By Oyewole Sarumi
“I connect to this altar.”
“I tap into your grace.”
“I receive the mantle on this man of God.”
Phrases like these are often heard in many churches today. People sit where a preacher sat, touch a minister’s clothes, eat a “prophet’s leftover,” or rub bottles of “anointing oil” as if grace were a liquid commodity that flows through objects and personalities more reliably than through Jesus Himself.
The sincerity, hunger, and desire for God’s power may be honest and real, but the theology is often confused, and the practices can slide from devotional zeal into functional idolatry.
Where do these phrases place, JESUS?
This article takes that concern seriously, and it is not a dismissal of spiritual experience or the Holy Spirit’s gifts. The living God heals, delivers, and empowers because scripture records extraordinary means by which God has acted (e.g., Acts 5:15; 19:11–12; James 5:14–16).
But the Bible also warns against confusing the sign with the Saviour, the instrument with the Lord, and the symbol with the Substance.
When altars, mantles, oils, waters, personal “favours,” and celebrity personalities replace simple reliance on Christ, the crucified and risen Lord, the result is not New Testament Christianity but a return to religious magic, which the apostles resisted and the prophets condemned.
Our aim is to (1) trace what Scripture actually teaches about altars, mediation, anointing, and power; (2) diagnose why contemporary church cultures drift toward “connection” language and object-centred religion; (3) honour the Holy Spirit’s real work while rejecting superstition; and (4) offer a Christ-centred path of renewal:
Word, Spirit, Sacrament, obedience, and love. Throughout, we will keep returning to a simple confession: “For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 2:5).
1) What the Bible Means by “Altar” — and Why That Changes in Christ
1.1 Altars in the Old Testament: Necessary, yet preparatory
From Genesis to Malachi, altars mark places of sacrifice, covenant, and remembrance (Gen 8:20; 12:7–8; Exo. 20:24–26). They were not talismans; they were theatres of atonement where God graciously met His people through blood and fire according to His command.
The altar stood at the heart of Israel’s worship because sin was real and reconciliation costly. Yet the whole system was provisional, a tutor pointing forward to Christ Jesus (Gal 3:24).
The decisive shift in the New Testament: Jesus as altar, priest, and sacrifice
The letter to the Hebrews is explicit: Christ fulfils and supersedes the temple and sacrificial system (Heb 8–10). He is the High Priest (Heb 4:14–16), the Lamb (Heb 9:12–14), and the once-for-all sacrifice (Heb 10:10–14). The “altar” language is transfigured: “We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat” (Heb 13:10). In other words, our “altar” is Christ Himself—His cross and His ongoing priestly intercession. Christians do not “receive from altars” as though a platform or stage possesses power. We receive from Jesus through the Spirit, by the Father’s mercy (John 1:16; 7:37–39).
Worship re-located: “In Spirit and in truth”
Jesus tells the Samaritan woman that worship will no longer be tied to places, neither Gerizim nor Jerusalem will define the true center (John 4:21–24).
Under the New Covenant, “holy ground” refers to wherever Christ reigns and the Spirit indwells (1 Cor 3:16; 6:19). This does not trivialize space; rather, it de-magicalizes it.
Churches need pulpits, tables, fonts, and many communities have a rail or platform they colloquially call an “altar.” But biblically, grace is not located in wood, stone, or carpet. It is located in a Person: the crucified and risen Lord, Jesus Christ.
One Mediator, One Gospel: Why Personality Cults and “Tap-On” Grace Are Self-Defeating
The apostolic warning against celebrity Christianity
The Corinthian church fractured into factions around star teachers: “I follow Paul,” “I follow Apollos,” “I follow Cephas,” even “I follow Christ” in a partisan spirit (1 Cor 1:10–17; 3:1–9). Paul rebuked the tendency to attach saving power to human messengers. Ministers are servants; God gives the increase. When believers “tap into” a preacher’s “grace” as though grace were a private reservoir a man or woman can dispense, the church is already drifting into the Corinthian error.
