Dr Paul Allen

I’m afraid to die Psychologists tell us that even young children are afraid of death. There’s nothing wrong with you if you’re afraid to die; maybe there’s something wrong with you if you aren’t! There are two reasons why we’re afraid to die. One is that death is the great unknown, and we naturally fear the unknown, like a dark room. Christianity sheds light on this darkness (Prov 14:27). Christ assures us that there is life after death by preaching it (Jn 3:36), but most of all by showing us the Resurrection from the dead (Mk 16:6). The second reason we fear death is that we’re afraid to meet God face-to-face because we know, all of us, deep down, that we don’t deserve God or Heaven. “There’s a little bad in the best of us”, and the best of us are the first to admit it. “Death gets its power to hurt from sin” (1 Cor 15:56). Would you like to meet God face-to-face right now, with no defenses, no hiding, no evasion? That’s like asking whether you would like it if every thought that you ...

One of my favorite books is Dr. Michael Greger’s How Not to Die. He lists the top ten causes of death (heart disease, diabetes, various cancers, etc.), and shows how diet and lifestyle changes can increase your chances of preventing, and in some cases reversing, these lethal maladies. Dr. Greger, employing winsome humor and loads of incontrovertible evidence, is very convincing. But he candidly admits that there is no cure for death. His goal is to help you be healthy, energetic, and enjoy vitality… right up until the moment you die of old age. But what if there was a cure for old age? Some reputable scientists are taking the challenge to find the fountain of youth very seriously. Biologists at UCLA have successfully extended the lifespan of fruit flies by tweaking their genes. These files live only 40 days, but with the UCLA longevity intervention, they get an extra 20 days. That’s a 50% increase; imagine you could live to be 130 years old! At Nottingham University, scientists did som...

Future resurrections will result in final judgments, and final judgments will confirm final, everlasting destinies for both the righteous and the unrighteous. Tragically, the unrighteous will spend eternity separated from God in hell, being punished for their sins and unbelief. Most references to hell are in the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) and are from Jesus himself (e.g., Matthew 5:21–30; Mark 9:43–48; Luke 12:5). He described hell as a terrible reality of suffering and despair, and therefore, his clear warning was to do whatever is necessary to avoid it. The English word hell is used to translate two Greek words: hades and gehenna. Hades seems to be where the unrighteous are sent to be punished while they wait for their final judgment (e.g., the rich man of Luke 16:19–31); it is temporary. However, according to Revelation 20:14, death and Hades will be thrown into the lake of fire in the final judgment. So it seems the lake of fire is the more specific way to refe...

Hell is a real place. Currently, there are millions, if not billions, of people there burning in excruciating pain. They are real people. They lived on the same earth as us and now will be in hell for eternity. This truth should make you squeamish. It should make you uncomfortable, and suppressing this truth is not only foolish, but it is harmful to your soul. Here are four reasons not to ignore hell, but to think about it often. It will make you humble At the moment of salvation, we were all humble. The realization that we deserved hell because of our sin propelled us to trust in Christ . We admitted to our Creator that we deserved His wrath. We completely understand the fact that there is no one currently walking around Heaven who believes that they deserve to be there. We also equally understand that there is no one in Hell who doesn’t deserve to be there.  For some reason, though, we continue to struggle with humility. The humility we displayed on the day t...

1 John 1:1-4 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched—this we proclaim concerning the Word of life. 2 The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us. 3 We proclaim to you what we have seen and heard, so that you also may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. 4 We write this to make our[ a ] joy complete. The heresy emerging in the days of Peter and Jude was an even greater danger during John’s last years . As competing teachers introduced conflicting doctrines, many Christians became confused about who was the false teacher, and who was the true. Confusion also arose as the drive for holiness brought an unexpected reaction: those who slipped into sin began to wonder if they still had a personal relationship with God. John focused ...

Well known evangelical pastors signed a document in which they joined themselves with Catholic priests and Philosophers, in an ecumenical fashion in order to promote the agreements over the disagreements that have plagued Protestants and Catholics for centuries dating back to the greats: Calvin, Luther, Zwingli and Knox. They agreed to no longer “proselytize” each other, agreeing that Catholics are indeed brothers, and sisters in Christ. This article was successful in its endeavor . The vast majority of Christians in America do not evangelize Catholics. I totally understand the desire to believe people are saved. I also desperately want Roman Catholics to go to heaven, but we can’t let our desire for people to be saved or our desire to please men, lead us to cheer them on as they run towards hell. We must love them. When I first found out about the ECT, I was shocked. I was fresh off the boat and never in a million years did I imagine such confusion over what seemed to be such a c...

"There is one very serious defect to my mind in Christ's moral character, and that is that He believed in hell." So wrote the agnostic British philosopher Bertrand Russell in 1967. The idea of eternal punishment for sin, he further notes, is "a doctrine that put cruelty in the world and gave the world generations of cruel torture." His views are at least more consistent than religious philosopher John Hick, who refers to hell as a "grim fantasy" that is not only "morally revolting" but also "a serious perversion of the Christian Gospel." Worse yet was theologian Clark Pinnock who, despite having regarded himself as an evangelical, dismissed hell with a rhetorical question: "How can one imagine for a moment that the God who gave His Son to die for sinners because of His great love for them would install a torture chamber somewhere in the new creation in order to subject those who reject Him to everlasting pain?" So, wh...

