Dr Paul Allen

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? (Ps. 8:3–4) The big question is not, does God care for me? The Bible declares he does over and over again. It tells us that God’s eyes are on the righteous and his ears are open to their prayers (Ps. 34:15). It says that he is with us wherever we go (Gen. 28:15). The Bible welcomes us to bring our cares to God because he cares for us (1 Pet. 5:7). It tells us that he will never leave us or forsake us (Heb. 13:5).  The message is clear and consistent—God cares for his own. If you are God’s child, you are never outside the scope of his constant care. The Bible is also clear and consistent when it talks of the unshakability of God’s love. His love is eternal. From the verse-by-verse refrain of Psalm 136, “for his steadfast love endures forever,” to Paul’s declaration in Romans ...

What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. — Romans 6:1–4 Paul knows his audience, as he’s been proclaiming the gospel to communities like the Romans for a long time. He skillfully anticipates the objections in the hearts of his hearers. When they heard in Romans 5:2 that we stand in God’s grace, they may have thought—as you and I may sometimes think—that if there’s more grace when I sin, and grace is good, why not sin more? He replies emphatically, as he has a few other times so far, “By no means!” May we never rationalise our sin as a way to display more of God’s grace. To do so is to misunderstand God’s grace, at best, and ex...

Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matt. 11:28–30) When we come to Christ, we are startled by the beauty of his welcoming heart. The surprise is itself what draws us in. Have we considered the loveliness of the heart of Christ? Perhaps beauty is not a category that comes naturally to mind when we think about Christ. Maybe we think of God and Christ in terms of truth, not beauty. But the whole reason we care about sound doctrine is for the sake of preserving God’s beauty, just as the whole reason we care about effective focal lenses on a camera is to capture with precision the beauty we photograph. Let Jesus draw you in through the loveliness of his heart. This is a heart that upbraids the impenitent with all the appropriate harshness, yet embraces the penitent with more openness than we...

In the Old Testament book of Ruth, we meet another woman, Naomi, whose expectations were crushed by repeated loss and trauma. Yet one of the book’s most beautiful arcs is Naomi’s redemption. She learns to trust God’s faithfulness even in seasons of deep pain. We, too, often become discouraged when hard times arrive. Scripture warns that, as fallen people saved by God’s grace, Christians will face trials in this world. We may wonder where God is and why these painful things are happening. At times, it can even feel as though God has broken His promises, and we question whether our hope was in vain. This exact situation appears in Psalm 90, one of the most important poems in the book of Psalms. What makes this psalm so powerful is not only its author—Moses—but also its placement. It opens Book Four of the Psalms and follows Psalm 89, in which the writer laments the exile and seems to say that God’s promise to David has failed. The psalmist cries out, “Where are You, Lord, in our sufferin...

Six pastors and one Christian believer in India have begun serving five-year prison sentences under the state’s anti-conversion law. The seven believers were falsely accused at a child’s birthday party two years ago and have now exhausted their legal appeals. India’s anti-conversion laws increasingly target Christians for practising and sharing their faith, criminalising religious freedom under the guise of preventing forced conversions In a troubling escalation of religious persecution, seven Christians in India have begun serving five-year prison sentences after being falsely accused of violating the country’s controversial “anti-conversion” law. The case, which originated at a child’s birthday party two years ago, has now concluded with these believers behind bars after exhausting their legal options. Six pastors and one fellow Christian were targeted under legislation that criminalises alleged forced religious conversions, laws that human rights advocates say are systematicall...

  Students across India are facing increasing religious discrimination and persecution in educational institutions.Young believers are organising peaceful movements to defend religious freedom and human dignity. The unrest reveals growing concerns about religious liberty in the world’s largest democracy While Western nations continue to strengthen diplomatic and economic ties with India, a troubling reality is unfolding within the country’s educational institutions. Students across India are speaking out against religious discrimination and persecution, raising serious concerns about the state of religious freedom in the nation. Young people, including Christian students, have been subjected to dehumanising treatment and discrimination based on their faith. What began as isolated incidents has grown into a larger movement as students band together to defend their God-given dignity and constitutional rights. The situation reflects a broader pattern of religious intolerance that has ...

  When they say “no one can return”, they're talking about reincarnation, which was a belief some of the other religions have. The God of the Bible needs us Christians to be clear on this: no matter how much the reincarnation buffs try to present evidence to the contrary, God is NOT re-sending people to be born on earth a second time. That said, of course God can send a vision of a soul from Heaven to Earth any time he wants to, since this isn't the same thing at all. I suspect Moses and Elijah weren't in normal human bodies, but were just part of a vision that “disappeared” to the human observers as soon as the vision was through. So no “meat suits” were involved at any time in this case.

The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations. (Jer. 46:1) I’m persuaded that much of our fear, anxiety, discouragement, and hopelessness is the result of bad theology. At its core, what is the Bible all about? The existence, character, and plan of God. Every other aspect of Scripture flows out of the reality of who God is. A bad or weak theology of God will lead to weakness in other areas of theology, and spiritual weaknesses in daily living.  I had this experience again and again in counselling. I would be working with someone who was struggling to trust God, but, as I listened to him describe who he thought God was, I immediately understood why he had trouble trusting him. I would often think, “If I thought that this was who God is, I would have trouble trusting him too.” One common mistake in our functional theology of God is thinking he is too small.   The God in our minds lacks the awesome, glorious, and incalculable power and authority th...

