Men of ziklag
We are men on a mission to serve The King. Brothers in the faith, warriors in Spirit. We are everyday Joe’s, construction workers, real estate investors, fireman, and entrepreneurs. We are husbands, fathers, and men who care about our communities and our country.
Are you looking for a real community of believers, not just a passing “how are you doing” in the hallway at church?
Are you tired of the nonsense, religious posturing, and “christianese”?
We are real men, with real problems, and everday challenges who have a heart to serve Jesus, and God our Father. The King is on the throne.
If the SHTF do you have anyone you can call?
You may be part of a local church and just be looking for more engagement, or maybe you just can’t find a church home.
I’ve walked out of more than one “service” because my Spirit just was just not at rest with what was going on. It’s hard to find biblical fellowship.
I’m not saying we have it down, nor are we some group of perfect christians. Far from it. We are just attempting to strip down the way we get together to the foundations. Lets get rid of the crazy budgets and staff, the politics, the mortgage, and all of the stuff we have added to what was once a simple gathering of people to break bread and share in the Word of God and fellowship.
That model has produced much fruit, and there are thousands of amazing Teachers, Pastors, and believers in that “system”. There is not much I enjoy more than a good old Charles Stanley sermon, or raising my hands to sing along with a great worship song.
We are just looking to share a way of meeting together we have found that fits us, and our type of people better. Some may call it “home church” or “simple church”.
So if you are interested in learning more about Jesus, the Bible, and the Christian life but don’t really wanna get all dressed up this Sunday morning and go sit in a church building or strip mall somewhere and listen to a sermon and sing, you might want to connect with us, or if there is not a group in your area, start one.
It’s always difficult when you’ve recently moved, or just left your last church for one reason or another. Where do you start? We’ve found ourselves there more than once.
How can you start a fellowship? Are you qualified? The answers might surprise you.
Based solely off what the Bible says..graduating from Seminary, or being “ordained” is not a necessary qualification. Being a hard working, disciplined, man of honor and integrity is. Being a one woman man, and faithful husband is.
If you love to read the Bible, share with others, and enjoy deeper conversations about the faith, difficult scriptures, and are not afraid to ask tough questions about doctrines you don’t understand, you are a good fit for this type of meeting. You might be someone that other guys go to for advice and leadership.
This is where we’ve found ourselves. This is who we are. Men of Ziklag. We decided on this name because we are so much like that group of men in the Bible who were disconnected, left out, kicked out, and a little rough around the edges. There are a lot of different reasons we ended up here, but one thing unites us: We want to know and serve the King.
Who were the men of ziklag?
1 Samuel 27:5-7
Simply put, in reference to 1 Chronicles 12, men who lived in a small country town outside Gath (The land of the Philistines where Goliath was from). David brought a large group of people to Gath—600 men, with their wives and families. He asked the king of Gath to permit them to live in one of the small towns near Gath.
They were outsiders. Many of them were strong men of war who chose to follow a fellow outsider, David. Imagine the risk of choosing to put your family name, your entire future into the hands of one not yet crowned king, only by faith that he was going to be King one day.
David desired a place where his group of people could live peacefully together. Most of them were from Israel; probably all of them considered Israel’s God to be their God. If they lived in Gath, the false religion of Gath may tempt them (26:19). They would constantly be aware of the ceremonies of that religion and the false gods of their neighbors.
Achish, king of Gath, gave a small town called Ziklag to David. It was close to the border between Israel and Philistia. For 16 months, David ruled that town under the authority of the king of Gath in Philistia. However, the gift of that town actually became permanent when David became king of Judah.
David’s men behaved well in Ziklag; and that impressed the people who lived in the surrounding area. The result was that 600 men from Philistia became loyal to David, in addition to the 600 men from Israel (2 Samuel 15:18-22).
Not all the men who joined David were honorable. Some had been disgraced or exposed while following Saul and brought their same wicked ways with them (1 Samuel 30:22). The men of Ziklag were a mixed bag, and David fit perfectly among them.
You may be wondering...
So What Are We? A Church? A Ministry? A Bible Study? A Men’s Group?
We meet together like a church. We do ministry. We study the Bible. We get together with just the men sometimes. But that’s not the big picture.
We want to live out this Christian life like brothers. I challenge you to go read the book of Acts and see how the early church met together and ate a meal together. Look at how elders and leaders were chosen—not based on diplomas, but on character.
We meet together and have a meal. Yes, a meal. We actually break bread and drink wine. Not crackers and juice. The early church had a full meal together whenever they came together. It was a family meal of brothers and sisters talking, reading scriptures, having deep discussions about the things of God.
We come together to encourage one another for the work of ministry. Because life as a man, a husband, and a father is hard. And when we add to that the challenge of protecting those we love from the daily evil of this world, it’s easy to get tired.
So we meet together to pick each other up. Sometimes that’s just listening, sometimes it’s a brotherly smack on the back of the neck for a wake-up call, and sometimes it’s sage advice from an old timer.
So What If I Wanna Check It Out?
Great. Bring a dish, or half a sub, or a pizza, or a bottle of wine—whatever—and come hang out. If you have a family, bring them. But you might just wanna come yourself the first time to make sure you are comfortable.
Sometimes there are just a few of us. Sometimes it’s a big group. We just show up and leave the rest up to God.
What Do You Do Besides Eat?
The only thing we do every time we meet is pray and read from the Bible where we left off last time.
Sometimes we only get a few sentences in before the discussion gets deep. We’re not racing to finish chapters—we are trying to get to know our God and one another better.
If someone has a burden on their heart or a teaching they want to share, they just ask one of the elders (aka the older dudes who seem to always be there).
Some topics—like end times prophecies or conspiracy theories—are better left for one-on-one coffee conversations, not Sunday gatherings.
What Do You Believe?
Oh man. Here is where we could hire some scholars to write a theological statement. But I’m not gonna do that.
The simple answer:
• We believe Jesus Christ of Nazareth was with the Father and the Holy Spirit from the beginning.
• We believe the Genesis account of creation just as it is written.
• We believe that the first man and woman, Adam and Eve, sinned against God—not by sexual immorality or drugs, but by wanting to be independent of the God who loved and created them. The devil sold them on being “like God” and promising knowledge of good and evil. Well, they got what they asked for—and they looked around and were naked and afraid.
(1 Samuel 27:5-7)