The Alter Call and Why We Don't Do It at TJC

The church I pastor (The Journey Church) is 8 years old. Over those years we have witnessed God save hundreds of people and we have had the privilege of baptizing hundreds more. However, during the course of these years we have not offered what is traditionally known as an "alter call" or "invitation." I do not go stand down front and wait for people to walk up to me for prayer or salvation why the band plays "Just As I Am" for the one millionth time. I think this is more for the ego of pastors and/or the assurance that things are "happening" for the congregation.

"But don't you guys want people saved?" We absolutely do! And we have seen people saved, many people! Every week we preach the Bible, we offer Christ to sinners, and invite people to turn from their self-absorbed lives to a life submitted to Christ through faith and repentance. We just happen to believe  this can happen in the seats as they hear the gospel, at home in their bedroom, in their car driving, or any number of other places. An alter call and invitation at the end of service, where 3 minutes is designated for salvation, is unrealistic. Some people have questions, need to work through issues, need to sit down and see things from the Bible, need counsel through difficult situations, and many other things. "Just As I Am" does not offer enough time to do this, nor is the time necessarily the most optimal or ideal.

In the Bible-belt, where we are located, many cannot conceive of any other way of salvation happening, apart from the alter call. But what I found in my time pastoring in the South is many stake their assurance of salvation on "walking the aisle" or "praying the prayer" or "raising my hand" or "praying with the pastor." None of these things mean anything apart from the work of the Holy Spirit to regenerate the heart of a dead sinner. Walking aisles and repeating prayers don't change hearts, in fact, they may actually deceive hearts. Talking to a pastor doesn't save you. There is only one Mediator between God and man, it is the Lord Jesus Christ, not your pastor. We are to flee to Jesus, not Pastor X.

"But aren't people supposed to make a public declaration of faith?" Yes. That is what baptism is. Trusting and surrendering to Christ can be a private thing, in fact, it must be personal and individual. However, baptism is our public declaration and profession of our commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. An alter call is not necessary for people to make public professions of faith. 

Pastor Ryan Kelly of Desert Springs Church shares a good summary of my thinking on this subject with 10 points against the alter call:

1. The altar call is simply and completely absent from the pages of the New Testament.
2. The altar call is historically absent until the 19th century, and its use at that time (via Charles Finney) was directly based upon bad theology and a man-centered, manipulative methodology (more about that here).
3. The altar call very easily confuses the physical act of “coming forward” with the spiritual act of “coming to Christ.” These two can happen simultaneously, but too often people believe that coming to Christ is going forward (and vice-versa).
4. The altar call can easily deceive people about the reality of their spiritual state and the biblical basis for assurance. The Bible never offers us assurance on the ground that we “went forward.”
5. The altar call partially replaces baptism as the means of public profession of faith.
6. The altar call can mislead us to think that salvation (or any official response to God’s Word) happens primarily on Sundays, only at the end of the service, and only “up front.”
7. The altar call can confuse people regarding “sacred” things and “sacred” places, as the name “altar call” suggests.
8. The altar call is not sensitive to our cautious and relational age where most people come to faith over a period of time and often with the interaction of a good friend.
9. The altar call is often seen as “the most important part of the service”, and this de-emphasizes the truly more important parts of corporate worship which God has prescribed (preaching, prayer, fellowship, singing).
10. God is glorified to powerfully bless the things He has prescribed (preaching, prayer, fellowship, singing), not the things we have invented. We should always be leery of adding to God’s prescriptions for His corporate worship.

Can God save somebody who "walks the aisle" or "prays the prayer?" Yes. Does God need these things to do so? No. The church for the first 1800+ years of its history never knew such a phenomena.

At The Journey Church, we invite people weekly to trust Christ. And something amazing has happened over the last 8+ years - they have. What does it look like? It looks like conversations after our worship gatherings conclude. It looks like emails or Facebook messages to meet up and discuss what God is doing in their hearts. It looks like conversations in Gospel Communities or a Membership Meeting. There are many conversations about the gospel and responding to it taking place throughout the week at The Journey Church. We happen to believe the 3 minutes segment of time often known as the "invitation" is unnecessary, and perhaps unhelpful, in leading people know and understand how to follow Jesus. 

if you believe this article was helpful, share with others 

You're a Christian, huh? Hmm...

