J. Gresham Machen (1881–1937) stands as one of the most courageous and intellectually formidable defenders of orthodox Christianity in the modern era. A New Testament scholar, Presbyterian theologian, and cultural apologist, Machen’s impact stretched far beyond the ivory towers of academia. His career was marked by a deep commitment to truth, clarity in public witness, and a willingness to suffer loss for the sake of Christ and the gospel.
Born in Baltimore, Maryland, and trained at Johns Hopkins, Princeton Theological Seminary, and the University of Marburg in Germany, Machen was thoroughly educated in both the theological conservatism of American Reformed theology and the higher critical methods then dominant in Europe. In fact, it was in Germany—ironically—that Machen became convinced of the bankruptcy of theological liberalism. Rather than convincing him to moderate his views, the European modernists he encountered revealed how deep the chasm truly was between historic Christianity and the new “religion of humanity” being offered in its place.
Machen served on the faculty at Princeton Seminary from 1906 until 1929, where he trained generations of ministers. However, as Princeton increasingly bowed to the pressures of modernist compromise, Machen and others left to found Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. That act was not simply institutional; it was confessional. It was a deliberate move to protect the purity of the gospel against a rising tide of unbelief disguised in religious language.
In 1936, Machen also helped form the Orthodox Presbyterian Church after the Northern Presbyterian Church defrocked him for his refusal to support liberal missions efforts. He died the following year from pneumonia while traveling to support gospel ministry in North Dakota—poor, exiled from his denomination, but uncompromised.
His courage earned him both admiration and enmity. He was not a man of half-measures. His writings—including Christianity and Liberalism, The Origin of Paul’s Religion, and The Virgin Birth of Christ—still stand as models of intellectual rigor and spiritual fidelity.
The Context of His Time: Modernism, Liberalism, and the New Religion of Man
To understand The Christian View of Man, we must understand what Machen was responding to. The early 20th century was a time of massive upheaval in Western society, theology, and identity. Four cultural forces were especially relevant:
The Rise of Modernism
Modernism was not merely an aesthetic movement; it was a mindset. It embraced human reason, technological progress, and the evolutionary narrative as replacements for divine revelation. In place of original sin, it posited ignorance. In place of the Fall, it offered the rise of man. In place of redemption through Christ, it offered redemption through education, psychology, and social reform.
Machen understood that this was not a new expression of Christianity—it was a different religion entirely.
Theological Liberalism
Within the church, modernism took the form of theological liberalism, which retained religious language while gutting its content. Sin became a social defect. Jesus became a moral example. Scripture became inspirational literature rather than divine revelation.
Machen’s Christianity and Liberalism (1923) argued that liberalism was not a branch of Christianity—it was another religion entirely, one with different assumptions about man, God, sin, and salvation. The Christian View of Man builds on this critique by showing how anthropology—the doctrine of man—is foundational to the whole Christian system.
The Triumph of Darwin and Freud
Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution and Sigmund Freud’s psychological models revolutionized how people thought about human origins and identity. The “soul” was replaced with the subconscious. Man’s dignity was either mechanized or pathologized. Rather than image-bearers, humans were seen as biological accidents or psychological constructs.
Machen recognized how these ideas undermined Christian teaching not only on creation but on moral accountability, responsibility, and the possibility of redemption.
The Social Gospel Movement
In American Christianity, the Social Gospel promoted the idea that the kingdom of God could be brought about through social reform, economic uplift, and racial reconciliation. While not all its goals were wrong, its theological foundation was thin. The Social Gospel often ignored personal sin, divine wrath, and the need for individual conversion. It redefined man as a victim rather than a sinner.
Machen saw the danger: a gospel that minimized sin would ultimately minimize Christ.
Bridging Then and Now: The Same Lie in New Clothes
Though nearly a century has passed, the cultural lies Machen opposed have not disappeared—they have simply evolved. Today’s battlegrounds are identity, sexuality, race, gender, and justice. But the root problem is the same: a rejection of God’s authority over man, and a rebellion against His definition of human nature.
