Dr Paul Allen

English: Peresopnytsia Gospels. 1556-1561. Miniature of Saint Matthew. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) God works and goes before us. Christ nurture us, guides, develops and empowers us. Read and be freed from the burden of bearing your own load. “Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you” ( Psalm 55:22 ). Let him do that work. “No eye has seen a God besides you, who works for those who wait for him.” ( Isaiah 64:4 ) “God is not served by human hands as though he needed anything, but he himself gives life and breath and everything.” ( Acts 17:25 ) “ The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.” ( Mark 10:45 )  “The eyes of the LORD run through the earth, to show himself strong for those who trust him.” ( 2 Chronicles. 16:9 ) “If I were hungry, I wouldn't tell you. Call on me, I will deliver you. You will glorify me.” ( Psalm 50:15 ) “To old age I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save...

StJohnsAshfield StainedGlass Baptism (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “And the king commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house. . . . And the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready before it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.” ( 1 Kings5:17 ; 6:7) The building of Solomon’s temple was one of the most remarkable construction operations in history.  Much of the temple’s legendary beauty was attributed to the great stones— beautiful and costly stones, quarried from beds of white limestone—which were used in its construction. Probably the most remarkable feature of its building was the fact that each stone was carefully cut and dimensioned while still in the quarry, so that the temple itself could be erected in silence, with each stone fitting perfectly in place as it came to the temple site. ...

Charismatics generally define the gift of tongues as a devotional prayer language that is available to every believer. This prayer language, according to its proponents, is not bound to the linguistic structures of earthly, human languages . In other words, it is not a real language — but rather “angelic” speech which supposedly transcends human language. But therein lies a problem. On the one hand, the charismatic version of tongues does not consist of real human languages. On the other hand, Acts 2 makes it clear that the tongues spoken at Pentecost were real human languages. So how can modern charismatics justify a type of “tongues” that does not fit the biblical description in Acts 2? Proponents of modern tongues usually answer that question by asserting that there are at least  two types  of tongues in the New Testament . Charismatic blogger Adrian Warnock summed up the charismatic position l...

"In the morning sow thy seed , and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good." ( Ecclesiastes 11:6 ) In the Bible, the common occupation of sowing seed is frequently used as a symbol of witnessing for the Lord. Unlike an actual farmer, however, Christian seed-sowers are to engage in their occupation perpetually, day after day, morning and evening, everywhere they go. "Cast thy bread upon the waters," the wise preacher said, "for thou shalt find it after many days" ( Ecclesiastes 11:1 ). The sowing is often difficult, but is necessary before the fruit can grow, and the promise is that "they that sow in tears shall reap in joy" ( Psalm 126:5 ). Often others may reap the fruit of our seed-sowing labors (or we may reap the fruit of theirs), but that is all right, for Christ Himself said that "One soweth, and another reapeth" so ...

Image via Wikipedia Image via Wikipedia Tu es Petrus (Photo credit: Lawrence OP ) Image via Wikipedia Image via Wikipedia Image via Wikipedia 1.  Acts  – The miraculous tongues in Acts were directly related to the working of the Holy Spirit (2:4, 18; 10:44–46; 19:6). In fact, tongue-speaking is evidence of having received the “gift” ( dorea ) of the Holy Spirit (10:45). 1 Corinthians  – As in Acts, the gift of tongues in 1 Corinthians was directly related to the working of the Holy Spirit (12:1, 7, 11, etc.). Similarly, the gift of tongues is an evidence (or “manifestation”) of having received the Holy Spirit (12:7). 2.  Acts  – Along those lines, in  Acts 11:15–17 , Peter implies that the tongue-speaking of Acts 10 was the same as that of Acts 2, even noting that Cornelius and his household had received the same gift ( dorea ) as the apostles on the Day of Pentecost . This indicates that the tongues of the Apostles (in Acts 2) was not limited just to ...