Dr Paul Allen

“Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.” ( 1 Thessalonians 5:5 ) It may be significant that most of the days during the year which have been considered to have some special meaning are observed as “Days”—for example, Independence Day , Veterans Day , Thanksgiving Day , etc. Those observed mainly at night—such as Halloween and New Year’s Eve , tend to emphasize frivolity or even sinfulness. Christmas Eve may be an exception, but this celebration (December 25) rarely notes the real reason for Christ ’s incarnation. It is for good reason that darkness has become a term referring not only to absence of daylight but also to absence of moral light. Many biblical references make this connection. Note just a sampling. “The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light” ( Romans 13:12 ). “For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be dr...

When it comes to Christian theology , just about all roads lead through Romans. Paul’s letter to the Romans is arguably the single most important piece of literature in the history of the world.  And chapter 8 is perhaps its greatest section. And Romans 8:31–39 is the climax. It is actually an inference from everything Paul says in Romans 5:1–8:30 about the glorious results of our justification. It’s as if the apostle takes a deep breath as he thinks back over Romans 5:1–8:30 , and then asks God’s people, “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?” ( Rom. 8:31 ). That second question is rhetorical, so it has the force of a proposition: Since God is for us, nothing can be against us. Paul then supports what he asserts with four proofs. Proof 1: God will graciously give us all things (Rom. 8:32). Paul is arguing from the greater to the lesser. If God gave us the greatest gift (i.e., he did not spare his own Son but gave him up...

English: Temptation of Christ in the Wilderness (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) In The Lord’s Prayer we ask, “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.” Have you ever wondered what that means? Lead into temptation? James 3:13-14 ( ESV ) says, Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God ,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. We must know God’s intentions before we dive any further. God does not create temptation. He tempts no one. However, He does allow us to encounter it. Let’s look at why. First, without temptation we would never know our weaknesses. If you lived in utopia where you never experienced anything but ecstatic bliss, you would never be able to pinpoint the places in your life that required the hand of God. In Romans 3:23 we are...

“Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” ( Luke 12:32 ) The world tends to measure success by size, and this seems generally true in the Christian world as well. The most “successful” churches are considered to be those with the largest congregations, or the largest budgets, or the greatest number of converts baptized each year, or some other quantitative index. But this is not God ’s criterion. At the judgment seat of Christ , “the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is” ( 1 Corinthians 3:13 ). Not how big it is, but of what sort it is! Quality, not quantity, is the criterion. Christ’s encouraging words to the “little flock” were given toward the end of an extended warning against the desire to accumulate wealth. “Take heed, and beware of covetousness,” He had said ( Luke 12:15 ), speaking to His small group of followers. He was their Shepherd and would provide the needs of His “little flock.” Christ’s warnings agai...

“God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” ( John 4:24 ) Mankind has always struggled with this aspect of God. The Second Commandment prohibited any attempt to represent God by any physical shape ( Exodus 20:4-5 ). The triune God cannot be contained by finite attributes. “Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.” ( 1 Timothy 1:17 ) “Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.” ( 1 Timothy 6:16 ) Were it not for the Second Person of the Godhead, He whom the apostle John identifies as “the Word,” we would have no possibility of knowing God ( John 1:1-14 ). Philip asked to see the Father , and the Lord Jesus replied: “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father” ( John 14:9 ). But how can this be? Paul explained to the Philippian church that Jesus Christ ...

Jesus is considered by scholars such as Weber to be an example of a charismatic religious leader. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him.” ( 2 Corinthians 5:9 ) Paul’s great ambition was to please his Lord and Savior. In our text, the Greek for “accepted” often also is translated “well-pleasing,” and this is the real meaning of the word. Since this also is the great desire of every sincere Christian, let us look at a few of those passages where the Lord tells us specifically how we can please Him. Consider, for example: “But to do good and to communicate [i.e., to ‘share what you have with others’] forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased” ( Hebrews 13:16 ; see also Philippians 4:18 ). There is a special admonition to children: “Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord” ( Colossians 3:20 ). For adults: “Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier ...

