Dr Paul Allen

Detail of third window of the south wall with stained glass depicting Isaiah 40:11 He gathers the lambs in his arms. Created by Watson & Co, Youghal, in 1906. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) The stories are as sad as any, and tragically too common. An effective, fruitful leader in the faith falls into some moral failure, disqualifying himself from leadership and devastating those who had followed them. Reactions will range from confusion to disbelief to fury. Some will wonder how sin could capture the heart of someone God has used so powerfully in the church. Some will look for all the dirty details, secretly glad to see another gifted leader go down. Some will withdraw and rebel in disgust and anger, not willing to trust or submit to leadership in the church again. Whatever else we feel and learn in the wake of the fall, we should see that the consequences of sin in leaders seep into the church, leading people astray — away from God and against him. All Are Swallowed Up ...

Jeroboam sets up two golden calves, from the Bible Historiale. Den Haag, MMW, 10 B 23 165r (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “The word of the LORD that came to Hosea , son of Beeri, during the reigns of Uzziah , Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah , kings of Judah , and during the reign of Jeroboam son of Jehoash king of Israel” (Hosea 1:1). Although Hosea began prophesying about ten years after Amos, his prophecy is first in the Book of the Twelve (the Minor Prophets). There is a good theological reason for this: Hosea’s prophecy is the longest and the most complete. In a sense, he sets up all the major themes found in the other books in the collection: covenant, judgment, and restoration, and the Lord’s personal relationship with His wayward people. We are not told this explicitly, but Hosea is the only prophet who seems to have come from the northern kingdom of Israel rather than from the southern kingdom of Judah . His familiarity with the culture and ways of Israel has persuaded most ...