Pentecostal Worship, Preaching, and Ministry — Unit 6: Altar Ministry, Prayer for the Sick, and Laying on of Hands

Key Verse

"Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven." (James 5:14-15, NKJV)

Learning Objectives

When you finish this unit, you should be able to:

1. Explain what the altar is in Pentecostal worship and name the main reasons people come to it.

2. Describe the uses of the laying on of hands and of anointing with oil in the New Testament.

3. Describe a biblical, kind and safe pattern for praying for the sick.

4. State the main objections to our altar practice and explain how Pentecostals answer them.

5. Set up a simple, orderly altar team that protects privacy, consent and follow-up.

The Voice of This Unit

This unit is written from inside the classical Pentecostal tradition, for pastors who belong to it. We state fairly the questions other Christians ask. The theology of healing is in Course 3, Units 5 and 6. Here we look at practice: what a pastor and a team do at the altar.

What the Altar Is

In most Pentecostal churches the altar is the open space at the front of the sanctuary. It is not a table for sacrifice. Christ made the one sacrifice for sins, once for all. The altar is a place of response. When the Word has been preached, people are invited to come forward and meet God.

The practice has a history. Methodist camp meetings in the 1800s had a "mourners' bench" where convicted sinners knelt to seek mercy. The Holiness movement kept this custom, and early Pentecostals carried it with them. We should not say the altar is commanded in Scripture in this form. But the pattern of preaching followed by a call to respond is clearly biblical. After Peter preached at Pentecost, the people "were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, 'Men and brethren, what shall we do?'" (Acts 2:37). The altar gives people a place to answer that question.

People come to the altar for many reasons:

• Salvation. A sinner repents and asks Christ to save him.

• Recommitment. A believer who has drifted comes back to the Lord.

• Consecration. A believer seeks a deeper, holier life.

• Baptism in the Holy Spirit. A believer asks to be filled with power for witness.

• Healing. A sick person asks for prayer.

• Guidance and burdens. A person facing a decision, grief or fear asks for someone to pray with him.

• Commissioning. A worker or a missionary is set apart for service.

A pastor should be ready for all of these.

Seeking the Holy Spirit

Many older Pentecostals speak of "tarrying." Jesus said, "Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high" (Luke 24:49). Critics say this makes the Spirit's gift into a reward for long effort. We answer that the Spirit is a gift, not a wage. Jesus taught, "If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!" (Luke 11:13). At Cornelius's house the Spirit fell while Peter was still speaking (Acts 10:44). There is no formula. A pastor should teach seekers to ask, to receive by faith, and to yield. He should never make them feel that the gift depends on a certain length of time or on shouting. Course 2, Units 4 and 5, gives the doctrine of Spirit baptism.

Laying on of Hands in the New Testament

Laying on of hands is a plain, ancient act. The New Testament shows several uses. Hebrews 6:2 even names it among the foundations of Christian teaching.

For healing. Jesus laid hands on the sick. Mark 16:18 says of believers, "they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover." Ananias laid hands on Saul so that he could see (Acts 9:12, 17). Paul laid hands on the father of Publius on Malta, and he was healed (Acts 28:8).

For the Holy Spirit. In Samaria, Peter and John prayed for the new believers, "Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit" (Acts 8:17). At Ephesus the same thing happened through Paul (Acts 19:6).

For commissioning. The church in Jerusalem chose seven men to serve, "and when they had prayed, they laid hands on them" (Acts 6:6). At Antioch, "having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away" (Acts 13:3).

For the gift of ministry. Paul wrote to Timothy, "Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the eldership" (1 Timothy 4:14). He also wrote, "Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands" (2 Timothy 1:6).

There is also a warning: "Do not lay hands on anyone hastily, nor share in other people's sins; keep yourself pure" (1 Timothy 5:22). It teaches that we do not set anyone apart for ministry without testing his life.

