Altar Calls

I want those who are not saved to be more than aware of their situation. I want the Holy Spirit to scare the daylights out of them with His conviction. I want them to be afraid because of their sins. At the same time, the preacher must point them to Christ as the one to whom they must flee.

 

I would agree with your desire. A preacher can point but only the Holy Spirit can convict. Being aware is much better than a blind response to an emotional discourse. I have seen 53 people in the last three years understand and respond. Every Pastor must make his decision in how to handle the altar call in the local church God has placed him in. BTW I understand 53 may seem a small number but we are a church of 75 in a town of 5000.

 

A few of questions for discussion:

Where is a specific example in the scriptures of an altar call or invitation that we may follow?

Where is the altar in a Baptist Church.

I ask these questions to remind us that we ought to be able to appeal to scripture for our doctrines and practices.

Oh, I know they didn't have air conditioning back then; or sound systems.

But they didn't have altar calls, either.

 

Yep, doctrine needs to be Bible based but practices? Sunday school? Wednesday nights? (although some of us heathen dare meet on Thursday) Vacation Bible School? Special music? Revivals? etc?
Altar call is not Bible based you are correct and again the local church must make that decision!

 

I think we're on the same page here.

Once you have watched a preacher try to manipulate the audience for "decisions" you get really sensitized to it, and when you see it, it gives you cold chills.

 

Yes sir manipulation is totally inappropriate I know the God I serve is much bigger than man's box we try to put Him in so we can help Him do what only He can do anyway!

 

Nothing is wrong with alter calls. I would not feel good being a member where we did not have one, of course I would never be a member of a reformed church anyway.

At the end of our services our pastor gives a short alter call. He does not make any comment. He just waits to see if anyone feel a need to come to the alter, saved or not. After usually two verses unless there is a response the invitation is ended. Not long and no pressure. I believe this is the biblical way to do, but I don't expect much agreement from the Calvinists.

 

Except it is not in the bible Robert....so we cannot agree with you...the biblical way???

well....what if reformed churches were the only correct ones...would you still abstain? what if what you refer to as "hogwash "is truth........where does that leave you?

 

Well, I'm a DoG and I think your pastor's way is just fine. No apparent manipulation here.

My wife and I were in a church just recently where the pastor is a Calvinist. He closed the service with an invitation almost exactly as you described.

Here's a question not just for you, but for all of you who do altar calls: Is it just an appendage to the sermon? Does the sermon naturally lead into it? Is any groundwork laid in the message? Or is it like Joel Osteen's way? He's just preached a motivational sermon with no gospel in it, and ends it by saying, "we never like to close our service without giving you an opportunity to receive Christ. Just pray these words. Lord Jesus...."

It should never be, well the sermon's over, now it's time to do the invitation. It should never be treated as an afterthought, or just a place in the service where it's done.

 

Indoor pluming is not in the bible either. So, where do you put your outhouses?

I would worry if any of them were correct if I were you.

 

Not to worry Robert...apostolic teaching is correct,reformed believe it:thumbs:

 

What's so special about Wednesday in the United States? I so often see references to it as though it were the evening to have prayer-meetings/bible-studies.

I have looked through the first few pages of a UK church directory, and found the following "distribution" of weeknight meetings:

Monday: 0
Tuesday: 17
Wednesday: 25
Thursday: 13
Friday: 1
​

So yes, more on Wednesday than on any other evening, BUT more on "non-Wednesdays" (31) than on Wednesdays.

 

dont you know its Prince Spaghetti Day! :laugh:

 

I enjoy in speaking with those who have been in the Lord for many years. Those people who are in their 90's and even over 100. Several yeas ago I had a man in my class that was over a hundred and he could tell some real stories about how the church used to be.
One older woman told of how it was when she came to the Lord. They had no Pastor. All they had was a circuit rider preacher who would visit once every month to 6 weeks and then be invited to someone's home for lunch where he was most always served fried chicken and then he would throw the bones on the floor. No one said anything to him about it, but that is another story.
She said this traveling preacher would preach his message and there would be no alter call. For the next few weeks until he returned a person might be under conviction because of the message. If they accepted the Lord in this man’s absence they would go to him when he returned and asked to be baptized, no public standing before the congression or having a preacher pray for you up front. They just took the person and baptized them. That is what happened to her and the rest of those during that time.
My guess is that not a single person was lost because of that method and not a single person is saved because of an alter call. You are correct that Baptism is the proper confession for believers.

 

Would say that the practice of them is Not against the Bible, but that would be left up to each individual church...

My biggest concern with them is that they might have people have an emotional response to jesus, yet not really have Him being received as their Lord, and having a "fake salvation"

 

The Sword and Trowel, 1882:

"if we were to leave untouched everything that is capable of abuse, and to disallow practices which rightly conducted tend to good, simply because some have gone in for too much of that good thing, we should unnecessarily deprive ourselves of much that is lawful and should curtail our efforts in the prosecution of the King's business. Many a time it has been my joy to see the nail which was driven home by the sermon clinched by the after talk"

 

The invitiation has 'always' been, long before then, though it has varied in it's approach and method, and altar calls are simply another method and approach (one of which many reformed use).

I thought calling for a responce to the message WAS apart of the worship service and as such IS necessary and biblical.

 

We have an invitation at end of each service, but also reques tthat the person speaks to either the pastor/elder/pastoral team member, in to make sure.confirm their salvation was genuine!

 

I can't find any such statements.
However, can you name any pastors who would state they 'know for sure' anyone was ever saved as a result of his preaching and evangelist meathods?

You can find where B. B. Warfield, Studies in Perfectionism, 2 vols. (New York: Oxford, 1932) states "I was often instrumental in bringing Christians under great conviction, and into a state of temporary repentance and faith . . . . [But] falling short of urging them up to a point, where they would become so acquainted with Christ as to abide in Him, they would of course soon relapse into their former state ",

But this does not state he didn't know of any but disheartened by the falling away of so many... yet there were small percentage whom God did save and their lives revealed this. He feels the reason they have fallen away is because he didn't elaborate enough on the believers life (become so aquainted with Christ as to abide in Him) once they had come to a place of conviction of sin.

The issue with Finney and converts to Christ has nothing to do with altar calls and methodology of invitations, but on doctrine, specifically justification and substitution of Christ! It is THIS reason and no other that we find few lasting converts to and for the cause of Christ, regarding his ministry.

 

I would do the same.. and if they come forward seeking salvation I send them to the side and tell them speak with God - He is the one dealing with them and knows better than I do what He is doing. AFTERWARDS.. I or another would speak with them about the time spent with God.