This is a forum for Charismatics

[Presbyterian Continuist]

I grew up. coc.....then we went to nondenominational and now have been at a Bible Church for 15+ years.......

I am not too critical of the AOG altar calls.....
As some of this calvin stuff gets wacky....
Our church believes in OSAS and rarely if ever have an altar call...maybe once a year.....

Basically they teach it is not necessary to confess your sins after initial salvation as that holiness stuff is optional....
now many in the geasy grace movement are saying that it is never even necessary to confess sins even at a first time committment....
One of the pastors told me he didnt believe in reconciliation.........
In other words faith only...no rpentence....

So there is a balance but without prayer conviction and confession there is no gospel!!!!
So i am revisiting the AOG from time to time tying to get some flowing of the Spirit....
And trying to shake off this...no convicion gospel....

Since our kids are gone dont know how long we will stay at our current church...but we will be visiting around....

I don't criticise altar calls because when I first encountered the real gospel in an AOG church, it took me a long time during the altar call to make up my mind to go forward and receive Christ. If the altar call wasn't so long, I might not have made that decision at that time. Also during the altar call, I had my stock excuses going through my mind, the preacher running the altar call gave the answer to my excuses at the exact time I was thinking them. Now in a congregation of 450 people, the only way he could have done that would have been that he was listening to the Holy Spirit. What this tells me is that the Holy Spirit totally supports long altar calls, because for some people, like me, it takes some time to convince them that they need to accept Christ, have their excuses dealt with, and for them to take that step out of their seats and down the front.

Usually it is those who are resisting the call of Christ who don't like long altar calls, because they are feeling conviction of sin and their need to accept Christ, but they are resisting it. Those who love Christ enjoy long altar calls because they know that the Holy Spirit is taking time to work on the hearts of sinners in order to get them saved.

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

I grew up. coc.....then we went to nondenominational and now have been at a Bible Church for 15+ years.......

I am not too critical of the AOG altar calls.....
As some of this calvin stuff gets wacky....
Our church believes in OSAS and rarely if ever have an altar call...maybe once a year.....

Basically they teach it is not necessary to confess your sins after initial salvation as that holiness stuff is optional....
now many in the geasy grace movement are saying that it is never even necessary to confess sins even at a first time committment....
One of the pastors told me he didnt believe in reconciliation.........
In other words faith only...no rpentence....

So there is a balance but without prayer conviction and confession there is no gospel!!!!
So i am revisiting the AOG from time to time tying to get some flowing of the Spirit....
And trying to shake off this...no convicion gospel....

Since our kids are gone dont know how long we will stay at our current church...but we will be visiting around....

Also, Charles Finney had the same trouble with the OSAS of his time (in the early 19th Century in America). The traditional Presbyterians of his time believed that it is the Holy Spirit who draws people to Christ and that the decision is made first by Him and not the sinner. Finney believed that sinners needed to make a decision for Christ and then the Holy Spirit honoured the decision. Finney was always in conflict with the Presbyterian Church and because of his view they would not allow him to become a fully ordained minister, but commissioned him as an evangelist. After years of conflict, he decided to leave the Presbyterian church and join the Congregational church.

It seems that the problem still exists today. I am an elder in the Presbyterian church, and it is not normal for us to have altar calls. Of course, we are a fairly small congregation of believers and do not have many sinners come into our services. The Presbyterian church in New Zealand is not strong on evangelism. They believe in mission - that is, getting people to come to church,but once those people get there, there is no real preaching of the gospel and no invitation to walk up the front and actually receive Christ.

But I observe that those churches that are getting souls saved and therefore are growing, are the Charismatic churches that have an evangelistic programme and altar calls in their services. Trouble is, that other churches are so steeped in their rituals and ceremonial type services that they don't want to see what actually brings souls to Christ. They think that just teaching about the Bible does something magical to draw people to Christ. In my experience over the years, I have not seen that approach working very effectively.

 

[Traveling teacher]

agreed
altar calls are also for renewal and encouragement anointing and filling of the Spirit.....
not just initial first time committments...
visited an Aog today as they meet in a movie theater my daughter works at.....
Nice time of prayer worship and renewal during the altar calll....
I enjoy how the pastor says not to share too personal details but just pray for one another ...

 

[Presbyterian Continuist]

agreed
altar calls are also for renewal and encouragement anointing and filling of the Spirit.....
not just initial first time committments...
visited an Aog today as they meet in a movie theater my daughter works at.....
Nice time of prayer worship and renewal during the altar calll....
I enjoy how the pastor says not to share too personal details but just pray for one another ...

Another strength of altar calls is to give opportunity for believers to continue in prayer that the sinners in the meeting will not only be convicted by the Spirit, but will have the courage to step out and go to the front and accept Christ.

 

[Traveling teacher]

agree altar calls are needed...
as I believe Jesus would teach the word and do long times of ministry with prayer and laying on of hands....with his disciples along side helping out and learning.....

 

[ByTheSpirit]

Another strength of altar calls is to give opportunity for believers to continue in prayer that the sinners in the meeting will not only be convicted by the Spirit, but will have the courage to step out and go to the front and accept Christ.

agree altar calls are needed...
as I believe Jesus would teach the word and do long times of ministry with prayer and laying on of hands....with his disciples along side helping out and learning.....

I highly doubt Jesus would accept "altar calls" as a viable option for ministry.

He certainly would not preach people to "accept him". He would tell them to repent of their sins, then be baptized for the forgiveness of their sins so they could receive the Holy Spirit.

 

[Alithis]

I think that is too much of a generalisation. I spent many years in three Pentecostal or Charismatic churches and I found the majority of the members loved the Lord and were passionate about serving Christ and winning souls for Him. Of course there was the lunatic fringe, in the same way that there is in any church Pentecostal or otherwise. But I think it is a mistake to tar and feather the "majority" of Pentecostals because of a few.

I wish this were true
And that it is not a generalisation
But it's not the case.
The zeal spoken with the lips on a Sunday or a 1hour midweek meeting does Not translate to obedience for the majority. of Pentecostal charasmatics .speaking tongues ,singing a song on Sunday,listening to repetitive sermons ...does not equate to being a diciple.

The majority say the right words..because they hear it. But they do not do it.
Oh that it were a generalisation...But it is not.