Dr Paul Allen

“But if ye will not do so, behold, ye have sinned against the LORD : and be sure your sin will find you out.” ( Numbers 32:23 ) Most things in this life are uncertain; nevertheless, there are some things about which we can be absolutely sure. Just as God warned Adam that if he disobeyed His Word, he would “surely die” ( Genesis 2:17 ), so He warns us that we can be sure our sins will ultimately be exposed. “The foundation of God standeth sure” ( 2 Timothy 2:19 ). On the other side of the coin, we can also be sure of God’s mercy and faithfulness, and we can be sure of the truth of His Word. “We have also a more sure word of prophecy ; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place” ( 2 Peter 1:19 ). We also can be sure of His promised salvation. “Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast” ( Hebrews 6:19 ). Thus, we can, through faith and patience, show “the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end...

Hegel (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) A question we hear often is, “Does it really matter what I believe as long as I believe in something?” Or, “As long as your belief helps you, isn’t that all that matters?”  The idea behind statements such as these is that there is no absolute truth to believe in, and thus the act of believing is all there is. We all believe in something, as Edgar Sheffield Brightman states, “A thinker cannot divest himself of real convictions, and it is futile to pose as having none” (E.S. Brightman in H.N. Wieman, B.E. Meland (eds.), American Philosophies of Religion, New York , Harper & Brothers, 1936).  The idea of finding any truth or meaning to life has escaped modern man. This statement reflects the inability to conceive of something outside of one’s self: “There are no rules by means of which we would discover a purpose or a meaning of the universe” (Hans Reichenbach, The Rise of Scientific Philosophy, p. 301).  Even though we live in a...

Philip the Apostle. The text (in Old Church Slavonic) in the book is: "15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. 16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love..." (First Epistle of John). Church of the Dormition of the Theotokos (1774) at Kondopoga. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) "In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins ." ( 1 John 4:9-10 ) The final verse of " Deeper and Deeper " enjoins us to enter into God's love and sing of it throughout eternity. Into the love of Jesus, deeper and deeper I go, Praising the One who brought me out of my sin and woe; And through eternal ages gratefully I shall sing; "Oh, how He loved! Oh, how He loved! Jesus, my L...

English: Second Conference of World Religions organized by Moulana Ghousavi Shah(Secretary General: The Conference of World Religions) (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Our culture gets angry when Christians say that Jesus is the only way to God . In their minds a loving God would have surely provided a banquet of ways to come to Him so that the whole world could feast upon His mercy. Jesus is simply too narrow of a message. If Jesus is all God has provided this world, then He hasn't done enough. How would you respond to such attitudes? Suppose there actually is a God in heaven, and suppose this God created the world and everything in it. Suppose that, in the process of making myriad species of birds, fish, and animals, He formed human beings in His image and gave them the most exalted position in all of creation. Suppose He said, "You will be holy, even as I am holy," and gave them only one command to obey--but fifteen minutes after He made them, these human beings rev...

The Prophet Isaiah (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the  LORD  shall prosper in his hand.” ( Isaiah 53:10 )   In this one verse, found in the wonderful 53rd chapter of Isaiah, there is an amazing prophecy of the sacrificial death of the Lord Jesus Christ in atonement for our sins , His resurrection from the dead, and the resulting salvation of many lost sinners.   This Old Testament chapter, written 600 years before Christ , contains probably the most complete and cogent exposition of the saving work of Christ on the cross to be found in the entire Bible .   How could it “please” the Lord to bruise His only begotten Son ? It could only be because of the great work this would accomplish.   Then, indeed, “the pleasure of the Lord” would be realized. As to the So...