Dr Paul Allen

I hear people say, "there is this underlining unity, we all believe the same thing." That's not true. What Muslims believe about what is good and the nature of redemption is radically different from what Christianity teaches, for example. Buddha was an atheist who simply claimed to be enlightened, Confucius talked about the veneration of ancestors—that's a long way from the faith of the Scriptures .  And what you don't have in Buddhism and Islam , Confucianism , Shintoism , Taoism , and these other religions is an atonement. You don't have a way of redemption that we have in Christianity, nor do you have a living Mediator. Moses is dead, Buddha is dead, Confucius is dead, and Muhammad is dead. There is no resurrection in these other religions.  Christianity has elements to it, content to it that distinguish it from all other religions, and with that distinction comes the claim of Christ that it [He] is the only true way to God. Related ar...

Building a new family from the ashes of past abuse is an opportunity to defy destruction and illuminate hope. When you’ve come from an abusive past, building up your own new family is no ordinary thing. It joyfully, actively, and creatively crushes the work of Satan . The work of establishing a Christ -centered family stands as an act of redemption and re-creation that proclaims God ’s glory and dominion over evil. We are made in God’s image, created to reflect his value through our lives, words, and works — but we don’t come into the world fully mature. God designed families to serve as one of the most essential arenas of our development. Thus, we are born as malleable, impressionable children, who intrinsically imbibe the world of our caregivers. And this can be a world of affection and instruction in Christ, or a world of neglect and abuse. Being raised in a godly home should communicate to us that we are loved, that Christ is to be trusted, and that God is our Father ...

Writing to the Philippians, Paul says, "He who has begun a good work in you will perfect it to the end" (Phil. 1:6). Therein is the promise of God that what He starts in our souls, He intends to finish. So the old axiom in Reformed theology about the perseverance of the saints is this: If you have it—that is, if you have genuine faith and are in a state of saving grace—you will never lose it. If you lose it, you never had it. We know that many people make professions of faith, then turn away and repudiate or recant those professions. The Apostle John notes that there were those who left the company of the disciples, and he says of them, "Those who went out from us were never really with us" (1 John 2:19). Of course, they were with the disciples in terms of outward appearances before they departed. They had made an outward profession of faith, and Jesus makes it clear that it is possible for a person to do this even when he doesn't possess what he's pro...

“By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.” ( Hebrews 11:4 ) Abel, Adam’s second son, was a faithful, God-honoring man, but he was murdered by his older brother, Cain. From Genesis 4 we know that Cain’s bloodless sacrifice was not accepted by God, while Abel’s animal sacrifice was accepted. Cain’s pride, anger, and rejection of God’s offer of restoration resulted in the murder of obedient Abel. Our text tells us that Abel “being dead yet speaketh.” What does he say? To whom does he speak? First of all, he spoke to God. “The voice of thy brother’s [Abel’s] blood crieth unto me from the ground” ( Genesis 4:10 ). Many have followed Abel in martyrdom, and they all cry, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?” ( Revelation 6:10 ). Secondly, he spoke to Cain. “And now ar...

Coat of arms of the Weimar Republic (1928-1933) and of the Federal Republic of Germany (1950 to date). (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) The fall of German Christianity leaves an emptiness that seems likely to be filled by a more multicultural and Islamic society. Germany today houses Europe 's largest Muslim community. Christians in Germany, Die Welt reports, will become a minority in 20 years. The falling birth rate will remove a piece of Germany larger than the former communist East Germany. It will result in a demographic loss equivalent to the population of Berlin, Hamburg, Munich, Cologne and Frankfurt combined. The German army just spent 428 million euros on various operations relating to migrants during the past year. It has been the costliest mission within German borders that the army of the Federal Republic of Germany has ever undertaken. In the decades after WWII, Germans have turned into hard-core pacifists, enjoying their role on the sidelines of global conflicts. The...

