Altars and Our Problems

In the parlance of christianity in Kenya, it is not uncommon to hear the word ‘altar’ being used. This is particularly true amongst our charismatic/pentecostal friends. The idea behind the word seems to be that there are certain spiritual realities present in particular places that serve as a point of connection between heaven and earth. Good altars serve as portals for blessing and bad altars serve as portals for curses or for the blocking of blessing. Bad altars would be those established for purposes of the worship of Satan. It is, therefore, understood to be of great importance to set up good altars and to tear down bad ones. This would be accomplished by means of special prayers, anointings, fastings etc.

These altars are one lens by which desirable outcomes vs undesirable ones are viewed. Such problems as poverty, disease, barrenness etc can be viewed as being prevalent because of the presence of a bad altar. Tearing that one down and setting up a new, good, one is seen as one way to mitigate against the aforementioned problems and usher in healing, fruitfulness and general prosperity.

The concept of the altar is also extended to include the podium/stage area in a church building. An area which is therefore accorded a heightened degree of reverence and in some cases, guarded jealously.

For Biblical support, one may consider various Old Testament references to altars. The Patriarchs would periodically establish altars upon which sacrifices would be made or which would serve as pillars of remembrance(eg Gen 8.20, 12.7, 35.7) There are also examples of altars dedicated to false gods being torn down in periods of reformation in the life of Israel (Deut 12.3, Judges 6.25-27, 2 kings 23.21). Clearly, then, altars played a significant role in the religious life of God’s people.

The view that proposes the presence of invisible altars that need to be torn down and others needing to be built up seems to me to create deep seated fear. This is especially true for suffering saints. Instead of hoping in God’s sovereign care, they are forced to seek refuge in altar breaking and building rituals. Often, suffering saints under the sway of this view can be quite vulnerable to be taken advantage of. (I know some who have paid money for special prayers and anointing to break altars and the curses associated with them)

I wonder, then, if the direct application of the concept of altars to our contemporary situation is appropriate. I think that there is a step in the development of redemptive history that has a radically transformative effect in how we understand such (and several other) concepts as altars. That step is the person and work of Jesus Christ.

So, here is an alternative proposal to my charismatic/pentecostal friends on altars. I think that altars did serve as a contact point between heaven and earth. They were generally set up after a special visit from God or as a place of worship and enquiring of the Lord. Over time, the purpose of altars became folded into the tabernacle. Altars, therefore, served as precursors to the tabernacle. They were physical locations on earth where God would meet with His people. The concept, thus, gained fuller definition when the tabernacle was built. That became the place where God came down and not just ‘visited’ but dwelt among His people. A more permanent instantiation of this happened with the building of Solomon’s temple. The glory of the Lord descended on it and once again God came to dwell among His people.

Later when Christ entered the scene, he is tightly identified with the tabernacle/temple. In John 1.14 ‘the word became flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory’- dwelt can be translated ‘tabernacled.’ Later he identified his body with the temple when he said that it should be destroyed and he would rebuild it in 3 days (John 2.19-21). The writer of Hebrews even identifies his flesh with the curtain in the tabernacle (Heb 10.20). Jesus was the new point of connection between heaven and earth (John 1.51). All the points of connection before him- Jacob’s ladder, altars, then tabernacle, then temple were all anticipating him. They were pointing to him and they all found their fulfillment in Him.

In His death and resurrection, Jesus ushered in a new age. In this new age, heaven and earth are connected, no longer by altars but by him. In a manner of speaking, Jesus is our altar, he is our temple. He is the final means by which we draw near to God. We are no longer to understand these ‘altar’, ‘curtain’, ‘tabernacle’ ideas as separate entities. Jesus has fulfilled them all.

Access to God, to the heavenly throne, the heavenly temple is now not through altars or an earthly tabernacle but through ‘a new and living way’ which is Jesus (Heb 10.20). To borrow the language of the book of Hebrews, altars are a shadow and Jesus is the substance. They are old testament types which Jesus has fulfilled. They were pointing to Him. Now that He has come, they are no longer necessary.

Furthermore, in the Acts 15 controversy, James used the language of rebuilding to help us understand that in this new age it is not we who are doing the building, rather it is God. Quoting the prophecy of Amos 9, James says that in Christ’s death and resurrection God was rebuilding the tabernacle (house) of David (Acts 15.16) The result being that all mankind, Jew and Gentile alike were now able to come to the Lord and be called by His name. That tabernacle is Jesus and his kingdom.

Therefore, we must not see ourselves primarily as builders of altars/tabernacles etc any more. We are living stones in the house, temple that God is building.(1 Pet 2.5) This is why christians are also called a temple/tabernacle. It is the individuals who are united to Jesus by faith that the New Testament considers to be God’s temple/tabernacle made up of living stones with Jesus Himself as the chief cornerstone (Eph 2.20). What God has achieved in Jesus is quite enough for all our spiritual needs. Could this be the reason that the New Testament epistles speak nothing of raising up altars or pulling down altars?

How then might we understand the church buildings we gather to worship in? Well, in light of the above, the actual altar/tabernacle/temple/sanctuary is not the building but the christians in it. The front area of the church from which the word is preached is important for that purpose, but it is not in itself an altar. It does not have any special significance to anyone’s access to God. That access is mediated through Jesus, the altar that God has already set up and that will never be set down.

Therefore, dear saints, I propose a re-evaluation of the language and understanding of altars to better reflect the monumental achievement of Jesus. Let us, in doing so, give suffering saints true relief and hope. Let us no longer load them with fear and guilt that their suffering is because they dwell in the midst of bad altars. Their union to Jesus, the ultimate altar, safeguards them eternally from needing to seek solace elsewhere. Let us not opt for any other means of access to God outside of Jesus. Let us not detract from His achievement by going back to a shadow form of things. When I see your shadow coming around the corner and then you finally arrive, it would be quite peculiar for me to ignore you and insist on talking to your shadow.