Churching Men

Making your church a modern-day Addullam: Reach, Teach, Release.

As you finish your prayer, you realize that the weeping man at the altar has come to Christ. The leather, tattoos and body piercings clearly no longer agree with the transformation you know has changed his soul. As you praise God for this new soul, a realization hits you. I have to help make a strong saint of this man.

Churching, or re-Churching men is a key task in developing a dynamic and growing body of believers. The differences in background, appearance and even style of your new brothers can seem intimidating. God’s Power and your heart are more than equal to the task. You can become a modern day “Captain of 400” in a 21^st century Adullam.

Adullam Assembly

David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave Adullam: and when his brethren and all his father’s house heard it, they went down thither to him. And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men (1 Samuel 22:1-2 KJV).

David, hunted and hated by his own father-in-lay, has hidden himself in a wilderness cave. Penniless and burdened with his unjustly persecuted family, David needs help and assistance. God faithfully guides men to his loyal servant.

Cave entrance near the ancient ruins of Adullam.
Image: Davidbena / Wikimedia Commons.

Deadbeats, troublemakers and whiners arrive at Adullam. With Saul and all of Israel’s armies looking for him, only the losers arrive at David’s side. However it looks to David, this is God’s Plan.

Whatever they were before, these men change when they stay with David. A rag-tag group of malcontents become an elite force of warriors. Losers and castoffs are transformed into courageous champions.

The Church is made up of men and their families. Souls progress from converts to new disciples, to growing disciples and then disciple makers. This is the intended pattern for God’s Church.

Your church or ministry can become a modern day Adullam. A place where men can become transformed in God’s Spirit and Power. All it takes is a heart, and heard, for working with the men that God calls from the darkness. If it ever seems too much, ask for more of His Grace.

Nothing can remain the same in the presence of God’s Grace. Not the situation. Not the men. Not even the leader.

Transformation Assembly

The military and law enforcement know how Christian leaders feel. They take in men who know little or nothing of war or law, then transform them. In too few weeks, they make seasoned professionals of inexperienced boys. Then they send them into the streets and battlefields to accomplish a difficult mission against incredible opposition.

In a different sense, the military and law enforcement have no idea how Christian leaders feel. The military and law academies get to pick and choose whom they admit. The Church accepts any that will come to the Cross. In too few weeks, or too many years, the Church makes powerful saints from lowly sinners.

Christian men, before their conversion, were often the worst offenders or least wanted of all society. The Holy Spirit transforms the hearts, and natures, of men the world would throw away. Through God’s Grace, we rescue “the least of these” and help transform them into desirable champions.

Churching the unchurched man is an extraordinary venture. Conversion, discipleship, mentoring and mission progress through the lives of all Godly men. Despite the distractions and demands of the world and church life, this process is the source of growth and strength for God’s Church.

Christian leaders are called to be “captains over 400.” It takes time, talent and treasure to gather those whom no one else wants. That and a heart obedient to God’s Call and Commission.

Converting Men

And the Lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled (Luke 14:23 KJV).

It’s best to begin at the beginning. Go into the highways and byways. Compel them with grace, love and hope.

There are a lot of unchurched men out there. In prisons. On street corners. Lurking in back rooms. Our job, as Christian leaders, is to help pull them in.

They are God’s sons also. They need to be led out of captivity into freedom. Their families, immediate or distant, will be released from bondage with that (re)claimed man. We must go to them, since they will not, or cannot, come to us.

Time, talent and treasure spent on new converts is never wasted. No place of conversion is too dirty or difficult for God’s Grace to appear. We can fill His House. Are you willing to be a channel for the flow of His Power?

Despite his situation, men gathered at David’s side. Men desperate for hope and redemption traveled into the wilderness and joined an outlaw. Our churches and ministries can become modern-day Adullams.

We can create places where men know they can come and be accepted as they are. Godly men can embrace rank sinners and help them kneel at the altar in repentance. Revival and restoration can become commonplace, if we put our hearts, and backs, into reaching the lost.

Discipling Men

With the joyous crisis of salvation and repentance complete, what happens next? The hard work of teaching, training and tempering a new saint begins. Some mature Christian man has to embrace that newborn, feed him with Gospel milk, and help him progress to spiritual meat.

Here’s where the going gets tough. Teaching men, yet alone those who have been engaged in the worst of this culture, takes time and talent. Otherwise intelligent and clever converts won’t immediately understand or agree with all of their new life. Some blessed and blessing man will have to explain and teach the fine art of Godly living.