 I know what some of you were already thinking as you read the title of this post, "Who are you judge who is or who is not a Christian?" This is a natural question to ask, I suppose, but I do not believe it is really what you are asking. "Who are you to judge," is really seeking to find out by what authority I can make a definitive claim about somebody being a Christian or not. The answer to that question is easy: nobody. I'm nobody. I do not carry any inherent authority which makes what I say the rule of the day. However, before you type another domain into your browser and move on, that does not dismiss the issue.

Just because I am nobody, and lack inherent authority in myself, does not mean the right to identify as Christian is a free-for-all. Fundamentally, "Who are you to judge," is the wrong question. The more appropriate questions begging to be asked: is there any way to judge who is or who is not a Christian? Is there an objective standard by which Christians can be identified or is it simply a subjective endeavor? I believe the Bible and historic, orthodox Christianity answers without hesitation: yes, there is an objective standard!

So what?

Why do I raise this issue? We currently live in a cultural climate of debate and division over many hot-topic issues. Things including homosexuality and abortion are a couple of mainstream examples. In the midst of many of these debates the line drawn is between Christian beliefs vs secular beliefs. As a Christian, I find myself distinctively on one side of the dividing line in these arguments. Yet surprisingly, I often will have someone who is taking a stance distinctively rooted in secular philosophy claim to be a Christian. This makes no sense to me. 

**WARNING: This is the point in the article where your modern sensibilities may get aggravated, a seat belt or bit in your mouth may assist you in finishing** 

For someone to claim they are Christian, though they hold distinctly non-Christian views and have non-Christian behavior patterns, is absurd. Again, this raises the vitriol of folks to say, "Who are you to say?" My previous answer remains, "nobody," but that doesn't void my claim. There is a standard, an objective standard, by which a Christian can be deciphered. We do not make or move that standard. It is given through Scripture's revelation and teaching. "Yeah, but interpreting the Bible is so subjective; one group believes this way and another group that way," you quip. However, again, there is an objective standard on interpreting the Bible. You do not approach the Bible and impose your view on to it (though many do), there are rules and guidelines which inform interpretation (this is the discipline and field of hermeneutics).

But back to my point. To claim to be a Christian, while holding very clearly stated (from Scripture) non-Christian beliefs and behaviors, is a contradiction. The Bible would call this person a hypocrite. The word 'hypocrite' is from a Greek word meaning 'actor.' In other words, people who claim to be Christian while holding non-Christian beliefs and behaviors are actors. They are posers. Pretenders. I'm not afraid to say this. It may ruffle your feathers and send your politically correct alarms off, but it is only because you have been conditioned to respond this way. In actuality, it's nonsense, and there needs to be a recovery of the ability to call out nonsense. 

An Analogy

Suppose you met a guy at a crowded dinner party and proceeded to strike up a conversation. The two of you have a lot in common and are mutually enjoying the conversation. But at some point in the discussion he informs you he is a football player for the Tennessee Titans. He claims he is a tight end for the Titans, your favorite NFL team. You think to yourself, "this is amazing." Eventually the conversation is halted by his need to go to the bathroom and he lets you know he'll be right back. In your excitement, you pull your phone out and begin looking up the Titans roster to find your new pal (and to send out texts and tweets bragging to your friends). However when you pull it up, he's not there. You keep digging and looking, you search Google, nothing, he's nowhere to be found. You scan NFL.com, which lists every NFL player, nothing.

You think to yourself, "I bet none of his information has been loaded to the internet yet." No you don't. You think to yourself, "I've been duped." Most of you, if this happened to you, would conclude very quickly, this guy was a fraud. He was a pretender. He claimed to be a NFL player with the Tennessee Titans; however, all the things that objectively determine that (a contract, access to team facilities, on the team roster) are missing.

Your fake NFL player friend returns and begins to strike up conversation again. At this point you are attempting to probe deeper into his identity and whether he is telling the truth. Eventually you point blank ask him, "Did you actually have a contract with the Titans, because I tried to find you and couldn't?" 

To your surprise and dismay, he answers back to you, "No, I haven't signed any contracts." 

You fire back with frustration, "Then you're not really an NFL player or on the Titans." 