One Mediator vs. many middlemen
Scripture locates mediation solely in Christ (1 Tim 2:5; Heb 7:25). Pastors, elders, and gifted believers serve as ambassadors (2 Cor 5:20), not as mini-mediators.
When we design rituals of proximity, such as sitting in a leader’s chair, touching their garments, or eating their leftovers, to “connect” to power, we treat humans and objects as shortcuts to what the gospel gives freely by faith (Rom 5:1–2; Eph 2:8–9). This is pure idolatry in Christianity!
Simon Magus then, spiritual consumerism now
In Acts 8, Simon the magician offered money to purchase the power to impart the Holy Spirit. Peter’s reply is severe: “Your money perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money!” (Acts 8:20).
While few today brand their desire as “buying power,” the transactional impulse, “if I sow at this altar, sit in that chair, eat this remnant, touch that cloth, God must do X”, is the same logic. It is not faith; it is qualified magic.
What About Oil, Water, Mantles, and Cloths? Distinguishing Biblical Signs from Superstition
Honouring biblical signs without turning them into charms
The New Testament acknowledges tangible signs, including water baptism, the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper, the laying on of hands, and elders anointing the sick with oil (Matt 28:19; 1 Cor 11:23–26; Acts 6:6; James 5:14–16).
But the power is not in the chemistry of the elements; it is in Christ’s promise and the Spirit’s work. Sacraments and ordinances are means of grace, not mechanisms of control, as is often seen in many charismatic and Pentecostal churches today.
Hard texts handled carefully
Acts 19:11–12: God did “extraordinary miracles” by Paul, so that handkerchiefs or aprons that touched him brought healing. Luke signals this was extraordinary, not a blueprint. The point is God’s freedom, not a human formula.
Mark 5:25–34: The woman with the issue of blood touched Jesus’ garment. Power went out, but Jesus said, “Your faith has made you well.” Grace travelled by faith, not by fabric or your touching.
Acts 5:15: Peter’s shadow fell on the sick and they were healed. Again, the text shows God’s sovereign generosity, not the repeatable technique of shadow ministry.
The danger of mechanizing the miraculous
When churches mass-produce “mantles,” “prophetic pens,” “bracelets,” or “miracle water,” we risk coercing God into our processes. Scripture celebrates God’s unpredictable mercy; superstition tries to predict and package it. James 5 offers a healthier pattern: humble confession, intercession, and the elders’ prayer with oil, a pastoral, communal, and accountable practice that resists commodification.
Why People Gravitate to Altars and Objects: The Human Heart and the Modern Church
Tangibility in an age of anxiety
People ache for assurance. In a world of sickness, debt, job insecurity, and family crisis, tangible actions feel like “doing something.” The heart seeks incarnational touchpoints. Good liturgy and pastoral care should honour that need, but direct it to Christ’s ordained means (Word, prayer, sacraments, fellowship), not to invented talismans.
Charisma plus commerce
Religious markets reward personality and spectacle. The internet amplifies the crowds for the confident “man of God” whose brand appears to deliver fast results. Without guardrails, charisma breeds clientelism: believers become customers; pastors become vendors of “spiritual technology.” The price is subtle but lethal: discipleship withers, the poor are exploited, and leaders are tempted to theatricalize the sacred, and many are weaned away from the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Syncretism and the shadow of traditional religion
In many contexts, the church grows where traditional religions valued powers mediated by objects and specialists. If teaching is thin, Christian language baptizes old patterns: the prophet replaces the diviner, oil replaces charm, and “altar seed” replaces shrine offerings. The Bible’s remedy for syncretism is not cynicism, but catechesis, profound teaching that patiently reforms the imagination around Christ.
Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and the Church’s True “Means of Grace”
Christ is the Source; the Spirit is the Agent
All grace comes from the Father, through the Son, by the Holy Spirit (2 Cor 13:14). The Spirit’s mission is to make Jesus present, convicting of sin, exalting Christ, gifting the church for service (John 16:7–15; 1 Cor 12). The Spirit is not an impersonal energy we “tap”; He is Lord and Giver of life, who glorifies Jesus, not performers or props.