Modern ideologies—whether wokeism, critical theory, radical feminism, or gender ideology—all share a common flaw: they redefine the human person apart from Scripture. They propose new origin stories (e.g., the myth of systemic oppression), new moral frameworks (e.g., “lived experience” as truth), and new paths to salvation (e.g., affirmation, activism, or bodily transition). But they all reject the biblical anthropology Machen defended.
- Woke ideology tells us man’s primary identity is found in group categories: race, class, or sexuality.
- Gender ideology insists man is self-defined: biology is meaningless; inner feelings reign supreme.
- Postmodernism denies universal truth altogether: your identity is a social construct, and morality is relative.
In each case, the core problem is theological. These movements deny that man is made in God’s image, accountable to His law, and in need of His grace.
Machen would not be surprised. He foresaw this drift and pleaded with the church to return to Scripture’s clear and consistent teaching about who we are and what we need.
Why Anthropology Matters: Doctrine Shapes Destiny
Why does the Christian view of man matter so much? Why devote a whole book—and a radio series—to it?
Because every major Christian doctrine intersects with anthropology.
- Creation: If man is not created by God, then he has no intrinsic value.
- Sin: If man is not fallen, then he needs no Savior.
- Christ: If man is not made in God’s image, Christ’s incarnation is irrelevant.
- Salvation: If man is not morally responsible, the cross is cruel and unnecessary.
- Sanctification: If man is not a moral agent, then spiritual growth is a myth.
- Eschatology: If man has no eternal destiny, heaven and hell become symbolic tales.
Every heresy about salvation begins with a faulty view of man. Pelagianism minimized sin. Gnosticism denied the body. Liberalism redefined morality. Today’s ideologies, like transgenderism or critical race theory, do the same. They distort the human problem and offer false hopes.
Machen insisted that we must begin with what the Bible says about man if we are to understand what the Bible says about God. As Calvin said, “Nearly all the wisdom we possess, that is to say, true and sound wisdom, consists of two parts: the knowledge of God and of ourselves.” (Institutes I.1.1)
Machen’s Core Arguments in The Christian View of Man
Before we walk through the rest of the book in detail, it helps to summarize the key theological points Machen defends throughout:
- Man is Created by God – Not an accident of evolution, but purposefully made by a personal Creator in His image (Genesis 1:26–27). This gives man dignity and accountability.
- Man is Body and Soul – Not just a brain on a stick or a ghost in a machine, but an integrated unity of physical and spiritual nature.
- Man Has Fallen into Sin – The Fall of Adam was a historical event that plunged humanity into guilt and corruption. All are sinners by nature and choice.
- Man Cannot Save Himself – No moral effort, religious ritual, or therapeutic technique can remove the guilt of sin or restore spiritual life.
- Man Needs a Redeemer – Jesus Christ, the God-man, is the only Savior sufficient to restore man to fellowship with God.
- Man’s Destiny Is Eternal – Every person will live forever—either in restored glory with Christ or under divine judgment.
- Man’s Identity Is Defined by God – Not by culture, not by feelings, and not by oppression narratives. True identity is found in being made by God and being remade in Christ.
These are the truths Machen set forth—not just as theological abstractions but as soul-saving realities. In a time when the church was tempted to compromise with culture, Machen stood firm.
And we must stand with him.
Walking Through Machen’s Theology of Man: Creation, Fall, Redemption, and Beyond
J. Gresham Machen doesn’t just outline the Christian doctrine of man in abstract terms. He walks through it like a well-built structure—each floor resting firmly upon the one before it, each beam supporting the next. It begins with the dignity of man, moves through the depths of man’s fall, and culminates in the necessity of divine redemption. Let’s now walk through the key theological themes Machen develops in The Christian View of Man.
Man as Created in God’s Image: Dignity with a Purpose
The first thing that the Bible tells us about man is that he was created in the image of God.— J. Gresham Machen
For Machen, all true understanding of man must begin here: man is not an accident of evolutionary chance, nor a cosmic orphan wandering through a purposeless universe. He is the imago Dei—the image-bearer of the infinite, personal, and holy God.
