Dr Paul Allen

Stained glass at St John the Baptist's Wikipedia ) Only a comprehensive and biblical view of the light of God ’s holiness can rescue us from the darkness.  As we recognize who God is, we will recognize who we are and what we have become, and the Holy Spirit will use that knowledge to revive in His people a renewed zeal for the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ and a boldness to proclaim that although human beings are great sinners, there is a greater Savior who can rescue us through the gospel. Related articles Rejection (bloggerneecy.com) Good News and the Holy Temple (betsybeadhead.com) Second Sunday after Christmas (emmanuelchatham.typepad.com) An Incredible Mystery! (josephelonlillie.com) Spiritus Sanctus: How the Holy Spirit Renews (slideshare.net) Christians urged to accept the holy spirit to tap God's blessings (spyghana.com) The Ministry of God the Holy Spirit (codybateman.org) What or Who is the Holy Spirit? (fifthmariandogma.wordpress.com )...

Many faith -based blogs are claiming that much of the Atheist community is in an uproar over Carrie Underwood ’s new song, Something In The Water. Is this true? If so, how much of the world’s Atheists are country fans? I have no clue. Regardless, blog posts are circulating that many of them aren’t too happy about how much of her faith has found its way into her newest release. Ever since American Idol, I’ve always been a fan of Carrie Underwood’s faith, talent, and the humility she continued to showcase even when in the spotlight. God seems to be doing something incredible in her life, and I am excited to see someone influential as her continue to stand firm in her faith. I’m sure her and I would have some theological differences, but being public about her faith in Jesus isn’t one of them. One of the most powerful lines in the song goes as follows, “Couldn’t fight back the tears so I fell on my knees Saying, “God, if you’re there come and rescue me.” Felt love pouring down...

The Third Station (1024x768) (Photo credit: jdwarrick ) John 17 “ Holy Father , keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one” ( v. 11b ). John 17 , which records the longest prayer in the New Testament , provides some of the most important teaching on the church. As we can see in this chapter, Jesus is concerned with the unity of His people, praying for His disciples and all those who come after them to be one in purpose and mission even as He and His Father are one ( vv. 11b , 22–23 ). It is therefore regrettable that the church of Jesus Christ in our day evidences little visible unity. There are hundreds of different Protestant denominations , including dozens of varieties each of Presbyterians , Baptists, Lutherans , and so on. Faced with this scandalous reality, there has been a tendency in the twentieth century and now, in the twenty-first century, to try and correct this problem. As a result of the ecumenical movement, many new ...

Cain and Abel. Byzantine mosaic i =n Monreale (Photo credit: Wikipedia )  “Not as Cain , who was of the evil one, and slew his brother. And for what reason did he slay him? Because his deeds  were evil, and his brother’s were righteous. Do not marvel, brethren, if the world hates you.” 1 JOHN 3:12–13 An ancient proverb states that you can judge a man’s character by who his enemies are. That is also true in the spiritual realm. The world loves its own, but since Christ chose believers out of the world, the world hates them (John 15:19). That this is true should come as no surprise to any student of God’s Word. After all, the world hated Jesus so much that it killed Him. We, as His followers, can also expect hostility. “ If the world hates you ,” Jesus said in John 15:18, “you know that it has hated Me before it hated you.” “If they have called the head of the house Beelzebul ,” He added in Matthew 10:25 , “how much more the members of his household!” From the begin...

The Holy Spirit . There is something wonderfully mysterious about him. H e is the third person of the Trinity , the “self-effacing” member. He works ever in tandem with God ’s word — incarnate, spoken, and written. He is one of the Christian’s greatest sources of comfort. And too often he is one of the church’s greatest sources of controversy. But before getting bogged down in dispute related to his miraculous gifts and mysterious works in the church today, take a step back and see who he is, and who he has been, beyond the firestorms about prophecy, tongues, and healing. The best way to think about the Holy Spirit is to think of him as the closest companion of the Lord Jesus . Not only has he been the Son’s eternal partner in the uncreated fellowship of the Trinity, but the Spirit was there with the Father and Son at creation ( Genesis 1:2 ). He was there overshadowing Jesus’s conception ( Luke 1:35), and there at his baptism (Luke 3:22) and temptation (Luke 4:1–2). Jesus performe...

English: Icon of Jesus Christ (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) While John 17:5 and other verses point to Christ ’s deity , critics often highlight John 14 :28, which reads, “The Father is greater than I.” Was Jesus a lesser God ? Was he equal to the Father , or was he some sort of junior God, possessing the attributes of deity and yet somehow failing to match the total sketch of the divine that the Old Testament provides? John 17:5 is one of the many verses that clearly indicates that Jesus fully shared the divine attributes and as such is worthy of worship. As the Creator of the world, God was the First Cause of all creation. If the statement in this verse is true, how does John 14:28 affect its meaning? Reading the context of John 14 makes a big difference in determining the correct meaning of John 14:28. In this chapter, the disciples were distressed because Jesus told them he was going away. Jesus says, “If you loved me, you would be glad that I am g...