Thinking you could not be shocked by anything else he could possibly say, he hits you with, "Well who are you to judge whether or not I'm on the Tennessee Titans?" 

Unable to continue acting like this is a reasonable conversation, you passionately explain, "I'm nobody to judge, but the issue is very clear. If you have not signed a contract with the team or are not on the roster, then you're not a part of the team. Period. That is not debatable. That is a fact. It is an objective standard."

As you walk away you hear him mutter, "Well, that's your opinion and interpretation."

Not An Unfamiliar Scene

What I have described is a made up story, but the scenes and logic in this story resemble every day life. In the same way this guy claimed to be a NFL football player, but did not meet the objective standards for validating such a claim, many today profess to be Christians while believing and behaving in definitiely non-Christian ways. Many fail to meet the objective standards.

Some will say, "Well, those people claim to believe in Jesus, doesn't the Bible say that is sufficient for salvation? Doesn't that make them a Christian?" True, we are called to believe in the death and resurrection of Jesus for our salvation, but that belief, true belief, transforms us, not leaves us the same as before our belief. Believing a set of facts or premises is not what makes you a Christian. Even the Devil believes the right facts about Jesus. Doing this thing or that thing, or believing this fact or that fact, makes you no more a Christian than being in a garage makes you a car. 

Jesus says in Matthew 7 that a tree is known by its fruit. In other words, your life will tell the story of who/what you are. If you are a Christian, your life should reflect the beliefs and behaviors that are distinctively Christian. You are not free to make up your own rules or forge your own way and call it Christian. You are not free to slap your own operators manual to this thing we call the Christian life, it has already been written.

The Objective Standards

What is a Christian? Am I a Christian? These are not subjective questions. There is a distinction between being a Christian and not being one. This distinction is not determined by an individual's feelings or personal interpretation. It is objective. So what is it?

To determine whether someone is truly a Christian there should be evidences of two events in their life. First, there is the event of being born-again. Jesus himself teaches that unless a person is born-again he or she will not enter the kingdom of God (John 3:3). This event is also described as regeneration (Titus 3:5) or being saved (Romans 10:1-13). When we are born-again, saved, and experience regeneration, we are justified before God, pardoned of our sin, adopted into His family, and indwelled by the Holy Spirit, who testifies to our spirit that we are children of God (Romans 8:16). This is not a subjective feeling, this is an actual event. This is not believing a few facts about the Bible or Jesus, this is a profound changing of our heart of stone with a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26-27). It has either happened or it hasn't, no in-between.

This leads to the second event, transformation. Not only are we saved, born-again, and experience regeneration, this first event leads to the second event, we begin to change. Believers do not remain the same upon conversion. We do not go back to our old ways of living. We begin the process of transformation (Romans 12:1-2). We take off the old self and put on the new (Colossians 3:1-9). We pursue and strive for holiness, without which no one will see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14). We do not go back to our former ways when we walked in ignorance, but instead, we seek to be holy in all our conduct, just as the One who saved us and called us is holy (1 Peter 1:14-16). This event of transformation is not one time, but ongoing. We continue transforming in godliness for the rest of our lives. This is not subjective, it is measurable. (See Galatians 5:16-24)

Two events. We are born-again and we are transformed. These things are non-negotiable, objective standards of determining a Christian. If you have not been born-again, you are not a Christian, Jesus says so. And his opinion on the matter trumps your feelings about it. If your life is not being transformed to reflect more and more of God's will, as revealed through Scripture, then you are probably not a believer. True believers do not seek to justify their sinfulness by misinterpreting or reinterpreting the Bible. They humbly submit to God's Word and are transformed by it.

Who's Arrogant?

Finally, in the midst of all these debates in our culture, true believers will side with the Bible, not against it. True believers will reflect a biblical worldview, not the latest whims of the culture. True believers will see their lives transformed to reflect God's will, not remain in rebellion. True believers submit underneath God's Word, not stand above it.

John Piper has pointed out, and I believe him to be spot on, that believers are often charged with being arrogant because we try to teach everyone what the Scriptures teach concerning God and His will for mankind. But they are wrong. The opposite is true. Real arrogance is found in those who refuse to submit to an authority outside themselves, and instead, do whatever they please. Real arrogance is believing you make the rules. Refusing to submit to Scripture's teaching, and thinking you have the right to decide what a Christian is; that my friends, is the height of arrogance.

