Dr Paul Allen

“And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.” ( Joel  2:32 )   “God is no respecter of persons” ( Acts  10:34 ). Yet in the above “whosoever” passage of the Old Testament , it is clear that those who “call on the name of the LORD” were the same as “the remnant whom the LORD shall call.” Those who call  on  the Lord have first been called  by the Lord. He accepts all those who call on Him from every nation, but no doubt their geographical location to a large extent determines whether they will even hear of Him, and “how then shall they call on him . . . of whom they have not heard?” ( Romans  10:14 ).   Theologians of great intellect have wrestled with these questions for centuries without resolving them, at least to the satisfaction of those of different mental...

“Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.” Isaiah 49:16 No doubt a part of the wonder which is concentrated in the word “Behold,” is excited by the unbelieving lamentation of the preceding sentence. Zion said, “ The Lord has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me. ” How amazed the divine mind seems to be at this wicked unbelief! What can be more astounding than the unfounded doubts and fears of God’s favored people? The Lord’s loving word of rebuke should make us blush; he cries, “How can I have forgotten you, when I have graven you upon the palms of my hands? How dare you doubt my constant remembrance, when the memorial is set upon my very flesh?” Unbelief, how strange a marvel you are! We know not which most to wonder at, the faithfulness of God or the unbelief of his people. He keeps his promise a thousand times, and yet the next trial makes us doubt him. He never fails; he is never a dry well; he is never as a setting sun, a passing meteor, or a melting vapor; and ...

Photograph of medieval canvas "Abraham and Melchisedek" (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Psalm 110 is another of the kingship psalms. It is one of the most frequently quoted psalms in the entire New Testament (cf., Matt.   22:44 ; 26:64; Mark  12:36 ; 14:62;  16:19 ; Luke  20:42 –44; 22:69; Acts  2:34 –35; Rom.  8:34 ; 1 Cor.  15:25 ; Eph.  1:20 ; Col. 3:1; Heb. 1:3, 13; 5:6;  7:17 , 21; 8:1;  10:12 –13; 12:2). According to its title, David was the author of this psalm, a fact that is crucial to its interpretation within the New Testament. Yahweh says to my Lord : "Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool." (v. 1) These introductory lines are important because of what they say about the Messianic king. The first words of the verse following the title are:  ne'um yhwh  indicating that this is an oracle of the Lord. The words  la'doni  are translated "to my Lord." It is significant that David...

“The adversaries of the LORD shall be broken to pieces; out of heaven shall he thunder upon them: the LORD shall judge the ends of the earth; and he shall give strength unto his king, and exalt the horn of his anointed.” ( 1 Samuel 2:10 ) This is a remarkable prayer, uttered under divine inspiration by Hannah, thanking God for the miraculous birth of Samuel. It contains the first explicit reference in the Bible to the Messiah (“anointed,” in the Hebrew, is Messiah, equivalent to the Greek “Christ”). Hannah’s prophetic prayer predicts the ultimate exaltation of Messiah over all the adversaries of the Lord to the very ends of the earth. Hannah also prophesied the coming of the Lord ’s great King . Yet this was during the time of the judges, long before the people of Israel even began to request a king. In fact, the entire prophecy is the first of many similar prophecies throughout the Bible which look forward to the return of the Lord “out of heaven” to judge all nations, to dest...

English: Icon of Jesus Christ (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) "Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit." (John 15:2) John 15:2 sets forth a major emphasis on the relationship of the believer to Christ . Jesus ' exhortation throughout this portion of His discourse is that, as Christians , as His disciples, we are to be fruitful. That is, we are to be productive. This theme is declared so often in the pages of the New Testament , you would think it would be almost a cliché among Christians, but that is not the case. I frequently encounter the idea, if you are a Christian, you do not really have to do very much. The idea is that since we are justified by grace through faith alone, works are utterly inconsequential, so we can kick back, take our ease in Zion , rest on the grace of God , and be utterly worthless for His kingdom. It seems that our proper emphasis on the monergistic savi...

Our Lord Jesus Christ (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea." ( Psalm 46:1-2 )   "The LORD also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble" ( Psalm 9:9 ). What a comfort it is, in these days of turmoil and opposition, to know that our Lord is "a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat" ( Isaiah 25:4 ).   Our refuge is strong and secure. The psalmist testifies: "I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust" ( Psalm 91:2 ). Then God answers: "Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee" ( Psalm 91:9-10  and see also vv. 10-13).   Not only does our refug...

English: Icon of Jesus Christ (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.’” ( Revelation 21:3) Perhaps the most essential thing the Bible teaches us about heaven is that heaven is where God is. This truth explains most (if not all) of the other things we learn about it. Scripture teaches us that where God is, two things must be true: 1) Wherever God is, there is perfect happiness. In your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. ( Psalm 16:11) And the ransomed of the LORD shall return and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain gladness and joy, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. ( Isaiah 35:10) He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, n...

English: An image of Psalm 23 (King James' Version), frontispiece to the 1880 omnibus printing of The Sunday at Home. Scanned at 800 dpi. Français : Illustration du Psaume 23 (version autorisée par le roi Jacques), en frontispice de l'édition omnibus du Sunday at home. Version numérisée à 800 dpi. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Is worry one of your besetting sins? It can cover a wide range of subjects - immediate family concerns, the economy, teenagers future, jobs, plus other things. We don't like unknowns, and we don't like feeling out of control. To compensate, we often try to keep tabs on all the possible variables that could affect the outcome,  thinking that we can at least be mentally prepared for what could occur. But this is cold comfort. There are too many factors beyond our scope, and as we consider what is outside of our control, the needle on the worry meter goes up. Our thoughts of God are often "too human" 1 , as if He is equally perplexe...

Shaded relief map of the Sinai Peninsula, 1992, produced by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Jesus is considered by scholars such as Weber to be an example of a charismatic religious leader. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less shall we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven. And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heaven.”  And this expression, “Yet once more,” denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, in order that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe; for our God is a consuming fire. (12:25–29) After giv...

Image via Wikipedia Psalm 137 (Photo credit: Mouse ) "And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." ( Isaiah 32:2 )   In the context of this beautiful verse, the "man" is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ . To one who had been traveling in the heat of the desert, such as the Sinai wilderness, nothing was so welcome as the cool shadows behind a great rock in which one could rest for a while from the hardships of the wearying land. The symbol of the shadow is often used in the Old Testament to illustrate the refreshing presence of the Lord.   "He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty" ( Psalm 91:1 ). Wherever His loved ones go, He is there, and our dwelling place is there in His shadow.   There is safety there, also. "Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the sh...