Machen emphasizes that this truth gives man unparalleled dignity. Unlike the beasts, man is endowed with rationality, moral capacity, and spiritual fellowship. He is not a brute. He is not divine. He is created—dependent, accountable, and relational. This counters both secular materialism, which denies human uniqueness, and Eastern mysticism, which dissolves human personality into a pantheistic blur.
But being made in God’s image also means that man is designed for something: to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. Our purpose is not self-discovery but Godward living. As Machen writes:
The Bible makes very clear that the dignity of man is derived from the fact that he was made by God and made in the image of God.
In today’s world, where human value is often measured in productivity or group identity, this is radical. It is also liberating.
Man as Body and Soul: A Unity of the Physical and Spiritual
Machen rejects the ancient and modern tendency to divide man into compartments. He is not a body to be managed by medicine and psychology, nor a ghost trapped in flesh awaiting escape. Man is a holistic unity of body and soul.
He explicitly opposes both Gnosticism (which devalues the body) and materialism (which denies the soul). For Machen, this dual-aspect nature of man explains our complex experiences of joy, sorrow, physical pain, and moral guilt.
This also affirms the goodness of the material world—something critical in defending the bodily resurrection of Christ and the future resurrection of believers. If God made man a body-soul unity, then salvation must touch both. Christianity is not an escape from creation, but the redemption of it.
Modern ideologies that treat the body as irrelevant to identity—such as gender ideology—would have been utterly foreign to Machen, and he would have recognized them as another Gnostic impulse in new packaging.
The Fall of Man: A Historical Catastrophe with Ongoing Consequences
The Christian view of man is not optimistic. It is realistic.— J. Gresham Machen
One of the most important doctrines in the book is the biblical teaching about the Fall. Machen insists on the historical reality of Adam and Eve and the literal disobedience that brought sin and death into the world. For Machen, this is not optional. If the Fall is mythological, the atonement becomes unnecessary.
The Fall is the theological hinge between creation and redemption. Without it, sin becomes redefined as ignorance, trauma, or economic disparity. And if sin is merely a lack of education or social equity, then salvation can be redefined as therapy or reform.
But Machen won’t have it. He affirms that the human problem is not poor education or unjust systems—it is rebellion against a holy God.
- Man is not spiritually neutral; he is spiritually dead (Ephesians 2:1).
- Man is not partially corrupted; every aspect of his nature is affected (Romans 3:10–18).
- Man cannot save himself; he needs a Savior (John 3:3, 6:44).
This doctrine flies in the face of modern optimism about human nature. But Machen reminds us that to minimize sin is to diminish the gospel. Only when we grasp the bad news can we appreciate the good.
Man as Morally Accountable: Not a Victim but a Rebel
Another key insight from Machen is his insistence that man is not merely a victim of his environment. This challenges many of the theories of his day—and ours—which claim that people do wrong because of poor upbringing, social disadvantage, or psychological damage.
While not denying the impact of circumstances, Machen insists on moral agency. Man sins not because he must, but because he wants to. The will is enslaved to sin, but that slavery is judicially deserved.
The Bible teaches that man’s will is not free to do what is right, but that it is in bondage to sin.
This is where Machen directly contradicts humanistic psychology, which treats man as naturally good and corrupted only by society. In contrast, biblical anthropology says that the corruption is internal. Culture may shape the expression of sin, but the source is the heart (Mark 7:21–23).
This view preserves moral responsibility—and the need for true repentance.
The Need for Redemption: Salvation Must Come From Outside Ourselves
Machen’s anthropology is not morbid or pessimistic. He is not simply bemoaning the state of man—he is setting the stage for the Redeemer.
Because man is helpless in sin, the only solution is supernatural grace. Human effort, education, or religion cannot bridge the gap. Only God can. And He has, in Christ.
This is why Machen constantly ties anthropology to Christology. Man’s nature and problem can only be understood in light of Jesus, the second Adam. Jesus succeeded where Adam failed. He obeyed where we rebelled. He died in our place. He rose in victory.
Machen writes:
The Christian view of man can never be separated from the Christian view of Christ. The one requires the other.
This is essential in today’s world where “spirituality” is popular, but Jesus is optional. For Machen, a view of man that doesn’t lead to Christ is not Christian at all.