What the hands mean

In Scripture the hands do not carry a power of their own. They show that we identify with the person, that we bless him, and that we ask God to act. The power is God's. In Samaria, Simon the sorcerer saw that the Spirit was given through the apostles' hands and wanted to buy this ability, and Peter rebuked him sharply (Acts 8:18-23). We never sell prayer, and we never suggest that the minister is the source of healing.

Anointing with Oil

James 5 is our main text. A sick person is to call for the elders. The elders pray and anoint with oil in the Lord's name. Mark 6:13 says the Twelve "anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them."

Christians read the oil in two ways. Most Pentecostals take it as a sign of the Holy Spirit and of setting the sick person apart for God. Others also note that oil was used as medicine in the ancient world, and they see in James both prayer and care. We can hold both. The oil has no power in itself. It is an act of faith and obedience.

Notice the pattern. The sick person calls for the elders, so the church does not force itself on him. Several elders come, so the care is shared. The passage speaks also of forgiveness. Care for the whole person is the aim.

Praying for the Sick: A Pattern

Course 3 teaches that God heals today and that He is sovereign. Here is a simple pattern for the altar.

1. Welcome and ask. "How can we pray for you?" Listen to the answer. Let the person say what is wrong in his own words.

2. Ask permission. "May I place my hand on your shoulder?" Some people do not want to be touched. Never touch without consent.

3. Pray simply. Use plain words. Pray in the name of Jesus. Pray once, clearly, with faith.

4. Ask again. "Do you feel any difference?" If there is a change, thank God. If there is none, pray again or simply continue to trust. Jesus Himself prayed twice for a blind man in Mark 8:22-25, so a second prayer is not a sign of weak faith.

5. Close with care. Thank God, encourage the person, and offer to pray again at a later time.

Faith, doctors and honesty

Never tell a person to stop taking medicine or stop seeing a doctor. Luke, who wrote the Gospel and Acts, was called a physician. A person who is healed should be encouraged to have a medical check so that the healing can be confirmed, for his own good and for the church's testimony.

Never promise healing. We can say, "Jesus heals, and we will pray in faith." We cannot say, "God will heal you today." Never blame the sick person if healing does not come. Faith is not a tool we use to force God's hand. Sickness may continue for reasons we do not understand, and Paul himself left Trophimus sick at Miletus (2 Timothy 4:20). Course 3, Unit 6, deals with suffering and unanswered prayer.

Order and Safety at the Altar

Our freedom in worship needs order. Paul wrote that "all things" be done "decently and in order" (1 Corinthians 14:40). A wise church has a simple altar policy.

• Teams of two or three. Ministers pray in pairs. One prays, and the other watches, listens and supports. This protects both the person and the minister.

• Same-gender touch. Where touch is used, it is placed on the shoulder, back, head or hands, with care and modesty.

• Privacy. Do not ask people to describe private sins or illnesses in front of the whole church. Quietly offer a private time with a trusted leader.

• Children. Never pray with a child alone. A parent or another adult should be present.

• No money at the altar. Never ask for an offering as a condition of prayer.

• Careful testimonies. Do not announce cures in public before they are confirmed. A person who says "I feel better" tonight may still need the doctor tomorrow.

• Follow-up. Someone should speak again with those who came for salvation, Spirit baptism or serious problems within a few days.

• Deliverance. Prayer for those who seem troubled by evil spirits belongs to experienced leaders, as Course 3, Unit 7, explains.

Objections and Our Answers

Objection 1: The altar call uses emotion and pressure.

Critics, including many faithful evangelicals, say that music, repeated appeals and group pressure can produce decisions that are not real. Some call it manipulation.

Our answer. The warning is fair, and some churches have deserved it. A leader must never promise what God has not promised, never keep repeating an appeal to wear people down, and never shame people into coming forward. But feeling is not wrong. At Pentecost the hearers were "cut to the heart." What matters is that the appeal rests on the Word, that the invitation is honest and free, and that the fruit is tested over time (Matthew 7:16). Follow-up and discipleship show whether a work is true.

