I feel bad for giving 2 stars to a book that tells us we need to be more like Jesus. I wanted to like this book, I really did! There were, in fact, many points where I wholeheartedly agree with the position the author was trying to make. The man Jesus calls us to be is not the “macho man” of American culture. As men, we need to learn to be more vulnerable, to not continually try to prove ourself when we are already accepted in Christ. Things like serving, cooking, etc. are not inherently feminine. Good on the author for identifying and wanted to change what it means to be a man, especially a Christian man.
The problem is, every time the author talks about what it means to be a true man, he also talks about how those are traits that females should have too, because ultimately, male or female, we need to be loving, vulnerable, etc. He kept talking about how these different traits are both male and female, because they make us more like Christ. The author, in my view, 100% failed to address what is means to be a man, as opposed to being a woman. This book instead should be titled something like “tearing down cultural gender perceptions: being more like Christ.”
Scripture says God created us male AND female. Of course both males and females need to be more like Christ. But, what is it that makes us different? (Not greater/lesser/strong/weaker, but different). What does being a physical male mean as a Christian as opposed to a female? How does God call us to live as males in this world? How do we, as new creations in Christ, embrace our maleness in a way that honors and glorifies God and reflects Christ? You’ll never find that answer from this book.