Man’s Identity in Christ: The New Humanity
The final theme Machen touches on is the restoration of man through union with Christ. Though he does not develop this in as much detail as later theologians, the implication is clear: man’s true identity is found not in himself, but in Christ.
This has massive implications for today’s identity crisis. Modern people are told to define themselves by feelings, politics, race, or sexual desires. Machen reminds us that true identity is received, not invented. It is given by God, not constructed by man.
Man is not autonomous. He is responsible to his Maker, and his life is intelligible only in the light of his Creator’s purpose.
This is a direct rebuke to the identity absolutism of the 21st century. Whether it’s gender fluidity, racial essentialism, or expressive individualism, Machen calls us back to a better identity: one rooted in creation, defined by God, and redeemed in Christ.
The Modern Crisis of Man: Why Machen Still Speaks
Machen’s The Christian View of Man is not a relic of a bygone era. It is prophetic. Although he died in 1937—before the Sexual Revolution, before the rise of critical theory, and before the explosion of postmodernism—his diagnosis of modern man’s problem was remarkably prescient. He understood that rejecting the biblical view of man wouldn’t lead to neutrality—it would usher in confusion, tyranny, and despair.
Let’s now consider how Machen’s teaching applies to our current cultural moment, focusing on four major areas of concern: gender ideology, critical race theory, therapeutic culture, and artificial intelligence.
Gender Ideology and the Rebellion Against the Body
Few modern heresies illustrate the collapse of biblical anthropology more clearly than transgenderism. At the heart of the gender movement is the claim that a person’s “true self” is not found in their biology, but in their internal feelings. The body is seen as a canvas to be rewritten—by hormones, surgery, or social recognition.
This is not merely a medical or psychological problem; it is a theological one. It is the modern Gnosticism Machen opposed—the idea that the spiritual (or psychological) part of man is higher than the physical. That the body is not a gift to be stewarded, but a prison to be escaped.
Machen’s insistence that man is a unity of body and soul directly contradicts this view. He would say, clearly and compassionately, that a person cannot be trapped in the “wrong body” because the body is part of God’s good creation. To mutilate it is to rebel not only against nature, but against the God who formed us in the womb (Psalm 139:13–16).
Furthermore, Machen’s understanding of sin helps clarify the deeper issue: gender confusion is not merely a matter of identity; it is a symptom of the Fall. It is part of the groaning of creation, not a path to liberation.
In our compassion, we must tell the truth: true freedom is not found in self-invention, but in surrender to the God who created us male and female (Genesis 1:27). Machen would have said nothing less.
Critical Race Theory and the Denial of Individual Responsibility
Critical Race Theory (CRT) presents a radical reinterpretation of human nature and moral responsibility. It replaces the biblical categories of sin and grace with those of oppression and power. In CRT, identity is primarily racial or ethnic; moral status is assigned collectively, not individually.
Machen’s anthropology flatly contradicts this framework.
He teaches that:
- All people, regardless of ethnicity, are equally made in God’s image.
- All people, regardless of background, are morally accountable for their own sin.
- Salvation is offered not on the basis of social status, but through repentance and faith in Christ.
CRT divides humanity into perpetual categories of victim and oppressor—categories that can never be escaped, only managed through social deconstruction. But Machen reminds us that the true division in humanity is between those in Adam and those in Christ (Romans 5). In Adam, we are all fallen. In Christ, we are all reconciled—across every line of race, class, and gender (Galatians 3:28).
By denying individual sin, CRT denies the need for individual salvation. By making identity socially constructed, it replaces gospel reconciliation with endless grievance. Machen’s Christian view of man restores moral agency, dignity, and the hope of forgiveness.
Therapeutic Culture and the Reign of Self-Esteem
Another major shift in modern thinking is the therapeutic redefinition of sin. Rather than being lawbreakers before a holy God, people are now viewed as victims of poor parenting, trauma, or low self-esteem. The goal of counseling is not repentance but affirmation. The central sin is not rebellion but shame. The ultimate need is not a Savior but a sense of personal worth.
