Designed for Joy: How the Gospel Impacts Men and Women, Identity and Practice

by Owen Strachan (Editor), Jonathan Parnell (Contributor), Denny Burk (Contributor)

“Male and female he created them.” —Genesis 1:27

It’s one of the most important—and controversial—topics of our time.

God created men and women in his image—equal in value and complementary in roles. These distinctive roles are not the vestiges of a bygone era, but integral to God’s timeless good design for humanity.

Designed for Joy includes fresh contributions from fourteen young leaders, casting a unified vision for Christian manhood and womanhood. Whether discussing the significance of gender, the truth about masculinity and femininity, the blessing of purity, or the challenge of raising children in a confusing world, this practical resource challenges us to embrace God’s good design—for his glory and our joy.

Genres: Christian, Theology, Faith, Nonfiction, Christianity, Cultural, Gender Roles

144 pages, Paperback

First published July 15, 2015

About the author

Dr. Owen Strachan is Provost and Research Professor of Theology at Grace Bible Theological Seminary (GBTS). Before coming to GBTS, he served as Associate Professor of Christian Theology and Director of the Residency PhD Program at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (MBTS). He holds a PhD from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, an MDiv from Southern Seminary, and an AB from Bowdoin College. Strachan has published fourteen books and writes regularly for the Christian Post, and Thoughtlife, his Patheos blog. Strachan hosts the City of God podcast. He is married and is the father of three children.
You can also connect with Strachan on Facebook.

Reviews

[Darren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting personal accounts of the lived experience of men and women trying to live out biblical understandings of what it means to be made in God's image. If you're looking for clear, reasoned argument this probably isn't the book for you; it's the personal stories of lives transformed by Jesus that made this positive for me.

[Josh Taylor · Rating 3 out of 5]

All good Christ-exalting, Christ-satisfying stuff.

But, a lot more content for men than women.
Heavy focus on husbands and fathers.
Not enough on singleness and the not-yet-married.

[Danette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent
How does the Gospel Shape Manhood and Womanhood?

"We’re going to offer true words and biblical counsel to you so you can know who you are and what you were created for. We will see that we are designed by God, and that his design brings us joy."

2021 A Book that has a fruit of the Spirit in the title

[Joel Opificius · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is essentially a collection of short essays by different authors on manhood and womanhood. Altogether, they present an attractive vision of complementarity. Some of the essays are more detailed than others, but they all cover important aspects of biblical manhood and womanhood. I can see myself assigning individual chapters of this book to others for counseling or discipleship in the future.

[Natalie Ray · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is well intentioned, but I feel it's worth noting that the scholarship, particularly in the women's sections, is very sloppy. There is little reference to biblical principles for the assertions they make around women's roles, and their application is very heavy on the 'wife and mother' scenario. I feel it's also worth pointing out the painful baking references in two separate women's chapters (have you NO self awareness, people?!) The chapter on feminism is just insultingly off-the-mark. The author defines feminism as 'man-hating' which is a painfully simplistic (and wrong) caricature of the varied and wide-ranging feminisms of today. If you are a thinking person who wants to engage with biblical complementarianism and figure out how to faithfully live out the (often counter-cultural) biblical vision of man- and woman-hood, I'm not sure this is the book for you. If you want endorsement for living out a white, American evangelical stereotype, then enjoy.

Sidebar: the best chapter in this book is the one on purity - extremely good stuff.

[Gift · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommended. Wanna reread this awesome book.

There is no lasting joy outside of God's design. We can only be truly happy through living according to our calling.

[Josh Sieders · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well written book, drenched in scripture making it clear that our genders were designed by God for good. I appreciated the emphasis on the purpose of our complementarity being His image bearers as opposed to who does what in marriage or the church.

At the same time, I did hope it would come down and get a little more practical. I was hoping for more answers around the relationship between our gender and the culturally-encoded gender norms of our culture(s). They did hint that how we behave as a male or female DOES have some connection to our culture's expression of that same gender (think of Paul's commands about head coverings and long hair), but did not get too specific in how that works itself out.

