I am currently pastoring my first church, a Southern Baptist Church, in which the altar call has always been present. I have been at this church for a little over a year now and have not sought to rock the boat with regards to the altar call. I am well aware of how the altar call is viewed by many Southern Baptists.

However, in my studies, I am more and more convinced that the altar call is unnecessary and can even cause problems. I was wondering if anyone had any advice on how I could seek to lead my congregation away from this practice?

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Tripp Spangler
MDiv Student
The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Pastor
New Madrid Baptist Church; New Madrid, MO

You are facing more than a practice, even a custom, it is a shibboleth. The altar call is a test of orthodoxy and is used to register a commitment to believing in the necessity of the Gospel. Depending on how SBC your SBC congregation is, you may need to be prepared to lose your job over this.

Have you considered extending the offer of the Gospel in the altar call by nuancing it more and more toward a theologically appropriate view?

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Dennis E. McFadden, Ex Mainline Baptist (in Remission)
Atherton Baptist Homes, CEO
First Baptist Church of Alhambra, Member, Transformation Ministries (CA)

Click to get: Board Rules -- Signature Requirements -- Suggestions?

Where is this altar? I have been looking for one for years in Baptist churches and have yet to find one....

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Chris Poe--Attending Grace Community Baptist Church, Mandeville, LA

"There never was a man in the world without a creed. What is a creed? A creed is what you believe. What is a confession? It is a declaration of what you believe. That declaration may be oral or it may be committed to writing, but the creed is there either expressed or implied."—B.H. Carroll

Begin to stress how your ENTIRE sermon is an invitation to Christ and we need not confine coming to Christ for the end of the service or to phsically moving forward.

Tell the people that you are always inviting them as you preach and NOW is the time in their hearts to pray for salvation...by all means don't wait for the last tune to be sung, come in one's heart during the sermon.

Thus they might see that you are actually offering something MORE evangelistic instead of erasing evangelism from your church's priorities.

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Pergamum


"If a commission by an earthly king is considered a honor, how can a commission by a Heavenly King be considered a sacrifice?"
-- David Livingstone

There are non Calvinistic SBC pastors who do not have an "altar call", so it's not exclusively a Calvinist issue. I used to belong to a Wesleyan church that did not have one because the pastor was determined to avoid anything that tended to be manipulative. I'm sure it is no less a shibboleth in many Wesleyan and similar Arminian churches either.

There are even some who claim to be Calvinistic who would oppose doing away with the invitation. A Calvinistic woman in the SBC who had a MA from a seminary once argued with me about it, saying "it gives people a chance to respond", etc. with the implication that the chance wasn't there without it.

I would probably start with something like "We Baptists are supposed to follow the Bible and the altar call ain't in there" and maybe adding that altars are Romish and we don't have one to begin with.

However, I do believe strongly that there should be an evangelistic appeal, a clear call to repent to believe, which sadly is absent in way too many churches, and is often very muted in others. I do believe there is a difference between preaching and teaching.

I am not sure how SBC congregational polity works. Were you hired by a board which can fire you? If so, then your concern should first be addressed to the board. Teach them and get them on the same page with you first. Then they will be behind you and can help formulate a concensus course for change.

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Jim
1689 LBCF
Independent Bible Church
North Texas, USA

Well said Pergamum.

This sort of piggy backs on what's been said. When it comes right down to it, all sermons are a call to make a decision. If we proclaim truth then everyone there is called to either obey or disobey.

You know the congregation, so advice here is difficult. But, you might slowly and gently begin expressing concerns that the altar call may evoke an emotional response due to current circumstances rather than a true heart change. Perhaps share that you'd like to start exhorting people to apply the messages to their hearts and seek the Lord in their seats. Then, let them know that if anyone has any questions or would like to know the peace of God offered only in Jesus Christ that you are available and would love to speak with them. We don't have altar calls. But I have introduced the elders in a sermon before and said that each one of them would also welcome an opportunity to talk about Jesus with anyone who desired to.

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For the Glory of our King,
Joe Johnson
Married up in 1988 and blessed with two wonderful sons
TMS graduate
Preacherboy at Cornerstone Community Church, Escanaba, MI
http://www.SoundLife.org

I remember hearing of a reformed minister who was invited to preach at a Baptist church. Not wanting to have an invitation, closed his sermon with an invitation to go and respond in the privacy of their closets.

Hey isn't there a verse for this, Matt 6:5-6?

