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PACKED ALTARS OR CHANGED LIVES? God has taught me a few things along the way, and I've written about most of those things for many years. Yet, one subject that I've said very little about is the IFB notion that packed altars should be accepted as proof of spirituality. The truth is that packed altars are proof of only one thing: PACKED ALTARS. Why people are at the altar and what will happen as a result are separate issues altogether. That's why I, as a pastor, have always placed more confidence in CHANGED LIVES than in altar calls. After all, I can show you a great deal from the New Testament about changed lives. Frankly, my dear, I don't recall reading ANYTHING about altar calls. That doesn't mean that I condemn them or never have them; it just means that I don't TRUST them. I trust the Book; the one that emphasizes changed lives instead of altar calls. Jesus didn't say that we'd know people by altar calls; He said "Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them." (Mat. 7:20) Paul didn't say that if any man be in Christ, you'll see him at the altar; he said, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." (II Cor. 5:17) Due to our lack of faith in the inner-transforming power of God's word, we've placed far too much confidence in visible things, such as altar calls and testimonies. I'm fine with having such things when I believe they can be helpful, but you will not find me saying things like, "What a great service last night! God really showed up and the altars were packed!" I am far more interested in how those lives are changed next week, next month and next year. I know that in the IFB world that makes me a very strange preacher, but I'm of the opinion that God's word will make ANYONE strange, if only they will submit to it. Unfortunately, tradition carries more weight with most Christians than the word of God. Altar calls and testimonies can sometimes be helpful, but they prove nothing and should not be trusted or emphasized. In fact, looking back over the years, I must say that most of the drama that I've witnessed at altar calls never amounted to much of anything in the long term, and, personally speaking, the two most important prayers of my life were not prayed at an altar, but rather in the privacy of my home. Come to think of it, seems that I recall Jesus saying something about a prayer CLOSET? Of course, it's kind of hard to get noticed in a closet, and the numbers don't add-up much, and . . . well, never mind. Thanks for reading.