Okay, so I don't want to step on any toes here, but this entry is based off a conversation I had with James while talking outside the bathroom on the second floor of the library. If you were in the library at the time, you probably heard us as neither one of us is particularly quiet. Anyway, somehow we got around to talking about evangelism and the way it is taught in many (most?) evangelical churches today. This goes along with a previous entry, as we agreed that we should not go out and evangelize because we are told to do so by others. We brought up the fact that, at DTS, we have to share the gospel with at least 5 people during the semester in which we are taking evangelism. Granted, we should be doing this anyway, but our emphasis was on the requirement aspect of it. But it's not just at DTS. James said he had looked at other seminaries but decided not to go there because the students were required to share the gospel with at least 2 people every week while a student at that seminary. Again, sharing the gospel is a good thing. Requiring it as part of a grade or even as part of being eligible to remain a student places the emphasis in the wrong place. Evangelism should flow from our worship of the King. If we truly love Him, our life will reflect this love and we can do little but share the gospel with others (though this need not be done by reciting the "4 Spiritual Laws" or, if at DTS, the "Bad News, Good News").
This conversation led into a discussion of the methods used to reach the lost. Being raised Lutheran, the concept of an altar call was completely foreign to me until I started visiting Baptist and Assemblies of God churches. Though I have no problem with the concept of an altar call – I believe that making a physical expression of one's faith is great – I take issue at those who believe that altar calls are necessary for Christians to participate in, or, even worse, necessary for salvation. Last I checked salvation is given by God as a gift. A gift granted by grace, through faith, but a gift nonetheless. And this is not by works. That means that no altar call is necessary for salvation, no matter how many preaches may make it seem otherwise.
And these altar calls may not be merely those found at the end of many church services. They are the common means by which many Western evangelists finish their presentations. Think about it. How many times have we heard somebody share the gospel and finish by saying, "If you believe what I said just now, then pray this simple prayer and you will be saved." The requirement of "praying the prayer" takes the place of the altar call, placing the emphasis not on the One who saves but on man's ability to do something to get salvation.
I'll let the sit for a second.
Just think about it. By saying that they must "pray this prayer" we are adding a requirement to salvation that was not put there by God. Yes, it makes sense to our finite, human minds to add something to the gospel presentation so that we may be assured that somebody is saved, but this does not make it a requirement for salvation. If somebody does not "pray the prayer," they may still be saved…we just might not know it. And that's okay. We don't need to know. If we require the prayer, or even present it as a requirement, we are adding a condition to salvation and, all of a sudden, salvation is by works. No matter how often we preach otherwise, as long as we make the altar call or the prayer a necessary component of our gospel presentations, we are preaching a works-based salvation in practice. And that, my brothers and sisters, is not the gospel.
I could keep going, but I need to get to class. I'm thinking I am long overdue for an entry on baptism…and since that ties in very nicely with this one, I very well may hit on that topic next time.
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