Amidst all the debates happening in our culture, it is time we call phooey on claims to be Christian that do not meet the criteria. As much as this raises the blood-pressure of some, it is time to give the Family Feud [X] (cue annoying buzzard sound) when folks self-identifying as Christians are living in habitual sin, without remorse, and holding distinctively non-Christian beliefs, without regard. Just ask them, "So you're a Christian, huh? Hmm..."

If you believe this article could be helpful for others to read, then love your neighbor as yourself and share it via Facebook, Twitter, or email with the buttons below.

I welcome your reactions and thoughts in the comment section below. Keep your responses mature, reasonable, and constructive.

Are You Saved? A Vital Examination

Exams are important. An exam is defined as an exercise designed to measure progress or test qualifications.

Everyone has taken exams. From youth to adulthood we take exams. However, there is one exam in life that everyone should take. It is a pass/fail exam. What you make on the exam is of eternal consequence. This examination is to determine whether you are saved. By "saved," I mean whether you are forgiven of your sins and justified before God, thereby in a relationship with Him.

The basis for taking this exam is found in the Bible.

2 Corinthians 13:5 (ESV) - Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you? - unless indeed you fail to meet the test.

Paul writes to the church in Corinth to examine themselves. He wants them to examine themselves for the purpose of seeing whether they are in the faith. This is a crucial exam. The goal is to determine whether Jesus Christ is in you. If not, you fail to meet the test.

As a pastor, I hesitate to tell people they are saved. It is not because I'm skeptical of other people's salvation, I just don't want to be someone's assurance. I never want someone to be lost in their sins, yet think they are saved because at some point I told them so. Assurance of salvation comes when we pass the exam. It is imperative for everyone to examine themselves to see if they are in the faith. The role of the pastor is not to assure people of their salvation, but to exhort them to exam themselves.

So that is my argument for why we should examine ourselves. Let's look at how to examine ourselves.

1. Have I put my complete trust and faith in the finished work of Jesus?

The question demands that we look at where our hope for salvation lies. If we believe that God will forgive us of our sins through any other means than Jesus' death and resurrection, we fail to answer this question correctly. Salvation comes to those who wholly submit to what Jesus has done for us. We do not try to save ourselves via some behavior, action, work, or deed. We push all the chips forward and declare we are "all in" with Jesus. Has this taken place with you?

2. Do I submit my life to God and the authority of His Word?

This second question demands we look at what authority governs our lives, our thoughts, our beliefs, and our actions. True believers do not go on living their lives according to their own opinions. Real Christians come under the authority of the Word of God and align their lives accordingly. This means that what we determine to be true, moral, good, and so on is informed by the Bible. If you have not submitted to the Bible's authority, you fail the test. Is the Bible your authority?

3. Do I treasure and love Jesus?

This question gets to the heart of what salvation means. So many people wrongly believe salvation to be about believing all the right facts about the Christian claims. Instead, salvation is about a new love. We begin to love Jesus. True believers go beyond simply believing in Jesus, and begin to treasure him. Treasuring Jesus is about our yearnings to be with him. Treasuring Christ is about our affections for who is and all he has done. Many people believe in Jesus, but no everyone who believes in Jesus treasures him. What about you?

4. Are confession of sins and repentance regular aspects of my life?

The Christian life is one continuous pattern of confessing sin and repenting from it. Believers are called to be striving continuously for holiness. We do not want to continue in our former ways, but instead, we want to live holy lives. We want to be dedicated to God. This requires a constant turning away from worldliness and passions of the flesh. True believers do not live in habitual sin. They turn from it. This confession of sin takes place in private prayer, but also in a community of believers (James 5:16). Repentance is a turning away from sinful habits and turning to Christ. Do these things mark your life?

5. What Who do I live my life for?

This last question gets to the core of who we are living for each day. What characterizes your life? Does your faith in God mark your life? Does your allegiance to Christ and Kingdom show in how you live? There are many professing beleivers whose lives do not match their profession. Do not be decieved, friends. God will not be mocked. He does not desire for people who claim to know Him, but live for themselves. Those who are in Christ live their lives for Christ. We do not continue on living for our own dreams, wants, plans, and goals. We recognize that we were bought at an incredibly high price - Jesus' life - and we lay down our own lives for His glory. So what about you? Who do you live for - Christ or yourself?

