Dr Paul Allen

If you’re a Christian, no doubt you highly value God’s faithfulness, the precious reality “that what God [has] promised, he [is] able to perform” (Romans 4:21 NASB). You believe that Christ upholds the entire cosmos “by the word of his power” (Hebrews 1:3). Therefore, all of reality, not to mention your eternal future, literally depends on God being true to his word. True to your word. That is a concise, clear definition of what it means to be a faithful person. There is consistency between what you say and what you do, between what you believe and how you behave, between what you promise and what you perform. “A faithful person keeps the faith of those who put their trust in him.” When we (and the Bible) describe someone as “faithful,” we’re almost never referring to how much faith that person possesses, but to how much faith others can place in that person — how much others can trust him to perform what he promises. A faithful person keeps (cherishes, maintains, guards) the faith of

“And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry.” ( 1 Timothy 1:12 ) The testimony of a changed life is perhaps the best evidence that God is alive and active today. The fact that at salvation a dead slave to sin is given life and a new nature comprises the only rational explanation for one who lives in victory and power after a lifetime of defeat. Take Paul, for example. Our introduction to him is at the stoning of Stephen ( Acts 7:58 ), after which his ardor for the Jewish traditions and hatred of Christianity caused him to wreak “havoc of the church, entering into every house, and haling men and women committed them to prison” ( Acts 8:3 ). This was not just casual opposition, for he was “breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord” ( Acts 9:1 ). He was a “blasphemer, and a persecutor [not only of Christians , but of Christ Himself— Acts 9:5 ], and injurious” ( 1 Timothy 1:

You know the story. A man has been a believer in Christ for decades. To all outward appearances he's a man of Christian faithfulness and integrity. He has maintained a reputation as a fine example of public and private faithfulness to the things of God for decades. Then, without warning, it all collapses into a sinkhole of sin. Everyone wonders how it could have happened so quickly. In most cases, it soon becomes known that—like most sinkholes —the problem didn't develop overnight. Several years ago, this man likely had a relatively consistent devotional life through which the Lord often refreshed, strengthened, and matured him. But with each passing year, his busy life became ever busier. Increasingly he saw his devotional life more as a burden—a mere obligation sometimes—than a blessing. Because of the massive doses of Bible teaching he'd heard—in addition to the knowledge gained teaching church Bible classes himself—he began to imagine that he needed less

Is church attendance, if you're physically able, a requirement to go to heaven? In a very technical sense, the answer is no. However, we need to remember a few things. Christ commands His people not to forsake the assembling together (Heb. 10:25). When God constituted the people of Israel, He organized them into a visible nation and placed upon them a sober and sacred obligation to be in corporate worship before Him. If a person is in Christ, he is called to participate in koinonia—the fellowship of other Christians and the worship of God according to the precepts of Christ. If a person knows all these things and persistently and willfully refuses to join in them, would that not raise serious questions about the reality of that person's conversion? Perhaps a person could be a new Christian and take that position, but I would say that's highly unlikely. Some of us may be deceiving ourselves in terms of our own conversion. We may claim to be Christians, but if we love

Katie was 33, single, and deeply in love with Jesus. I remember asking her, "Where do you go to church?" She smiled and said, "Well, I have three main churches. I go to Rez Church for weekend services because I love the music. I am in a small group at Community Church over on the North side of town — the people are so nice. And I enjoy the singles ministry at Stone Brook Church." Then, as an afterthought Katie said, "Oh, and I love the concerts over at Sunrise Church!" I paused as I pondered her answer and then inquired, "But where do you go to church? Where do you invest yourself, serve, give, and do community as a member of God's family?" Katie looked at me with kindness and some confusion in her eyes and said, "I'm not sure what you mean." We went on to have a rich and meaningful conversation about the value of being connected to a local body of Christians. We discussed the importance of connecting deeply and consistentl

According to Jesus, it is what we do in secret that matters most. Jesus is not suggesting that the outward is unimportant—far from it. "What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?" (James  2:14 ). The answer is emphatically  no . Still, it is also possible to have outward works but no inner reality. In this instance, religion is a pretense. Six times in the Sermon on the Mount, alluding to three distinct exercises, Jesus employs the term  secret : Give "in secret…and your Father who sees in secret will reward you" (Matt. 6:4). Pray "in secret…and your Father who sees in secret will reward you" (v. 6). Fast "in secret…and your Father who sees in secret will reward you" (v. 18). The Sermon on the Mount is addressing the issue of authenticity . Just how genuine is our relationship with the Lord Jesus? It is altogether possible to practice an outward display of piety—to

C hrist in Gethsemane (Christus in Gethsemane), oil painting by Heinrich Ferdinand Hofmann (Heinrich Hofmann). The original is at the Riverside Church (Riverside Church, New York City). (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) "But seek ye first the kingdom of God , and his righteousness ; and all these things shall be added unto you." ( Matthew 6:33 ) This verse has become a favorite memory verse for millions and has even been set to music by a number of artists. Indeed, its truth is of foundational importance. First, notice that the tense of the verb "seek" in Greek implies a command to establish an ongoing habit or lifestyle of "seeking" the things of the kingdom. We are commanded to put first things first on a continual basis and watch Him take care of the items of secondary interest. We should strive to make His priorities our priorities--to so mold our thinking by the Word of God that we think as He does on every issue. Our lives should exhibit the purity