Dr Paul Allen

What does this Prophecy mean today? One of the most well-known prophecies about the birth of Christ is Isaiah 9:6, which says,  “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”  We read this on Christmas cards and holiday signs, but what does it mean? The original context of this promise in Isaiah helps us. Isaiah answers three questions about this child who will be born. What He Brings First, what will he bring? Along with the arrival of this child, Isaiah promises that God will bring three gifts. The first is joy.  Isaiah 9:1 says, “But there will be no gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time, he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.”  These are the northern parts...

Losing a child is a terrible thing. It strikes at the heart of a family, permanently reshaping it. Death because of disease or accident is heartbreaking for the parents who are left behind, grieving the loss of the child and also the loss of the future joys and hopes that the child represented—all the teaching and love and bonds that never came to full fruition. It is jarring for a parent to bury a son or daughter—against the natural order even in a cursed world. We recognize this, and so every culture has set up ceremonies and customs to grieve, support, and comfort. But there is more than one way to lose a child. Parents who have lost a child to the world face different challenges. They not only grieve the loss but also grieve unrepentant sin and ensuing damage. They have had joys and hopes crushed through willful hurt and deliberate rejection.  They have taught and loved and forged bonds, only to have it thrown back in their faces. There is no protocol for parents to use when fa...

I was baptized before conversion. Should I be baptized again after coming to faith? No one is ever required to be baptized again. Baptism, by its very nature, can only happen once. Now, of course, the people who want to baptize you after you come to faith don’t believe you’ve really been baptized before. They would say that they are not promoting being baptized again; they are promoting being baptized, properly, once. There are some groups who actually do talk about being baptized again, but that is to misunderstand the fundamental nature of baptism. Baptism is a sacrament that speaks of the reality that the Christian life has a beginning. You pass from death to life. You pass from unbelief to faith. The sacrament of baptism marks that reality in a profound way for the Christian. To say you could be baptized over and over again would implicitly say that you could pass from death to life over and over again, which is not at all what we believe. So, the singularity of baptism as the sacr...

God is a Father who Lost a Son  For parents who have lost a child, the gospel of Jesus Christ is a great comfort. God is a Father, and Jesus Christ is the Son of God. When the Son of God died on the cross, the Father experienced exactly what it feels like to lose a beloved child. Regarding what happens to a child after they die, and whether or not they go to Heaven, the most common Scripture given to answer that question is from the Old Testament. There, David is the father of a beloved child who died. 2 Samuel 12:15–23 says: And the LORD afflicted the child that Uriah’s wife bore to David, and he became sick. David therefore sought God on behalf of the child. And David fasted and went in and lay all night on the ground. And the elders of his house stood beside him, to raise him from the ground, but he would not, nor did he eat food with them. On the seventh day the child died. And the servants of David were afraid to tell him that the child was dead, for they said, “Be...

“For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? God forbid: yea, let God be true, but every man a liar; as it is written. That thou mightest be justified in thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art judged.” ( Romans 3:3-4 ) Many Christians are so intimidated by the arrogant unbelief of the supposed intellectuals of the world that they either reject or compromise or ignore the difficult teachings of Scripture. This is a grievous mistake, for all of God’s “sayings” are “justified” and He will surely “overcome” all those who presume to “judge” Him and His Word. The only reason to believe in evolution, for example, is the fact that most such intellectuals believe it. There is no real evidence, either in the Bible or in science, for evolution or any other form of unbelief, yet many professed believers in Christ seem to have “loved the praise of men more than the praise of God” ( John 12:43 ). Therefore they assume that God does...

What child is this? Really? It’s Jesus, of course. We all know that — even the kids know that. When the disciples found themselves in a great windstorm, with waves breaking into the boat, and Jesus calmed the storm, they said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” (Mark 4:41). They knew the answer from Scripture. Only God himself can still the seas (Psalm 65:7; 89:9; 107:29); this, somehow, must be God. But it was too wonderful just to say. This new revelation of Jesus’s glory was too stupendous to keep quiet, and too remarkable not to say it in some fresh way. God himself had become man and was in the boat with them. “Who then is this?” It’s in a similar vein that we say at Christmas, “What child is this?” We know the answer. It has been plainly revealed. And it is almost too wonderful to be true. God himself has become man in this baby, and has come to rescue us. The eternal Word has become flesh and dwells among us (John 1:14). It is cle...