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Soli Deo Gloria

John Schultz
Member, Riveroaks Reformed Presbyterian Church (PCA)
Germantown, TN

"The reason why we worship God in a slight way is because we do not see God in His glory"
Jeremiah Burroughs

Haven't been around for awhile but I decided to drop back by ye olde puritan board...

I've often thought about that.

I grew up in Assemblies of God churches and "the altar" was that padded bench down at the front. My assumption is that it is a left over from the altar rail and kind of morhped through the mourner's bench to become the padded bench "altar"

Steven Bittle

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Steven Bittle
Postulant
Christ's Ambassadors' Anglican Church (CANA)
Reformed Episcopal Church
OKC, OK

"Doctrine is not an affair of the the tongue, but of the life" - John Calvin

As far as altar calls go, I remember early on in my preaching, i used to gage the quality of my sermons by whether or not someone came forward during the "altar call". Seems so far removed from where I am today. I can even remember the looks of pity I would get if there was no response. After the service, I would here comments such as keep it up you will make a fine preacher some day, these comments were directly related to the response I received during the "altar call".

This article by Jim Ehrhard was one of the first to move me away from the "altar call".

In a church where the Invitation System is deeply entrenched you will be hard pressed to make a change after only one year. Your primary focus should be to make the most out of what you got to use. You can continue to use the "altar call" and slowly move away from it in time. Just make sure you press the people hard about what true conversion is in the meantime. A sudden abrupt change will not benefit the congregation. Go slowly forward, preach the word, start with your leadership as you begin to show the more biblical approach.

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Paul W.
Soon to be leaving
Girard, Illinois

Also, I still use a modified version of the "altar call", just because the idea is so entrenched into the mind's of the peole of the church. I do not believe I could ever totally do away with it, nor am I pushing to do so. I do not think this is a compromise as much as an accommodation. The main thing is what you do with those that do come forward, I focus on true conversion and what it is. I would primarily do this outside the context of worship. I would annouce to the congregation what the intentions of the person was and then counsel them personally outside the context of worship. Yet, I would not go to the extreme of some baptists and refuse baptism untill I saw fruits of genuine repentance. These fruits come in time, and if not this person has no assurance of being converted. I would not waver in telling them so either. I had one person who, upon learning what true conversion was, say I want no part of that, I just do not want to go to hell, sad.

What I find odd about the practice is when it is done week after week wit basically the same people coming. Worship is predominately for believers, therefore to continuously 'invite' them to make another decision is nowhere found in the writ.

I visited a church while on vacation once, the pastor did not have a formal altar call, but instead voiced an invite that said "If there are any among us who have not been convicted by the power of the Holy Spirit and brought to repentance, I urge you to try Christ, for all who come to Him will not be cast out" (something along those lines)

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N. Robert; Trinity Reformed Church RCA, Holland MI

Once in a while you can get shown the light, in the strangest of places if you look at it right."

I agree with those who advocate an invitation to meet with the Pastor to answer questions or pray or just to talk.

Do you have fellow elders? What do they think? Unity is very important and whatever decision is made should be a united front with all of the elders.

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Yes I have. While we still have an altar call, I express almost each time that just coming forward doesn't save you and that you can flee to Christ anytime during my sermon. I have made comments regarding seeking God there in your seat, when you return home, etc.

So I have started to frame a more theologically appropriate view. It is still a work in process though.

No I do not have fellow elders. Currently, I am the only elder with a Deacon Board that IMO acts very much like elders, although they call themselves Deacons.

I would of course teach and lead them first if I felt God's leading to go in this direction. Currently though I am wrestling with a number of issues with regards to this church and so therefore I haven't yet discussed it in any detail with the Deacons.

The "altar call" has definitely been something of a test of orthodoxy in American evangelicalism for a while now. I'd imagine that its boom in popularity had a lot to do with pastors in the 50s and 60s wanting to be a local church version of Billy Graham, calling congregants to "come forward" for repentance in much the same way Graham did in large arenas (Just As I Am, and all). I'm certainly of the same mind as most of you on this — that it's largely become a cultural phenomenon in churches that's largely meaningless and even can even be harmful in that it toys with the assurance of true believers.

Still, I have a small quibble with this...
There are certainly problems with inviting those who are already true believers to "ask Jesus into [their hearts]" week after week after week. Jesus doesn't pack up and leave after he's already taken residence in our lives, and any mechanism that suggests so obviously comes from a faulty soteriology.