In this context, Machen’s message is countercultural. He does not flatter the human ego. He tells us that we are sinners—guilty, corrupt, and in need of atonement. But that’s precisely what makes his message liberating. If our problem is sin, and not merely suffering, then the gospel has power to save.
This truth is especially needed in churches that have absorbed the therapeutic spirit of the age. Sermons become pep talks. Worship becomes entertainment. The cross becomes a metaphor for endurance, not a real sacrifice for guilt. But Machen brings us back to reality: man is not basically good. He is spiritually dead. He doesn’t need a boost—he needs resurrection.
And only Christ can do that.
Artificial Intelligence and the Dehumanization of Man
While not directly addressed by Machen, the rise of artificial intelligence presents another challenge to biblical anthropology. As machines grow increasingly capable of mimicking human thought and language, many now question whether humans are unique at all. Are we just algorithms with emotions? Are we anything more than highly evolved processors?
Machen would reject this reductionism. He knew that man is not merely a brain—he is a soul, a worshiper, a moral being made in God’s image. Machines may imitate language or behavior, but they cannot pray, repent, love, or seek God. They cannot be saved.
In a culture increasingly tempted to treat people as data points, Machen’s teaching reaffirms that every human being has eternal worth—not because of usefulness, intelligence, or output, but because of divine design.
A Church in Crisis: Confusion Within the Camp
One of the most sobering realities today is that many churches have lost their grip on the Christian view of man. Some deny the historicity of Adam. Others soften the doctrine of sin. Still others embrace cultural categories of identity and justice that have little to do with Scripture.
Machen saw this coming. He warned that a church that loses its theology of man will soon lose the gospel. If man is not created, then God is irrelevant. If man is not fallen, then Christ is unnecessary. If man is not accountable, then grace is cheap.
We are now living in the ruins of Machen’s warnings unheeded. But his words still offer a path back—not through novelty, but through orthodoxy. Not by adapting the faith, but by contending for it (Jude 3).
The Identity Crisis Solved: Image, Union, and Destiny
At its heart, our cultural confusion about identity is a theological crisis. We don’t know who we are because we don’t know whose we are. We’ve rejected the Creator and lost our reflection. We’ve rejected the gospel and lost our hope.
Machen’s anthropology—rooted in creation, corrupted by sin, and restored in Christ—gives us back our identity.
- We are image-bearers: Our value is intrinsic, not earned.
- We are fallen: Our problem is deeper than self-doubt or bad habits.
- We are redeemable: Our hope is not in self-improvement but in the cross.
- We are eternal: Our destiny is not to disappear, but to stand before the God who made us.
This is the only view of man that offers dignity without pride, realism without despair, and hope without delusion.
Strengths, Limitations, and Style: Why This Book Still Matters
Strengths: Clarity, Courage, and Confessional Fidelity
J. Gresham Machen’s The Christian View of Man is a slim volume—especially by modern theological standards—but it punches well above its weight. What makes this book so powerful is not just what Machen says, but how he says it.
Clarity Without Compromise
One of the most consistent strengths of Machen’s writing—and of this book in particular—is its crystal-clear articulation of doctrine. Machen speaks plainly but precisely. He doesn’t hide behind academic jargon or rhetorical fog. Whether he’s discussing the image of God, the nature of sin, or the necessity of grace, his words are accessible without being simplistic.
This clarity stems from conviction. Machen believed that truth should be understood by the ordinary Christian, not hidden away in the academy. And because these chapters were originally delivered over the radio to a general audience, they are marked by warmth and economy.
He respected his listeners enough to tell them the truth in plain speech.
Courage in a Compromised Age
Machen was not writing in a safe or friendly environment. He was defying the tide of modernism at great personal cost. By the time he gave these lectures, he had already been forced out of Princeton, defrocked by his denomination, and was treated by many in the press as a relic of an outdated age.
But he did not blink.
His courage shines through in every chapter. He does not flatter man’s ego or soft-pedal sin. He doesn’t waste time building bridges to unbelief. Instead, he speaks with apostolic conviction. And for readers in our own age—when even many pastors are hesitant to name sin or confront cultural idols—this tone is refreshingly bracing.
