Authentic manhood is on the decline. It has even given rise to a ridiculous counter-movement against what toxic feminists call “Toxic Masculinity”.
Have you ever heard of “Toxic Masculinity”? Is it a real problem in American culture, or is the problem really something else? How does authentic biblical manhood fit into the issue?
So, having watched this video on so-called “toxic masculinity”, what is authentic masculinity, and how does it relate to biblical manhood?
We can’t grasp the essence of true manhood without first understanding biblical manhood. Why? Because we were all formed in the image of God, everything about authentic manhood is based on God’s design and purpose.
We at FBC Mango make no apologies for embracing a biblical stance on masculinity and rejecting biological evolution and Darwinism as factors in who men are and should be. So, let’s get this party started!
Understanding who made you and how you were made is central to the first chapter of the Book of Genesis. You were formed in the image of God, and you were created in His likeness.
21 Qualities of True Manhood in The Bible
1: He knows his Creator
Psalm 139:14 “I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.”
Understanding who made you and how you were made is central to the first chapter of the Book of Genesis. You were formed in the image of God, and you were created in His likeness.
2: He knows his purpose.
Ecclesiastes 12:13–14 “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments, For this is man’s all. 14 For God will bring every work into judgment, Including every secret thing, Whether good or evil.
.”Revelation 4:11 “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure, they are and were created.”
We will learn a lot about real manhood and our purpose from these two passages of Scripture. Fearing God, keeping His commands, and bringing Him pleasure are our goals and responsibilities.
Jesus said it this way – Matthew 22:37–38 “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment.”
3: He knows his strengths
Ecclesiastes 9:10 “Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might; for there is no work, nor device, nor knowledge, nor wisdom, in the grave, whither thou goest.”
Authentic Manhood implies that you were formed for a purpose and that God has given you the strength to fulfill that purpose.
It entails realizing that you are more than your work as a man. Biblical men put their strength to use in all aspects of their lives. They hone their skills and abilities to provide for their families while also serving the Lord in their local church.
4: He knows his weaknesses.
Mark 14:38 “Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.”
Because of his sinful nature, the biblical man is aware that he is prone to temptation. This is a flaw in every man. This is a fact that must be understood in order to be a true man. Only then will we be able to withstand the assault of temptation that will come our way.
James 1:12 “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.”
5: He knows his potential.
Philippians 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”
Real men will never be content with anything less than God’s plan for their life, marriage, and family. While authentic men recognizes their limits, they refuses to accept artificial boundaries that compromise God’s intention for their live.
6: He knows his limits
1 Corinthians 15:9–10 “For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.”
From the text above, the Apostle Paul was well aware of his own limitations. He was well aware that he was an unworthy man to be performing such a crucial work for God.
Likewise, biblical men are well aware of their limitations. They also recognize that, due to their personal limitations, they require God’s grace to function in their life.
7: He knows his responsibilities.
Ecclesiastes 12:13–14 “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.”
Read 7 Urgent Reasons to Recover Your Biblical Manhood
The obligation of the real men are to keep on track with their mission. This entails establishing a strategy, setting goals, keeping track of progress, and remaining accountable. It is solely your obligation to take your mission seriously.
8: He knows his passion.
Galatians 5:16–17 “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other…”
Biblical males admit that if their desires aren’t tamed, they can spiral out of control. As a result, he strives to walk in the Spirit every day and to resist the flesh’s sinful lusts.
Authentic Manhood recognizes that the flesh is at odds with the Spirit, and that the two are diametrically opposed. He is unable to travel in both directions at the same time. He can’t be a spiritual man while pursuing his fleshly desires.
9: He knows his pride.
1 John 2:16 “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”
Every individual, Christian or not, battles his own arrogance. The difference is that the godly man recognizes and accepts his pride, and he longs for humility. There’s a lot in the Bible about pride, and none of it is good. Here are a few examples of what I’m talking about.
Read 5 Powerful Characteristics of a Godly Man
James 4:6 “But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.”
Proverbs 13:10 “Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well-advised is wisdom.”
10: He knows his profession.
