Dr Paul Allen

More than a hundred years ago, a British revivalist issued a holy dare that would change a life, a city, and a generation. That timeless challenge echoes across every generation: “The world has yet to see what God will do with and for and through and in and by the man who is fully and wholly consecrated to Him.” The original hearer of that call to consecration was D. L. Moody . When those words hit his eardrums, they didn’t just fire across synapses and register in his auditory cortex . They shot straight to his soul. That call to consecration defined his life. And his life, in turn, defined consecration. It was Moody’s all in moment. You are only one decision away from a totally different life. Of course, it will probably be the toughest decision you’ll ever make. But if you have the courage to completely surrender yourself to the lordship of Jesus Christ , there is no telling what God will do. All bets are off because all bets are on God. D. L. Moody left an indelible i...

“O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?” ( Galatians 3:1 ) The Greek word for “bewitched” is used only this once in the New Testament and does not necessarily refer to witchcraft as such. The connotation is “fascinated” or “deceived.” Unlike most of his other epistles, the book of Galatians includes no commendations from Paul, nor even any prayer requests. Paul evidently was very disappointed in this church and its ministry. He had clearly preached the gospel to them, setting forth “Jesus Christ, and him crucified” ( 1 Corinthians 2:2 ) among them, and they had apparently believed and started out well. They seemed to understand the great doctrines of salvation by grace and of liberty in Christ, and it was hard for Paul to understand how they had been so quickly led astray. If anything, this is even a greater problem today than in Paul’s day. Professin...

“But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared.” ( Titus 3:4 ) Six times in the pastoral epistles Paul refers to God (evidently meaning the Father) as our Savior ( 1 Timothy 1:1 ; 2:3; 4:10; Titus 1:3 ; 2:10; 3:4). Usually, however, he and the other New Testament writers identify Jesus Christ as our Savior. “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ” ( 2 Peter 3:18 , for example). In the same fashion, Paul relates that his commission to preach the gospel came from “God our Saviour” ( Titus 1:3 ), while elsewhere he says his commission came “by the revelation of Jesus Christ” ( Galatians 1:12 ). Is this a contradiction? No! In fact, references to God as our Savior should not surprise us, for it is found in numerous places in the Old Testament . (See, for example, Psalm 106:21 .) Furthermore, our understanding of the Trinity insists that all three persons of the Godhead are One in God. Of course, Christ made many r...

“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul ? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” ( Mark 8:36-37 ) The lives of many people revolve almost completely around the stock exchange, and they never stop to realize that it easily may become a soul exchange, where they exchange their very souls for the imagined blessings of the great god Mammon . “ For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” ( 1 Timothy 6:10 ). Similarly, many are greatly exercised about their monthly profit-and-loss statements. But the Lord Jesus asks whether there is really a profit, even if one acquires the wealth of the whole world at the cost of his soul, and the answer to such a rhetorical question has to be: “No!” For “the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever” ( 1 John 2:17 ). Furt...

English: Jeroboam's idolatry, 1 Kings 12:25-33, illustration from a Bible card published 1904 by the Providence Lithograph Company (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing.” ( Exodus 20:4 )   There are several reasons why idolatry is forbidden. The most obvious it that the triune Creator is too great to attempt to visualize ( Exodus 34:5-7 ). There is no thing or experience in human existence that can represent the immortal and invisible Creator ( 1 Timothy 6:16 ).   Thus, God sees any effort to “picture” Him (idolatry) as rebellion ( Jeremiah 5:19-25 ). It does not matter how we may attempt to “see” God. “Any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth” ( Exodus 20:4 ) are all totally incapable of expressing God’s person.   Romans 1:18-32 reveals the heart of an idolater. Those who hold the truth in unrighteousness (v...

English: Icon of Jesus Christ (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh , justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles , believed on in the world, received up into glory.” ( 1 Timothy 3:16 ) One of the specific reasons Paul wrote this letter to Timothy is contained in our text. The church is to guard and declare the “mystery of godliness.” A “mystery” in Scripture is something which was previously hidden, but which is now revealed. Here the mystery is the blessed truth that God is in the business of producing godliness in the lives of men and women; in this context, it is through the work of the church (v. 15). This ministry of the church in proclaiming this mystery was augmented by a doctrinal confession, or hymn, which was presented in: “God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit.” “The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us” ( John 1:14 ), and was “declared to be th...

Rembrandt's Timothy and his grandmother, 1648. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) It was an elder meeting I’ll never forget. I’d just returned from a leadership conference where the pastor of one of America ’s largest churches had waxed eloquent about the unique challenges and hardships that come with pastoral ministry. He claimed that leading a ministry is the toughest of jobs. The stakes are eternal. Our enemy is the epitome of evil. He’s cagey, fierce, and the ultimate deceiver. We’re prone to be misunderstood. Our message is unpopular. Most of our rewards come later. And we’re asked to give more than we get. Since I was in the middle of a particularly dark season of ministry, his words resonated with me. Like Asaph in Psalm 73 , I was beginning to wonder if ministry was worth it all. At our next elder meeting, I began to share what he’d said. I couched it as a request for prayer. But in reality, I just wanted some empathy and understanding. But before I could get into my ...

There are two reasons churches need to have clear teaching on human sexuality (sexual attraction, sexual identity, gender distinctions, etc). The first is because this is an issue which Scripture speaks about. It is under attack in today’s culture, and thus churches should be quick to clearly explain what the Bible actually says on the issue. The second reason is because our culture is particularly litigious. With that in mind, churches have a stewardship over their finances and property to make sure that they are protected against such lawsuits, and currently the best legal protection we have is churches have the freedom to structure themselves around their own teachings. However, this legal protection is moot when churches don’t have any articulated or published views on the topic. The point of this post is to encourage churches to develop some statement and teaching on this issue, precisely because it is the issue currently under attack. The hymn writer Elizabeth Cha...

‘Tis the season to test your treasure.  Not only are we on gift-expectation overload with Christmas , but then comes the year’s end and that one last chance for tax-deductible charitable giving. December bids us dig deeper in our wallets than any other season. Which may be a great annoyance for Scrooge — but it is a great opportunity for the Christian. It’s a time to check our spiritual pulse, and to open our hearts to blessings from God that money can’t buy. Here, then, are five truths to rehearse for Christmas spending and year-end giving. 1. Money Is a Tool Money itself is not evil. It is not wealth  per se  that is sinful, but the “desire to be rich” ( 1 Timothy 6:9). It is not money, but “the  love  of money” that is “a root of all kinds of evils” (1 Timothy  6:10 ), from which we should keep our lives free (Hebrews 13:5). It is “this craving” (1 Timothy  6:10 ) in our sinful hearts which is so dangerous. With all the strong warnin...