Should Christians Go to Nightclubs (Clubbing)? — Beyond Evangelical | The Blog of Frank Viola

Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world-the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life-is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

~ 1 John 2:15–17

“Come out from among them
And be separate, says the Lord.
Do not touch what is unclean,
And I will receive you.”

“I will be a Father to you,
And you shall be My sons and daughters,
Says the Lord Almighty.”

Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

~ 2 Corinthians 6:17–7:1

Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. But you have not so learned Christ …

~ Ephesians 4:17–20

Welcome to another Thursday UNFILTERED blog post, the only blog that thinks that the initial intention of Pringles was to make tennis balls. But on the day the rubber was supposed to show up, a large truck load of potatoes arrived. Pringles is a laid back company so they said, “Change of plans; cut ’em up!”

Over the years, a number of Christians have asked me to write an article answering the question of whether or not it’s appropriate for a Christian to attend nightclubs.

They’ve seen their peers who profess to love Jesus go to clubs, something they themselves stopped doing when they gave their allegiance to Christ and were baptized.

So they wanted to have an article on the subject to share with their friends.

As I’ve argued in Insurgence: Reclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom, when a person is baptized in the name of Jesus, they are breaking the loyalty oath to the world system and all that implies.

Consequently, for a person who professes to be a follower of Jesus yet who is wedded to the world, living in a way that’s no different from unbelievers, the genuineness of their faith in Jesus and their baptism is suspect.

That idea isn’t original with me. It’s all over the New Testament.

Instead of writing the article myself, I thought it would be wiser for someone who is in their 20s to write it.

Rebekah (Becky) Cauchi is a serious follower of Jesus Christ. And she’s 21 years old.

I interviewed Becky on the subject of attending clubs (clubbing) as it relates to genuine Christians (or at least those who profess to be Christians).

After Becky gives her take on the subject, which I believe reflects the mind and heart of God, she shares her testimony.

What she has to say is powerful and shouldn’t be dismissed.

If you find this article valuable, you can share it with your friends using the social share buttons below it. Or just give them the link to this post.

By the way, Becky is British so she spells certain words differently than we in the USA do. 😉

Enjoy!

Becky, tell us about yourself — where you grew up, your age, where and what you are currently studying:

I grew up and have always lived by the South Coast of England. Now at the age of 21 years old, I am coming to the end of a three-year university degree course in Model Making. (Note: Model Making is the act of producing real 3D representations of buildings or objects.)

Before we discuss your testimony (how you met the Lord Jesus and began following Him) as well as your current life in Christ, this is a question that many people — especially those in their 20s and 30s — would like an answer to: From your own experience and guidance of the Holy Spirit, what would you say to young Christian women and men about attending nightclubs and bars?

Clubbing is something I can confidently speak about because my old lifestyle would feed on such environments.

The club was my playing field; it platformed the pinnacle of the social ladder in which my empty identity was based on.

Before I gave my life to the Lord Jesus, I was inwardly broken and lost. I’d pull through an endless cycle of depressed weekdays at the excitement of a messy night out on Friday. These messy weekends were dark and dirty, but they were all the happiness and relief I knew, so in all honesty they were what I lived for.

Lost, dead souls that are bound by addiction and deception gather in places such as the club because there it is socially acceptable and socially encouraged to act sinfully. I was once one of those souls.

Now that Christ has saved me and given me His new life, I am entirely baffled at the idea of going back to that place of hopelessness for entertainment.

Ultimately, I believe the question is not whether going clubbing is a sin, but rather, will it draw us closer to God and bring Him honour? It’s the motive behind it which is the stemming issue.

Therefore, if one gives the time to honestly assess the clubbing culture, I believe this question is self-explanatory.

Ephesians 4 is my jumping base for this topic:

You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. (Ephesians 4:22–24)

One may argue that there are levels of personal convictions, but regardless of conviction, does participation aid our representation of Christ and would we honestly be comfortable clubbing in His presence?

A classic night out is a group activity that always includes nonbelievers who will be actively committing sins before God. It’s a certainty that this situation will involve you blending in with the crowd.

Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. (Romans 6:13)

I long to be an available tool for righteousness. I don’t want to blend into this world or be entertained by the things of this world.

Does the flesh have any fellowship with the Spirit, or do they not oppose each other?

As an ex-clubber I can safely say that the club is a meat market. Quite literally a feast of the flesh. The exercise of extensive alcohol, drugs and common fashion trends result in lust, drunkenness and zero sobriety.

My own story of grace was a journey.

The Lord had brought me from death to life; however, it took months before I got out of the club and party scene.

Personally, lust is a huge part of the reasoning as to why I strongly disagree with the notion that Christians should go clubbing.

I can think of nothing worse than being the reason for my brother to sin when I could have easily prevented it.

Now, whether I will be dressing or dancing in the way that all the other women in the club are, I would never feel comfortable bringing a Christian brother into an environment such as that.

I am not ignorant to the other sexes’ higher level of temptation (in most cases); therefore, I will do my best to keep the Lord’s bride pure, undefiled, and holy within their precious hearts.

Sin is the barrier of separation which Jesus came to destroy, at the highest price. It’s an issue that Scripture tells us to take seriously, because it has the power to send us to Hell if it isn’t cut out.

