Dr Paul Allen

When Nietzsche famously declared, “God is dead,” we often assume the atheist philosopher said it triumphally. Yet Nietzsche didn’t pronounce the death of God—by which he meant the idea of God and religion had died following the triumph of reason and science—as a wholesale victory. While on the one hand, it was a triumph (as he understood it), on the other hand, Nietzsche saw the cost: “our entire European morality.” Nietzsche prophesied a dark time to follow, a process of crumbling and terror when there would be no reason to be “moral.” He predicted a post-God world would result in the loss of “Christian” morality, descent into meaninglessness, and the breakdown of a unified sense of self, identity, and purpose. In the post-Christian West, we’re seeing Nietzsche’s predictions play out. If there's any hope of navigable meaning, something else must take the place of God. God’s absence must be filled by some presence—and many candidates are vying to fill the void. In particular, we’ve...

A recent documentary claims that a “mistranslation” of the Bible is to blame for Christians believing homosexuality is a sin. Directed by self-identified “lesbian Christian” Sharon “Rocky” Roggio, the film asserts that the word homosexual did not appear in any version of the Bible until 1946. Translators for the Revised Standard Version (RSV) used it for the first time then, in their translation of 1 Corinthians 6:9. Rather than haggle over a specific word, I’d like to step back and consider the larger issue at stake, which impacts all of humanity: the issue of idolatry. The LGBT Movement is Based on Idolatry To define oneself primarily in terms of a sexual appetite or inclination is to make an idol out of sexuality and its expression. It is worshipping an aspect of creation rather than the Creator. It leads straight toward treating others as sexual objects for our own gratification or bolstering our ego. It’s one thing to love those we love or to have strong feelings toward those who ...

Who do you look at to see yourself? Whose opinion of you forms your identity? If you have been like me, perhaps you rely on many mirrors. Does this group think I am fun to be around? Does my wife find me desirable? Does this pastor or small group respect me? Do these people think I am smart, or are those people, funny? Does this group like my writing; does he think I talk too much? Whose opinion of you forms your identity? I see myself, if I am not careful, reflected in a carnival of mirrors. In this one, I’m short and chubby. In that one, I am tall and skinny. In this one, I have an inflated head. In that one, massive feet. In the one over there, I am “too Christian.” In this one here, I am just right — at least for the moment. We too often live from mirror to mirror, always looking into others’ faces to see our own. We live and move and have our being looking for certain people to approve of us. Isn’t it a wonder, then, that there was one who walked among us who cared not for human m...

In their recent book Good Faith: Being a Christian When Society Thinks You’re Irrelevant and Extreme, David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons document that 84 percent of Americans believe that “enjoying yourself is the highest goal of life.” Further, 86 percent believe that to enjoy yourself you must “pursue the things you desire most.” And 91 percent affirm this statement: “To find yourself, look within yourself.” In our day, the Westminster Catechism answer has been inverted: “the chief end of man is to glorify and enjoy himself forever.” One could even make a case that self-worship is the world’s fastest-growing religion. It is certainly the world’s oldest (just read Gen. 3). Moreover, this religion lies beneath many of the most hot-button social and political issues of our day. Six Commandments These are the sacred commandments of this ancient and still-trending world religion: Your mind is the source and standard of truth, so no matter what, trust yourself. #theanswersarewithin Your emotion...

She sits in my office, tears running down her face. Two years ago her mother died in hospice while she lay asleep at home. She was trying to get a decent night’s rest after days spent at her mother’s side. “I just can’t forgive myself. I let her die alone. I knew I should have been there, but I was selfish. I can never forgive myself for that.” Dozens have shared similar confessions with me. Does this resonate with you? What guilt do you bear? What burdens are you carrying because you can’t forgive yourself? If Christ has forgiven you, do you also have to forgive yourself? If Christ has forgiven you, do you also have to forgive yourself? Many are trapped because they can’t forgive themselves. My friend isn’t alone. And she feels trapped. Because she’ll never hear her mother offer her forgiveness, she feels like she can’t release herself from guilt. What Does Scripture Say?   Why can’t you release yourself from your sin? Is it because the weight is too much? Because you know yo...