Opening the Unlocked Door

Thoughts on a letter from Jesus, the redemptive use of technology, and the parable of the pizza delivery.

The Light of the World by William Holman Hunt (1827–1910)

If you know what an altar call is, there's a good possibility you spent some time in an evangelical church. As for myself, I grew up the son of an evangelist¹ who later became a pastor. So, I’ve seen and heard lots and lots of altar calls.

If you’ve never heard of an altar call, here’s how they work.

1. Once the minister finishes preaching the sermon, they ask everyone present to bow their heads and close their eyes.

2. “With every head bowed and every eye closed,” they often begin. Then they begin to make their case to those listening as to why they should surrender their lives to God. People prepared to make this decision were often encouraged to raise their hands so that the minister could see them from the pulpit.

3. The minister will often have live music playing in the background. 50 years ago, it may have been organ music. When I was a boy, it was often my own mom’s excellent piano playing and singing. The style of the songs varied widely, but the lyrics often communicated that the person in the audience was running out of time, that they needed to hurry up and make their decision.

4. The minister would then invite, urge, or even beg people to respond to the invitation by walking down the isles toward the front of the church, where church members were prepared to pray the “Sinner’s Prayer²” with that person.

5. After praying, the minister would then assure the person of their salvation, the forgiveness of all of their sins, and their home with God in the afterlife.³

My conservative estimate is that I've experienced no fewer than 3,000 altar calls like the ones I’m describing. And during quite a few of them, I remember one specific Bible verse being quoted by ministers, over and over, the words of Jesus in his letter to the church in Laodicea.

Listen! I am standing at the door and knocking! If anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come into his home and share a meal with him, and he with me.

Revelation 3:20 (NET)

“Jesus is knocking on the door of your heart today,” the minister would say. “Won’t you let him in?”

But Jesus isn’t talking to those who don’t know Him, who have not been given the gift of salvation. In this passage, He is talking to the church.