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 Is the Altar used in your church & is it used regularly? |
Dean Steenburgh |
Just curious - if you're a pastor do you make altar calls at each service?
If you're not a pastor does your church offer altar calls?
Just curious & no ill motivation for the querry.
We have an altar call at virtually every service here at FCC & I don't think we would ever want to get away from them.
They're precious to me & our FCC families & to those who seek God.
After reading statistics over the last few days about church issues it seems I hear a re-occurring comment that goes like this, 'we used to have altar calls but now we have a special room for people who want to pray before or after church.'
I like prayer in the altars down front where everybody can see it.
I don't want to change the culture of FCC to accomodate the trends.
I see results in the altars all the time.
Some of my best memories & ministry experiences have happened in the altar.
It doesn't have to be a long wooden piece of furniture; maybe it's simply the area up in the front near the pulpit, but it's a place where we come foreard to seek fellowship with God collectively & corporately.
God has spoken to my heart for months about illustrating, offering, teaching & preaching about prayer.
We have prayer all the time & we pray about everything.
Our altars areas at FCC are known to be a place to seek God in prayer & it's amazing how many visitors make positive comments about our altar calls & invitations to pray.
I really hope you use your altars as often as possible so another generation gets used to the idea of seeking God at the altar.
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Golf Cart Mafia Capo Famiglia
Posts: 4682
11/6/15 1:23 am
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If you put an altar in, should it be as large as the one in Solomon's temple? Do you have to burn animals in it?
How about a tall RCC style table.
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Acts-perienced Poster
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11/6/15 3:42 am
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tryingtofitin |
Dean, i appreciate your intention behind this post and fully understand where you are coming from... but...
Show me in the New Testament church where Paul or any other minister gave an "altar call". Show me any scripture in any letters written to the churches of the mention of an altar in the church.
I am not trying to be belligerent. I just think we have instituted things into the church that were not a part of the NT church. I have seen "altars" in some churches so large and so padded you could sleep on them.
In the older Baptist churches the front pew was called the "moaner's bench". It was their version of the altar.
Altar time or opportunity for people to spend time before the Lord reflecting on what they received in a sermon is wonderful. I love your devotion to that.
Blessings |
Friendly Face
Posts: 174
11/6/15 5:35 am
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bradfreeman |
We have a time during worship where people who need prayer are invited to come to the front and be prayed for. We don't have an "altar" or do what I would call an "altar call".
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Acts-dicted
Posts: 9027
11/6/15 7:04 am
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Eddie Robbins |
| There's nothing wrong with having a time of prayer together. We should do that, right? But, there's no reason to put a label on it. Altar or no altar, just pray. When it comes to the traditional altar call with a "sinner's prayer," I guess there's nothing wrong with that either, but, my opinion is that it has nothing to do with salvation. Becoming a believer does. That said, altar away! |
Acts-pert Poster
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11/6/15 7:19 am
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Quiet Wyatt |
| We have regular times of prayer at the beginning and end of virtually every service. I encourage everyone to pray either at our altars or at their pews. |
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11/6/15 7:56 am
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bonnie knox |
Our church refers to the edge of the platform as the altar. An invitation is given every week to come to the altar and pray.
The pastor calls the praise team to come to the front as he begins the final points to his message. Usually the pianist begins playing while he is still speaking. After the invitation to come to the altar and pray, the pastor gives a prayer. Just as soon as his prayer is done, he goes down from the platform to pray with people at the "altar." That's when the singers on the praise team begin singing and the drums, bass, and guitar all join in. It drives me bonkers. I don't know how one could hear another person if they were to say what they would like to have someone pray for.
It doesn't seem to bother most other folks. But I've noticed that when the praise team gets done singing, as if on cue, people get up from the altar and return to their seats. Then the pastor is bewildered that people don't stay in the altars longer. |
[Insert Acts Pun Here]
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11/6/15 8:14 am
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UncleJD |
| I guess baptisteries, pews, seats, pulpits, offices, sunday-school rooms and fellowship halls are all not in the NT either, but its what's done in them that's important. What's done at the altar is too. I can still see the tear-stains on that old oak altar when I was a kid. It wasn't redemptive in and of itself, but what happened there was. Could I have done the same thing at my seat? Sometimes, but there were times that it needed to be there. |
Golf Cart Mafia Consigliere
Posts: 3147
11/6/15 9:01 am
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sheepdogandy |
Yes and yes.
The altar is simply a meeting place.
One can create an altar anywhere at anytime.
At the end of my message I say "It's time to respond to the Word of God in prayer."
After everyone has finished praying, we shift into intercessory prayer for those with specific needs.
We use the altar a lot.
