Dr Paul Allen

I love the seemingly insignificant phrases in the Bible—phrases like the ones we find at the end of Genesis 1:16—“He also made the stars” (NIV)—or at the end of John’s gospel, where we are told the exact number of fish that Peter caught after Jesus had been raised from the dead—153 “large fish” (John 21:11). We frequently pass over these kinds of comments without giving them further thought.  But we must remember that there is no such thing as an insignificant phrase in the Bible. The Lord was not trying to fill up a minimum word or page count like many students try to do today with their writing assignments. Everything the Bible says is essential, and God intends to teach us something. Rather than passing over these phrases, we should consider what God might be trying to teach us through them. The account of the feeding of the five thousand, recorded in all four Gospels, contains several seemingly insignificant phrases—but one in particular has recently grabbed my attention. In Jo...

During Hillsong Conference Sydney , Pastor Brian Houston asked Carl Lentz to speak on Hillsong NYC. Carl delivered a message about the church 's humble beginnings and the importance of remaining close to God through life's highs and lows. "The story of Hillsong Church has never been about chasing a movie, or chasing the spotlight, it's always been about chasing the Shepherd! Sometimes when you don't know the journey, people can look at certain moments and say that they want that but they don't understand that our pastors , all they've done their whole lives is chase the shepherd ," said Lentz. His message was given days after Hillsong announced a new film "Let Hope Rise," which will document the international rise of the church's Hillsong UNITED worship band, is currently in the works. Lentz's message was solely focused on Psalm 23 but he also addressed the speculation that people oftentimes make when pastors and ...

Christ in the Burning Bush (Photo credit: Lawrence OP ) 1 Peter  2:25  “For you were straying like sheep , but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” ( v. 25 ). A flock of sheep in the field is notorious for its tendency to wander about. When the flock has no shepherd, individual sheep can end up far away from their flock and in great danger. In his prophecy of the Suffering Servant , Isaiah tells us that we are like sheep that have gone astray (53:6). Like sheep, we are prone to wandering about aimlessly. We sin and lose our way, finding ourselves in all kinds of danger.  As with sheep, we are in need of a shepherd to guard us and to keep us in the fold.  Of course, as this passage tells us, Jesus is this Shepherd ( 1 Peter  2:25 ). Our Savior is the one who protects us and guides us. He is the one who restores us when we succumb to sin and find ourselves far from His presence. Peter also says Jesus is the “overseer,” or ...

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 a vertical section focusing on Jesus. 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 ) Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly, nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.— 1 Peter 5:2,3 It might be accepted as a fairly reliable rule of thumb that the man who is ambitious to lead is disqualified as a leader. The Church of the Firstborn is no place for the demagogue or the petty religious dictator.  The true leader will have no wish to lord it...

Matthew 18:10 –14 “It is not the will of my Father who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish” (v. 14). After a brief interlude in which Jesus warns us to separate ourselves from those things that tempt us, our Savior returns in today’s passage to a discussion of how the children of the kingdom must treat one another. Matthew 18:10 records His warning that we not “despise one of these little ones.”  Given tha t chapter 18 has thus far emphasized our need for humility (vv. 1–9),  Christ is telling us that we must not become puffed up with self-pride and  look down on other Christians . Despising another believer means to treat him with disrespect, refusing to receive him as our equal in God ’s eyes (see v. 5). What we are to learn from verses 10–14, namely, that to treat any fellow believer with contempt is extremely serious since God and the holy angels are so concerned for their well-being. First of all, the angels ...

Good Shepherd (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) 1 Peter 2:25 “For you were straying like sheep , but have now returned to the  Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” (v. 25). A flock of sheep in the field is notorious for its tendency to wander about. When the flock has no shepherd, individual sheep can end up far away from their flock and in great danger. In his prophecy of the Suffering Servant , Isaiah tells us that we are like sheep that have gone astray (53:6). Like sheep, we are prone to wandering about aimlessly. We sin and lose our way, finding ourselves in all kinds of danger. As with sheep, we are in need of a shepherd to guard us and to keep us in the fold. Of course, as today’s passage tells us, Jesus is this Shepherd (1 Peter 2:25). Our Savior is the one who protects us and guides us. He is the one who restores us when we succumb to sin and find ourselves far from His presence. Peter also says Jesus is the “overseer,” or “bishop” ( KJV ...

Stained glass at St John the Baptist's Anglican Church (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) 1 Peter 2:25 “For you were straying like sheep , but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls” ( v. 25 ). A flock of sheep in the field is notorious for its tendency to wander about. When the flock has no shepherd, individual sheep can end up far away from their flock and in great danger. In his prophecy of the Suffering Servant , Isaiah tells us that we are like sheep that have gone astray (53:6). Like sheep, we are prone to wandering about aimlessly. We sin and lose our way, finding ourselves in all kinds of danger. As with sheep, we are in need of a shepherd to guard us and to keep us in the fold. Jesus is this Shepherd ( 1 Peter 2:25 ). Our Savior is the one who protects us and guides us. He is the one who restores us when we succumb to sin and find ourselves far from His presence. Peter also says Jesus is the “overseer,” or “bishop” (kjv) of our souls. This is not surp...

Image via Wikipedia Image via Wikipedia Perhaps you have heard (or maybe said) before, “Scripture never says that I need to be committed to only one local church .” The “attend everywhere, but committed nowhere” is a common trend among Christians when it comes to local-church commitment. But it is also one that is damaging to all parties. Church-shopping is OK to a point, but the point of shopping is to eventually end the process. Too often though, shopping becomes the norm. And not all who believe in multiple-church-attending are to blame. It’s a prominent trend all over that is sometimes even encouraged by church leadership. So, why shouldn’t we be committed to more than one local church? In some sense, for the same reason we should not be committed to more than one spouse. Because there is great design, purpose, and benefits associated with exclusive commitment. I am not saying that adultery and non-commitment to one local church are equal moral violations, nor that church-hoppin...