Dr Paul Allen

English: "John Wesley," by the English artist George Romney, oil on canvas. 29 1/2 in. x 24 3/4 in. Courtesy of the National Portrait Gallery, London. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) John Wesley (1703–1791) is best known in church history as the founder of Methodism. His commitment to the biblical gospel, passion for evangelistic preaching, and skill at organizing the budding Methodist movement are all notable traits. And God used those qualities to help spark the Evangelical Revival in England in the mid-18th century (a revival that paralleled the Great Awakening in North America ). In that respect, there are many helpful things that we can learn from Wesley’s example. His marriage, however, left a different kind of legacy; one which is also noteworthy, but not for good reasons. As Methodist author John Singleton explains: The saga of John Wesley’s marriage is a cautionary tale from the roots of Methodism that ought to resonate today with any couple so involved in chur

Rev. Jonathan Edwards, a leader of the Great Awakening, is still remembered for his sermon "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) In the 1730s and 40s, New England and others of the colonies were in the midst of that great dispensation of God ’s grace that we call The Great Awakening . Through the itinerant preaching of George Whitefield and the theological ministry of Jonathan Edwards , large numbers were coming under the conviction of sin and turning to God in repentance and faith in Christ . Yet in the thick of these revivals many of those who professed Christ would be so caught up with themselves emotionally that the display of “affections” became to be the marker of spiritual maturity. If you were powerfully affected by the truth of spiritual things, you could be assured that your state before God was acceptable. In response to this, others began to become suspicious of such displays of religious affections , recognizing that they can b

English: Charles Grandison Finney (1792-1875) Português: O teólogo estadunidense Charles Finney (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) "A Calvinist evangelist? Calvinism undermines evangelism." This accusation has been repeated so many times. Never mind that some of the church's greatest evangelists have been Calvinists . One need only be reminded of men such as George Whitefield , David Brainerd , or "the father of modern missions," William Carey . "Yes," we are told, "these men were great evangelists and Calvinists, but that is because they were inconsistent." But is this true? The fact of the matter is that Calvinism is not inconsistent with evangelism; it is only inconsistent with certain evangelistic methods. It is inconsistent, for example, with the emotionally manipulative methods created by revivalists such as Charles Finney . But these manipulative methods are themselves inconsistent with Scripture, so it is no fault to reject them. In orde

We all know that the dark ages are upon us again here in Africa. It is almost like a dark blanket that is slowly surrounding the land. People who know absolutely nothing of the core values of evangelical Christianity —the new birth, repentance and saving faith, justification and holiness, etc.—have hijacked evangelical Christianity in Africa. Even the term "born again" is being peddled without an iota of the meaning that Jesus had in mind when he used the phrase in his talk with Nicodemus. These are dark days indeed. Once upon a time in Zambia , in the 1970s and early 1980s, you could go to very much any English-speaking evangelical church on Sunday and expect to attend a Bible study and hear faithful preaching of God 's word. You may have been a little uncomfortable with some aspects of their worship. You may have also disagreed with some doctrinal assumptions during the preaching. However, you could not miss the fact that here was a sincere effort at arriving at the m

Image via Wikipedia How did America's great Christian colleges come to abandon their faith and become the secular institutions they are today? When Harvard College was founded by the Puritans in 1636, they knew well what they wanted from their school. "Let every Student be plainly instructed, and earnestly pressed to consider well, the maine end of his life and studies is, to know God and Jesus Christ which is eternal life, John 17:3, and therefore to lay Christ in the bottome, as the only foundation of all found knowledge and Learning..." The great school was intended to produce a godly clergy. In less than a hundred years, that high ideal faltered. Liberals won control of the school.  On this day, January 24, 1722,  they appointed Edward Wigglesworth to fill the newly created Thomas Hollis chair at Harvard College. This made Mr. Wigglesworth the first divinity professor commissioned in the American colonies, but what should have been cause for rejoicing was actually