At the same time, though, believers are to be called continually to repent and believe the Gospel, through the ministry of the Word and the Sacraments (or "Ordinances", if that makes you more comfortable).

Tripp, how often do you and your congregation take part in the Lord's Supper? If you're not already, have you ever considered doing it weekly? Perhaps a gradual phasing out of the weekly altar call after your sermon in favor of the weekly observance of the Lord's Supper would be a good thing to do. After all, the scriptural warnings and promises that go along with the Supper serve as a brief call to faith and repentance, just like the words that generally go before the altar call.

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Rae W. | Elder @ Grace Central Presbyterian Church | Columbus, OH
not another blog, v2.0

That would be great, but most SBC churches would not hear of this. Most if not every view the Lord's Supper as a ordinance only and not a sacrament. Most would argue that the less we do it the better, so we do not take it for granted. I think it would be a great way to handle this issue myself, but this is something I probably would not be able to implement in my church.

Yeah, I'm well aware — which is why I suggested a gradual (probably a very gradual) shift. I was a member of a (very solid) SBC church when I lived in West TN which observed Communion on a quarterly basis, at best, partly because of the fear of ritualism that you mentioned. After I came to a more Calvinistic understanding of the Supper, I sent the elders a long e-mail, suggesting that they prayerfully consider a more frequent observance, and it was actually received very well. They didn't start doing it weekly, but they scrapped their plans to move it to a Wednesday-night-only thing and started observing it monthly, so . . . that was progress.

Tripp, I'd still encourage you to think about my suggestion. Making such a change unilaterally would probably be a BAD idea, like Paul suggested above, but there might be ways to move forward with something like that while getting the rest of your leadership on board. Not easily, mind you, and not overnight.

I grew up in a Southern Presbyterian congregation (PCUS), which is now regrettably part of the PCUSA but retains a certain evangelical flavor. For 47 years, this congregation had a faithful pastor who culturally was more of a Baptist than a Presbyterian. Annual protracted evangelistic services with an altar call were the norm.

Not too many years ago, being the home grown boy, I was invited to preach for this congregation. After the Lord’s Day service, I was asked if I would return to do a “revival” for them.

I outlined what I would do, including that I would not extend a invitation in the form of an altar call. I explained the reason I objected to an altar call, suggested they read Iain Murray’s The Invitation System, and offered solicit information cards from prospective inquirers, hold pre and post service meetings, visit individuals in their homes.

After some consideration, the session of the church withdrew their invitation for me to conduct the meetings.

I suggest any attempt to change such practices be grounded in teaching the Regulative Principle, that practice as well as doctrine must be rooted in explicit warrant in God’s word. Also, in considering a subsequent call, make clear one’s stand on such issues. This will limit the congregations willing to call you; but may make for a less contentious ministry after you are on the field. If you do try to make the shift in your current pastorate, start with your deacons and other unofficial leadership in the congregation. Make clear you believe in evangelism and the free offer of the gospel (assuming you do) and your continuing desire to evangelize the lost. Get them thinking about how they do evangelism outside of regular public worship.

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Glenn Ferrell
Pastor, Sovereign Redeemer Presbyterian Church
OPC
Boise, Idaho

Reforming a church does not happen overnight, and ceasing the "Baptist sacrament" of the altar call or invitation will lead to a church split or your exit, I'm afraid.

Still, it is an unbiblical practice, being in existence for only a couple hundred years, less than that among Baptists. Teach your people, be faithful to the Scriptures week in an week out, and be patient.

That said, our church (SBC and reformed) does not have a public invitation at the end of the service. I close the sermon, pray, and we sing our final hymn, not an invitation hymn. Before the church called me, I outlined my position on public invitations, so it hasn't been that much of an issue. Even then, some folks weren't crazy about it.

As you are teaching your people and this issue arises, someone will protest, asking, "Don't you care about people coming to Christ?" A good response is, "Because I care about people coming to Christ, I think the altar call confuses people about what it means to come to Christ." For many, the emotional release in stepping out and "going forward" makes them think that something spiritual has taken place. "Coming forward" is equated with coming to Christ.

Again, be very patient, and take courage. If yours is an all-too-typical SBC church, you have bigger fish to fry. A decisionistic gospel has helped put multitudes of the unregenerate on our church rolls. The typical church only has about a third of its members attend worship on the Lord's Day. Trust God to change hearts as you faithfully teach his word.

Blessings,
Bill

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William G. Moore, Pastor
Carolina Commentary
Cornerstone Baptist Church (SBC)
Clinton, SC