Christopher Thompson 8/11/25 Christopher Thompson 8/11/25

The Bible Is About Cracked Altars

You don’t need a perfect altar for God’s fire to fall. The Bible is about a God who meets us in the cracks and fills them with His glory.

Altars aren’t supposed to crack.
At least, that’s what I thought.

In my mind, an altar was this perfect, polished place where people came to meet God. A place you’d prepare—clean, strong, unblemished—so the offering would be “good enough.”

But Scripture tells a different story.

🔥 When God Breaks the Altar

In 1 Kings 18, Elijah calls down fire on Mount Carmel. The altar is soaked in water—impossible to light—until the fire of the Lord consumes it all.

But the real surprise? Before the fire, Elijah rebuilds the altar that had been torn down. He doesn’t craft a new one. He doesn’t import fresh, unmarred stones. He takes the old, broken pieces and makes a place for God’s glory to fall.

And the fire doesn’t wait for perfection.
It comes to cracked stones.

🪨 Why the Cracks Matter

A perfect altar makes you think you’ve done your part.
A cracked altar reminds you that you can’t.

Cracks tell the truth—that our worship is never flawless. That the best we can offer is still chipped, weathered, and fragile. And still… God comes.

Isaiah 57:15 says God dwells “with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit.” That word contrite? It means crushed. Broken. Cracked.

The altar’s strength is not in its polish.
It’s in the God who answers with fire.

🫀 Your Heart Is the Altar

The temple’s gone. The stones of Mount Carmel are dust. Now, you are the altar (1 Corinthians 3:16).

And maybe you’ve been holding off rebuilding because you think God only comes to perfect places.
But the truth? The fire falls on the cracks.

You don’t need to hide the broken parts. Bring them.
Don’t sand over the story—stack it, stone by stone, before Him.