Dr Paul Allen

According to Pastor Andy Stanley, Dr. Al Mohler’s “version of Christianity draws lines, and Jesus drew circles. He drew circles so large and included so many people in His circle that it consistently made religious leaders nervous. And His circle was big enough to include sinners like me, and I come from a long line of sinners like me.” Yes, “On one occasion, Jesus said, ‘Come to Me, all weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. You will find rest for your souls. All. That’s a big circle. That’s the invitation of our Savior. That’s the invitation of our church.” Indeed, as a church, Pastor Stanley stated, “We decided 28 years ago, we draw circles, we don’t draw lines, we draw big circles.” The truth is that Jesus drew both circles and lines and if we don’t do both, we hurt those we are called to help. On the one hand, God’s love, expressed in Jesus, is massive beyond words. Jesus died for our sins. He took the punishment for our guilt. He was pronounced guilty so that we could be p

Five hundred years later some Christians seem almost embarrassed about the Reformation . Not me. The Reformation must continue, as it still has work to do. Its cry is essential ‘back to the Bible ’ and ‘away with man-made rules and traditions‘. As such it is a cry that must be heard in every denomination, and every church, in every generation. It is understood that it was the 31st October 1517 when the monk Martin Luther pinned his 95 theses to the door and unleashed a revolution that continues to this day. These theses could each have been a tweet, and they were deliberately intended to spark a debate. They undermined the idea that the Pope was the sole source of authoritative teaching, and encouraged the ordinary man to re-examine official Church teachings. That idea still holds power today and must continue to exert its effects. Just as the printing press enabled the ideas of the Reformation to spread, so the Internet allows the Reformation to continue today. May articles such

For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. ROMAN 5:10 It is not repentance that saves me; repentance is the sign that I realise what God has done in Christ Jesus . The danger is to put the emphasis on the effect instead of on the cause — “It is my obedience that puts me right with God, my consecration.” Never! I am put right with God because prior to all, Christ died. When I turn to God and by belief accept what God reveals I can accept, instantly the stupendous Atonement of Jesus Christ rushes me into a right relationship with God, and by the supernatural miracle of God’s grace I stand justified, not because I am sorry for my sin, not because I have repented, but because of what Jesus has done. The spirit of God brings it with a breaking, all-over light, and I know, though I do not know how, that I am saved. The salvation of God does not stand on human logic, it stands on the sac

Last year, Pope Francis announced that after five hundred years, Protestants and Catholics now “have the opportunity to mend a critical moment of our history by moving beyond the controversies and disagreements that have often prevented us from understanding one another.” From that, it sounds as if the Reformation was an unfortunate and unnecessary squabble over trifles, a childish outburst that we can all put behind us now that we have grown up. But tell that to Martin Luther , who felt such liberation and joy at his rediscovery of justification by faith alone that he wrote, “I felt that I was altogether born again and had entered paradise itself through open gates.” Tell that to William Tyndale , who found it such “merry, glad and joyful tidings” that it made him “sing, dance, and leap for joy.” Tell it to Thomas Bilney , who found it gave him “a marvellous comfort and quietness, insomuch that my bruised bones leaped for joy.” Clearly, those first Reformers didn’t think they we

This year, many people are celebrating the five-hundredth anniversary of the Protestant Reformation . But not everyone is. Some have raised severe criticisms against the Reformers and their work. The Reformers, they allege, replaced the authority of the church with the authority of the autonomous individual. Moreover, the doctrine of justification by faith alone , these critics claim, cut the nerve of morality and, effectively, baptized licentious living. Martin Luther and John Calvin , they continue, opened Pandora’s box, releasing two forces that not only rent the church but also went on to define the modern age: radical individualism and antinomianism. Understood on these terms, the Reformation is cause for lamentation, not celebration. These criticisms rest on a profound misunderstanding of the Reformation and, specifically, a misunderstanding of two of the leading doctrines of the Reformation: sola scriptura ( Scripture alone ) and sola fide (faith alone). What were the

To answer this question, let’s begin by looking at the word the Bible uses for faith. It’s common to make the mistake of bringing our own definition of words into the Bible. In this case, Christians who have grown up with the view that faith is blind instantly assume that the Bible is referring to a belief without knowledge or evidence (that is, “blind faith”). But when we take a careful look at the Bible, it appears to be saying something completely different about faith. The word used in the New Testament for faith is pistis, which is commonly used to express “the state of believing on the basis of the reliability of the one trusted.”1 It can thus also mean “trust” or “confidence.” Note that it doesn’t mean the hope that something is true or the wish that something would be true—those are different ideas. It might reduce some confusion, then, if we just use the word trust when talking about this idea. We use this biblical version of faith, or trust, all the time. Think about the l

Yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness. ROMANS 6:13-22 I cannot save and sanctify myself; I cannot atone for sin; I cannot redeem the world; I can not make right what is wrong, pure what is impure, holy what is unholy. That is all the sovereign work of God.  Have I faith in what Jesus Christ has done? He has made a perfect Atonement, am I in the habit of constantly realizing it? The great need is not to do things, but to believe things.  The Redemption of Christ is not an experience, it is the great act of God which He has performed through Christ, and I have to build my faith upon it. If I construct my faith on my experience, I produce that most unscriptural type, an isolated life, my eyes fixed on my own whiteness. Beware of the piety that has no presupposition in the Atonement of the Lord. It is of no use for anything but a sequestered life; it is useless to God and a nuisance to man. Measure every type of experience by our Lord Himself. We cannot do

Five hundred years ago, a lowly German priest walked up to the church door in Wittenberg and posted a document that altered the course of history. It has now been five centuries since Martin Luther stood up and confronted Roman Catholicism. The kindling had been laid over decades, and Luther’s little, almost accidental spark soon set all of Europe ablaze. In time, this lowly monk proved he had what it took to hold his ground against the Church and the world — and under God, he became the tip of the spear for massive reform. In one especially memorable scene, he stood before the emperor and declared courageously, risking his own life, “Here I stand. I can do no other. So help me, God.” But Luther did not stand alone. The Reformation was not about one or two big names — Luther, Calvin, Zwingli — but about a massive movement of Christian conviction, boldness, and joy that cost many men and women their lives — and scattered the seeds that are still bearing fruit in the twenty-first cent

October 31st is Reformation day. This year, we celebrate the 500th year of the reformation. As we consider the boldness of Luther, who was pretty much being asked to either recant his writings or be killed, it is tough to put ourselves in his shoes. As he said his famous words, “HERE I STAND, I CAN DO NO OTHER, SO HELP ME GOD. AMEN,” we can’t help but feel not only inspired by Luther but at the same time intimidated by the idea of being as bold as him. It is important for us, though, to understand that we are called to be bold in our lives as well. The declaration from the Reformation that should ring true in our hearts, as well, is that the Gospel is more important than anything in this life. The call of the Reformation for each of us in our lives is to live a life unashamed of the Gospel. When Paul declares that he is unashamed of the Gospel in Romans 1:16, he does so because he must know that it is a temptation for the people of Rome to be ashamed. You’d have to live in a cave no

As we celebrate the 500th year of the reformation this year, I’ve been very encouraged by the fact that there are so many in the church who understand that the reformation is not over. This year is an opportunity for the church to really explore what the Roman Catholic church actually is, and ask whether or not it teaches the truth. Secondly, each believer must ask himself whether, when speaking with the Catholic individual, they are asking the right questions. Many Christians may accept the fact that the Roman Catholic church is a false church that teaches works-righteousness , but may have “the neighbor” who says he really loves Jesus , making it very difficult to figure out how to really know if they believe in grace or if they believe in works. I understand the dilemma. I have had many conversations recently during which someone, either Mormon or Catholic, who had all the same words until we got to the heart of the Gospel , and then simply denied it.  I th

Gemälde Katharina von Bora /Öl auf Eichenholz (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Martin Luther, author of the text of Christ lag in Todes Banden, and who, with Johann Walter, also wrote the melody (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) The fourteenth century was a bad time for the papacy. For a period, there were two rival popes and the papacy was under pressure from the French monarchy. It wasn’t a good time for the city of Rome either—seven successive popes abandoned Rome in favor of Avignon in France. Rome was sidelined and Saint Peter’s Basilica fell into disrepair. The popes returned to Rome in 1377 and then sorted out their divisions in 1417. A hundred years on, things were looking up: in 1505, Pope Julius II had decided to knock down the old St Peter’s and start again. He had big plans for his own tomb and wanted a basilica to match. It was time to make Rome magnificent once again. But that didn’t come cheap, so the church embarked on a fundraising campaign. It was this campaign that br