Dr Paul Allen

“The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out.” ( Leviticus 6:13 ) The same proved to be true for the continual burnt offering ordained by God in Israel ’s ancient tabernacle sacrifices . The continual sacrifices for sin were of no more avail once God’s own sacrifice had been slain. “Every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God ; . . . For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified” ( Hebrews 10:11-12 , 14). There is one flame, however, which is truly eternal. Jesus spoke of it several times. For example: “It is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched” ( Mark 9:43 ). “Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels” ( Matthew 25:41 ). T...

“And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.” ( Romans 16:20 ) This is an intriguing promise, suggesting that believers can somehow inflict bruises on the devil, who is perpetually seeking to “devour” them ( 1 Peter 5:8 ). This promise is a clear allusion to the primeval assurance of Genesis 3:15 , when God promised that the unique “seed” of “the woman” would eventually “bruise” (actually “crush”) the head of the old serpent, the devil. This prophecy will finally be fulfilled in Christ ’s ultimate victory, when Satan first will be bound for a thousand years in the bottomless pit and then confined forever in the lake of fire ( Revelation 20:2 , 10). In the meantime, believers, who also in a sense are the woman’s spiritual “seed” ( Revelation 12:17 ), can repeatedly achieve local and temporary victories over Satan and his wiles by resisting him “stedfast in the faith” ( 1 Peter 5:9 ). If we resist him as ...

The place called “Armageddon” is mentioned only once in the Bible. John explains that demonic spirits assembled the kings of the world for battle on the great day of the Lord “to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon” (Rev. 16:16 NIV). The outcome of this battle between the forces of evil and the almighty God is described in Revelation 17:14 and 19:11–21 (and, some argue, in 20:7–10). Although not explicitly connected with the name Armageddon, a final battle between the assembled wicked nations and Israel’s God is mentioned repeatedly in the Old Testament. The battle of Armageddon brings the final defeat of the evil forces that rebel against God and resist Jesus Christ. It is not an actual military battle in Israel. A literal fulfillment would have been theoretically possible in the first century when armies fought on horses with swords and spears and arrows. However, even then it would have been impossible to picture all the people of the earth assembled at Megiddo in the...