English: Moses Pleading with Israel, as in Deuteronomy 6:1-15, illustration from a Bible card published 1907 by the Providence Lithograph Company (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years, yet is their strength labor and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.” ( Psalm 90:10 )   When Moses wrote these words near the end of his life, he was 120 years old ( Deuteronomy 34:7 ), but all the rest of the people of Israel (except Caleb and Joshua) who had been over 20 at the beginning of the 40-year wilderness wanderings, had died there ( Numbers 14:28-34 ), and so there were no others over 60 years old.   In former days men had lived much longer. Adam died at 930 and Noah at 950, but then Shem only lived to 600, and Abraham died at 175 years of age. Thus, the normal lifespan by Moses’ time was down to 70 or 80 years, and he prophesied that this would continue.   ...

Saint George Preca has been likened as a successor to Saint Paul's evangelical work on the island of Malta. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “Salute Asyncritus , Phlegon , Hermas, Patrobas, Hermes, and the brethren which are with them.” ( Romans 16:14 ) An interesting phenomenon occurs in the closing chapter of many of Paul’s epistles , which may at first seem incongruous with the biblical doctrine of plenary verbal inspiration. This phenomenon is the recital of various names of individuals—people in the churches from which, or to which, he was writing. Most of them are people about whom we know nothing except their names, as listed by Paul. There are 11 people mentioned by name in Colossians 4:7-17. In Paul’s final epistle to Timothy, right after he had written the great passage on the inspiration of the Bible ( 2 Timothy 3:16-17 ), he mentioned no less than 18 names. In the last chapter of Romans is listed 35 names, five of which are included in the one short verse of our text! ...

Memorizing the Scriptures not only  molds our minds , but leads us to learn our Lord’s voice. As we listen over and over to the voice of the Shepherd, we accustom ourselves to his timbre and intonation. The more we hear his accent, and put it to memory, the more ready we are to know his voice, and follow, when he calls. “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John  10:27 ). The process of memorizing can be can a profound opportunity to make sure that we “do not refuse him who is speaking” ( Hebrews   12:25 ). Here are five simple tips for doing a February refresh on Scripture memorization. 1. Diversify your picks. You can memorize  whole books , or whole chapters ( Romans 8 is a great starting point, or Philippians 3) or  big chunks , or key sections. My preference over the years has become key sections (say four to seven verses, like Titus 3:1–7) that I come across as I’m moving through a Bible-reading plan. It’s often a sec...

StJohnsAshfield StainedGlass Baptism (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles ; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” ( Colossians 1:27 ) The fact that Jesus Christ is actually in each believer is both a great mystery and rich in glory. In fact, it is our very hope and assurance of glory in the age to come. How Christ may be both seated at “the right hand of the Majesty on high” ( Hebrews 1:3 ) and yet living in us is surely a mystery, yet it is fully true. He Himself told His disciples: “If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. . . . Abide in me, and I in you. . . . He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing” ( John 14:23 ; 15:4-5). The apostle Paul also confirmed this great truth: “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, b...

The church is a community of Christians living as the on-the-ground expression of the supremacy of Jesus by advancing his gospel in distance and depth. As the  on-the-ground  expression, and since gospel advance happens in  distance , the local nature of the church is indispensable. The church is the  place  — the here and now — of Jesus’s new creation reign in an old creation world. As the assembly of those made new in Christ , we come together in space and time, and we make Jesus known in those blessed limitations. Advancing the gospel in distance means we cross the street, and the oceans, to tell others the good news. It means we go  out there  into the darkness with the light of God’s love . Far As the Curse Is Found But we also remember that  out there  isn’t the only darkness. If we know our own hearts, we know it gets dark in here, too. So not only must the gospel advance in distance, it must also advance in  depth . J...