The ordinary means that form extraordinary saints
The New Testament forms believers through:
The Word preached, read, meditated (Acts 2:42; 2 Tim 3:16–17).
The Table and the Font—the Lord’s Supper and Baptism (1 Cor 11; Rom 6).
Prayer in the Spirit (Eph 6:18; Acts 4:31).
Fellowship and mutual burden-bearing (Acts 2:42–47; Gal 6:2).
Holy obedience empowered by grace (Rom 12:1–2; John 14:15–17).
Far from “basic,” these are God’s chosen channels. The Apostolic church shook empires with precisely these “ordinary” means.
Charisms rightly ordered
Prophecy, healing, tongues, discernment, and miracles are gifts (1 Cor 12–14). Paul’s correction to Corinth is not cessation but re-centring: gifts must serve love, edify the church, and submit to the Word.
When gifts become a stage for the gifted, or when they drift from sober accountability, the Spirit is grieved, and the flock becomes prey (Acts 20:28–30).
Pastoral Theology: How Leaders Can Guard the Flock without Quenching the Spirit
Preach Christ, not technique
Avoid formulas (“Do X to trigger Y miracle”). Teach repentance and faith, union with Christ, and the Spirit’s sanctifying work. Techniques breed superstition; truth births trust. Language reforms imagination
Words like “altar,” “mantle,” “connect,” and “tap” are harmful if they misdirect trust from Jesus to the object or thing. Replace them with scriptural language: “We come to Christ,” “We receive by faith,” “We pray in the Spirit,” “We lay hands as the apostles did,” “We break bread at the Lord’s Table.” All must be done with focus on Christ alone, while the glory is also to Him alone.
Priestly access for all believers
Recover the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers (1 Pet 2:9). Equip every Christian to pray, intercede, and serve. Decentre celebrity by multiplying ministers (Eph 4:11–13).
Transparent money, accountable power
There should be no selling of oil, water, clothes, or “prophetic items” in our churches. If oil is used, let it be simple, unfetishized, never monetized, and administered by recognized elders only for a specific purpose, as demonstrated by Apostle James in the New Testament.
Let us publish finances; establish independent oversight. Let us remember that Simon Magus dies where accountability lives.
Ministries of healing and deliverance with pastoral depth
These ministries belong in the church, but they require biblical sobriety, medical collaboration where appropriate, trained teams, and clear boundaries. Liberation is a pastoral process, not a traveling show.
Answering Common Questions
Q1: “Didn’t Elisha’s mantle carry power (2 Kings 2)?”
Elisha’s mantle signified prophetic succession, a call and an office, not a transferable magic cloth, and it is not prescriptive for New Testament believers. In Christ, the Spirit is poured on all flesh (Acts 2:17–18). Authority is not in fabric but in calling, character, and the Spirit’s gifting.
Q2: “What about the woman who touched Jesus’ garment?”
She touched Jesus, not a roaming relic. Jesus clarified, “Daughter, your faith has made you well” (Mark 5:34). Faith is not a technique; it is trust in the Person of Christ.
Q3: “May we anoint with oil?”
Yes, Scripture instructs elders to do so (James 5:14–16), but the oil is a sign of the Spirit’s consecration and prayerful care, not a potion. The context is confession, community, and intercession, not merchandising as Dick and Harry do it today in today’s church.
Q4: “Can God use objects?”
The question you may want to ask is: Can God use objects? Yes, God can use anything He chooses, but He commands faith in Christ, not faith in things. The church must never systematize God’s exceptional acts into ritual technologies that bypass repentance, faith, and obedience.
Church History’s Cautionary Tales: When Devotion Turned to Idolatry
Relics, indulgences, and the medieval temptation
The early and medieval church often honoured relics as reminders of the saints’ witness. Over centuries, practices hardened; abuses multiplied; superstitions grew.
By the late medieval period, the commerce of indulgences and the trade in relics had scandalized Christendom, helping to spark the Reformation. The lesson is perennial: piety slips toward magic whenever means are detached from Christ and merchandised.
