Dr Paul Allen

Of all the misconceptions we have about Heaven, which is the most destructive? That’s a difficult and important question to tackle. Once, while preaching about the New Earth, I cited passages about feasting together in our resurrection bodies. Afterwards, a veteran Bible student asked if I believed we would eat and drink in the afterlife. I told him yes since Jesus said so. Visibly shaken, he replied, “Engaging in physical activities in heaven sounds terribly unspiritual.” Standing there with a body God promised to raise, he was repulsed by the thought of living forever as a physical being in a material world. And he’s not alone. Many Bible-believing Christians would die before denying the doctrine of the resurrection—yet they don’t fully believe it. I’ve dialogued with lifelong evangelicals who don’t understand what resurrection means. They really believe they will spend eternity as disembodied spirits. God’s revelation concerning the resurrection and the New Earth—our forever home—el...

Detail of the third window of the north wall with stained glass depicting Jesus: I am the light of the world (John 8:12). (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Those who gathered around the cross, on that dusty hill, could feel Jesus' raspy cry reverberate in their own dry throats: "I thirst!" These are the words of One whose vitality was almost dried up to death. Yet, in those words we witness the thoughtful tenderness of the Good Teacher as He breathes these words into Scripture for our edification (2 Tim.  3:16 –17). The words  I thirst  reveal rich truths about their speaker. Jesus Fulfilled Scripture Jesus' cry of thirst would have arrested the attention of those familiar with the Old Testament . In at least two ways, "I thirst" confirmed Jesus' promise that in Jerusalem, "Everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished" (Luke  18:31 ). First, God foretold that His Messiah would thirst. Jesus had...

Drunkenness of Noah (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) English: Everyone take a drink (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) A Kranz (wreath) of Kölsch beer. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Clearly the New Testament teaches that drunkenness is a sin (Gal. 5:21; Eph. 5:18). Further, the believer is to have no fellowship with professing Christians who are drunkards (1 Cor. 5:11). In that verse drunkenness appears alongside with immorality, idolatry, and swindling, all of which, including drunkenness, are so serious that fellowship with such is forbidden. The Old Testament warns against the abuse of wine and strong drink. Wine refers to the fermented juice of the grape, whereas strong drink denotes any intoxicating drink, often made from barley. “Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler” ( Prov. 20:1). “[Wine] bites like a serpent, and stings like a viper” (Prov. 23:32). It also may lead to poverty (Prov. 21:17). Isaiah warned against those who run after strong drink and stay up late into the eve...

L'ivresse de Polichinelle by Joseph Faverot (b. 1862) (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Christians differ in their attitudes toward alcohol. Some Christians believe that we have freedom to consume alcohol in moderation. Others hold that the Bible forbids all consumption of alcohol or that, even in the absence of a clear command to abstain, it is so dangerous and so likely to lead to addiction, that it is downright foolish to drink . Regardless, all Christians hold that drunkenness is a sin and that this sin relates to the loss of control. A drunken man loses his sense and his self-control. As Solomon says, “Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler, and whoever is led astray by it is not wise.” On Monday I attempted to anticipate some of the cost to the church if young Christian men continue to spend their youth embroiled in the pursuit of pornography . Solomon warns that pornography is sapping them of their strength. In their strongest and most energetic years, in the years when ...