There is something deeply pastoral about Machen’s boldness: he tells us the hard truth because he loves us.
Confessional Reformed Orthodoxy
Finally, Machen’s theology is unapologetically confessional. It flows not only from Scripture but from the rich heritage of Reformed theology—particularly as expressed in the Westminster Confession of Faith. He doesn’t hide this. In fact, he leans into it, believing that old paths are often the safest ones.
This gives the book a sense of depth and maturity. It is not a speculative theology of man but a tested one—anchored in centuries of biblical interpretation and theological reflection.
For readers who have grown weary of novelty or theological drift, this rootedness is a gift.
Limitations and Challenges: Contextual, Not Comprehensive
No book is perfect, and honest engagement requires acknowledging a few limitations of The Christian View of Man. These do not diminish its value but simply help the reader approach it with the right expectations.
Limited Engagement with Competing Theories
Because of its brevity and popular format, Machen doesn’t spend much time engaging other views in detail. He occasionally names evolution or liberal theology, but he does not delve deeply into competing models of anthropology such as existentialism, behaviorism, Freudianism, or Marxism. This makes the book more accessible—but at the cost of some philosophical precision.
Readers looking for detailed apologetic engagement or comparative worldview analysis may need to supplement this with other works, such as Francis Schaeffer’s The God Who Is There or Carl Trueman’s The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self.
That said, Machen lays the groundwork upon which such critiques can be built.
Written for an Earlier Generation
Though Machen’s insights are timeless, his cultural references and style are rooted in the 1930s. Some of his phrasing, examples, and illustrations will feel dated to modern readers. There are no references to technology, social media, or contemporary crises like transgenderism or globalism—understandably so.
However, this is more a limitation of date than of doctrine. Machen’s theology is fully capable of being applied to modern questions—it just requires a faithful reader willing to build that bridge. In that sense, the book is like a classic tool: it may look old, but it still does the job perfectly.
Not Systematic or Exhaustive
This is not a systematic theology or a full-length anthropology text. Topics like human sexuality, conscience, vocation, or the development of children are largely absent. The format—a series of brief lectures—means that each chapter is more of a theological sketch than a comprehensive treatise.
Again, this is not a flaw so much as a limitation of purpose. Machen was not writing a textbook; he was offering a faithful summary for the layperson, the pastor, and the thinking Christian. And he accomplishes that goal brilliantly.
Style and Tone: Gentle, Urgent, Unflinching
The tone of The Christian View of Man deserves special mention. Machen’s style is serious but never bombastic, urgent but never shrill. His sentences carry a sense of gravity, but they are never heavy for the sake of sounding profound. This balance—rare in theological writing—is what makes the book so inviting even to young or newly curious readers.
Pastoral Without Pandering
Machen’s goal is not to entertain or to scold. It is to persuade. He speaks like a shepherd, not a showman. He makes appeals to the heart as well as to the mind, never separating truth from love.
When he speaks about sin, he does so with sorrow. When he describes man’s lostness, he is not cynical. His aim is not merely to win an argument, but to bring sinners to the cross.
Confident in Scripture’s Authority
There is no hand-wringing or uncertainty in Machen’s theology. He believes the Bible is the Word of God. He does not apologize for its doctrines or try to reinterpret its claims to fit modern tastes. He trusts the clarity and sufficiency of Scripture—and invites the reader to do the same.
This confidence is infectious. In an era when even seminary professors sometimes sound embarrassed by Paul or Moses, Machen’s unapologetic tone is a welcome contrast.
Enduring Legacy, Contemporary Importance, and Pastoral Takeaways
Machen’s Enduring Legacy: A Voice for the Confessing Church
Though J. Gresham Machen died in 1937, his voice continues to echo in the halls of faithful seminaries, the pulpits of confessional churches, and the study corners of serious Christians around the world. His legacy cannot be overstated.
