I'm not ready to leave this issue just yet. After reading Lloyd-Jones' chapter, I picked up Iain Murray's The Invitation System. This is just a small pamphlet (about 40 pages) published by Banner of Truth. Murray takes direct aim at Billy Graham, Leighton Ford, and Harold J. Ockenga. He takes their three main arguments for public invitations and picks them apart. Murray clearly demonstrates the fallacy of their arguments for alter calls. Then, he gives 10 conclusions of his own (I will try to summarize):1. The invitation system institutes a condition of salvation which Christ never appointed (namely, coming forward to received Christ).
2. Those who come forward are given reason to believe they are doing something commendable before God and those who do not are falsely led to believe they are disobeying.
3. The invitation misleads the unconverted in regard to their duty.
4. A person may come to the front for any number of selfish reasons.
5. Those who do not respond to the invitation are led to further unbelief and hardness of heart.
6. About 50% of those who come forward end up totally denying their faith.
7. Those who do come to a knowledge of Christ through an evangelistic service would lose nothing if there was no invitation but leading them to some sort of public act may well do them a disservice.
8. The invitation system inevitably directs attention primarily to the outward and the immediately observable, and thus supports a false standard of judgment.
9. The ministry of the local church is diluted.
10. The invitation system misconceives the role of an evangelist.
3 comments:
I had no idea there were churches that did not have alter calls when I started attending a Bible church and at the end there was no alter call or time of invitation for membership even. I was really taken aback. I thought this was a great preacher and church and did not understand why there was no alter call. I discussed it with my husband and was put off by it.
I continued growing in this church and I realized that this preacher more than any I had heard brought every sermon and scripture wether old or new testament back to Christ. I first was disappointed at this church's lack of zeal for evangelism, but I actually found that it was more alive there in a real way than I had encountered at previous churches who sang "Just As I AM " every Sunday.
I now believe that it is God who turns our hearts toward Him. Now I see times of invitation as not necessarilly bad, but not essential either. It is so freeing. God has showed me that it is a priviledge that God allows me to share in his work of spreading the gospel as well as a commandment. My pastor said to work like an arminian (dont know how to spell it) in spreading the gospel while trusting God to turn hearts like a calvinist.
In college I had a communications professor who bragged about how he could manipulate alter calls. He told us how he use to make money as an evangelist. He and his wife would leave churches counting the money while they laughed at the "dopes" whos actually fell for it. It is so horrifying and apalling to think there are people like this out there.
shannon
I can agree with most of these points. I think if an invitation is given, motive for, and the manner in which it is given must be Christ-exalting, not belt-notching for the preacher or hearers.
I have that booklet. I didn't enjoy the read, but he makes some good points.
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