Dr Paul Allen

The Holy Spirit receives or is fully received by repentant saints, i.e., by Christians who, through obedience, have removed all conscious sin from their lives. Regarding Holy Spirit Baptism, obedience has two curves: one is active, the other is passive. In the first, the candidate is urged to act, and in the second, he is urged to cease from acting. i. Active Obedience, (a) Separation from Sin . Obedience means first of all and actively the separation from sin. Whether understood negatively, as repentance, or positively, as obedience, under this condition the Pentecostals’ implicit doctrine of sin can be discovered. Sin is understood as something which, with Christ’s help,53 the Christian can, indeed must, remove before his being able to receive the full gift of the Holy Spirit. Obedience has as its major task the removal of sin. For “you can receive the Holy Spirit, but not with sin in your heart” (Conn, Pillars, p. 96). Sin, first of all, is anything in a man’s life—large or small—wh...

From a Pentecostal perspective, including that of Donald Gee and other scholars, the issue is typically not that the Holy Spirit chooses not to baptize certain people, but rather that people themselves may face barriers to receiving. God’s Desire to Baptize All Believers The Pentecostal understanding is that the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is a gift available to all believers. Acts 2:39 says: "The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call." This suggests that the Baptism in the Holy Spirit is not limited to a select few but is meant for all who believe. Pentecostal theology teaches that God is not withholding the Holy Spirit but that some individuals struggle to receive due to certain hindrances. Human Barriers to Receiving the Baptism in the Holy Spirit Instead of the Holy Spirit choosing not to baptize someone, Pentecostals believe that it is often human factors that delay or prevent receiving. These ca...

The baptism in the Holy Spirit is after conversion. Why must this be? The baptism in the Holy Spirit is evidenced by speaking in tongues. How can this occur?  The doctrine of the conditions for the baptism in the Holy Spirit is the sustained Pentecostal effort to answer both these questions: to explain why spiritual baptism cannot usually accompany initial faith,  detailing the conditions that believers usually fail to meet at that time, and to announce how spiritual baptism can be brought to the crisis event where tongues will occur, detailing the conditions that, when fulfilled, will lead to the experience.  The doctrine of conditions, then, is actually a corollary of the doctrine of subsequence and a premise for the doctrine of evidence, and as such, occupies a cornerstone position in the edifice of the distinctive Pentecostal doctrine. Under the doctrine of conditions, it is regularly suggested that certain fundamental steps must be taken for the believer to be a suit...

Is speaking in Tongue evidence of the Baptism with the Holy Spirit or one of the Spiritual Gifts?  It depends on the theological framework you are coming from: Classical Pentecostalism (e.g., Assemblies of God, Church of God, Pentecostal Holiness) holds to Position 1, emphasizing that the initial evidence of the baptism in the Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues. This belief is based on passages such as Acts 2:4, Acts 10:44-46, and Acts 19:6, where believers spoke in tongues immediately after receiving the Holy Spirit. Charismatic and Some Evangelical Traditions lean toward Position 2, which acknowledges tongues as a sign but does not necessarily insist on it as the only or universal evidence. Some argue that other spiritual gifts can also serve as evidence of being filled with the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:4-11). Final Analysis: If you are coming from a Pentecostal viewpoint, Position 1 is more accurate because it aligns with the doctrine of initial evidence—a core belief in tradi...

When we focus all of our attention on the flesh of Jesus either by a statue etc, then the real significance of Jesus is missed, and the kinds of objections raised both by ‘the Jews’ and by ostensible disciples quickly surface - namely eat my body and drink my blood when misunderstood becomes a misdirection. But if flesh does not give life, what does? One of the clearest characteristics of the Spirit in the Old Testament is the giving of life (e.g. Gn. 1:2; Ezk. 37:1ff.; cf. Barrett, HSGT, pp. 18–23).  The Spirit gives life.  Jesus says in John 6:63 - the words I have spoken to you are spirit (i.e. they are the product of the life-giving Spirit ) and they are life (i.e. Jesus’ words, rightly understood and absorbed, generate life —5:24). To feed on Christ is to feed on Christ’s words, enabled by the Holy Spirit.  Before I was unregenerate unable to hear or understand jesus words and the Spirit gave me life now I can understand and consume Jesus word giving me life Carson...

As he approached the final days of his ministry, the Apostle Paul set his thoughts on the future well-being of Timothy, his "beloved child" in the faith (2 Tim. 1:2). He wrote to him about the things that matter most for life and ministry. Not only did Paul commend to his young protégé the glorious gospel of God (vv. 8–10) and the divinely inspired Scriptures ( 3:16 –17), but he also instructed Timothy regarding the importance of sound doctrine: "Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus .  By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you" ( 1:13 –14). According to Paul, doctrine is among the things that matter most for the well-being of the Christian and the church. Sound, or "healthy," doctrine provides a pattern that, when followed, promotes healthy faith and love. Sound doctrine is a valuable heritage that is to be treasured in this gene...

Many Christians can be very intimidated when talking to atheists, but if we trust in God ’s Sovereignty and His Word, we don’t need to fear anyone. Here are five confidence-inducing reasons why you don’t need to fear to share the Gospel with an atheist. They do believe in God Perhaps the scariest part of talking with an atheist is the fact that they say that they don’t believe God exists . And Christians can have a hard time, or better yet, an impossible time proving that He does. So often, Christians forget what the Bible says about those who deny God. The Bible is clear that many people do deny God, but Romans 1 gives us the reason why. Paul says in Romans  1:18 , “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.” The Bible clearly says that men know that God exists, but that t...