Richard D. Phillips is a wonderful story of God’s grace. Prior to entering the ministry, he commanded tank units as an officer in the U.S. Army and later served as an assistant professor of leadership at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.

He came to faith in Jesus Christ at the age of 30, and was soon leading evangelistic Bible studies at the college where he was teaching. A few years later, he received God’s call to enter the gospel ministry, and received a master of divinity degree from Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, PA.

Furthermore, Phillips had the wonderful privilege of being mentored by James M. Boice at Tenth Presbyterian Church from 1995-2002 and has been the Senior Minister of Second Presbyterian Church in Greenville, South Carolina (PCA) since July, 2007.

There are many superficial ideas around us about biblical manhood. One can grow a beard, learn to hunt, and smoke some hardcore cigars, but never get to the heart of what the masculine mandate from God to men is in the Bible.

This book wonderfully unpacks the great calling for men using Genesis chapters 1 to 3 as a launching pad. The book makes a very helpful starting point that God placed Adam in a covenant context in a garden to work and to keep it.

This is contrasted with the worldly idea that man is to find meaning and purpose by roaming wild without any responsibilities. In the opening few chapters, the author does a great job of explaining “the work and keep” mandate with regards to all that God placed under the headship of man.

To work is explained as to cultivate relationships among other important things God has blessed man with. To keep is explained as to guard and take care of the relationships and other blessings entrusted to man. Here is a helpful quote that in a way summarizes the premise of the whole book:

“That is the Masculine Mandate: to be spiritual men placed in real-world, God-defined relationships, as lords and servants under God, to bear God's fruit by serving and leading.”

Towards the mid-section of the book, we find some amazing gospel foundations for the rest of the book. Man was made in the image of God and how that image was marred and how Christ came to redeem and to restore.

The author does a great job grounding his section on marriage and parenting in the indicative of the gospel and God’s covenant love in Christ toward us. There is ample encouragement all throughout the book to look not to the arm of flesh and our own strength, but to look to God and His power.

The bad news of mankind’s fall and the curse, which makes marriage difficult, is clearly presented. However, so too is the good news of God’s grace in Christ as seen in the two quotes below:

“God's curse on the man draws him unwholesomely away from the woman, even as God's curse on the woman draws her unwholesomely toward the man. This is why most marital counseling sessions are some variation on this theme: Wife-"You don't pay any attention to me." Husband-"You are too demanding and nag too much." God has cursed the marriage relationship with a poisonous desire for control by the woman and a self-absorbed focus outside the relationship by the man.”

“…Do you see how the curse of sin is redeemed in Christ? These verses in (Colossians 3) are not meant merely to provide sentimental warmth to wedding napkins and wall hangings. Rather, they are the tangible agenda of God’s restoring grace. I do not have to wait until I fully understand my wife in order to love her. In Christ, I have no warrant to withhold my love until she changes according to my self-serving agenda. I am free in Christ, through the resources of God’s redeeming grace for me, to love my wife. Because God has forgiven me, I can truly forgive her. Because God has given to me, I can gladly give to her. With God’s compassion for me, I have compassion to give; with God’s grace I can show grace.”

The book goes into helpful practical details about other areas in which men are to rise up by God’s grace and make a difference. It deals with areas like parenting, friendships, and men as faithful churchmen for the glory of God. I highly recommend this book for men’s group reading and for leadership training, too.

Even women will greatly benefit with certain sections of the book as it will help them to pray for their husbands and to pray for their sons growing up in this godless age. Single women, too, can gain wise insights about what kind of a man they can prayerfully consider for marriage.