Paul Ellis's Blog, page 26

Is the Bible sexist?

Some people reject the Bible because they believe it promotes a male-dominated worldview. The Bible is oppressive to women. It reinforces patriarchal stereotypes that view women as inferior. There is a measure of truth to this claim. Consider the laws of ancient Israel. Israel had laws that permitted the kidnapping of foreign women, and prescribed conditions under which a rape victim could be compelled to marry her rapist. Under the law a man could overrule his wife or daughters vow, and an...

Seven zeroes

On its first day, Escape to Reality was viewed 20 times and I was stoked. Three years later it reached a million page views, and I was astonished. A few days ago, we passed 10 million page views and I dont know what to say. Except, thank you. And wow. 10,000,000. There is nothing particularly significant about a number with seven zeroes, but it does give me the opportunity to thank every one who has read and shared my writing. As a way of saying thanks for the seven zeroes, I want to share my...

Why is this an excellent time to get water baptized?

A couple of weeks ago, my wife and I baptized our two daughters in the sea behind our house. We had an informal service in front of a small group of friends. And by small group, I mean, really small. There were only three other adults plus our two other kids. At the time, our city was not yet in lockdown, but many of our friends were in self isolation on account of COVID-19. For years, people have been asking me to write about baptism. For me, baptism is a simple issue. However, I know that...

How D. L. Moody endured his most frightening crisis

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The world is in lockdown, which makes it a great time to read. We may not have jobs, movies, sport, and takeout food, but we still have books. Thank you, Jesus.

Ive been reading a biography on D.L. Moody, the great American evangelist. I have no doubt that the present crisis would not have troubled him greatly. Moody went through more than his share of trials. In the middle of the 19th century, several cholera epidemics afflicted Chicago. The bacteria were so virulent, that otherwise healthy...

Your Ten Point COVID-19 Survival Plan

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How the world has changed! A month ago we were wondering how Harry and Meghan were going to pay their bodyguards; now we are facing the greatest crisis of our lifetimes. A few weeks ago no one had heard of COVID-19; now all of us have had our lives disrupted by it.

In February, I wrote an article on how the current outbreak is like the SARS outbreak of 2003. I was wrong. This pandemic is more pervasive. In that article I outlined reasons why churches might want to keep their doors open...

A free study guide and a sweet treat!

Hi friends,

I have TWO exciting book announcements to share with you.

1. The Chocolate Gospel ebook is now on sale

My latest book, The Chocolate Gospel, has just gone live on Kindle. You can also get it for your Android device and in PDF form here.

If you missed out on the Kickstarter project, you will not be able to get The Chocolate Gospel in paperback. But you can read my sweetest book on your device today. Its comfort food thats good for you. Check it out.

2. Free GITW Study Guide now...

How the Church can shine during COVID-19

Last Sunday in New Zealand, we set a record for the lowest church attendance in living memory. Next Sunday will smash that record because we have just begun a four week lockdown. No one is going anywhere. In an attempt to curtail the spread of COVID-19, many governments are banning public gatherings. Churches, along with schools, restaurants, shops, and cinemas, are closing and no one knows when they will reopen. What should we do? How should we adjust? My strong conviction is that we are on...

How to talk like a king

You are a king which means you need to talk like one. If you would reign in life, you will need to exercise authority from time to time. You will need to king down upon your problems. How do you do that? Grace comes through faith and faith must be acted upon if it is to be of any benefit. The easiest way to express faith is to speak it. Words are powerful. Words can be used to build up or tear down, guide or misdirect, clarify or confuse. The right word at the right time can change the world....

Who will Jesus spit out?

“I will spit you out of my mouth” (Rev. 3:16b). This spitting out passage, which comes from Christ’s letter to the Laodiceans, is sometimes used to terrorize the bride of Christ. “Fail to perform and the Lord will reject you. If you’re not on fire, you’ll be in the fire!” Such an evil line is a million miles from the gracious heart of the One who is faithful and true. Who will Jesus spew out? Not members of his own body. Some Bibles translate Jesus’ words as, “You make me want to vomit.” Have...

Who invented the word hypergrace?

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Who was the first person to coin the word hypergrace? It wasn’t the Apostle Paul. Sure, he described God’s grace as hyper-super-abounding, but he was writing in Greek. Who was the first to say it in English?

Hypergrace. Who said it first?

It wasn’t me. Not even close. So who was it? Seriously, I would like to know.

As I mentioned in a recent article, I’m pushing to get hypergrace into the dictionary. Why? Because hypergrace is a unique word that describes “the extreme favor of God that...