Dr Paul Allen

October 31 should be Bible Appreciation Day. While the world’s children appreciate candy and playing dress up, we Christians ought to appreciate those who shed their blood in order for us to hold the Bible. If only Wycliffe, Hus, and Tyndale could have seen a vision of my iPhone as they were being killed for their hard work! They would have seen the dozens of translations I hold in my Bible gateway app, or my Logos app, that allows me to have access to so many tools, including the ability to parse Greek words at the drop of a hat! I think it is proper for us to spend a little time tomorrow thanking God for His Word, and for emboldening men and women to be willing to die for the sake of the possibility to hold our Bibles. It is also imperative that you realize the ramifications of their actions. The Roman Catholic Church hates the fact that you have your Bible. They made that very clear when they dug up John Wycliffe’s bones in order to burn them and scatter them in the river Swift. ...

English: Communion setting at an Evangelical Lutheran Church in America worship service: an open Bible, both unleavened bread and gluten-free wafers, a chalice of wine, and another containing grape juice (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Statements to this effect, made regarding the corporate worship of God's people , abound in Christian literature and Christian conversations. They sound rather convincing. Scripture, after all, assures us that "it is more blessed to give than to receive." And the etymology of our English word "worship"—apparently from an Old English term meaning "to ascribe worth"—lends itself, perhaps, to a view of worship as an act of giving something to God. In reality such statements—contrary, I'm sure, to the intentions of those who make them—reveal misunderstandings about why we as Christians gather for corporate worship and who is actually present when we do so. Indeed, such statements—taken at face value—could be argued to c...

An aristocratic lady coming out from temple and giving alms. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting , but only to your Father , who is unseen; and your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you” ( Matthew 6:17 –18). Roman Catholics are much more diligent about fasting than Protestants —or at least they used to be. The reason for this is that the Catholic Church used to require a partial fast, from meat, every Friday. There were other days of fasting in the Roman calendar as well. Protestant churches, however, have had little to say about fasting. Why is this? The reason lies in the fact that at the time of the Reformation, fasting was connected with the sacrament of penance. In the Roman system, if a person committed a mortal sin, he lost his justification. In order to regain his justification and escape the sentence of...