Dr Paul Allen

1. Suffering is a result of the fall. God warned Adam that eating the forbidden fruit would result in death ( Gen 2 ). Romans 5:12 confirms that this happened after Adam’s fall, “Just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned .” Death (and the accompanying pain and suffering ) came as a result of that first sin and our continued sin. Pain, suffering, and death—in and of themselves—are not good. 2. God uses suffering for good. Thankfully, Romans 8 tells us “That for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” God never tells us our pain is good, but he uses pain to work for our good in his miraculous and mysterious way. One of the ways God uses pain is to wake us up and bring up to himself. Our tendency in times of trial may be to run away from God, become angry with God, or idolize worldly comfort. Charles Spurgeon said it well when he en

To the Glory of God  (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Christians often speak of the glory of God and living for the glory of God, but what is the glory of God ? The Westminster Shorter Catechism rightly tells us that the chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever. And yet, ‘glorifying’ God and living for ‘the glory of God’ can often seem mysterious and ultimately disconnected from day-to-day life. There is no theme more central to the message of Scripture than the glory of God. He created the world so that his name would be glorified in and by the things he made, and he has saved us so that we might glorify him in eternity. It is a focus that a self-centered generation badly needs to recover, and the contributors to this volume have given us a wonderful introduction on which to base our reflections and our worship. An understanding of God’s glory affects every area of Christian living: the purpose of the Christian life, worship, ethics, evangelism, missions, pastoral

English: Stained glass panel in the nave of St. John's Anglican Church, Ashfield, New South Wales (NSW). This window depicts the young Jesus teaching at the temple. The title banner reads "All that heard him were astonished at his understanding & answers" (Luke 2:47). The inscription on this memorial window reads "To the Glory of God & In Loving Memory of William Rogers, Died 22nd October 1930, & his Wife Annie Mildred Rogers, Died 1st January 1927." (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) It is imperative that the church capture a passion for the glory of God , or even better, be captured by that passion. To be consumed by God ’s glory is crucial for two reasons. First, if God delights in His own glory, then He is pleased when others delight in it as well. Second, it is this God-centered focus that brings life and vitality, direction and purpose, to the Christian’s life. This passion both begins and ends with worship. In the corporate gatherings of God’s pe

 (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “Not unto us, O LORD, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth’s sake.” ( Psalm 115:1 ) One of the great words of the Bible is the word “glory,” and it should be evident that glory belongs to God , not man. Indeed, the very “heavens declare the glory of God ” ( Psalm 19:1 ).  Not only do the heavens declare His glory, but “his glory [is] above the heavens” (113:4), and “the glory of the LORD shall endure for ever” (104:31). In heaven the mighty hosts of angels “give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name” (29:2). It is thus singularly inappropriate for God’s servants on Earth to seek glory for themselves. “Thus saith the LORD, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches: But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousne

Christ the Saviour (Pantokrator), a 6th-century encaustic icon from Saint Catherine's Monastery, Mount Sinai. NB - slightly cut down - for full size see here (Photo credit: Wikipedia I. In the Old Testament ‘Glory’ generally represents Heb. kāḇôḏ , with the root idea of ‘heaviness’ and so of ‘weight’ or ‘worthiness’. It is used of men to describe their wealth, splendour or reputation (though in the last sense kāḇôḏ is often rendered ‘honour’). The glory of Israel was not her armies but Yahweh (Je. 2:11). The word could also mean the self or soul (Gn. 49:6). The most important concept is that of the glory of Yahweh. This denotes the revelation of God’s being, nature and presence to mankind, sometimes with physical phenomena. In the Pentateuch the glory of Yahweh went with his people out of Egypt and was shown in the cloud which led them through the wilderness (Ex. 16:7, 10). The cloud rested on Mt Sinai , where Moses saw his glory (Ex. 24:15–18). No man could see God’s f

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 ) "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom" ( Prov. 9:10). If that is so, and it is, then the fear of the Lord is never to be feared . This fear is not a barrier to growth but a breakthrough to growth and eternal fulfillment. But the word fear needs clarification, doesn't it? After all, doesn't the Bible say, "Perfect love casts out fear" (1 John4:18)? Yes. So, there must be two kinds of fear. One kind of fear is the fear that shrinks from the Lord in dread, that cowers