Perhaps this book was needed first, that we needed to see the beauty first that God created us male and female, and that as a picture of God (image bearer) and as a picture of the gospel (marriage/church) both are equally needed, and work together with different roles to play one amazing song. Perhaps we needed to see that and appreciate it for what it is, to re-orient the posture of our hearts that wants to draw lines and work against his design.

After all that though, I would love to read something that does step into that murky water and attempt to find some clarity. There may be other books that do this already for marriage or for church office, so I'll keep looking and reading...

[Trevor Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started with a bang, ended with a whimper. The more I read, the less I felt like the essays were dealing with their subjects authentically. They seemed like pat answers. The essay on discipline was an exception, and I reading reading it. However, the biggest flaw of this book is that it leaves nothing for singleness. Yes, there was an essay - more on that in a minute. The authors immediately jump from what is a man to father/husband. What if someone is single their whole life? Sprinkled throughout there are the obligatory, there is nothing wrong with being single statements, but then the singles are left out to dry. The one essay that addressed it featured singleness as an issue to be dealt with. “Good News for the Not-Yet-Married” already comes with the connotation that you need to be getting married. The author also deals with young couples as if they are acting like children. “Maybe it’s the lengthening of adolescence, in which twentysomethings less and less feel the need to grow up and take on responsibilities of starting a family, owning a home, and so forth.” My wife and left college with a mortgage payment. We, seven years later, are just financially able to start talking about starting a family, owning a home, and so forth. Maybe the author lives somewhere where new couples can afford a home in a non-violent neighborhood that doesn’t start at $350,000, but this reader does not.

[Taylor Flowe · Rating 4 out of 5]

"You think lust and power are going to entice me? Your vision of happiness is too small. Show me a picture of my life as a man or a woman that echoes into eternity and you’ll have my attention. In Christ, we have found something better than all the world throws at us."

"When you’re saved, you no longer see any area of life as a burden. You see all of it as a garden of delight. Everything before you presents an opportunity to give praise and honor to your Creator and Savior (1 Cor. 10:31). This extends, in fact, even to what you eat and drink—in other words, to the most basic parts of your daily existence! That’s incredible."

"It matters what a man (or woman) is and how he acts because that says something
about the God who made him."

"Chesterton once remarked that the reason that order and structure exist in God’s world is to make room for good things to run wild. God erects walls around the city so that life can happen inside.
God establishes boundaries so that joy can be unleashed."

[Jacob Schwander · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book was very enjoyable for me. John mentioned in the foreword that he could not put this book down. I had the same reaction. In order to be clear, I was blessed with parents who modeled the biblical mandate for men and women. Therefore, the principles of biblical manhood and womanhood don't leave me with any misconceptions. However, the sections on biblical manhood remind me how far I’ve fallen in my own life. What is manhood? Lifting weights? No, manhood is direct obedience to God and taking on the attributes of Christ. Because as men we are to act like men, and Jesus must be our model. Jesus was the Man.

John Parnell explains this simply: “Jesus is the man—the true and better man—who exemplifies and empowers us to walk in his steps as each of us embraces our God-given design to be a man, and act like one.”

Additionally, this book is a great resource for teenagers and college-aged men and women who are struggling with identity, biblical calling, sexual orientation, parenting, and marriage.

[Franki · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's so hard to review books with multiple writings! Some chapters were worth reading the whole book:
- "Being a Man and Acting Like One" by Jonathan Parnell is helpful in setting up some definitions for the book
- "Masculinity Handed Down" by Joe Rigney is practical and beautiful and have shaped my prayers for my children
- "The Feminine Focus" by Trilia Newbell is applicable broadly to femininity
- "Purity We Can Count On" by Grant and GraceAnna Castleberry should be read by every young adult.

I'm giving it three stars because "I liked it" but didn't "Really like it". There were a few chapters that were helpful but I'm still not sure how they fit into the scope of the book. There were some sections that were laughably awkward or felt a little straw-manning of non-complementary ideas. Because I interact with a lot of single young women, I was hoping for some practical or even principled examples of biblical femininity and felt it a little unbalanced.

