A recent article in The New Yorker asked the pithy question, “What’s the Matter with Men?”  The article describes men as floundering – in schools, relationships, and workplaces – and postulates reasons for this social phenomenon.  The conclusions are a mishmash of social theory, secular perspectives, and moral judgments which fail to produce definitive answers.  Doing so is also beyond the reach of a short blog post like this.

Men and boys, particularly in western culture, are in crisis – that part of the article seems clear.  While solutions to their problems are complex, they seem grounded in one fundamental observation about men and boys.  They function best when cultural expectations reinforce men taking responsibility for themselves, their families, and their communities.  For Christian men, their churches could be inserted between families and communities on the list.

As a mother of two sons, who was herself raised with limited influence by men, my wife had to develop expectations of her sons which facilitated their developing healthy masculinity.  She developed this simple definition: “a man takes responsibility for himself, his family, his church, and his community.”  The essence of her definition was takes responsibility

Applying this definition led us to mandate and enforce our sons taking responsibility – for their clothes, rooms, chores, conflicts, etc. – from early in their childhood.  One later started a business in middle school; the other had a job all through high school.  Although we had enough money and they did not “have to work,” we knew they needed to learn the discipline of taking care of themselves and others.  We also pushed our sons to make independent decisions – like choosing their own church when they were in high school.  We rewarded them for serving others, not just for personal accomplishments.  We made them do their own laundry, learn to cook, and get their driver’s licenses the day they were eligible.  In short, we pushed them to be as independent of us as reasonable and possible.

Teaching boys to be men isn’t about stereotypical behavior or activities reserved only for men.  It’s about teaching boys they are responsible for themselves, their families, their church, and their community.  It’s teaching them to lead – by taking responsibility to serve others – which, according to Jesus, is the highest form of leadership.  Doing this is not a simple answer to all the things that are going wrong with how boys are raised toward manhood in our culture – but it is a foundational aspect we must rediscover.  Coddling boys and expecting them to become men is a misplaced, even foolish, expectation.


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Perspective: SBC 2023

Dr. Iorg discusses what unites the SBC in light of next week’s annual convention.

Jeff Iorg
President
Dr. Jeff Iorg is the president of Gateway Seminary. Prior to his service at the Seminary, Dr. Iorg was the Executive Director of the Northwest Baptist Convention for almost ten years. He was also the founding pastor of Greater Gresham Baptist Church in Gresham, Oregon, and has served as a pastor in Missouri and a staff pastor in Texas.

Intentionality

 The greatest problem in our world is lostness. The only solution to lostness is the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Jeff Iorg
President
Dr. Jeff Iorg is the president of Gateway Seminary. Prior to his service at the Seminary, Dr. Iorg was the Executive Director of the Northwest Baptist Convention for almost ten years. He was also the founding pastor of Greater Gresham Baptist Church in Gresham, Oregon, and has served as a pastor in Missouri and a staff pastor in Texas.

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Lead On Podcast
June 4, 2023

“Life is Curriculum”: How Leaders Grow after Seminary

Dr. Iorg encourages leaders to continue growing after Seminary. He identifies seven ways to cultivate and work towards spiritual maturity. 

Lead On Podcast
May 28, 2023

Dealing with Angry People

There is a lot of anger in the world right now and a lot of that anger is spilling over into the church. This week Dr. Iorg discusses different ways to engage with and disciple angry people in your ministry.


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Spirituality of Jonathan Edwards | JEC at Gateway Seminary

Dr. Chris Chun hosted a digital symposium with Dr. Michael Haykin and Dr. Robert Caldwell to discuss Edwards’ spirituality, devotional life and theological impact in American Christianity.

Chris Chun
Professor of Church History | Director, Jonathan Edwards Center
Dr. Chris Chun is the professor of Church History and the director of Jonathan Edwards Center at Gateway Seminary. Chris’ doctoral research at St. Andrews University was focused on the eighteenth-century Edwardsean Baptists in Britain. He also has served as president of The Evangelical Theological Society (Far West Region).

Faculty Dialogues: Dispensationalism or Not

In this episode of Faculty Dialogues, Dr. David Rathel and Dr. Paul Wegner held a live discussion on their views on dispensationalism.

David Rathel
Associate Professor of Christian Theology
Dr. Rathel is the associate professor of Chrisitian Theology at Gateway Seminary. Prior to Gateway, Dr. Rathel supplied pastoral care to churches in the United States and Scotland, served as an Adjunct Professor of Theology and Philosophy for the Baptist College of Florida, and provided teaching assistance for the University of St Andrews.

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