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Charles A. Hutchins
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Hon. Dr. in Acts-celeratology
Posts: 7307
11/6/15 9:45 am
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Cojak |
Growing up I was familiar with the Alter calls most every 'night' service. Most folks came forward to pray. Many time to 'pray someone thru'.
In the past 10-15 years we have attended many denominational services. I was honestly surprised at the Baptist churches we attended, most gave an 'alter call' EVERY SERVICE. Not so in the Pentecostal Churches we visited.
Now our local E. Belmont COG the pastor does 'open the alter' every Sunday morning. 
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11/6/15 10:52 am
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Old Time Country Preacher |
| UncleJD wrote: | | I guess baptisteries, pews, seats, pulpits, offices, sunday-school rooms and fellowship halls are all not in the NT either, but its what's done in them that's important. |
JD is dead on here.
It was ole Charles Grandison Finney who commenced usin the altar an makin public appeals, an the ole boy was severely criticized by the established churches fer doin so.
Pews/Seats? They set on the ground when Jesus taught tem.
Offices? They had one behind a tree.
Sunday School? Robert Raikes hadn't even been born when Jesus ministered.
Fellowship Halls/Starbucks/Cafés? Paul said to eat at home.
Preachin usin a little bitty table an bottle a water? Three a them disciples was called Sons of Thunder. John the Baptist railed agin sin.
If some you fellers is gonna pull the New Testament card here, hey, lets do it right:
Skinny Jeans an shirt hangin out? No Way, buy ya a robe an sandels to wear Sunday.
Git rid a the microphone.
Third Day/Toby Mac/Hillsong? No Way, grab a lyre/harp/flute an pull out a Vestal Goodman song.
Cussin in the pulpit? Fergit it.
Goin back home to bury ya dead? Let the dead do that, you better be follerin Jesus.
Or, we could just all have a good altar service. I'm with ya, Dean. |
Acts-pert Poster
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11/6/15 10:55 am
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bonnie knox |
| Quote: | | Three a them disciples was called Sons of Thunder. |
And which three was them? |
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11/6/15 11:50 am
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Old Time Country Preacher |
| bonnie knox wrote: | | Quote: | | Three a them disciples was called Sons of Thunder. |
And which three was them? |
Peter, James & John. And Simon he surnamed Peter; And James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he surnamed them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder.
Course some have said it was just James/John.
Started to write Peter, Paul & Mary, but that was a different decade. |
Acts-pert Poster
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11/6/15 12:06 pm
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bonnie knox |
| Quote: | | Course some have said it was just James/John. |
Yep, I'm amongst them "some." |
[Insert Acts Pun Here]
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11/6/15 1:37 pm
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Old Time Country Preacher |
| bonnie knox wrote: | | Quote: | | Course some have said it was just James/John. |
Yep, I'm amongst them "some." |
Well, it shore wasn't Paul & Mary.  |
Acts-pert Poster
Posts: 15570
11/6/15 2:27 pm
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| An altar is a place of death |
roughridercog |
Anything placed on an altar was not expected to live.
We have turned it into a place of blessing, but all too often we don't want to die to self.
There's more I could say, but I won't
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Doctor of Bovinamodulation |
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11/6/15 6:47 pm
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I served as an interim preacher at a missionary Baptist church for several weeks when the pastor's neck was injured. The worship leader made a big deal out of having an altar up front (a big wooden box with carpet on it.)
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Acts-perienced Poster
Posts: 11849
11/6/15 9:41 pm
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caseyleejones |
| Old Time Country Preacher wrote: | | UncleJD wrote: | | I guess baptisteries, pews, seats, pulpits, offices, sunday-school rooms and fellowship halls are all not in the NT either, but its what's done in them that's important. |
JD is dead on here.
It was ole Charles Grandison Finney who commenced usin the altar an makin public appeals, an the ole boy was severely criticized by the established churches fer doin so.
Pews/Seats? They set on the ground when Jesus taught tem.
Offices? They had one behind a tree.
Sunday School? Robert Raikes hadn't even been born when Jesus ministered.
Fellowship Halls/Starbucks/Cafés? Paul said to eat at home.
Preachin usin a little bitty table an bottle a water? Three a them disciples was called Sons of Thunder. John the Baptist railed agin sin.
If some you fellers is gonna pull the New Testament card here, hey, lets do it right:
Skinny Jeans an shirt hangin out? No Way, buy ya a robe an sandels to wear Sunday.
Git rid a the microphone.
Third Day/Toby Mac/Hillsong? No Way, grab a lyre/harp/flute an pull out a Vestal Goodman song.
Cussin in the pulpit? Fergit it.
Goin back home to bury ya dead? Let the dead do that, you better be follerin Jesus.
