Paul Ellis's Blog, page 22

Why do Good People fall for Bad Teaching?

We live in an age of conspiracy theories and fake news. We all know rational, reasonable people who seem to be duped by the dumbest ideas, even in the church. How does this happen?

In truth, this is nothing new. It happened before in one of the Revelation churches.

In Thyatira, a group of believers fell for the teachings of a false prophet called Jezebel. What Jesus said to them in his letter (see Rev. 2:19-29) remains just as relevant today.

So who was this Jezebel? Jezebel was bad news and tr...

Do you have a Biblical View of Women?

In the church, you will encounter two views about women. There is the traditional view (women should be meek, stay-at-home-mothers) and the so-called progressive view (women can do anything men can do).

Which view is Biblical?

I suspect most people would say the traditional view. Many churchgoers believe that the Bible calls women to be subservient and silent housewives.

Most people would be wrong.

What we call the traditional view comes not from scripture, but ancient Greece. It was the pagan...

Who is Alive but Dead?

If you want Christians to work harder, there are two scriptures you can trot out to boost productivity. The first is the one about being lukewarm; the second is this one from the letter to Sardis:

I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. (Rev. 3:1)

This passage is usually interpreted as follows: “The Sardians were complacent, comfortable Christians who weren’t working hard enough and allowed their faith to die.”

Short version: work harder for Jesus!

(Sidebar...

The Three Nights of Christmas

It’s that time of the year where we gather with friends and family to celebrate Christmas and to tie a bow on the year that was. 2020 has been an interesting year, as the Chinese would say, and few will be sad to see it end. But even though this was a challenging year, 2020 was not without its highlights: Many of us spent far more time with our families than we might otherwise have done. We met our neighbors and discovered corners of our communities we had no idea existed. We learned how to pivo...

The Silent Queen – out today!

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My new book, The Silent Queen: Why the Church Needs Women to Find their Voice, comes out today!

In The Silent Queen, I reveal Gods original plan for men and women to rule and reign in partnership. I show how Gods partnership plan runs like a golden thread throughout the tapestry of scripture, and I address those scriptures that have been misused to sabotage that plan.

Women have been told they are subordinate and men have been told they must rule alone, but thats not what our Father said. In...

Why the Woman of Proverbs 31 may not be your Ideal Wife

Many men and women have a mental list describing their ideal partner. “She’s got to be a good cook, enjoy watching sports, and not be a nag.” “He’s got to have a steady job, a nice car, and a mother who lives far away.” Some even invoke a Biblical basis for this sort of wish list. “Proverbs says, ‘He who finds a wife finds a good thing’ (Pro. 18:22). I’ve got to find a good wife. It’s in the Bible!” Okay. But what makes a good wife? Is the ideal wife a soul mate or a servant? A partner or a parl...

Giving Tuesday Giveaway

You Americans. One minute, you’re tearing yourselves apart over politics. The next, you’re joining hands in a national day of thanksgiving. You’re an enigma wrapped in a rootin-tootin’ riddle. When you shine, the world is dazzled. And one area where Americans truly shine is in their generosity. No other nation gives more. Today in America, it is “Giving Tuesday.” I don’t have any experience with this tradition, and my American readers may want to correct me if I’ve got it wrong, but it doesn’t s...

Why the Church is Wrong about Women

How would you rate the most influential people in history? This question is behind an ongoing study run by MIT’s Media Lab. A while back the folks at MIT reported that the most influential person in history was the Greek philosopher Aristotle. In second place was Plato, third was Jesus, and fourth was Socrates. Alexander the Great ranked fifth. Why does this matter? It matters because four of the five most influential people in history believed that women are inferior to men. And those four men ...

50 Phrases to Say to our Kids

One of the most important things you can do is speak words of life to a child. This is true whether you are a parent, a grandparent, a caregiver, a teacher, a babysitter, a coach, a family friend, a healthcare worker, or a pastor.

Children hear a lot of rubbish, so it’s important that we fill their hearts and minds with good, edifying words. There’s life and death in the tongue.

As a father of four, I want to be intentional about the things I say to my children. I don’t want to be one of those ...

50 phrases to say to our kids

One of the most important things you can do is speak words of life to a child. This is true whether you are a parent, a grandparent, a caregiver, a teacher, a babysitter, a coach, a family friend, a healthcare worker, or a pastor. Children hear a lot of rubbish, so it’s important that we fill their hearts and minds with good, edifying words. There’s life and death in the tongue. As a father of four, I want to be intentional about the things I say to my children. I don’t want to be one of those d...