If you want to be a godly man you need to go to church on Sunday, every Sunday, ideally twice on Sunday – if you are really serious about this. So, what should you look for in a church? And what should you do in a church?
What should I look for in a church?
Teaching: You don’t need a famous preacher. You just need a godly man who faithfully explains and practically applies the Scriptures. You want a man who is utterly focused on explaining each word of Scripture. Ideally you want a mixture of preaching that will address both the converted and the unconverted so that you can grow as a Christian and bring non-Christian friends to hear the Gospel.
Worship: Make sure that the worship is God-centered, God-glorifying, and God-pleasing, rather than man-centered, man-glorifying, and man-pleasing.
Fellowship: You need relationships with Christians from different age groups, backgrounds, and cultures. This involves not just talking to and listening to one another, but sharing one another’s burdens prayerfully and practically.
Discipline: You want a church that keeps you accountable, that sets biblical standards for its members and holds you to them. Church membership is a privilege and a responsibility.
What should I do in a church?
Support. Support your church with your prayers, your presence, your time, your talents, and your money.
Serve. Look for opportunities to serve. Do floors need swept, cups need washed, leaves need raked, chairs set up? Whatever you can find to do, do it with all your might, remembering you are serving the Lord.
Submit. Submit to the pastors and elders. Accept the rebukes, the admonitions, and even the discipline if that becomes necessary. But also ask them for input into your life. Ask a godly elder to mentor you and meet up with you regularly, say every month.
Stay. Stay there. Stay there. Stay there. You need a really good reason to leave a faithful church. Very few people prosper spiritually who leave a faithful ministry for trivial reasons. They just end up church-hopping for the rest of their lives.
Action: Serve your church
Go and see your pastor or elder or youth group leader and ask them, “What can I do to serve God in this church?”
Real Men Commit to the Church
Discussion Questions
1. List five characteristics of the kind of teaching you should look for in a church.
2. What can you do to increase Christian fellowship in your church?
3. What can you do to serve in your church? What are the steps you need to take to serve there?
Further Reading
Why Go to Church? 50+ Things You Miss Out On By Not Attending
A Sample Statement on Regular Church Attendance: 7 Reasons Why Faithfully Showing Up Matters
A Theology of Worship
Dad’s, Sing Like You Mean It Because Your Kids Are Watching
Church Discipline: Principles and Reasons
Church Discipline
Five Marks of a Servant Leader
Building a Better Small Group