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Invitation Hymn
- Thread starter xlsdraw
- Start date
In all the Baptist churches I have been involved with, the whole congregation sings the Invitation Hymn.
Joe
Armchair Apologist
Active Member
It all depends upon whether they sing all 97 stanzas of the invitation song and in such a case, it is better for the entire congregation to sing so the song leader does not wear out his voice!
I think that's fairly common.
Joe
We don't have a 'song leader.' All hymns are sung by the congregation.
Armchair Apologist
Active Member
You mean you don't have someone saying "Turn in your hymnals to #347" or whatever?
I don't think it matters. The purpose of an altar call or invitation is to give people an opportunity to respond to the leading of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we all sing, sometimes the minister of music sings alone and sometimes I am just asked to play with no singing.
The guy leading the service does that. If it's myself, I know nothing about music and am utterly unqualified to be a 'song leader.' I announce the hymn, the guy on the keyboard plays the opening line or two, and off we go! It seems to work.
The Lord gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists and some to be pastors and teachers. None to be 'song leaders.'
David Lamb
Well-Known Member
I agree. Anyway, somebody saying, "Let's turn in our hymnbooks to Hymn Number such-and-such" is not acting a a "song leader", in the sense used in the post to which Martin was replying, which included these words: " or does the Song Leader sing the Invitation Hymn solo?" Clearly, the song leader (a role we don't have in my church) was not merely announcing the next hymn number.
When our pastor will be preaching, almost always he will lead the congregational singing. When he is away - vacation/conference/etc - I usually lead, as I'm the loudest and am (usually) on pitch. 
jakethebaptist
Member
To be brutally honest, it's just a formality in most of our churches. The sermon itself has no call to action, just a quick tack-on to the end "If the Holy Spirit is leading you in any way" then sing a song and ask people to come forward.
The churches I grew up in, the song leader would just start singing the invitation hymn, and the congregation would join in. The churches I attended as an adult that used hymnbooks, the songleader would always announce the page and ask the congregation to turn to the page and sing. I found this tended to "break the mood" from invitation to song singing. The last couple churches I've been a part of don't use hymnbooks and all the words to everything is up on the screen, so it really doesn't matter.
The churches I grew up in, the song leader would just start singing the invitation hymn, and the congregation would join in. The churches I attended as an adult that used hymnbooks, the songleader would always announce the page and ask the congregation to turn to the page and sing. I found this tended to "break the mood" from invitation to song singing. The last couple churches I've been a part of don't use hymnbooks and all the words to everything is up on the screen, so it really doesn't matter.
David Lamb
Well-Known Member
To me, the idea of singing a hymn to invite people to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ seems strange. Did the preacher really not encourage unsaved people to come to Christ and be saved in the course of the sermon? I am sure that the words of a biblically-based hymn can support what has already been preached, but hymns are not used in the Bible for evangelisation; they are for worship of God.