Dr Paul Allen

Dr Paul Twiss Christ is the Savior, and He is the Teacher. Jesus instructs me. He teaches me how to think, how to speak, and how to walk every day. When I reflect on His Word, my affection for Him grows. In part, this love is the reflex of my soul, as I see that Jesus’ Word is good. He is the Shepherd, who leads me in paths of righteousness. Christ’s instructions awaken my affections because through them I see His supremacy. I see how He reigns over all creation, and how all things hold together in Him (Col. 1:17).  As an image bearer, I was made to behold this glory. My soul longs to look upon Christ and the unity of the cosmos according to His kingship. His teaching is a roadmap towards such beauty. Thus, as God’s Word instructs me, I love Jesus the Teacher. UNDERSTANDING THE SKILL OF LEARNING Some of my favourite memories include my greatest teachers. I am indebted to these people. Interestingly, I do not always find the same affection when I think about other figures in my chil...

“By faith, we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible” (Heb. 11:3). Creation sings a beautiful story. Every detail was designed by a masterful artist whose artistic abilities are high and above the most skilled human painter. Not a stroke of colour is wasted. Every layer of wispy blue and white in the sky is intentionally designed; every verdant hue of green in the dew-dipped grass is there on purpose; every shade of colour in the wind-swept flowers of the field was put there like a well-stationed singer in a choir. Creation sings a beautiful story; the author and perfecter of that story is God Himself in Christ. But what does creation sing about? John Calvin was fond of using the theatre analogy to talk about creation and its relationship to God. He called creation the “theatre of the glory of God.” In this theatre, God is the great artist-conductor, and every scene of the play is designed to reflect...

For years now I have dealt with hating what I see in the mirror. It’s been a frustrating and emotional journey. I struggle with a lot of self-comparison and am very critical of my appearance. I get very self-conscious when I’m not wearing makeup or when I wear certain clothes.  I know this is a huge problem for young women. Women need Jesus to forgive their sins, not to make them feel beautiful. And yet knowing that I still struggle here. I know that this is a branch of pride and self-love: to be so caught up in appearance. It is very damaging and discouraging and it affects my life daily. I was wondering how you would biblically encourage women who struggle with this same thing?” Old, Wrinkled — and Beautiful Let me begin with a story. Evelyn Brand was born in England in 1879 and grew up in a well-to-do British family. She studied at the London Conservatory of Art. She dressed in the finest silks of the day. She was resoundingly converted to Christ, she married, and she went with ...

When you read the Psalms , do you identify with the psalmist when he claims  blamelessness  and  uprightness  and  integrity  and  righteousness ? Blamelessness Blessed are those whose way is  blameless ! (Psalm 119:1) I was  blameless  before him, and I kept myself from my guilt. (Psalm  18:23 ) I shall be  blameless , and innocent of great transgression. (Psalm  19:13 ) Uprightness My shield is with God , who saves the  upright  in heart. (Psalm  7:10 ) The  upright  shall behold his face. (Psalm 11:7) Let all the  upright  in heart exult! (Psalm 64:10) Integrity Judge me, O Lord, according to the  integrity  that is in me. (Psalm 7:8) Vindicate me, O Lord, for I have walked in my  integrity . (Psalm 26:1) You have upheld me because of my  integrity . (Psalm 41:12) Righteousness The Lord upholds the  righteous . (Psalm 37:17) He w...

“Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.” ( Philippians 2:3 ) In this verse, Paul challenged us to refrain from any “strife” or “vainglory”—words that seem a bit stern in the colloquial terms of our day. Eritheia  is the Greek word for “strife”—a contentious political maneuvering for greater power. “ Vainglory ” is similar. It comes from the Greek word  kenodoxia , an empty pride or groundless glory. Both are rather unpleasant descriptions of the foolish and sinful human behavior that is seen all too often among God’s people: “Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another” ( Galatians  5:26 ). On the contrary, we are challenged to “esteem” the others in our fellowship as “better than” ourselves. The precise words in this instruction insist that we are to use deliberate and careful judgment in our evaluation of others in our relationships as bei...

English: Sunday school area within Christ Church, Gosport (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) In the pastorate you have to master the seemingly impossible art of having, at the same time, thick and thin skin . How can you possibly pull off such a feat? And why would such a chameleon-like skill even be desirable? First, why do you need thick skin ? In a word, as pastor you will receive your fair share of criticism . The lion’s share of criticism should be placed into the “ignore this stuff” category. People often complain about the silliest things: the time of the worship service , how frequently the church holds activities, the types of illustrations you use in your sermons, the fact that you pick the same hymn too frequently, the color of your tie, or the kind of beverage you drink (for the record, I’ve personally had all of these complaints). I have to say with great glee, that I simply smile, note the complaint, and then move on. I let the words flow off my back like water off a duc...

Beauty in worship (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Does God care about truth? Clearly, the answer is yes, for the words He speaks are truth itself ( John 14:6 ). Is God concerned with goodness? How could he not be, since "no one is good except God alone"? ( Mark 10:18). Does God love beauty ? I suspect that most of us would answer, "yes," but do we really believe it? Do we design worship with beauty in mind? Do we look at writing music, telling stories, and sculpting and painting as callings? How often do we think about promoting beauty in the culture and adorning all that we do with what is beautiful? Such questions are important because it is easy for us to lose sight of the extent to which God prizes beauty. Our Creator made the world with beauty in mind, as we see in the variety of colors, shapes, and other elements in the world around us. The Lord prizes artistic endeavors such as the writing and playing of music, for He worked through David to appoint musi...

Image via Wikipedia Mothers, did you know that only 2 percent of women would describe themselves as beautiful? 1  Are you in that small sampling? Is your daughter in that small sampling?  After discussing in depth the lies both we and our daughters have been told regarding the narrow definition of beauty, we are left with the task of redefining beauty. Only then can we pass along a healthy definition to our daughters. What exactly is beauty? The Dove Campaign asked women and found that: Seventy-seven percent strongly agree that beauty can be achieved through attitude, spirit, and other attributes that have nothing to do with physical appearance . Eighty-nine percent strongly agree that a woman can be beautiful at any age. Eighty-five percent state that every woman has something about her that is beautiful. 2 Interestingly, the study found that two-thirds of women strongly agree that physical attractiveness is about how one looks, whereas beauty includes much more of wh...