Tongues spew forth!!  (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise.” ( Proverbs 10:19 ) The book of Proverbs has much wise counsel concerning the use of the tongue . It contains, for example, no less than 27 sober warnings against speaking lies! There are also at least eight condemnations of gossiping. For example: “A talebearer revealeth secrets: but he that is of a faithful spirit concealeth the matter” (11:13). Then there are warnings against using the tongue to criticize, or to slander, or to hurt. A good example is in 12:18: “There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health,” and also in 18:8: “The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.” Too much talking is also dangerous, as our text for the day points out, for it often results in sin. In this connection, one of the most picturesque proverbs is the foll...

In his letter to the church in Thessalonica , Paul instructs believers concerning the return of Christ , the resurrection of deceased believers, and the reunion of all believers with the King. He concludes, “Therefore encourage one another with these words” ( 1 Thessalonians 4:18). Christians ought to encourage each other with words and songs about Christ ’s return. One easy way to be encouraged by the reality of Christ’s return is found at the end of the Bible . It is a four-word prayer in Revelation22:20 that ought to regularly be on the lips of every follower of Jesus — and a theme to restore to its rightful place in our corporate worship: “ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus .” Our Final Hope “Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.” All believers ought to remember that the church’s final hope is a person. It is neither a political party nor is it a pragmatic paradigm. It is not a popular program. It’s a person. And what a person he is. Jesus is the greatest person who has ever lived, because he is God h...

Rev. Jonathan Edwards, a leader of the Great Awakening, is still remembered for his sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Has anyone ever said something unkind to you or about you? I think we all have had that experience. Becoming victims of slander or malicious gossip can be difficult to bear. However, God calls us to exhibit a very specific kind of response in such circumstances. Years ago, I received a letter from a friend who is a pastor at a church in California . In it, the pastor included a copy of an article that had appeared in the Los Angeles Times . Although the article included a photo of him standing in his church and holding his Bible, it was basically a vicious personal attack against him. When I saw that picture and read that article, I felt a great deal of empathy for my friend because I had recently had a similar experience. A person I believed was my friend made some very unkind statements about me publicly, and word...

Whether a person is searching for their calling or wholeheartedly pursuing their life's purpose, LIVE LOVE LEAD will help them navigate a faith path that is all their own and discover unique gifts tailored perfectly for their journey. How do people experience the best life that God intends for them? The answer lies in understanding that the Christian life is an adventure, and that they only have to follow the greatest Guide who ever walked the path of life--Jesus. In this straightforward book, Brian Houston shows readers the way to live fully, love completely, and lead boldly--the hallmarks of Jesus' time on earth. "This is a remarkable book by a remarkable man. You will love his transparency and passion!"―Rick Warren, founder and pastor of Saddleback Church , author of bestseller The Purpose Driven Life "A book that will prove to be a gift to the world."―Roma Downey and Mark Burnett, creators and executive producers of The Bible and A.D.: The Bible Con...

Anniversary of Roe v. Wade (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) It is hard to fully comprehend how deluded our political and legal culture is over the issue of abortion. The United States in many ways has become a culture of death—a culture that embraces a mother’s murder of a child as a right, and then defends that right at all costs and against all logic. Here are three examples of that. Colorado —where murdering a baby is not crime: Last month a pregnant woman was attacked by a stranger, and her baby was cut out of her womb. The details to the crime are horrific ( here is the CNN story , which is graphic and will not easily get out of your mind). The mom was in her eighth month of pregnancy, her baby was named Aurora, and Aurora did not survive. Prosecutors in Colorado were considering charging the attacker with murder for Aurora’s death, but they came under intense political pressure from “women’s rights” groups not to, just as the media came under pressure to not use Auror...

Lot leaving Sodom, Woodcut from the Nuremberg Chronicle (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) The West has been undergoing as dramatic a shift in its ways of thinking and living as at any point in history. Many describe this turned corner as the rise of postmodernism, which is replacing modernism as the contemporary worldview. That new standards of public morality, ethics, and law have been advanced is not surprising, given the downward spiral of appreciation for any outward role for religion in life. At least from the standpoint of culture and law, our society no longer tolerates public endorsement of Christianity; rather, the only acceptable public positions are distrust of, or outright antagonism toward, religion in general and Christianity in particular. Ethical issues that have become matters of public morality—such as abortion, state lotteries, euthanasia, and homosexuality—have become storm-centers of debate. Until recently, homosexuality referred to disgusting practices that brought ...