as God's design.

If you skip that chapter, you might come out with some good insights.

[Sandi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book with a group of gals from church. I had mixed feelings about this book when I was reading it. In the end I was able to appreciate the book, but found it lacking. This book is a collection of various authors covering different aspects of manhood and womanhood. Each chapter is brief. The brevity of the chapters makes the book read like a collection of movie previews, you just get a snippet into the topic to sorta wet your appetite, but not enough to satisfy all your questions. This book did work well in a book club setting, because it was quick and easy to read and provide lots of discussion opportunities. I did appreciate how most chapters embraced the fact that their time was short, and so they took a step back to give you the big picture of the topic at hand. In the end I found myself with a hunger to know more about the topic. Sorta like an appetizer gets you ready for the main meal.

[Damilola · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great quick read that culls from several Christian voices (male and female with unique faith testimonies) all to affirm complementarianism as seen in scripture and as explained (to the secular observer) in the way men and women relate differently.

[Mae · Rating 4 out of 5]

A book on Christian complementarity.

[Cassie Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The topics of gender and God-given roles are touchy and most people shrink under the force of militant feminism. However, this book handled the topics beautifully. Several different authors, both men and women, tackle the simple-yet-complex issues of manhood and womanhood.

From dissecting both masculinity and femininity and defining the differences as good, this book opens a pathway to honest discussion about the roles God has assigned for us. This book continuously affirms that men and women are equal. There is no doubt about that. However, it also explains the wonderful way men and women compliment each other.

If you are struggling with what it means to be a man or a woman, take a look into this insightful book.

[Nathan Carter · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book represents my position, but as a book it wasn't great. Seemed more like a collection of blog posts, rather than a well-reasoned argument. Joe Rigney's chapter, "Masculinity Handed Down," was excellent, though. I also really liked Courtney Reissig's chapter - "My Recovery from Feminism."

[Mark Kennedy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although short this book packs in a lot of substance and has a well rounded biblical framework.
Covering topics like leadership, humility, marriage, feminism, transgender and so on. I liked that those who wrote each section knew what they were on about and gave good analysis of the surrounding culture and context of our day and how we got to this point. Highly Recommend this free ebook

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good stuff. Not hugely revolutionary but basically faithful and with some fresh ways of expressing old truths. Probably unlikely to convince the unconvinced but encouraging to the convinced and potentially formative for the new/investigating/open-minded believer. A bit uneven in quality as these kind of compilation works tend to be. I particularly appreciated chapter 8 to the end.

[Lawson Hembree · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, a simple overview to biblical manhood and womanhood. The most helpful chapter was definitely the one on transgender issues. There were a lot of typos, which was unfortunate. For a more in depth look at manhood and womanhood, check out Piper's book on the subject.

[John Goodsell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book for men and women married, single, or about to be married. The book shows how the Biblical harmony of man and woman makes them equal yet different. And shows us that we are different for a reason.

[Matthew Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Refreshing positive statement of Christian manhood and womanhood. Crisp and clear writing. Winsome, strong, and compelling to me. Great reminders for this husband, father, and pastor.

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this in July 2014

[Dwain Minor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this very timely book. It advocates the positions I hold in a very good way on issues like gender roles, homosexuality, and transgender issues.

I found it to be good and helpful.

[Joshua · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chapters 1-3 were the best.