[Micah McCollum · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5 stars. In this modern age, sex, gender, and gender identity are being attacked on all fronts. Thus, something that is intended to display the character of God has become a point of division. This book did a great job at explaining in easy, understandable terms how God’s design for masculinity and femininity is, as the title suggests, a joyful piece of life that is to be celebrated. In addition to this, the authors demonstrated in writing how the differences of the sexes are ultimately and primarily meant to glorify God. Therefore, they take the focus away from Mankind and they put it on God. For a topic such as this one, that was super helpful. Also, having a plethora of authors, all with different backgrounds, was a huge plus for this book. When their writings are pieced together, they construct a well-rounded, well-supported argument and understanding of the topic at hand. Great introduction book to the conversation of biblical masculinity and femininity.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fantastic little book! It certainly cannot be described as complete, but its conciseness is an enormous strength. It accomplishes much in its 133 pages. Highlights include the first three chapters on maleness/masculinity and the following chapters on femaleness/femininity. I also especially enjoyed the chapter on singleness, or as the contributor writes: not-yet married. Pick up this little book, give it as a graduation gift, buy it for a friend, get it in your church library, and be reminded of the joyful reality that God designed as male and female, in his image.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very helpful!
4 instead of 5 stars because I simply wanted more. I would love to have a volume like this hearing from multiple voices regarding womanhood in particular. I value what I read so much, but I was left hungering. Also I think trying to reduce some of Courtney’s thoughts on feminism into one chapter left me wanting more clarity. I don’t have access to her book so I guess I’ll just be left to chew on what she presents here for now. 🤷🏼‍♀️

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

The strength of this book is how easy and straightforward to read. However, there's a heavy focus on men as husbands and father's (not necessarily a bad thing, can be a great thing to put in a father's hand). Very little on women and even less on what femininity is in addition bearing children and being a wife. None of the chapters were ground breaking our particularly profound, but they were simple and easy to follow, I really appreciated that.

[Paul Abdallah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think a rating between 3-4 stars is appropriate here. I’m leaning towards 4 because what is in here is full of the gospel and helpfully practical. I think a chapter or two focused on how the gospel impacts men and women in the world and workplace would have been helpful. I appreciated the variety of authors! It’s a resource that I will use again.

[Josh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Though short, this is an excellent book on complementarianism. Recommended, especially the first three chapters.

[Erik Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is worth it for Jonathan Parnell’s and Denny Burke’s chapters. Those were excellent. The rest was fine.

[Lauren Martyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book covered the idea of complementarity from a variety of angles, from marriage to singleness, purity to parenting.

[Malia Patterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite counter cultural books filled with wisdom and incredible insight on how to live in the world and not be of it!

[Debbra Hunt · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is broken up with several writers...
It is easy yet gospel based

[Brandon H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some chapters were above average. Others below. But still better than any arguments I've encountered for the egalitarian position.

[a_tps_person · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very gospel-focused and thus very grounded in practicality. Also nearly comprehensive in its scope.of topics. Almost entirely very well and compellingly written (unlike this review).

[Brittany Shields · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Although, I feel like it was a stronger read for men than for women. I found the 'woman chapters' a bit lacking. They seemed a bit flowery and anecdotal to me, I would have liked to have read more concrete examples or 'lists' as found in the 'man chapters.' (I think it would be best read in conjunction with Wayne Grudem's book 'Evangelical Feminism' or his and John Piper's joint book '50 Crucial Questions About Manhood and Womanhood.) And maybe it's just because it was all information I had read before.

In spite of that, I found the man chapters still helpful in understanding my husband better, recognizing more deeply his burden as head of our household; and providing insightful guidelines in raising sons or helping daughters see godly men. This conversation is so important in today's culture where the norm is 'following your heart' and 'doing whatever feels good' instead of holding up our behavior and thoughts to Scripture and following Christ's example. It's really hard to be on the side that sounds limiting, but as this title suggests, abiding in Christ and seeking fulfillment, identity, and purpose in him is the ultimate and only source of joy in this broken world. This book may not address every aspect of each issue but it aims to tackle the heart issues- where sin steps in to distort that which God created to be good. And we need to get that part right first, or we don't have a foundation for anything else.