It is necessary to teach willful men obedience. Pleasure seekers must be transformed into modest, temperate men. Addicts must learn to reject every dependence, except Jesus Christ.

Men, no matter how they growl, respond to grace. Some time in their lives, all brothers need a kind, guiding, hand. Newborn saints need their teachers to have respectful patience, if nothing else.

We may never know what kind of “boot camp” David ran for his recruits. I’m sure some lost heart when they learned what would be expected of them. Still, 400 men stayed the course and were transformed.

A newborn saint needs more care and teaching than at any other time of his Christian life. As leaders in God’s Church, it’s our job to help men learn Scripture and reach maturity in Christ Jesus. By teaching and training early and well, we can help men live long and fruitful lives as Christian saints.

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children (Hosea 4:6 KJV).

Knowledge is power. A man full of Scripture and the Holy Spirit is a threat to the enemy and a champion for the Kingdom. Are the powerful emerging around you?

Mentoring Men

Mentoring is an intimate teaching and leading relationship. After initial discipleship, men still need someone to guide them into the deep waters of God. A mentor takes on that role, selflessly helping a man becomes what God intends for him.

Each man who comes to God has a unique personality and set of gifts. No matter how many times you refine copper, it will not become steel. Every life and soul has a God-given set of attributes. It is a mentor’s job to help a fellow saint become the type of man God intends him to be.

And now, saith the LORD that formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob again to him, Though Israel be not gathered, yet shall I be glorious in the eyes of the LORD, and my God shall be my strength (Isaiah 49:5 KJV).

Investing in the lives of men may not seem to have immediate return. As Christian leaders invest in God’s men, God will not fail to invest in His faithful leaders. There may be a gap between sowing and the reaping. Stay the course.

God uses us, where He will, to build His Kingdom. We may not understand until later, but His Grace weaves exquisite patterns. God pours His Glory into obedient lives. Dare to be a part of His Plans.

Mission

Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen (Matthew 28:19-20 KJV).

Sooner or later, a new convert becomes a mature saint. The comforts of being fed and nurtured, should give way to bringing up a new cohort of saints. At that moment, it becomes necessary to help them launch out into the Gospel fields.

Therefore David enquired of the LORD, saying, Shall I go and smite these Philistines? And the LORD said unto David, Go, and smite the Philistines, and save Keilah. And David’s men said unto him, Behold, we be afraid here in Judah: how much more then if we come to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines (1 Samuel 23:2-3 KJV)?

David’s men knew the skill and might of the Philistines. Fighting defensive battles on home territory is one thing, attacking a “superior” foe is another. God’s direction to David and his men was clear in its purpose, but not certain in its outcome.

The deep water of God’s Purpose can be scary, even for veterans. It should come as no surprise that your men may have their faith stretched in fulfilling their mission. It’s important that you help them execute that Great Commission of Matthew 28: 19-20.

Then David enquired of the LORD yet again. And the LORD answered him and said, Arise, go down to Keilah; for I will deliver the Philistines into thine hand. So David and his men went to Keilah, and fought with the Philistines, and brought away their cattle, and smote them with a great slaughter. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah (1 Samuel 23:4-5 KJV).

David’s 400 men, once the desperate and broken, are transformed into hope and salvation. They fight with the hardened armies of the Philistines and were wildly victorious. Their promise, hidden when they arrived at Adullam, is now plainly visible to everyone.

Courageous men are usually not fearless men. Courage can be defined as “personal strength greater than personal fear.” The men of your local church or ministry are capable of great Kingdom work. Still, they may need a little encouragement and exhortation to get going.

It may even be necessary for their captain to share his own courage and wisdom with the men.

David never hesitated to consult with God. He always called out to Jehovah-Shammah, the God who is there, when his own reserves and resources seemed too little. God’s Power and Grace flows through willing vessels, changing everything.

Local Assembly

In the business world, an organization seeks to have 50% of its revenues come from young (less than 2 years old) products. The new products fuel growth in market share, customer base and additional innovation. A leader and organization with these sorts of results is usually envied by competitors and favored by the owners and investors.

Our churches and ministries could profit from this approach. We can and should fill our pews with newly converted men. A church that grows through new converts attracts the attention of the community, expands its ability to further evangelize, and fulfills its God-given mission and commission. A Christian leader who makes Godly men of unbelievers will always be favored by men and God.

It takes time, talent, and treasure to create a new Adullam where you are. Losers and castaways will gather at the door, seeking the salt and light of the Gospel for their hurting souls. As Christian leaders, it is our mission and mandate to make saints and champions through the power of the Holy Spirit.