Men are important to the growth and sustainability of effective ministry. The Church has to do a better job of making the church more masculine, meaning, more open to allowing men to be who they are without working in tandem with culture to feminize them.
Effectively reaching men requires the church to remain focused on the following four principles:
Evangelism
Jesus’ command to his disciples and us is:
Mark 16:15 “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.”
What does this scripture mean? How can a Men’s Ministry teach and apply this scripture? Most of the men in your church are surrounded daily by people who don’t know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. It’s important that men’s ministry reaches those around them and in the community who are without Christ, without hope!
Most men have jobs, and we go to those jobs every day; some for different reasons than others. Some will be out of mere survival, others for wealth, and others for happiness.
The problem lies in the attitude by which men work and their motives while at work. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians that we should serve Christ where we are; in the vocation that we are in. Paul also writes:
Ephesians 6:6-7 “Not by way of eye service, as men-pleasers, but as slaves of Christ doing the will of God from the heart. With good will, render service, as to the Lord, and not to men”
You would be surprised that when our motives and attitudes are right at work, how much more opportunities God will give us to share the gospel where we are. Don’t forget, actions sometimes speak louder than words.
Establishment
Once men have committed their lives to Christ, they need to be grounded in relationship.
Colossians 2:6-7 “Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him, having been firmly rooted and now being built up in Him and established in your faith, just as you were instructed, and overflowing with gratitude.”
The goal is to establish men in a committed and grounded relationship with Christ and with other Christian men.
Equipping
The goal is not to raise up a bunch of human sponges who attend gatherings solely to take what they can get. It’s to provide activities and training to help men discover, develop and deploy their gifts and talents for the work of the Gospel, to lead their homes and to make a difference in their workplace.
Hebrews 13:20-21 “…even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will…”
Extension
Missions are the final piece of balanced ministry; taking the gospel to the whole world. One measure of an effective Men’s Ministry is how many men you train and send in the ministries that reach non-Christians. The goal should be to send established and equipped men of God to evangelize as an extension of your church.