A glorious inheritance was won for us by Christ’s own faithful perseverance and patience. In the incarnation, he came alongside us in our sufferings, joining us in this broken world. He not only began well but also faithfully lived his entire life in service to God. The writer to the Hebrews tells us that Christ “learned obedience through what he suffered” (Heb. 5:8). In his case, his suffering produced endurance, character, and hope (cf. Rom. 5:3) as he persisted in faithful obedience right until the very end.  He patiently endured the disappointment over disciples who failed to understand his teaching, who squabbled over the top places in the kingdom, and who then abandoned him at the end. He patiently bore the grief of losing friends whom he loved to death and being betrayed by one of his own disciples. He patiently put up with a people who cried out, “Hosanna to the king!” one day and then, “Crucify him!” just a few days later. He patiently put up with human followers who are j...

 At the end of Genesis, Joseph dies. His last request is a testament to his unwavering faith and his awareness of a storyline that is larger than one lifetime: “I am about to die, but God will visit you and bring you up out of this land to the land that he swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.” Then Joseph makes the sons of Israel swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here” (Gen. 50:24–25).  Like Joseph, we can consider our death and go to our graves in the certainty that God will do exactly as he has promised. The worker of God goes into the dust, and the work of God continues without faltering.1 Knowing this with perfect clarity, our Saviour laid down his life willingly. Will we do the same? When we know our days are short, will we be grateful for what we’ve been given or greedy for what we have not?  Yes, you may say, but Jesus knew he would be raised. He knew he could go into the grave and come back out again. Friend, so d...

Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. They collapse and fall, but we rise and stand upright. (Ps. 20:7–8) Don’t fear your weaknesses—God supplies all the strength you need. Be afraid of those moments when you think you’re independently strong. Admit it, you don’t like being weak. It’s not fun being the last one chosen to play on the team. It’s embarrassing to be asked a question you can’t answer. It’s frustrating not to be able to figure out the directions for assembling the furniture you just bought.  It’s mortifying to forget that important appointment or the name of a good friend. It’s humbling to fail at a task, to drop the ball, or to make a promise and not be able to keep it.  We don’t like getting lost or forgetting a phone number. We all hate those moments when we feel unqualified or unprepared. We don’t like being confused or not knowing. We covet the muscles and the brains of others.  We all hate being afraid an...

For generations, Christians have believed and affirmed the true story that life is a gift from God in all of its stages. Our whole-life pro-life commitment means we believe every person at every stage of life is made in the image of God. We make a conscious commitment to value all of human life, from beginning to end—or from dust to dust, as the centuries-old graveside liturgy expresses it. But we inhabit a world that is dead set on living in a false story of aging—one that values, at most, only the first half of life but does not value its second half of bodily decline. The Christian whole-life pro-life commitment is beautiful on our lips, but it is more beautiful as it moves to our hands and feet. We assert that all of life is valuable in all of its stages, but do we prove we believe that story by living in a way that reflects this conviction? One of the simplest ways for the modern church to live counterculturally is to embrace, defend, and live as though we value all of life, inclu...

And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God . . . (Eph. 6:17) On September 19, 2022, the world watched as several members of England’s royal family marched in Queen Elizabeth II’s state funeral. They wore regal military uniforms and carried gold-handled swords at their sides. These swords were beautiful heirlooms, symbols of the monarchy’s authority and power, not meant for actual battle. Unlike those ceremonial swords, God’s word—the sword of the Spirit—is intended for warfare. Every other piece of armour in Ephesians 6 has been defensive and protective, helping God’s people resist evil and stand firm against it. The sword of the Spirit, our only offensive weapon, can defeat every temptation, sin, and evil scheme that opposes God and his kingdom. The enemy wants us to believe that this weapon is optional or reserved for an elite few—ministry leaders, mature believers, or people with seminary degrees. But the truth is, this sword is indispens...

In a world awash with information, we as believers desperately need wisdom. But what is it exactly? That is a surprisingly difficult question to answer simply. Based on the Bible, we can define wisdom as the ability to discern good from evil and apply knowledge, skill, and experience in order to live in right relationship with God and others within the world that God made. Let’s briefly unpack the elements of this definition.  Discern good from evil. Discernment refers to making distinctions. The most fundamental distinction is between good and evil, right and wrong. Yet oftentimes the hardest distinctions to make are between good, better, and best. Wisdom is the ability to make such distinctions, especially when the issue at hand is not one of obvious right from wrong.  Apply knowledge, skill, and experience. Wisdom is based on knowledge but goes beyond it. Skill refers to abilities that one acquires over an extended period of time. Experience provides the necessary perspecti...

I have to forgive someone who hasn't repented? Let's explain that Scripture points to two levels of forgiveness:  1. An unconditional heart posture that releases bitterness and entrusts the offender to God as judge,  2. A relational forgiveness that is granted when the offender repents.  Mark 11:25    And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” Romans 12:19  Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[a] says the Lord.  Luke 17:3  “If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them." Matthew 18:20-35  The Parable of the Unmerciful Servant 21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” 22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but sev...

Serve one another T he first three chapters of Ephesians have dealt with the theological argument that God has made us alive with Christ; that He has saved us by grace and that, therefore, Jews and Gentiles together are coheirs, members of the same body, partners in the promise of Christ; and that Paul is the proclaimer of this gospel. The Key Theme of Unity and Diversity In chapter 4, we see now the implications of these truths. In particular, 4:1–16 is really about how the church as a whole should live together and how the church will walk according to this unity that Christ has created in His own body. We’ll see that this body of Christ needs different body parts—that is, there is one body, a unified body, but there is diversity within the body; the body has different body parts. So the theme of unity and diversity is the key theme through Eph 4:1–16. The Structure of the Passage This passage is constructed in two parts. First, 1–6 is about walking in unity, really stressing the imp...