Four principles of manhood that our society is attacking vigorously:

#1: Men are to take dominion over the earth (Gen. 1:28).

This was included in God’s first set of commands to Adam and still remains a central imperative for men today. On the contrary, our culture provides little support for men who are serious about exercising dominion over what God has placed under their control, and instead provides many escapes from a man’s true obligations.

As of last year, 30% of Americans (aged 16 to 54+) spend 10 hours a week—3.5 years of a lifetime—playing video games. While video games are not inherently wrong, they deceptively channel the natural masculine desires to conquer and control into entirely fake avenues.

That’s 10 hours a week that many men are not using to take dominion over the real world in front of them.

#2: Men are to use their strength to fight against evil (Neh. 4:14).

Whether it be a soldier fighting the enemy threatening to invade, a pastor fighting a heresy from the pulpit, an “ordinary” man voting for a righteous candidate, or simply a father disciplining his son, men simply aren’t acting as men if they aren’t fighting evil.

And this requires them to be strong in the first place.

This is why a culture saturated with evil has to subdue competent men by normalizing incompetence. Think of all the TV shows, movies, and advertisements you’ve seen that featured a male character as a buffoon that needed to be corrected by the smart, no-nonsense female character.

Now think of all the TV shows, movies and advertisements you’ve seen that featured a female buffoon who needed to be corrected by a smart, no-nonsense male character. The lists are lopsided for a reason.

When culture popularizes and normalizes incompetent men, men become more incompetent.

#3: Men are to protect and provide for their families (Eph. 5:25-27).

To do this, men are to look to Christ as their example, who gave Himself up for His church just as men ought to for their wives. Men are to bring up, discipline, and provide for their children, just as God does for us.

And a man with his family around him is a powerful force for good (Psa. 127:4-5).

This obligation applies always. Men do not get to opt out when they don’t feel like it. Research published this year reveals that 1 in 4 American children live in a fatherless home. That represents a whole lot of fathers who are creating families but not upholding their obligations to them. 

#4: Men are to take responsibility for their actions (Psalm 15:4 provides one notable example of this principle).

In fact, this is one of the oldest recorded failures of manhood; immediately after Adam failed #3 by not guarding Eve against the devil’s deception and #2, by succumbing to temptation himself, he failed to take responsibility for his sin and instead blamed his wife.

Men are made to handle responsibility; it’s inherent in the idea of #1, dominion.

Yet our society makes it so easy for men to achieve rewards while shirking their responsibilities.

You got your girlfriend pregnant? There’s an abortion clinic down the road; they’ll take care of your problem for you.

Or, if that crosses your conscience the wrong way, what about a financial abortion?

What if you don’t want to be bothered with a real live girlfriend? Join the 30,000 people watching porn every second.