The Reformers’ corrective (and its limits)
Luther, Calvin, and others re-centred worship on Word and Sacrament and stressed salvation by grace through faith. But even Reformation churches later drifted into identity without intimacy, orthodoxy without power, word without Spirit. The challenge is to hold together what Scripture holds together: Christ the Word and Christ by the Spirit.
Discipleship That Displaces Idols: A Practical Path
Re-catechize hearts and homes
Use Scripture to rebuild a Christ-centred imagination: read the Gospels, walk through Hebrews, memorize 1 John, and pray the Psalms if you can and desire to do so. Let our parents catechize the children; let pastors catechize the parents.
Pursue the ordinary, supernatural life
Attend to Scripture daily; pray with others weekly; receive the Lord’s Supper reverently; confess sin honestly; fast as led; practice generosity; serve the poor. These humble habits break the spell of spectacularism.
Cultivate discernment
Ask, “Does this practice make Jesus bigger or a person/object bigger? Does it yield love, joy, peace, and patience (Gal 5:22–23)? Is it explicitly taught or wisely implied in Scripture, or contrary to it?”
Recover church discipline and pastoral care
Where manipulation or merchandising flourishes, confront it gently but clearly (Matt 18:15–17; Titus 1:10–11). Loving discipline is not cruelty; it is care for souls and honour for Christ.
Biblical Portraits That Re-Center Our Trust
John 4:23–24 — Worship in Spirit and truth; not on “this mountain” or “that.”
1 Corinthians 1–3 — Reject party-spirit and celebrity loyalties; Christ crucified is the power and wisdom of God.
Colossians 2:18–23 — Resist self-made religion, ascetic show, and rules that promise power but lack any value in restraining the flesh.
Hebrews 10:19–25 — Confidence to enter the Holy Place by the blood of Jesus; draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith.
1 John 5:21 — “Little children, keep yourselves from idols.”
These texts do not minimize the supernatural; they purify it. They lead us back to the throne of grace (Heb 4:16), where mercy is given without price to those who come by faith.
A Word to Those Hurt by Manipulative Practices
If you were told your miracle depended on paying for oil, sitting in a “prophet’s chair,” or eating a “leftover,” and you feel used, hear the gospel again: God’s grace is a gift (Eph 2:8–9). Jesus is not a commodity; He is a Savior. You do not need a special seat, cloth, or human gatekeeper. You need Christ, who calls the weary and burdened to Himself (Matt 11:28–30).
Find a church that preaches the Word, loves the poor, practices integrity, and prays with faith and tenderness. That is the soil where true healing and growth flourish.
Toward a Church Beautiful and Free: Word, Spirit, Sacrament, Mission
The way forward is not arid rationalism, nor credulous ritualism. It is Christ’s way:
Word that pierces (Heb 4:12),
Spirit who empowers (Acts 1:8),
Sacraments that proclaim (1 Cor 11:26; Rom 6:4),
Mission that loves neighbour and enemy (Matt 22:37–40; 28:18–20).
When this ecology is healthy, the church becomes credibly supernatural, not because we choreograph wonders, but because holiness, unity, and love become visible and durable.
Conclusion
It is not wrong to long for God’s power, to ask for healing, or to lay hands in faith. It is not wrong to anoint with oil, to fast, or to gather at the front of a sanctuary to pray. What is wrong, biblically, pastorally, and spiritually, is to treat altars, objects, and personalities as conduits of power in themselves, to suppose that grace can be triggered by technique, or to imagine that sitting in a chair or touching a cloth is a shortcut to the presence of the living Christ.
The gospel’s answer is beautifully simple and inexhaustibly deep: Jesus is enough. He is the altar and the sacrifice, the Priest and the Temple, the One who baptizes with the Holy Spirit and fire. He does not sell His gifts or hide them in trinkets.
He gives Himself, freely, sovereignly, and savingly, to all who come by faith, obey His Word, and walk in love.
Let the church, then, repent of every form of spiritual vending and return to the joy of Christ alone. Let pulpits preach Him, tables proclaim Him, fonts bury us into Him, prayers lean on Him, and communities embody Him. In that simplicity, there is power, and in that power, there is the beauty the world aches to see.
“From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.” (John 1:16)