John Owen, by John Greenhill (died 1676). See source website for additional information. This set of images was gathered by User:Dcoetzee from the National Portrait Gallery, London website using a special tool. All images in this batch have been confirmed as author died before 1939 according to the official death date listed by the NPG. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) It’s a question that every Christian eventually asks. “Why did God allow the world to go the way it did?” For believers, and often unbelievers, it doesn’t take much to see that God did not have to create a human race destined to fall. He was not obligated to create that tree in the garden, nor was he obliged to allow Satan ’s fall, the subsequent deception, Eve ’s taking of the fruit, Adam’s sin, and subsequent billions of his image-bearers birthed in high-handed rebellion. Why did he create a world upon which he would pronounce a curse that leaves no corner of the creation , image-bearing or not, without carnage, spir

StJohnsAshfield StainedGlass JohnTheBaptist Paul (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) The Old Testament had much to say about the presence of God. Throughout the history of Israel , God’s presence was mediated through fire (Exod 3:6; Deut 5:4), through blazing light (Exod 33:18–23), through visions (Ezek 1:28) and angels (Jdg 6:21–22; cf. 13:21–22), through the temple worship (Pss 27:4; 63:1–2), and even through God’s own Word (1 Sam 3:21). But with the coming of Jesus and the New Covenant era, the glory of God ’s presence is now uniquely and supremely manifested “in the face of Christ ” ( 2 Cor 4:6). This makes sense, of course, because Christ is the perfect “ image of God ” (2 Cor 4:4). This is precisely the testimony of the opening verses of the Book of Hebrews . Though God had revealed Himself by speaking to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days He has spoken finally and decisively in His Son (Heb 1:1). Christ is therefore the radiance of t

StJohnsAshfield StainedGlass Baptism (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “For my eyes have seen Your salvation, which You have prepared before the face of all peoples” ( Luke 2:30–31). When we consider the glory of Christ , we must not think of it as something given to Him only after His ascension. His glory was not bestowed, but it was shared with the Father from all eternity. Jesus Himself said in John 17:5 that He longed to partake once again of the glory that He shared with the Father in the beginning. But there is a sense in which that glory was manifested in a different way beginning with the incarnation. His glory was announced by the angels from heaven to the shepherds in the fields. The star of David shone in wondrous light to lead the wise men to the Son of God . The virgin who had been touched by the Holy Spirit gave birth to the King of kings in a lowly stable. Thus, the twofold dimension of Jesus’ life that reflected both His humiliation and His exaltation was manifested

Image via Wikipedia Jonathan Edwards said, “ God is glorified not only by His glory’s being seen, but by its being rejoiced in.” So the glory of God is displayed when we rejoice in it. The Scotch catechism says that man’s chief end is ‘to glorify God and enjoy Him forever’. But we shall then know that these are the same thing. Fully to enjoy is to glorify. In commanding us to glorify Him, God is inviting us to enjoy him. Give God all the glory! Related articles Give Glory to God (lifereference.wordpress.com) Theology 101, Lesson 1A: Why Are We Here? (rightontheology.wordpress.com) Day 7: We walk the same path as the angels, how cool is that! (lifeisgelato.wordpress.com) God Is Our Good! (samuelatgilgal.wordpress.com) Westminster Shorter Catechism - Lord's Day 27 (mgpcpastor.wordpress.com) Dependent Upon His Power (samuelatgilgal.wordpress.com) Jonathan Edwards On The Sovereignty Of God (samuelatgilgal.wordpress.com) Oxygen part I (petegreenwood.wordpress.com) S

Image via 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 )   The light that shines in the soul of a lost sinner when he first comes to know Jesus Christ can only be compared to the light that Christ called forth on Day One of the creation week. We met this God of glory spiritually when we first beheld in our hearts the face of Jesus Christ.   But the face of Jesus Christ was not always deemed so glorious. We read of a time when ungodly men "did . . . spit in his face" ( Matthew 26:67 ), then took a blindfold "to cover his face" ( Mark 14:65 ), and finally, with a rain of terrible blows "struck him on the face" ( Luke 22:64 ).  Once His "countenance [was] as Lebanon , excellent as the cedars" ( Song of Solomon 5:15 ), but when they finished their assault, "his visage was s

Image via Wikipedia Maslow was wrong. Well, he was right before he was wrong. It is true enough that we all have a hierarchy of needs .  Some things are more important than others.  Trouble is, he didn’t know what the most important things were. Foundational in his system are those things necessary for survival, things like food and water.  King David had a different, a better perspective. He said that the Lord was His Shepherd, and he shall not want ( Psalm 23:1). David, at this point, has no green grass, and no still water. To be sure God does provide these things, but before He does, David already has everything he needs, the Lord for His Shepherd.  Survival is still up in the air, but David has already finished with his worrying. He has what he needs. One of the most foundational principles in the modern marketing of the church is the notion that we need to tap into not Maslow’s needs, but “felt needs.” This language leaves open the question of what is truly needfu