With Father's Day just having passed, I was interested in some of the "methods" some churches utilized to draw men tho their church. Their is definitely a gap in the number of men and women in the church today. Women outnumber men in most churches, and many wives attend services regularly while their husbands do not. The question is, if we draw men with worldly things; 1) Are they in church for the right reason? 2) If these are the things that are used to draw men, will they stay if sound doctrine is practiced, preached and promoted.
From the "Faith and Values" section of the Charlotte Observer on Saturday, June 19, we read about the efforts of the Next Level Church in Matthews, NC. On Father's Day they had recliners in the sanctuary. a motorcycle and car show in the parking lot, ESPN highlights on the monitors leading into the sanctuary, a grill going with chicken wings and turkey legs, they were giving out free cigars, and the service was intentionally shortened so as not to impose on the mens time. Wow, sounds like quite a little party was going on there. But my question for men is, if this is what it takes to get you to church, is your heart in a place where it can truly worship God?
Now I know many would consider me old fashioned here, but, how can any church say that they are not appealing to the flesh when such stunts are used to draw a crowd. I realize Paul says we should be "all things to all people," but does he mean we are to be like the world to draw the world? Absolutely not! The bible teaches that we are to be "in the world" but not "of the world." We seem to have lost that important doctrine in many churches.
In fact Jesus tells us He has called us out of the world and it's ways. In John 15:18-19, Jesus says, "If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love it's own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you." Yet in spite of Jesus's clear teaching here, many churches use the world to draw worldly people, believing getting them into church is the answer. Church is not the answer for these people, the Holy Spirit is.
Friends, bringing the world and it's ways in to the church is not what church is supposed to be about. Did Paul, or Peter, or John, or Jesus use this method to win the lost? I can find no where in scripture where any of the early church invited worldly people to church. Instead, they went into the world, won the lost, and then the formerly lost had a sincere desire to come in to church. Today, the exact opposite is going on.
We may grow our numbers using worldly methods to appeal to worldly people, but we will never truly grow Christ's church. Growing the church is about far more than increased attendance and getting people through our doors. Growing the church is first and foremost a spiritual matter, as without spiritual growth, the church may be busting at the seams numbers wise, but stagnant and fleshly from a spiritual standpoint.
Jesus says in John 12:32, "And I, if I am high and lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself." When we offer cigars, ESPN highlights and turkey legs, is that Jesus drawing people, or us by looking like the world? Jesus tells us that no one can come to Him unless the "Father first draws" them. If it is not God drawing us to church, we are there for the wrong reason. In this day and age though we seem far more concerned with drawing a crowd in the flesh than allowing God to draw people in the Spirit. In Galatians 5:17 Paul writes, "For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish." When the flesh is used to appeal to the flesh, how can the Spirit be present if they are contrary to one another?
Call me old fashioned if you like, but I cannot see from scripture how methods such as this are in any way biblical. We are told by scripture to resist the temptations of the flesh, not use them to draw a crowd. Until it is Jesus who is drawing men unto Himself, all we are doing is bringing more of the world in to the church. And quite frankly, we already have enough of the world and it's ways in the body of Christ. Christ's church continues it's slide into apostasy when it uses ploys such as this. We seem to think we can do a better job than Jesus at drawing people. Remember, Jesus says he has chosen us "out of the world," and it's ways. so if you attended church this past Sunday because of free cigars and turkey legs, ask yourself this question. Was God drawing me there, or my appetites of the flesh? The answer to that question has eternal consequences.
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