A Reformer in an Age of Retreat
Machen’s stand against theological liberalism cost him dearly. He was vilified by denominational leaders, pushed out of Princeton Seminary, and denied access to the official missions board of the Presbyterian Church. Yet he did not retreat. He built. He founded Westminster Theological Seminary to preserve rigorous, Reformed, Christ-centered theological education. He helped found the Orthodox Presbyterian Church as a home for confessional fidelity when the mainline church abandoned its moorings.
Today, many churches and institutions that hold fast to the Reformed tradition—whether PCA, OPC, ARBCA, or others—can trace part of their heritage back to Machen’s vision and courage.
A Prophet of Cultural Decline
What makes Machen’s legacy especially remarkable is how clearly he foresaw the direction of modern Western society. His warnings about naturalism, statism, educational indoctrination, and the collapse of moral order were not the rantings of a crank—they were accurate predictions of what we now see unfolding.
In 1923, Machen wrote in Christianity and Liberalism:
The chief modern rival of Christianity is not Buddhism or Mohammedanism, but a religion which is precisely opposed to Christianity in all its fundamental principles. That religion is called Modernism, and the chief instrument of its propagation is the modern liberal church.
He was right. And The Christian View of Man carries that same prophetic weight. It reminds us that theology is not abstract—it shapes culture, society, family, and eternity.
Why This Book Still Matters Today
The modern world is in an identity crisis. It cannot answer the most basic questions:
- What is a man?
- What is a woman?
- What does it mean to be human?
- Is there right and wrong?
- Do we have souls?
- Are we more than animals?
- Can we be redeemed?
Philosophers, psychologists, and activists offer dozens of answers. But most are contradictions, illusions, or dead ends. Only Scripture gives us a coherent and hopeful anthropology—one that affirms both our dignity and our depravity, both our ruin and our redemption.
Machen’s book gives us that vision. It presents a Christian view of man that is biblically faithful, theologically robust, and culturally sane. And it does so without apology or equivocation.
This is not a luxury in our time. It is a necessity.
Who Should Read This Book?
This book is a must-read for several groups of people:
High School and College Students
Young Christians being bombarded with secular anthropology in biology, sociology, psychology, and gender studies will find in this book a stable and clear voice. It can serve as a lifeline in a sea of confusion.
Pastors and Elders
Church leaders who are trying to shepherd flocks through moral chaos need to be reminded of the foundations. This book provides them with language, clarity, and theological conviction.
Christian Educators
Teachers in Christian schools, homeschool co-ops, and seminaries need to be equipped to pass down the truth of what it means to be human. Machen helps ground that in Scripture rather than in pop psychology or therapeutic fads.
Parents and Discipleship Leaders
Raising children or discipling new believers in an age of identity confusion requires biblical categories. Machen’s work gives simple but deep truths that can form the backbone of Christian worldview formation.
Final Reflections: A Call to Courage and Conviction
To read The Christian View of Man is to be reminded that truth matters. Not just abstract truth, but truth about who we are—our nature, our need, and our hope. In an age where lies about humanity are packaged as compassion, Machen gives us the wisdom to see through the fog.
He helps us remember:
- That we are made in God’s image, not man’s imagination.
- That we are corrupted by sin, not merely harmed by others.
- That we are loved by a Redeemer who entered our humanity to rescue us.
- That our identity is not something we invent but something we receive by grace.
This is good news in a bad-news world.
And it is a message the church must recover if she is to be salt and light in our day.
Conclusion: Rediscovering Machen’s Vision for Man
J. Gresham Machen was not trying to be relevant. He was trying to be faithful. And in God’s providence, his faithfulness has become more relevant than ever.
The Christian View of Man is a small book, but it is a theological sword—sharp, straight, and suited for battle. It cuts through the false teachings of modern man and gives us something solid to believe, preach, and pass on.
In an age of confusion, compromise, and cultural capitulation, this book reminds us of the eternal truths:
- Man is not his own.
- Man is fallen.
- Man is redeemable.
- And man’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.
May we listen to Machen—not as a voice from the past, but as a brother pointing us back to the Word of God, where alone we can find ourselves.
This book is highly recommended. Read it with an open Bible and a firm spine. And share it with those who still believe truth is worth defending.
S.D.G.,
Robert Sparkman
MMXXV
rob@christiannewsjunkie.com
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