The Grand Design: Male and Female He Made Them

The world has gone gray–fuzzy, blurry, gender–neutral gray. In a secularist culture, many people today are confused about what it means to be a man or a woman. Even the church struggles to understand the meaning of manhood and womanhood. In The Grand Design, Owen Strachan and Gavin Peacock clear away the confusion and open up the Scriptures. They show that the gospel frees us to behold the unity and distinctiveness of the sexes. In Christ, we have a script for our lives. Doxology, we discover, is in the details.

About the Author :
Owen Strachan is Provost and Professor of Theology at Grace Bible Theological Seminary in Conway, Arkansas. Gavin is husband to Amanda and father to Jake and Ava. He is associate pastor at Calvary Grace Church of Calgary, and the Director of International Outreach for CBMW. He played football professionally for Chelsea, QPR and Newcastle Utd and was a pundit on BBC Match of the Day.

Review :
Confusion abounds today on what it means to be a man and what it means to be a woman. Peacock and Strachan put feet on the biblical teaching. Strachan and Peacock don't simply defend a view of men and women that is traditional but now counter-cultural. They show it is beautiful. We live in an age characterized by confusion on gender and sexuality ... Strachan and Peacock have provided a careful and faithful account of Scripture's vision for sexuality and gender. This book is urgently needed. In an age so confused about identity and relationships between men and women, Strachan and Peacock have written an easily accessible and theologically clear must-read. Our culture is desperate for men, for them to be Christlike husbands and fathers. This book joins the great cause of meeting that need, and you'll be glad you read it. Read, rejoice, and realign through the fogless clarity of this book. It will change your life, and you'll give praise to God that it has. In this short book they've laid out how biblical complementarity in the home and church is both good and glorious. I wish every Christian would read and apply The Grand Design. Owen Strachan and Gavin Peacock are reliable guides for the necessary return to biblical fidelity on one of our society's central confusions. Christian, you need to read this book. ... Finally, we have a right-sized book to answer the questions men and women are asking or need to ask. Gavin Peacock and Owen Strachan are skilled and gracious communicators and it is a joy to see The Grand Design in print. May it find its way into the hands of every man and woman on the planet. ... While you may not agree with every line, The Grand Design will encourage and empower you in living for God as the person God made you to be. While many evangelicals compromise, or wear 'gospel only' blinkers, this book refuses to avoid any of the issues. With clarity, compassion and cultural awareness the authors have skilfully crafted a Biblical manual which will richly reward study and equip caring Christians to navigate contemporary society and reach out to our generation. What a great and timely book on the issue of the role and function of men and women. Concise and biblical, it deals with everything from marriage, manhood, womanhood, transgender and, of course, homosexuality; all issues facing Bible believing Christians in our day. ... provides an emphatically complementarian exposition of Scripture's teaching on what it means to be man or woman, with particular focus on the home and the church. The authors are not afraid to confront and contradict secular consensus on the issues that arise ... a challenging and practical volume which will repay careful study. ... In an unprecedented way, there is confusion in the church about what it means to be created male and female ... For anyone beginning to search for answers to the epic questions of our age, Strachan and Peacock offer the way forward. ... an outstanding book on the issue of men and women's roles as determined by God's grand design ... compelling, thoroughly biblical, and God-honoring. In a culture being tossed by the winds of secularism, this book is a beacon pointing us back to God's glorious design for men and women. It is clear, accessible, and compelling and will be a blessing to those who take its truths to heart. ... Owen Strachan and Gavin Peacock are calling us to see again the beauty of God's design for male and female. This is a timely and needed book. The point of conflict in the cultural war, the place where the armies collide is clear. It is cosmic confusion over gender, sexual orientation, and sexual identity. In Grand Design Peacock and Strachan have done the church an immense service. They have provided God's people with a valuable weapon, Truth! Read this little volume. It is a cup of cold water and in a dry and arid wasteland of lies and confusion. This book has many strengths. It provides a survey of significant biblical passages that defend the main contours of complementarianism and strongly locates gender distinction within the context of God's design for humanity. It invites its readers to delight in a doctrine that is often thought of as restrictive (especially for women). Above all, the authors' encouragement to men and women to pursue Christ is vivid through prose that can often only be described as breathless.