It is the ministry and work of the Holy Spirit to come to people who are spiritually dead, who are walking according to the course of this world and according to the prince of the power of the air, fulfilling the lusts of their flesh and of their minds, and to re-create them as He regenerates them. “To regenerate” means “to generate anew.” By means of regeneration, the Spirit gives life to people who have no spiritual life. Regeneration is a work that the Holy Spirit does immediately upon the souls of people. When I say “immediately,” I do not mean “quickly” but “without any intervening medium.” He does not give a person a dose of medicine; instead, the Spirit directly brings spiritual life out of spiritual death. We see this immediate working expressed in the words the angel Gabriel spoke to Mary: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you” (Luke 1:35). In that situation, Jesus’ life was generated immediately and directly, not throu...

“And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.” ( 1 John 5:11 ) Our text for today contains truths which provide great power and comfort for Christians. Let us reflect on some of them. The word “record” needs amplification. In noun form, it means “the evidence given,” and in verb form it means “testify,” or “witness.” The apostle John used it nine times in verses 7 through 11. Study of our text and its context shows that the record mentioned is none other than the great truth that Christ Jesus was God’s only Son, and that He died as a perfect and fully sufficient sacrifice to provide us life eternal. In our text, we see that this work of bestowing eternal life is God’s work. It is “not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us” ( Titus 3:5 ). This eternal life is our present possession, for He “hath given” it to us (i.e., in the past). This gift is to individuals—to “us”—not to a nation or e...

“Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” ( Hebrews 1:3 ) As Christians we desire to be with our Lord and see His glory forever. The writer of Hebrews expressed our passion for Him in the text for today. He goes on to tell how “they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city” ( Hebrews 11:16 ). Our ultimate goal is to reach glory and see our Savior face to face. The final verse of “Higher Ground” agrees. I want to scale the utmost height And catch a gleam of glory bright; But still I’ll pray till heav’n I’ve found, “Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.” We must have our expectation fixated on Him and our eternal home. We must pray for His return to take us there and pray that we can influence many others to join us...

“These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God ; that ye may know that ye have eternal life , and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.” ( 1 John 5:13 ) We are informed in Scripture that He assigns great value and power to His Name. “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” ( Acts4:12 ). “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name” ( Philippians 2:9-10 ). He protects and empowers us to do great things in service to Him. “But thou, O LORD, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head” ( Psalm 3:3 ). “He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler” ( Psalm 91:4 ). In His service and following His lead, we are victorious. “O sing unto the LORD a new song; for he hath done marvelous things: his right hand, and his holy ...

English: A 14th-century of Jesus Christ bearing the cross, from the monastery in . (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) And Jesus answered them, saying, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified . Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit . He who loves his life loses it, and he who hates his life in this world will keep it to life eternal. If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.” - John 12:23–26 - Jesus is acknowledging that the time for His crucifixion is near. We learn from the next verse (which we’ll look at in a minute) that He was troubled. And that’s not terribly surprising. It’s not that He’s just going to die an agonizing and ignominious death at the hands of those who have perverted His Father’s holy Law, and have subjugated His people under a yoke of slavery that no one in his...

Kronheim's Baxter process illustration of Revelation 22:17 (King James' Version), from page 366 of the 1880 omnibus printing of The Sunday at Home. Scanned at 800 dpi. The greyish border around the flowers is a metallic silver ink, however, shininess cannot be reproduced in an electronic medium. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life : and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” ( John 3:36 ) The final verse of the great hymn “My Hope Is in the Lord ” states a truth Christians know but need to be reminded of occasionally: The work of salvation is all of God; we could do nothing on our own. Within God’s sovereign plan, that work includes our hearing, understanding, believing, and receiving the gospel. His grace has planned it all, ’Tis mine but to believe, And recognize His work of love And Christ receive. The great redemptive plan of God spans all of time, from creation to the...

English: Folio 41 verso, beginning of the Epistle to Titus; decorated headpiece (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Author: Cripplegate. A Bible College professor told me that my understanding of the phrase” eternal life ” had, up until that point, apparently been quite mistaken.  Up until then I had thought that it was basically everlasting life (the unending life that Christians life after the resurrection), but my professor told me that “eternal life” was actually “life lived in the light of the eternal”; some sort of qualitative life on earth in the here and now (which basically meant feeding the poor, abandoning materialism, etc.). Baloney! First of all, I was struck by how, in the gospels, Christ simply showed up and talked about “eternal life” but didn’t define it.  This suggested to me that Christ’s audience already knew what he meant by the phrase, which then sent me to the Old Testament . So what is “eternal life” in the Old Testament? The phrase only appea...