Over the years I watched a number of people come and go through the doors of the church . In our mobile, vagabond, anchorless time, people move from job to job, city to city, and church to church. Given the mobility of a culture, say in comparison with a generation ago when a person might work for one company in the same city and live in the same house for his entire life, people move around. So there were some who left the church because of job transfers. In fact, I had a stretch where more than a dozen families relocated because of job transfers over a two-year period. Most of the time I could understand the job relocation. The situation, for the life of me, that I simply have never understood were the families that left the church because their children were not happy. I can remember sitting before a number of families over the years who would come to me, “Pastor, we really love the church and find the preaching to be edifying . . .” On the heels of such a statement, I could hear...

Christ Blessing Little Children (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Matthew 19:13–15 “ Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven .’ And he laid his hands on them and went away” ( vv. 14–15 ). Children should be seen and not heard” is a popular expression that can evidence any one of several different attitudes toward youngsters. Some would repeat this phrase because they believe children are too simple to offer any meaningful contribution to our society. Others say it because they expect children to be mini-adults — to stand still and quietly under any and all circumstances. Some adults believe that kids should be seen and not heard because, for whatever reason, they just cannot stand to be around children. None of these attitudes is appropriate for the Christian. This truth, however, was not always well-understood among God’s people. In today’s passage, when several people, presumably parents, try to bring their c...

Oil painting of a young John Calvin. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Matthew 18:1–4 “Calling to him a child , he put him in the midst of them and said…‘Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven ’” ( vv. 2–4 ). Once again the disciples display their knack for missing the point when they ask Jesus : “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” ( Mat. 18:1 ). This question, the other gospel writers tell us, results from an argument between the disciples over who will have the highest status in the kingdom ( Mark 9:33–37 ; Luke 9:46–48 ). The analogy our Lord made earlier between God and the kings of the earth ( Matt. 17:24–27 ) may be what has spurred the disciples to talk about the kingdom again, but the way in which they are viewing the kingdom of heaven is the problem. Christ has just emphasized the reality of His death and that His followers must likewise suffer ( 16:21–28 ; 17:22–23 ), but these images of powerlessness have had little imp...

Image via Wikipedia Image via Wikipedia [O]f the three embryos that were implanted, all three took. We were faced with the news of triplets. I was shocked, knowing the burden that would entail, but since G-d gave us three, I was prepared to do whatever I needed to do to help, manage, and provide. My wife ? Something snapped. She insisted that we do a " selective reduction " from three to one, or else she would have a full abortion. She was adamant. She would not carry three. She would not carry two. I was presented with a Coventry -esque decision: save one, or save none. I chose the former, though I tried on several occasions to convince her to at least keep twins. I failed…. My mantra became "Save one, or save none." Before the procedure, my wife's eyes teared up; she asked the doctor over and over if they would feel pain, and was assured they would not. I asked again if my wife was sure about this because once done, it could not be undone. She said she...

Image via Wikipedia "Hear, O Israel : The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might." ( Deuteronomy 6:4-5 )   As stated in the law ,  Deuteronomy 6:4-9  was to be recited by all Jews both morning and evening, for it contains God's basic plan for passing on the message of God from generation to generation.   The primary teaching is contained in  verse 4 . There is only one God, indivisible, although in three persons. His divine uniqueness precludes the worship of any other deity.  The response to this message is that we should love that God with our entire being. Jesus Christ recognized this as the first and greatest commandment ( Mark 12:30 ), teaching that obedience to it fulfilled one's duty to the entire law.   The message was so important that God even gave the mechanics for passing it on. In verse 6 , we see that "these words, which I command thee this ...

Image via Wikipedia Pornography is wrong. There’s no debate. In fact, many non- Christians are against pornography . It’s not just a religious issue, it’s a cultural one, as well. Many of the “reasons” listed against pornography are focused on the negatives. Now, as much as you may think: Who needs a reason? Isn’t one enough? It should be, but many statistics surveying the Church say otherwise. In fact, a great deal of you reading this post right now, have viewed pornography within the last 6-months. As the Church struggles to be less about rule making and focusing on what Christians are  not  suppose to be doing, let me present to you a list of 40  positive  reasons to avoid pornography: I fully enjoy the pleasure of my love relationship with Christ . I fulfill my true identity as a child of God . I experience God’s provision of empowering grace. I enjoy my freedom in Christ to its fullest. I avoid a life-pattern of decept...