If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. (Matthew 5:29)

In this world temptation is inevitable; however, its level of exposure can be controlled; if clubbing causes you to sin, pluck it out.

Much of the music of this world opposes the virtues of the Spirit.

Often explicitly sexual or violent.

Their seductive tones entice the mind onto the same topics and behaviours. Christians understand the power words can have.

If God sings over His people (“He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.” Zephaniah 3:17), then why would a Christian let someone sing vulgar songs over them to dance to?

As a transformed and renewed Christian, how could this be found entertaining?

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. (Ephesians 4:29)

I believe it is important to address personal motivations behind going clubbing. If I was honest with myself those years ago, I knew my selfish motives came from a place of darkness.

At the beginning of my conversion during an intense period of conviction, I found myself consciously blocking out most of the music I heard in the club, because deep down it was beginning to repulse and grieve me.

I remember going out in Manchester the year I gave my life to Jesus.

I recall stepping back into the corner of the room as I had a cold realization that this was all delusional, counterfeit joy and light.

The club was utterly dark and all these people around me were blind. “What on earth am I doing here?” I remember asking myself. The Holy Spirit was convicting me and it wasn’t a pleasant feeling. I didn’t need to have someone tell me that what I was doing was wrong.

At that time in my life, the ‘hard core’ Christians I knew would confuse me greatly!

I couldn’t figure out what they had that I didn’t, so all I could do was write them off as boring. How were they content without a drink in their hand? How did they not need to feed off the attention of the other sex? No wonder the club was the last place I’d find them.

In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. (2 Corinthians 4:4)

On the other hand, evangelistically speaking, I might consider the club a platform to share the gospel; however, the overbearing volume of music and lack of sobriety makes this nearly impossible.

However, as evangelism requires social communication, the bar and smoking areas are potentially perfect for one-on-one conversations where seeds can be sown into ready hearts.

To conclude, I hold to my conviction not to attend a night out again; however, I’m also aware that not everyone can base their opinions on the same experiences as mine.

I’d understand ‘Thou shall not go clubbing’ as perhaps a hybrid of violating the 7th, 3rd, and 10th commandments.

I know lust and covetousness are the key sins which this environment highly provokes, in addition to enjoyment (or at least tolerance) of the crowd’s sin in music choice.

Thanks for sharing these wise words. Tell us the story of your conversion to Jesus Christ. What exactly happened? And whom did God use?

I wasn’t always a passionate, born-again believer, in fact, it wasn’t until I started university that I fully surrendered and began seeking the Lord wholeheartedly.

Like some, I had the privilege of a Christian upbringing; however, as my parents drifted from the church and the faith, I too forgot about the Jesus of my childhood.

I became a lost and broken soul. My worldly, selfish, and angry attitude fuelled by the trauma of a divided family caused me to lose sight of the Lord Jesus altogether.

However, being the stubborn-minded and extremely deceived person I was, I would all the while proudly profess the faith of a good Christian girl. I was a fraud of a Christian. Only God knows how much of a mockery my life was against His name.

Fast forward to the end of an unhealthy relationship, job, and environment, I could hardly recognise myself.

It was in this pit that I put my life before my eyes in deep assessment, and I came to realize that I was at a crossroad.

One side leading further into my popular girl, wild living life of sin, and the other being a genuine pursuit of God. This was where I chose God. As an unenthusiastic, poor reader, I persistently prayed for a hunger to read the Bible.

Of course, the Lord answered me as I fell head over heels for His Word. I surrendered my life to Him fully.

You actively preach the gospel. Tell us how that happened and where you preach and what usually happens when you do.

Yes, I actively share the gospel street preaching. Being a natural evangelist, within the first year of my conversion, I found myself on the streets sharing the good news of Jesus with the public.

God divinely led me to other mission-minded evangelists who regularly went street preach together as a team.

However, I was first exposed to gospel preaching though none other than a YouTube video.

It was a well-known American preacher called Ray Comfort, who documents and teaches simple evangelistic methods online via his YouTube account. After stumbling across one of his videos, I was so powerfully marked that I set my heart on doing it myself as soon as possible.

Within the next week the Spirit led me to a niche group of evangelists in my area. That is where it all started for me.

My God-given heart for people and bold convictions through the Word of God are continually fuelling my service within this particular ministry.

When preaching I get a mixture of reactions. In fulfilment of Scripture, hearts are always pierced, with some responding in anger, others responding with a humble plea for salvation in prayer afterwards.

Thanks for taking the time to share all of this with us, Becky. I pray that the Lord would use it to rescue multitudes for His glory.

Related:

10 Things I Wish Older Christians Taught Me Why You Shouldn’t Date or Marry Someone Who Doesn’t Love Jesus

For more resources from Frank, check out:

The Blog * All the Books * YouTube Channel * Courses * Speaking Invitations * Podcasts * Ministry Dream Team

P.S. If someone wanted to change your life and zealously forced this blog post on you, you can appease them and subscribe here. It’s gratis and comes with a dozen Super Fire Hot Wings … the kind you can only eat after you sign a set of release forms. (No lemon suckers please. They won’t understand the humor.)

Originally published at https://frankviola.org on January 23, 2023.