Conclusion

After answering these questions, one final question is in order: am I being honest? You must answer the questions honestly in order to know if you pass the exam. If you are truly a believer, you should be able to answer "yes," to the first four questions and "Christ and his kingdom" should be how the last question is answered. Paul tells us in Romans 8 that the Spirit of God testifies to our spirit that we are indeed children of God. The Spirit of God will affirm in our hearts if we have answered these questions accurately. 

There is not a more important exam we will ever take. Passing or failing is of eternal significance. My challenge for you is this: if you pass the exam, then praise God for the gift of salvation that you have received. If you failed the exam, plead for God to save you, to forgive your sins, and to turn your life around. Turn to Christ and find life. Believe and you will be saved. 

Question: what additional questions would you add to this exam? I would love to hear your thoughts below.

Know someone you think should read this article? Share it with others using the buttons below.

Ignorance Is Not A Redeemer

As a pastor of a church and occasional speaker at other events, I come across a common question regarding the fate of those who never hear of or accept Christ. It goes something like this: "Will God punish people in hell who have never heard of Jesus?" or another version of it is, "Will God send people to hell from other religions who were just ignorant about Jesus being the only way?" 

Many do not believe that people apart from Christ will spend eternity in hell. One of the reasons for their doubt is an appeal to sentimental feelings. We live in a culture that is slow to criticize or punish anyone. Children are often warned over and over again of potential punishments if they do not reform their behavior, yet they rarely do, and parents who follow through with their warnings is even rarer. Criminals are often relieved of jail sentences long before they have served the time they were sentenced. There is even a movement of people who want to get rid of jails and move toward rehabilitation therapy. The culture has grown less convinced of justice for law-breakers and rebels.

There is another reason for the belief that people apart from Christ will not spend eternity in hell. This second reason runs deep into the fabric of our misunderstanding of God's justice and our sinful condition. It is not a misunderstanding relegated only to those outside the church, but this idea is growing inside of churches. The idea: God would be unjust to punish people who have never heard of Jesus. Nobody likes the idea of God being unjust or cruel, so a growing theology is developing that denies the claim that only faith in Jesus saves us from sin and hell. 

So how do we answer the question?

There are two premises that need be firmly established before answering the question:

1. Nobody is innocent or without sin. 

There is no such thing as neutral people. We have all sinned against God (Romans 3:23). No one is good, not even one (Romans 3:10). Every person has a record of sin against God. This includes the person who grew up in home with a massive family Bible on the coffee table, to the young girl whose daddy was a preacher, to the old man who has only lived in Muslim-saturated environment, to the man in the dense jungle that has never been exposed to civilization or the Bible. None of these people are without sin. 

Some people would argue, "yeah, but the guy in the Muslim country or the guy in the jungle may not have ever heard about Jesus or had a copy of the Bible." However, Paul addresses this very argument in Romans 1 and 2 when he repeatedly makes clear that both the created universe and the moral law written on man's heart, serve to reveal God to man. Man both knows that there is a God, and that He is just and morally righteous. He knows this because God's law is written on his heart (Romans 2:15). Paul warns his readers that these people who never had the Word of God or never grew up hearing the teaches about God, are without excuse. Nobody is innocent. All we like sheep have gone astray (Isaiah 53:6). I will demonstrate in a moment why this is such a vital premise to understand.

2. Only the blood of Jesus redeems us. 

The blood of Christ is mentioned three times more than the cross of cross, and five times more than the death of Christ in the New Testament (see Blood Work by Anthony Carter). The teaching of Scripture is that Jesus and his finished work on the cross is our only redemption. Nobody can have their record of debt cleared without a substitute, and there is only one substitute available - Jesus. The blood of bulls, sheep, or goats is no longer sufficient for our sin. God sent forth His Son to be our exclusive redeemer and to atone for our sin with his blood (Ephesians 1:7; 1 Peter 1:18-19; Romans 5:8-9; 1 John 4:10; Ephesians 2:13; Revelation 1:5).

Jesus addressed this issue. In John 14:6 Jesus says, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." These words are clear. There is no room for debate. If Jesus is indeed who he claimed to be (which the resurrection attests to), then this claim slams the door shut on any questions. Only through Jesus can anyone approach God. Only Jesus and his shed blood for sin, can redeem us.

