Why I Teach a Bible Study In a Saloon

People visit bars for multiple reasons. Bars are places to meet friends or relax with colleagues after work. They’re places where one can relax and get away from the cares of the world. Some go for the music, others go to find a date, and still others go to hear the Word of God.

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At least that’s what happens in Southwest Idaho, where I’ve been teaching a Bible study in a saloon each Sunday morning since February.

When people hear I teach a Bible study in a saloon, most think it’s pretty cool. Others raise their eyebrows – “You teach the Bible in a bar????”

Let’s be clear. Jesus ate with sinners. A lot. But he didn’t sin with them. There’s a difference.

But guess what? Every one of us are sinners. Me included.

That said, the overwhelming number of people who attend my study on Sunday mornings at Old State Saloon in Eagle, Idaho, are already Christians – they’re just tired of the legalistic bullcrap or milquetoast preaching that happens in way too many churches.

Consider Janet (not her real name). Janet was attending a church two towns over and she decided she wanted to help out at the church. All she wanted to do was help set up chairs in the school gymnasium that the church rents each Sunday.

Janet had to be interviewed before she could help. When the pastor found out Janet had the occasional glass of wine with dinner, he disqualified her from helping. He wouldn’t even let her help direct traffic.

Consider Philip and Nancy. They were attending a church where the sermons centered around stories from pastor’s life, told with a weak link to some Biblical principle. It was a sure bet: If the pastor’s family went on vacation, the next three or four sermons would include at least 10-15 minutes of story telling from some aspect of their vacation.

“We weren’t learning much about the Bible,” Philip told me, “but we learned a lot about the pastor’s family.”

Called to teach

Many decades ago God made it clear He wanted me to teach the Bible. And so, depending on where I lived, I’ve served as an adult Sunday School teacher and even a men’s pastor. I even pastored a small church for a while. But while God gifted me with the ability to teach – I’m not really pastor material.

Therefore, about a year ago, I shut down the small church. Naturally, as God does, He nudged me to get back to teaching.

Enter an opportunity

Mark Fitzpatrick is the owner of Old State Saloon in Eagle, Idaho. Mark is also a Christian. Why would a Christian buy a bar? Interesting story. Mark originally bought an event center, but with so many weddings each month and no liquor license, Mark got tired of applying for temporary liquor licenses and contracting out to other businesses to supply the spirits. He went in search of a bar for sale, and found one. And, he dedicated its entire operation to the glory of God.

Side note: No matter where you are in the world, you probably heard about Old State Saloon this past month. This is the place that celebrated “Hetero Awesomeness Month” to coincide with the LGBTQ’s “Pride Month,” and that story made international news. But I digress.

When I first met Mark last year, he told me he wanted to make his event center and the saloon available to conservative causes to give back to the community. While attending one such event, I was telling Mark that God was nudging me to get back to teaching, and that I was about to start looking for a place I could conduct a Bible study.

It was really just a sentence in a conversation, but Mark asked, “Why don’t you do it here?” My own eyebrows went up. “In a saloon?” “Why not?” Mark replied.

After taking a few weeks to pray, I dove in. My first lesson was titled, “What is the gospel?” From there I went through the book of Galatians, and now I’m in the middle of a deep dive into 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, a study on what it means to love.

What has the been the response? I was meeting a colleague for coffee the other day when someone who attends the Sunday morning study walked up to our table. “Thank you for teaching at the saloon,” she said. “My boyfriend and I come and he really likes your teaching. He’s a relatively new Christian, and he didn’t like all the fluff he was hearing at the churches we were trying out. He likes your teaching because you really dig into the Word.”

Mark Twain is alleged to have said, “I can live for two months on one good compliment.” To be sure, that woman’s awesome compliment will stay with me for longer than two months.

There are people like Janet, whose legalistic pastor wouldn’t let her help set up chairs, regularly inviting her friends. She drives 30 minutes each way on Sunday mornings to come to the saloon.

And then there’s a guy whom we’ll call Brian, who recently came up to me after a study. He liked what he heard, but he had some questions about what it really meant to be a Christian. We talked for about 20 minutes and I answered his questions, opening up the Bible to show him where Jesus said various things. Brian read and believed the gospel: Jesus died according to the Scripture. He was buried. He rose again, according to the Scripture.

Brian also learned about some of the symbolism God used to throughout the Old Testament, and how the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus fulfilled so many prophesies.

Before he left the saloon that morning, Brian realized the truth about Jesus and had asked Jesus into his life.

Yes!

Eternity is forever. The real question is “location, location, location.”

No big screens, skinny jeans, or smoke machines

I’m not perfect. Nobody on this earth is perfect. Only Jesus was perfect. My calling is to teach out of the Bible. The results of that teaching are up to God, but I know that people are coming to the saloon because too many churches these days are majoring in the minors. People are tired of the legalism. They’re tired of watered-down preaching. They’re tired of going to a church that has a concert instead of worship.

That said, we don’t do worship songs. We don’t pass the hat. I just teach out of the Word of God.

Also, at the beginning of every study I tell people: “If you have a question or comment, raise your hand and I’ll call on you.”  “If you  want to discuss something or get clarification, just let me know.”

Then, after each lesson, I hang around and order lunch. Sometimes people have a question they didn’t feel comfortable asking in front of everyone else. And, praise God, sometimes there are people like Brian who are hungry to know God at a deeper level.

The Truth is the Truth no matter where it’s presented.

And that’s why I teach a Bible study at a saloon each Sunday morning.

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Daniel Bobinski, Th.D., is an international bestselling author, a certified behavioral analyst, and for 35 years he’s been a corporate trainer and executive coach. In 2019, before the dreaded virus, he began writing for UncoverDC and RedState. He now hosts his own TV show, Keep the Republic, on Brighteon.TV and does a podcast with Ambassador Alan Keyes, called “After Hours with Bobinski and Keyes.”