Paul Ellis's Blog, page 2

The Grace Revolution: Who, What, When, How and Why?

Over the past few years, many have spoken of a “grace revolution” that is sweeping across the globe. There has certainly been a grace awakening in my own life, but is it true to speak of a worldwide grace revolution? How would we know? What does a grace revolution even look like?

I have written a book that answers questions like these and more:

What is the Grace Revolution?How to measure the Grace Revolution?Who were the influential players in early stages of the Grace Rev...

The Most Influential Grace Preachers of the 20th Century

Who told you about grace? Who told them?

The message of grace came to you via a long line of preachers and teachers. It began with Jesus and the apostles. Then others passed it on to someone who passed it to someone who passed it to you. Truly, you are proof of the enduring power of this message.

Have you ever thought about all those preachers and teachers who came before you? Have you ever wondered who laid the foundations of today’s grace movement?

After years of asking questi...

“Brothers, We Are Under Obligation”

You can learn a lot about people by the way they talk.

People who have been apprehended by the grace of God talk about Jesus, love, and faith. They use words like “favor,” “freedom,” “rest,” “righteousness,” and “life.”

In contrast, those who bear the heavy yoke of dead religion speak of sin, debt, and obligation. They use words like “duty,” “strive, “command,” “penalty,” and “punish.”

The keywords of grace and law are easy to recognize, for they are the languages of two tribes,...

Who are the Elect?

Here’s a question I have for the Jehovah’s Witnesses who knock on my door. “If you believe that only 144,000 people will go to heaven, why are you diminishing your chances of salvation by trying to save me?”

Turns out, the JW’s have an answer for that question: a two-tier salvation plan. The elites or “the elect” make it to heaven, while the rest of us remain earthbound for eternity.

Jesus and the apostles referred to “the elect,” and for 2000 years, people have been asking, “Who a...

When Jacob the Worm Met God the Helper

Sometimes, life knocks you down so hard that you feel like a lowly worm and that the whole world is out to get you. “Everything is against me,” said Jacob after he lost his wife and his son. But the good news is that God helps the lowly:

“Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel; I will help you,” declares the Lord… (Is. 41:14)

It may shock you to hear God calling Jacob a worm, but it should reassure us to hear God refer to himself as “the mighty One of Jacob” (e.g., Is. 49...

Qualified by Grace

When Camilla and I took over the pastoring of a church back in 1999, everyone thought it was a good idea – everyone, that is, except me. I thought picking me was a terrible idea for many reasons. For starters, I had never been to Bible School. But it all worked out, and in hindsight, I can see God was training me for everything that followed.

When God calls us in a certain direction, it’s natural to come up with reasons why it’s a bad idea:

Moses: “I stutter” (Ex. 4:10)
Gideon: “I’m ...

Jacob the Self-Righteous

The three Patriarchs of Israel represent three types of people. Abraham is the believer, Isaac is the fearful, and Jacob? Well, he was the sinner.

Don’t get me wrong—I love Jacob. But from the moment he was born, he was labeled a trickster, and a trickster he proved to be. He deceived his brother, fooled his father, and fleeced his uncle. If a man’s character is measured by his behavior, Jacob was arguably the most flawed of the three Patriarchs.

And yet, God blessed this sinful ma...

Who Are the Called of Jesus Christ?

I have a confession to make. I like gangster movies. Everything I know about organized crime I learned from watching movies like The Godfather, The Untouchables and The Road to Perdition.

If these movies have taught me anything, it’s that success in the criminal underworld requires dedication, service and years of unflinching loyalty. I learned this from one of my favorite movie gangsters, Lefty Ruggiero, in the 1997 movie Donnie Brasco:

Keep your nose clean, be a good earner, fol...

Where are the Beautiful Preachers?

I don’t say this enough, but those who preach the good news are the most beautiful people on earth.

Just imagine how different your life would be if someone hadn’t told you the good news of God’s grace. I was raised as a PK (a Pastor’s Kid), so it was inevitable that I heard the gospel early. But some people live their whole lives without hearing the good news. How sad is that?

If you know that God provides salvation, healing, and deliverance, it is because someone was kind enough ...

Isaac the Fearful

As a father, I want to give my kids good things—love, food, shelter, opportunities, and memories. But the one thing I want to give them most is a revelation of our heavenly Father.

I’m convinced that the reason God made fathers, mothers, aunties, uncles, grandparents and caregivers so that children might have living signposts to the Father.

And this is why I believe Isaac was a failed father.

Lately, our family has been reading the Dramatised Bible around the table. The scripts...