Or, we could just all have a good altar service. I'm with ya, Dean. |
It was Charles Spurgeon who did not have altar calls. He had them make an appointment with him the next day. He was highly criticized by doing this because those of his time said he should "strike while the iron is hot". His reply was that if the iron is truly hot, it will be truly hot the next day. His belief was that it was the Holy Spirit who draws and not a good hot sermon steeped in emotionalism. |
Acts-perienced Poster
Posts: 11798
11/7/15 12:08 pm
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Old Time Country Preacher |
| caseyleejones wrote: | | Old Time Country Preacher wrote: | | UncleJD wrote: | | I guess baptisteries, pews, seats, pulpits, offices, sunday-school rooms and fellowship halls are all not in the NT either, but its what's done in them that's important. |
JD is dead on here.
It was ole Charles Grandison Finney who commenced usin the altar an makin public appeals, an the ole boy was severely criticized by the established churches fer doin so.
Pews/Seats? They set on the ground when Jesus taught tem.
Offices? They had one behind a tree.
Sunday School? Robert Raikes hadn't even been born when Jesus ministered.
Fellowship Halls/Starbucks/Cafés? Paul said to eat at home.
Preachin usin a little bitty table an bottle a water? Three a them disciples was called Sons of Thunder. John the Baptist railed agin sin.
If some you fellers is gonna pull the New Testament card here, hey, lets do it right:
Skinny Jeans an shirt hangin out? No Way, buy ya a robe an sandels to wear Sunday.
Git rid a the microphone.
Third Day/Toby Mac/Hillsong? No Way, grab a lyre/harp/flute an pull out a Vestal Goodman song.
Cussin in the pulpit? Fergit it.
Goin back home to bury ya dead? Let the dead do that, you better be follerin Jesus.
Or, we could just all have a good altar service. I'm with ya, Dean. |
It was Charles Spurgeon who did not have altar calls. He had them make an appointment with him the next day. He was highly criticized by doing this because those of his time said he should "strike while the iron is hot". His reply was that if the iron is truly hot, it will be truly hot the next day. His belief was that it was the Holy Spirit who draws and not a good hot sermon steeped in emotionalism. |
And it was Finney who introduced the altar (mourners bench) and public appeals into his evangelistic meetings. Funny how times change. |
Acts-pert Poster
Posts: 15570
11/7/15 12:43 pm
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Dean Steenburgh |
To respond to one of our posters, I can't find the traditional altar call in the bible but I do find evidence or remnants of things/events that transpired at an altar.
What He did:
CEV Hebrews 9:14 But Christ was sinless, and he offered himself as an eternal and spiritual sacrifice (sacrifices happened at the altar) to God. That's why his blood is much more powerful and makes our consciences clear. Now we can serve the living God and no longer do things that lead to death.
What we do:
CEV Romans 12:1 Dear friends, God is good. So I beg you to offer your bodies to him as a living sacrifice, (our life is on the altar daily) pure and pleasing. That's the most sensible way to serve God.
The altar in our church is a symbolic place of coming before the Lord with pure motives to seek to be altered as Tom said.
Communion is symbolic of the blood & body and the altar is symbolic of bringing one's self to the Lord, publicly, to declare our decisions or wants of change.
It doesn't have to happen at a traditional altar but I can't help but rejoice when I see the look of change on a dear saint's face after they have 'prayed through'. More rewarding is to see the results of that change throughout the days & weeks afterward.
In my opinion at the base of this discussion is a view of how things have changed & swirved in the modern church.
Billy Graham always gave an altar call for the millions to respond to meet Christ.
There has to be a point of impact after somebody hears the challenge to accept or reject the call to redemption.
Personally I don't think we would look at the ministry of Rev. Graham the same way if he said something like, 'now that you've heard the invitation to come to Christ, stay at your seat & find Jesus in your own way through quiet meditation or some kind of prayer.'
Instead we have witnessed people by the thousands at each crusade make that triumphant walk to the altar to be led by Billy in a sinner's prayer so as to give in to the knawing on the inside for change or 'altering' the selfish direction of life.
Our altars at FCC are used to bring self to be sacrificed so that the old life can die & the new life can be blessed. In essence it is a place of death & blessings.
At the end of time the only thing that matters is did we give ourselves to Christ believing that He is the Son of God. Old fashion altar, new age altar, back room, fellowship hall, front seat of the car, gymnasium or wherever ...did change come about in people's lives where they traded in their old beliefs & ways for the newness of life & garments of praise?
I love giving altar calls where people give in to the spiritual tipping point of their life & come forward to discover & experience Jesus.
.
_________________
"Empty nest syndrome is for the birds!"
Email me at: SteenburghDean@gmail.com
Church planters are focused on just one thing ...introducing people to Jesus!
What are you focused on? |
Golf Cart Mafia Capo Famiglia
Posts: 4682
11/7/15 2:58 pm
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