Dr Paul Allen

“Beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” ( 2 Peter 3:8 ) Some  Christians today are willing to compromise God ’s clear revelation. God has made it as clear as plain words could make it, that “in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is” ( Exodus 20:11 ). At face value each day appears to be 24 hours.  Yet because evolutionary “science” has alleged that the earth is billions of years old. 2 Peter 3:8 is perhaps the key verse of the so-called “ progressive creationists ” who try to correlate the days of creation in Genesis with the supposed 4.6 billion-year system of evolutionary geological ages, by citing Peter as agreeing that “one day is a thousand years.” But, Peter is saying that “one day is with the Lord as a thousand years”! That is, God can do in one day what might, by natural processes, take a thousand years.  2 Peter 3:8 “wi...

Power, basically, is neutral. It simply means the ability to do things. Power is needed if you are going to do anything good, as well as if it is used for evil. Power is the capacity to accomplish goals, or to influence the outcome of events and processes. That is why, when you find that you are unable do either of these things (accomplish your goals or influence events), you feel literally “power-less.” Power, then, is effective action, making a difference, influencing events, changing the way things are or will be. It is not surprising, then, that the Spirit of God in the Old Testament is commonly linked with power, for the biblical God is nothing if not effective in action and in bringing about change! Indeed, when the Israelites spoke of the Spirit of Yahweh, it was often simply a way of saying that God himself was exercising his power on the earth, either directly or, more commonly, through human agents. The Spirit of God is God’s power at work—either in direct action or in ...

“The heavens declare the glory of God ; and the firmament sheweth his handywork.” ( Psalm 19:1 ) This verse has been a favorite of many who recognize God’s creatorship. The vastness of space “declares” His power and sovereign control over all and calls us to worship Him as not only Creator but Savior as well. In what ways do the heavens speak? The orderly progression of day and night reminds us of God’s purpose in creating the heavenly bodies, that they should be “signs” for us to aid in telling time and the passage of time ( Genesis 1:14 ). The sun’s light energizes Earth ’s processes. From photosynthesis to tidal and atmospheric movements, the Creator can be recognized as the great Provider. The “line” mentioned in Psalm 19:4 is that of a surveyor’s line, true and accurate. It represents the absolute standard by which our conduct is measured. Just as surely as an Earth-encircling line demarcates light and darkness, so God’s holy nature measures and evaluates our behavior. The ...

As a boy Ronald Osborn took camping trips to the Mana Pools , in Zimbabwe , with his missionary parents. There he saw the splendor of untamed nature, which included the sight of lions gorging on their bloody prey. In Death Before the Fall, he writes: "All around us was a world that was deeply mysterious, untamed, dangerous, beautiful and good, waiting to be explored. And the danger was part of its goodness and beauty.... Mana Pools was very good—its lions, jackals, leopards, fish eagles and cobras included." (pg.13) This intuitive understanding of creation is quite at odds with the understanding of Genesis that Osborn learned in his young-earth-creationist Seventh Day Adventist church . There he was told that no death existed in the Garden of Eden ; death and predation resulted from Adam's sin. Not only were death and predation not intrinsic to the creation, they were evil, reflecting God 's curse. In an evolutionary scenario, death and predation are intrinsic to...

Stained glass window of the sacred Heart of Jesus Christ in the former Mosque (Cathedral) of Cordoba, Spain (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) "For God , who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ ." ( 2 Corinthians 4:6 ) Even a superficial reading of the account of creation in Genesis 1 and 2 impresses the reader with the idea of suddenness. God simply called the universe into existence from nothing and then quickly set about the rapid formation of certain features, interspersed with other direct creative acts. All of the events, whether creative or formative, seem to have happened over a brief period of time, such as the formation of the plants ( Genesis 1:12 ), the animals ( v. 20 ), and the sun and stars ( v. 16 ). Even aspects that were evidently formed by a process such as the continents and oceans ( v. 10 ) and humankind ( 2:7 , 22 ) seemingly took no g...

Stained glass at St John the Baptist's Anglican Church http://www.stjohnsashfield.org.au, Ashfield, New South Wales. Illustrates Jesus' description of himself "I am the Good Shepherd" (from the Gospel of John, chapter 10, verse 11). This version of the image shows the detail of his face. The memorial window is also captioned: "To the Glory of God and in Loving Memory of William Wright. Died 6th November, 1932. Aged 70 Yrs." (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) "And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ ." ( 1 Thessalonians 5:23 ) The threefold nature of mankind reflects, to a degree, the triune nature of the Godhead . Just as each member of the triune God is complete and wholly God, yet distinct, so each aspect of mankind is also the whole, yet distinct. The body of man comprises the entire man, yet he also possesses certain soulish emo...