Christian night clubs as tools for evangelism?

When comedian Julius Agwu announced that he would open a ‘Christian night club’ in Lagos after he survived a brain surgery, many believers found it absurd
He said smoking or drinking of alcohol will not be allowed in the club, known as Believers Lounge.
“It is God’s calling. God spoke to me do it. We have unbelievers going to clubs, popping champagne and all that, so we want to have a club where believers can hangout too and pop non-alcoholic drinks.
“It’s basically an assignment from God,” Agwu explained.
A night club (also known as discotheque, disco, dance club or club) is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night.
A night club is generally distinguished from bars, pubs or taverns by the inclusion of a dance floor and a disc jockey (DJ) booth, where a DJ plays recorded music; and there are scantily dressed ladies.
The busiest nights for a night clubs are Fridays and Saturdays.
People patronise these club houses for diverse reasons.
For some, it provides an avenue to escape boredom. For others, it is to get fun, relax, hook up with members of the opposite sex (more often for a one-night fling) or to network with high profile persons.
While some Christians frown at using night clubs to evangelise, others say if you do not give Christians the opportunity to unwind in the Christian way, they will look for alternatives.
So, some individuals and faith-based organisations now run what they call Christian night clubs.
One of such is The Underground based in Abuja.
According to Don Sam, it is a place where Christians can dance and listen to good music and get clarification on certain issues.
Said he: “You know most times youths complain that they don’t have places to go and relax or listen to music. Here Gospel music is allowed and every other thing that will glorify the name of God.
“We do not allow anything that is sinful and bring God’s name to disrepute.
“Here we interact with one another, we have pastors among us that speak to us on topical issues like tattoos, drugs, etc. The activities are regulated and we do not label it as night club.
“We have people who used to be drug addicts but are now born again. We hold the club every Sunday from 5pm to 10pm. We have the 10pm till dawn session once in a month.
“The truth is that if you don’t give them opportunities to unwind in the Christian way, they will go experiment outside.
“It is like when you do not give your children sex education, others outside will teach them in a negative way which may lead to having sexual diseases and unwanted pregnancies.”
Sam narrated how he was sceptical about the idea at first, but changed his mind after visiting a Christian club where he got to know about the lives that were transformed.
“I was part of the people who castigated the idea of Christian clubs until I visited one and was impressed by what I saw, which I keyed into and became a full-fledged member.
“The church should not be a four-wall apartment where people come in and pretend to be holy while when they go out they become something else.
“I will not fault people who castigate this concept because whatever you are not called for, you will not understand. Since they are not called into this ministry, they may not understand.
“I must say that when God gives His grace for the ministry, we can handle any assignment He gives us.”
Nonetheless, some Christian leaders oppose the idea, saying it could be hijacked by the devil and evil minded individuals to cause havoc in the spread of the Gospel.
Evans Adetokunbo, a pastor in Grace Mission, said: “Ordinarily; knowing what night clubs are, one would want to be careful with such an idea. But qualifying it with the appellation ‘Christian’ might makes one to give it a second thought.
“If you say it is a place where people have recreation within the bounds of the laws and tenets of the kingdom of God, well, one might say, it’s okay. Such a place would be a place where things are done decently and in order.
“Things that should characterise such a place are Christian music, decent dressing, non-alcoholic drinks, no smoking, no drugs, well lit, family sensitive and safe for children, edifying interactions, no carnality, no inconvenient jesting or coarse jokes, no indecent relationships, or such things, but where Jesus Christ remains Lord in absolute terms.
“Then we can call it a night club that is truly Christian.
“But if it is a place to use liberty as a cloak for unrighteousness and sin, a place where certain indulgences contrary to Christ are allowed, a place where the Spirit of God is restricted and the law of God is partially obeyed.
“If it is a permissive place where other things outside can rule once in a while or where the family is put in the background or children can’t visit; one that has no respect for the family unit or time for the family, probably closing late and a hideout for non-resident and vagabond parents, then don’t call it Christian.”
Adetokunbo warned Christians not to be deceived into so-called Christian night clubs.
“Going there will be too risky for any serious minded, kingdom-focused individual. Only babes in Christ and carnal Christians who mind earthly things would be found in such places; such won’t help the cause of Christ.”
Funmilayo Awoyemi of The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) is adamant that “Christian club is an importation of worldly practice and a wrong tool for evangelism, as it is not part of Christian practices.
“It is not part of the Christian doctrine or revelation handed to Christians by God. It is an attempt to use ungodly practices to reach the people, which is one of our problems in Christendom today.
“You have to use God’s standard to reach people in the way they will be touched.
“I think we should maintain a standard called night vigil, instead of calling it club.
“I think this concept should be discouraged; otherwise it could lead to the penetration of evil. Everybody knows what a club is all about.
“If you listen to some of the songs they call Gospel songs, you will discover that they are far cries from what the Gospel should be.
“So, to be candid, this is a bad trend that should be discouraged.”
Lanre Ogunnusi, a pastor in RCCG, linked the trend to end time signs.
“I do not believe in anything called Christian night club except for vigils or praise nights. To me, it is a sign of the end time and should be put away,” he said.
“I will never advise that my youths or parish members attend or fund any such thing. This trend in my view will affect the church negatively.
“With time one may not be able to differentiate between a Christian club and the worldly club everybody knows exist.”
Samuel Alawode, bishop of Maranatha Ministries International, supports the idea but with caution.
His words: “I don’t have anything against using modern trends to win souls for Christ. A Christian night club could be a smart way of reaching the unreached souls and winning them for Christ as long as sinful activities are not allowed there.
“Some of the ways that were used to evangelise in the past need to be renewed because we live in a world that is fast changing. However, caution is the word.
“For some people who work hard during the week, weekends should be days they would relax and not stress himself by going clubbing.
“But if they must, the operators and attendees must ask themselves some questions and answer genuinely.
“These questions include
• Is the place a place where people can get edified in the Lord?
• “The issues they treat, are they applying the Word of God strictly?
• “Is it not going to provide an escape for a husband who wants to abdicate his family responsibilities instead of staying home and bonding with his wife and children?
• “What is the assurance that on the long run, the place will not be hijacked by the devil and his agents?
“Personally, I feel that if they don’t do what they do in the worldly clubs, then I don’t have a problem with it. No one has the monopoly of The Word. What differentiates any gathering whether club or church is what happens there.
“You know we have village meetings and church meetings, so what differentiates the meetings is the presence of the Holy Ghost. For me, the idea of a Christian night club is a smart and wise way of taking the Gospel to the unreached.
Alawode warned Christians not to fall into error while fulfilling the command of Jesus Christ in Matthew 28:19-20 to “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you.”