Conversation

So how do we answer the person who questions whether God will punish those who were ignorant of Christ for all of eternity? Here is usually how my conversation goes:

Person: "When you say that only Jesus can redeem us, are you saying that people who never hear about Jesus will go to hell?" 

Me: "Yes."

Person: "Don't you think that it is unfair that God is sending people to hell who didn't know?"

Me: "No, because I do not believe that God sends people to hell for their ignorance."

Person: "But I thought you just said He did?"

Me: "No, God does not send anyone to hell for their ignorance. It is not about whether a person has heard of Jesus or not that determines if they are going to hell. The reason people go to hell is because they have sinned against God. That is why they are condemned."

Person: "But how would they know they have sinned against God if they don't have the Bible or haven't heard preaching of the gospel?"

Me: "Because the Bible teaches us, Romans 1 & 2 specifically, that everyone knows that there is a God and they know His moral law because it is written on their hearts. Paul says that they are without excuse when they stand before God. First, because they knew there was a God and didn't honor Him as such, but suppressed the truth. Second, they knew right from wrong, but continue to willingly do wrong. So they have willfully sinned against God, who has revealed both Himself and His law to them, and they have rejected Him." [THIS IS PREMISE #1]

Person: "Hmmm."

Me: "Let's imagine a scenario. Pretend you were driving through a town and you failed to notice the speed limit. Let's pretend that you were driving 20 mph over the speed limit and got pulled over. The officer gives you a ticket and a court date. You think to yourself, "I will tell the judge that I didn't know the speed limit." You go to court on your date and see the judge. You plead ignorance of the law, but he tells you that the speed is posted and that you should have known based on your surroundings that you were going way to fast. He finds you guilty and makes you pay the fine. Has the judge been unfair to you? The answer is clearly, "no." He has not been unfair. He has upheld the law. Your ignorance was not a way out. The law is the law. You are not declared guilty because you failed to see the sign. You are declared guilty because you broke the law and went over the speed limit. Does that make sense?

Person: "Yeah, it does."

Me: "Okay, let me give you one more scenario to wrap up. Let's pretend you have committed murder. There is another case just before yours. This person has also committed murder. However, this individual has a lawyer that has worked out a deal with the judge. He has committed to serve the sentence of his client. His client is guilty, but the lawyer is going to pay the debt owed for him. The judge slams the gavel, and the man walks out of the courtroom free. Now it is your turn to stand up in front of the judge. You are guilty and you are now standing before the judge. The judge declares you guilty and sentences you to life in prison. You are outraged and say, "But the man before me was guilty and he went free. Why do I have to go to prison?" The judge says to you, "That man had a substitute take his place." You say to the judge, "But I did not know you could get a substitute, this is not fair." The judge then looks at you and says, "Friend, you are getting exactly what you deserve. You may not have known about the substitute, but that does not mean you are innocent. Your ignorance of a Savior does not exonerate you from your crime." In this scenario, the judge has been just. Nobody would accuse him of injustice. Does this help you understand? Christ is offered as a gift for sinners; he is a substitute. But those who are ignorant of Christ are not somehow declared innocent. They are far from that." [THIS IS PREMISE #2]

Person: "Thanks, that makes sense."

Me: "You're welcome. Now you see why we must go with urgency to make disciples of all nations. We have great news to proclaim. This news is not the basis of their condemnation, it is the pathway to freedom from the condemnation in which they are already standing. So let's get busy"

Conclusion

Ignorance is not a redeemer. There is only one Redeemer of our sins, that is Jesus Christ, and his shed blood on the cross. Avoid temptations to get sucked into poor reasoning and false teaching because of sentimental arguments. We must be solid in the Bible's teachings on these issues and not let our culture lead us astray into wrong thinking. Jesus Christ is the exclusive Savior of men. Flee to him, and warn others to do the same.

Away with the Traditional "Sinner's Prayer"

How does someone come to faith in Christ? Is there a magic prayer which changes our status as hell-bound sinner to heaven-bound saint? Are our words alone enough to change our heart of stone to a heart of flesh that feels and beats for the Savior King?

Throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, the "Sinner's Prayer" has gained mass popularity by television evangelist, revival preachers, and now, most mainstream churches. It typically goes something like this, "Just admit to God that you are a sinner, tell him that you believe in His Son Jesus, and commit your life tonight/this morning that you want to be a Christian. Friend, if you prayed that prayer then you are now saved. Your sins are forgiven and you will one day spend eternity with God when you die." Other things are often added or expounded upon, but for the most part, this is something we have grown accustomed to hearing from others. The question we should ask is: is this right?

Before this became the "popular" and "acceptable" way of leading someone to the Lord how did pastors, laypeople, and others instruct sinners on finding grace? This is a terribly important question! A friend of mine, pastor and blogger Tim Brister, recently posted a "Sinner's Prayer" on his blog from 19th century bishop J.C. Ryle (whom I thoroughly enjoy reading). I have posted this prayer below, see if you can notice the difference in how one should seek grace. See which of the prayers best models a biblical picture.

Ryle's Prayer:

When does the building of the Spirit really begin to appear in a man’s heart? It begins, so far as we can judge, when he first pours out his heart to God in prayer. 

If you desire salvation, and want to know what to do, I advise you to go this very day to the Lord Jesus Christ, in the first private place you can find, and earnestly and heartily entreat him in prayer to save your soul. 

Tell him that you have heard that he receives sinners, and has said, “Him that cometh unto me I will in no wise cast out.” Tell him that you are a poor vile sinner, and that you come to him on the faith of his own invitation. Tell him you put yourself wholly and entirely in his hands; that you feel vile and helpless, and hopeless in yourself: and that except he saves you, you have no hope of being saved at all. Beseech him to deliver you from the guilt, the power, and the consequences of sin. Beseech him to pardon you, and wash you in his own blood. Beseech him to give you a new heart, and plant the Holy Spirit in Your Soul. Beseech him to give you grace and faith and will and power to be his disciple and servant from this day forever. Oh, reader, go this very day, and tell these things to the Lord Jesus Christ, if you really are in earnest about your soul. 

Tell him in your own way, and your own words. If a doctor came to see you when sick you could tell him where you felt pain. If your soul feels its disease indeed, you can surely find something to tell Christ. 

Doubt not his willingness to save you, because you are a sinner. It is Christ’s office to save sinners. He says himself, “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance” (Luke 5:32). 

Wait not because you feel unworthy. Wait for nothing. Wait for nobody. Waiting comes from the devil. just as you are, go to Christ. The worse you are, the more need you have to apply to him. You will never mend yourself by staying away. 

Fear not because your prayer is stammering, your words feeble, and your language poor. Jesus can understand you. Just as a mother understands the first lispings of her infant, so does the blessed Saviour understand sinners. He can read a sigh, and see a meaning in a groan. 

Despair not because you do not get an answer immediately. While you are speaking, Jesus is listening. If he delays an answer, it is only for wise reasons, and to try if you are in earnest. The answer will surely come. Though it tarry, wait for it. It will surely come.
Oh, reader, if you have any desire to, be saved, remember the advice I have given you this day. Act upon it honestly and heartily, and you shall be saved.

If you desire to subscribe or follow this blog click on the links to the right. If you want to share this post with others, use the buttons below.

Affection-Driven Devotion

I am hitting the road this morning to preach two more weeks of Fuge Camps in Greenville, S. Carolina. I was called to fill in for a guy who had an emergency situation with his family. I have already preached three weeks and it has been an amazing experience. I blogged about it here recently.

The message I open camp with each week is the difference between the Affection-Driven life vs the Obligation-Driven life. As Christians we are often taught about our need to read the Bible, pray, serve others, attend church, give, love one another, submit to authority, relate to the lost, and the list goes on. These things are not wrong or bad, but they can become stumbling blocks if not taught properly. The motivation behind "why" we do them is equally as important as doing them. 

Many of us have been taught throughout our lives and our Christian experience the do's and don'ts, the right's and wrong's. The issue we need to wrestle over is not "do I do these things" but "why do I do these things?" Is my obedience the fruit of my relationship with Christ or am I attempting to make them the root of my salvation. In other words, do I do a lot of things in an effort to make God happy with me or do I do these things because they are a naturally outpouring of my affections for Christ? We are called to do the right things and live the Christian life in obedience, but these things stem from a heart filled with a love for God that has been created by the grace of God, through the faith provided as a gift by God. 