From its pages:

"[God] did not make us all the same. He loves diversity. He revels in it. He created a world that pulses with differences, that explodes with color, that includes roaring waterfalls and self-inflating lizards and rapt, at-attention meerkats. But humankind, man and woman, is the pinnacle of his creation."

"The God of Scripture is not our life coach. He is our Lord. We’re used to this word as Christians, and so it loses its edge. This divine title signifies that God is our master. He is our sovereign. He is our ruler. He sets the tone for right and wrong. He calls us to account for our sin. His gospel brings both bad news and good news. It informs us that we are sinful and destined for eternal judgment. It calls us to be re-created. Our chief need is not affirmation but Christ-powered transformation… Men are called to be men. Women are called to be women. We are not free to choose our sexual predilections. We do not have the authority to remake our gender."

"The roles are not regulated by competency… Yes, women lead and provide and protect in many ways every day, just like men affirm and nurture and trust….the husband steps out first in leading, and the wife affirms his initiative in doing so… The husband takes up the mantle of provision, of figuring out how to holistically care for his family along with her help, and the wife nurtures that instinct and strategy… The husband always leans forward in the face of sacrifice, in the name of love, and the wife, in the safety of that love, trusts him."

See more of my reviews at www.shelfreflection.com!

[Dr. David Steele · Rating 4 out of 5]

Owen Strachan and Jonathan Parnell, Ed. Designed For Joy: How the Gospel Impacts Men and Women, Identity and Practice. Wheaton: Crossway, 2015. 144 pp. $10.92

Designed For Joy: How the Gospel Impacts Men and Women, Identity and Practice is an important book with a message for our generation. The editors, Jonathan Parnell and Owen Strachan team up with a well-seasoned team of writers that address the matter of gender from several different angles.
Topics range from masculinity and femininity to singleness and marriage. The subjects of parenting and purity are dealt with along with matters of gender and maturity. In one sense, this is a broad book designed to reach many people. In another sense, the book is very targeted as it subjects each subject to the gospel message.

The writing is clear and biblical. Each chapter hits the bullseye dead on, with stunning biblical accuracy. Each of the writers bring a perspective of complementarianism which views men and women as equals with specific roles to carry out to the glory of God.

It never ceases to amaze me that the most important books these days receive reviews that are critical and mean-spirited. One reviewer says this about the book: This book is well-intentioned, but I feel it's worth noting that the scholarship, particularly in the women's sections, is very sloppy. There is little reference to biblical principles for the assertions they make around women's roles …” To the contrary, the scholarship is commendable and designed to reach a popular audience.

Designed For Joy is a book for our day. May God raise up a new generation of Christian writers who bring depth of clarity and God-centered wisdom to bear on these matters.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short essays centered on God's creating us male and female, in His own image, to fulfill complementary roles. A good conversation to have in the midst of a day and age in which human sexuality and gender identity have become hot topics. Recommended for anyone high school age and up.

[Matt Chapman · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very enjoyable overview of the goodness of God's harmonious design for manhood and womanhood. Very practical (this is not a full-on biblical overview of the subject) and touches on multiple areas of life for men and women.
Short chapters, each by a different writer.
Sometimes the chapters feel a little too short but, then again, they do whet your appetite to want to explore more on each topic elsewhere.

[Peter Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some chapters were 5 stars (Rigney, Mathis, Naselli) several were three stars (no names to protect the guilty). If you are just getting introduced to basic biblical themes on men and women this is a good place to start. If you are looking for in-depth biblical and theological study of manhood and womanhood you will want to look elsewhere.

[Bambi Moore · Rating 4 out of 5]

Standing ovation! The chapters on Biblical masculinity and fatherhood were especially fantastic, as well as the Castleberrys chapter on purity, which had me in tears by the end.