Objection 2: The laying on of hands and healing were for the apostles only, and Mark 16 is doubtful.

Cessationists say that healing by touch confirmed the apostles. Many scholars also note that some old manuscripts of Mark do not include verses 9-20, so Mark 16:18 should not carry doctrine alone.

Our answer. We agree that a doctrine should not stand on one disputed passage. But it does not stand on Mark 16 alone. Ananias, who was a disciple and not an apostle, laid hands on Saul (Acts 9:10, 17). James tells the elders of the church to pray and anoint, and the elders were not apostles. Paul lists gifts of healings among the gifts the Spirit distributes in the church (1 Corinthians 12:9, 28). Course 3, Unit 5, gives the full argument.

Objection 3: "Falling" or "resting in the Spirit" is not biblical.

In some Pentecostal and charismatic meetings, people fall to the floor when prayed for. Many evangelicals, including many Pentecostals, say Scripture does not teach this as a practice.

Our answer. We agree that Scripture gives no command or method for it. Those who accept it point to cases where people fell before God's presence, such as Saul on the Damascus road (Acts 9:4) and John, who fell "as dead" when he saw the glorified Lord (Revelation 1:17). But those were unusual meetings with God, not techniques of ministry. Our guidance is plain: never push or cause a person to fall; never teach that falling proves spirituality or that standing proves its lack; have a person ready to help so that no one is hurt; and test everything by Scripture. A pastor who is unsure may decline to encourage it.

Objection 4: Praying for the sick gives false hope and puts guilt on those not healed.

This happens, and the pain is real.

Our answer. It is a danger of misuse, not a proof against the practice. James promises the prayer of faith, but the Bible also shows faithful people who remained sick. We pray because Jesus commanded and healed, and we leave the outcome with Him. We care for those who are not healed as much as for those who are.

Pastoral Application

At the end of a Sunday service, a mother brings her nine-year-old son to the altar. He has seizures. The mother says, "The doctor gives him medicine, but we want God to heal him. Should I stop the medicine if he is healed?"

The pastor does five things. First, he welcomes them warmly and asks the boy, not only the mother, what he would like prayer for. Second, with a second adult beside him and the mother present, and with the family's consent, he lays a hand lightly on the boy's shoulder, prays a short prayer in Jesus' name, and thanks God for His care. Third, he tells the mother plainly: "Do not stop the medicine on your own. If God heals him, the doctor will be able to confirm it, and the doctor must decide about the medicine." Fourth, he promises no result and puts no blame on the family. Fifth, he asks another believer to visit the family during the week, and offers to pray again.

Whatever happens, the family has been loved and not burdened with guilt.

Summary

The altar is the place where people respond to the Word and meet God. They come for salvation, recommitment, consecration, Spirit baptism, healing, guidance and commissioning. The New Testament shows laying on of hands for healing, for the Holy Spirit, for commissioning and for ministry, and it shows anointing with oil in James 5 and Mark 6:13. The hands and the oil have no power of their own; the power is God's. A good pattern for praying for the sick is to ask, seek consent, pray simply, ask again, and care afterward. We never promise healing, never forbid medical care, and never blame those who are not healed. A safe altar uses teams, privacy, modest touch, protection of children, no money at the altar, careful testimonies and follow-up. We answer objections about pressure, apostolic-only healing, falling in the Spirit and false hope with honesty and with Scripture.

Further Reading

• A. J. Gordon, The Ministry of Healing (1882).

• Jonathan Edwards, The Distinguishing Marks of a Work of the Spirit of God (1741).

• Gordon D. Fee, God's Empowering Presence (1994).

• Max Turner, The Holy Spirit and Spiritual Gifts (1996).

• Wayne Grudem, ed., Are Miraculous Gifts for Today? Four Views (1996).

• B. B. Warfield, Counterfeit Miracles (1918), a cessationist argument.

• Grant Wacker, Heaven Below (2001).

• The Apostolic Faith (Los Angeles, 1906-1908), a primary source.

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