In Psalm 42:1-2 David speaks about how his soul thirsts for God, the Living God. He talks about how a deer pants for water, and that likewise, his soul pants for God. This is the writing and expressions of a person who's affections for the Lord are stoked white-hot. When is the last time you could say David's prayer and heart expression has been your own? His heart is a great example and model of one that exhibits great affections for the Lord.

When it comes to evangelism, we don't need new strategies, we need new hearts. Hearts driven by affections for the Lord. When it comes to relating to authority, we don't need to try harder to submit to imperfect leaders, we begin by submitting to the Lord who has placed those leaders over us. When it comes to loving others, we don't wait until people are more lovable, we begin by loving the One who fuels our capacity to love. When it comes to forgiving others, we don't wait until people deserve forgiveness, we begin by praising the God who forgave us through the precious blood of His Son. This drives us to forgive others. It all begins with our relationship with God. 

This is what it means to live an affection-driven life as opposed to the obligation-driven life. We cannot and will not live the Christian life with any joy or fulfillment if it is done as a duty or obligation. We must be driven by our affections for Christ Jesus, who is altogether lovely, who is altogether beautiful. Fix your gaze upon him and find your affections stirred and raised to fervent pitch! Hallelujah, what a Savior! How could we not want to live for him and his glory!?!

What are some things you have found that help to stir your affections for the Lord? For me it is reciting the gospel to myself and reflecting on the unique aspects of Christ's roles as Redeemer, Bridegroom, Advocate, and Friend to me. These always serve to fan my devotions for Christ into flame.

If you find this blog helpful to your walk with God, you can follow by joining on the right-hand side, and you can share this post with others you believe it may help by clicking on the buttons below

What Happened At Your Conversion?

When you stop to ponder what happened at the moment of your conversion (new birth) it can be hard to find the right language to describe it. If you had to explain to someone else what took place could you put words and terms to it?

Today I want to give us a look at what happened at our conversion. This will be helpful not only for understanding your own conversion, but also knowing what needs to happen for those who have yet to trust Christ.

Here's what happens:

1. We HEAR THE GOSPEL. This could be through a sermon, evangelistic encounter, or just a personal relationship in which the gospel has been made known. (Romans 10:14-17)

2. Once we have heard, we believe by FAITH (which is a gift of God) the gospel message and surrender our whole lives to Jesus Christ. This surrender includes REPENTANCE of sins by turning from our wicked ways and turning to God. (Ephesians 2:8-9; Acts 2:38; Matthew 4:17)

3A. At the moment of faith & repentance we are PARDONED of all our sin. This simply means that our record of debt has been canceled. We are forgiven. (Isaiah 55:7)

3B. At the moment of faith & repentance we are JUSTIFIED before God. While being pardoned cancels our record of sin, being justified restores us to relationship. So instead of only being without a sin-record before God, we are also given right-standing with Him. (Romans 3:21-26)

3C. At the moment of faith & repentance we are ADOPTED into the family of God. We are not born children of God, but children of wrath. In order for us to be made children of God, we must be adopted into God's family. He did this for us at our conversion. (Galatians 4:4-7; 1 John 3:9-10; Ephesians 2:3)

3D. At the moment of faith & repentance we are REGENERATED and are made new by the Holy Spirit. We are made new creatures in Christ, the old is gone and the new has come. (Ezekiel 36:24-27; 2 Corinthians 5:17)

This is what happened at our conversion. We HEARD THE GOSPEL, in some form, and we believe by FAITH (a gift from God) and REPENTED of our sins. At the moment of faith & repentance, God, in one simultaneous action, PARDONED us, JUSTIFIED us, ADOPTED us, and REGENERATED us. Praise be to His name!!

This is the order of salvation. It is what happened to you and to me. This teaches us as believers that we must be messengers of the gospel, since it is the catalyst for all of salvation. God saves sinners. He has done this great work in us. We should live to glorify Him in all we do, for how could we live for another?

Please leave a comment below based on the following questions: Is this something that helps you to understand the work of God's grace in your life? Does this finally help give some language and structure to your understanding of salvation? What was the most helpful for you?

If you liked this post and it has been helpful for you, you can share it or recommend it by clicking on one of the buttons below