Altar Worker Prayer Team Ministry Training - Class 1 Series

This Class will discuss the following:

- The Importance of the Altar

- The Ministry of the Altar Worker

- The Importance and Operation of the Supernatural Gifts During Prayer

- The Definition of Each Supernatural Gift

- Prayer Time Guidelines

- The Prayer Time Encounter

I. INTRODUCTION

The Altar Worker Prayer Ministry Training aims to introduce the basics of ministering at the Altar. This training class ensures a consistent ministry, and the standards of excellence are followed in everything. The joy and rewards of Altar Team Ministry are seeing people set free and walking in the anointing and power of God!

"Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much." (James 5:16 KJV)

The only way to begin having a deeper and more intimate relationship with Jesus is to come to a place of total desperation, self-abandonment, and surrender to Him through prayer. The ultimate goal of prayer is to have intimate union and dialogue with the Triune God. Prayer is the application of the heart to Jesus and the eternal exercise of love.

The prayer life of any Christian is inseparable from every aspect of their spiritual life. Genuine dialogue with God can only happen through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, who is constantly interceding on their behalf because of their fallen old nature (Romans 8:26). There are times in life when a person has challenges that have become so overwhelming that the mind can't comprehend how, or what, to pray, which is why God says to "call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord" (James 5:14 ESV).

Elders are mature Christians who have been trained to teach and lead others. Most often, they are Pastors. Church leadership cannot handle the daily requests for prayer or when people come to the front of the church for prayer during Service, especially in a large congregation. That is why prayer ministry is so vitally important that those called to pray for others can be trained in effective prayer counseling.

During prayer, the Holy Spirit will often reveal the person's actual needs and guide the prayer to make requests of the Father beyond human wisdom to comprehend fully. We are admonished to pray "at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints," and by doing so, we "are building" them "up in" the "most holy faith (Ephesians 6:18; Jude 1:20 ESV).

Asking for the daily anointing of the Holy Spirit is essentially a request for empowerment to serve the Lord and to pray for others. The 'filling' comes from the waters of the river of life that flow from the throne of God (John 7:38-39 Revelation 22:1). The Holy Spirit is the source of the unhindered continuous power within the Christian. God has provided spiritual gifts intended to be given to those they come in contact with. They may need a word of wisdom or knowledge, an infusion of faith, a gift of healing or miracle, a prophetic word from God, discernment of spirits, and words spoken in different kinds of languages so that they can be lifted up, edified, encouraged, and restored.

Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). He has always been the giver of gifts to anyone who asks and will never change (Malachi 3:6). He is a good God and only gives the best (See Luke 11:9-13). All it takes to flow with this power and use His spiritual gifts to help others is the daily yielding of the will by dying to self through repentance and walking in humility by esteeming everyone more highly than yourself.

The Altar

The Altar, as introduced to us in the Old Testament under the Mosaic Law, provided that the priests and Levites alone could labor in altar duties. Altars were used primarily as places of sacrifice, especially of animals. The Altar is a place of self-sacrifice, total surrender to God, emptying out, and a place of death. New Testament references to altars concern proper worship and hypocrisy in worship (Matthew 5:23-24,23:18-20).

The message that Jesus Christ is the ultimate sacrifice who puts us right with God is the theme of the New Testament. The Altar is where people can come to repent of their sins and receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior, pray to receive a fresh anointing of the Holy Spirit, and pray for needs, healing, and deliverance from demonic oppression.

The Alar Call

Jesus called His disciples publicly to "follow Me" and expected them to respond immediately (Matthew 4:19,9:9). He wanted them to identify with Him and His authority outwardly. Jesus required a new Disciple to acknowledge Him before others (Matthew 10:32).