At a recent camp I was a leader at, there was a question panel which I was on. The question came up, "can a Christian go clubbing?" I was not satisfied with my answer on the evening so I would now like to clarify my answer having had some time to reflect on the subject.
Can a Christian go clubbing? I think the answer to this question is undoubtedly yes they can. The teaching of justification through faith makes it clear that our salvation, our right relationship with God, is based solely on Christ's finished work on our behalf and that faith in Christ is the thing that brings us right relationship with God. So in one sense our actions don't matter, when talking to the Galatian Christians about the temptation to be circumcised Paul tells them that there is no need to be circumcised and that actually having found freedom they had to stand fast in it.
"For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery." Galatians 5:1
So can a Christian go clubbing? I think the Bible's answer would be that yes it is possible for a Christian to go clubbing because in Christ we have freedom, freedom from keeping laws and freedom from trying to be good enough for God.
However if we change the question slightly to should a Christian go clubbing? We can come to a very different answer. Should a Christian go clubbing? I think in 99.99 times out of a hundred the answer will be no and I will try to explain why now.
Firstly in 1 Corinthians 10 I think we can see probably one of the strongest arguments against clubbing, Paul says, "All things are lawful, but not all things are helpful, All things are lawful but not all things build up." Paul's argument to the Christians at Corinth is that all things are lawful for them, all things are O.K. for them to do because of their new standing in Christ, but actually not all things are beneficial for them, not all things serve to advance their Christian life. If we apply this to clubbing, obviously it is possible for Christians to go to nightclubs but will it serve to build up their Christian lives? Will it make their walk with God closer? I think the answer is no and I would argue that actually the opposite may be true, it may cause them to slip further and further away from God.
Secondly I would argue that Christians shouldn't go clubbing because it doesn't set a good example to outsiders. Again Paul speaks on this issue in Ephesians 5: 15 "Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise making the best use of time, because the days are evil." Paul tells the believers at Ephesus to live wise lives because the days are evil, because the days in which they lived where evil and the days in which we live are still evil. If we are Christians and we go night clubbing, I think it makes the evil world around us assume that the way they are living is O.K. because they see the Christians around them living in much the same way. They see Christians at nightclubs and assume that all the things they are doing is the same as what the Christians do. As Christians we are no longer to hold to the same values as the world, to chase after the same things as the world but instead we are to chase after the things of God.
Thirdly Christians who go to nightclubs are opening themselves up to temptation that they don't need to open themselves up to. The temptation of scantily clad women, the temptation of drink and drugs, all temptations that a Christian can easily avoid by not going to the nightclubs.
So can a Christian go clubbing? The answer is yes they can, but should they go clubbing? There are some questions we need to ask, is my clubbing going to serve to build up or tear down my Christian faith? Is going clubbing making the best use of my time? Is it living a wise life and setting good examples to outsiders? Will going clubbing open me up to temptation that I don't need to exposed to? Finally will my clubbing glorify God, will it bring the glory and honour to God's name that is due to Him? These are all questions that can be asked of any activity that we engage in.