1 Timothy 6:11–12 “But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, gentleness. 12 Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses.”
This isn’t about your job; it’s about your public declaration of faith in Jesus Christ. One of the main biblical markers of real masculinity is your public declaration of your conversion and salvation, that is, you have actually been born again. Your faith is publicly professed through baptism, which is administered by your local church.
11: He knows his promises.
1 Timothy 4:8 “For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.”
Biblical men understand that Christ holds tremendous promises for their lives. The Bible contains numerous promises, not only about eternity and Heaven, but also God’s hand in everything we do here on Earth.
2 Corinthians 1:20 “For all the promises of God in him are yea and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.”
12: He knows his commitments.
Proverbs 16:3 “Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established.”
Everything we do is based on our commitment to the Lord. Authentic manhood is committed to honoring Christ and maintaining a strong witness and reputation.
Because of our dedication to Christ, we are able to be a great spouse, father, neighbor, coworker, and friend. And we are only able to follow these promises because of God’s powerful grace.
13: He knows his priorities.
Matthew 6:33 “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.”
As a biblical man, your highest goal is to put God and God’s priorities ahead of your own. First and foremost, you must seek the kingdom of God and HIS righteousness. This is more important than your personal needs and goals, and it should be at the top of your priority list. Moreover, these priorities will show themselves in how spends your time, money, and abilities.
14: He knows his friends.
Proverbs 27:6 “Faithful are the wounds of a friend, but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful.”
The biblical man understands that his friends are his Spiritual brothers and sisters. He isn’t scared of another Christian man giving him a little constructive criticism, or even a rebuke, because he understands it’s done out of love and for his own welfare.
15: He knows his enemies.
James 4:4 “Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.”
A Biblical man’s adversary is also an enemy of God. Take this fallen world as an example, it includes everything that opposes God’s will. As a result, t he biblical man recognizes that friendship with this worllyd system is an offense to God.
2 Corinthians 6:14–18 “Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? 15 And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? 16 And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell in them
And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.” 17 Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” 18 “I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons and daughters,
Says the Lord Almighty.”
16: He knows his power.
1 Corinthians 1:18 “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness, but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.”
The power of God in the life of a biblical man is the preaching of the cross. Without God, we are powerless, weak, and can only walk in the failure of our sinful flesh. For this reason, the biblical man trust God and not his sinful flesh.
17: He knows his vulnerabilities.
James 1:14–15 “But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.”
Every man, including Christian men, is vulnerable to lust. We have the same lusts as any other guy, and we must accept our vulnerability as such. Lust leads to temptation, which leads to sin, and sin, in turn, leads to death. We must keep our sexual lust at bay and not offer it any shelter.
18: He knows his prayer life.
Psalm 55:16–17 “As for me, I will call upon God; and the LORD shall save me. Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray, and cry aloud: and he shall hear my voice.”
This is arguably the most overlooked issue in the lives of the ordinary Christian man. We must be honest with ourselves here and make regular adjustments to our prayer lives. Recognize and rectify when we begin to stray or fall behind in our prayer lives.
19: He knows his place.
John 3:30 “He must increase, but I must decrease.”
As Godly men, whenever Christ is glorified in our life, we occupy a lowly position. This is because o ur purpose in life is to glorify God. Not like other men who seek after fame to exalt themselves, but as Christian men, we give the glory to God.
1 Peter 1:24–25 “All flesh is as grass And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers And its flower falls away, 25 But the word of the Lord endures forever.”Now, this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.”
20: He knows his impact.
Jude 22–23 “And of some have compassion, making a difference: And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire; hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.”
As an authentic biblical man, your desire should be to make a difference in the world for Christ. You must want to have an impact on others around you; your intention must be to evangelize those he can, and via your local church, you should support your local church outreach and global missions.
21: He knows his pace.
Galatians 6:9 “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap if we faint not.”
While we all recognize the importance of maintaining a healthy balance in our lives, some godly men have stated that they would rather “burn out than rust out” for Christ.
In terms of spiritual growth and leadership, you must maintain a steady pace. You must never be content to fall behind or settle for mediocrity.