Dr Paul Allen

King Herod the Great is known by most Christians for his role in the Christmas story in Matthew 2. Afraid of losing the throne to a “newborn king of the Jews,” Herod tried to manipulate the three wise men into telling him where to find the rumored child; when that didn’t work, he ordered the killing of Bethlehem’s baby boys. But there’s a lot more to Herod than just this one scene . Herod, the Great’s life is a Hollywood blockbuster waiting to happen. There are overthrown kingdoms, political maneuverings, family feuds, love and betrayal, and unfortunately, a whole lot of death. It is an R-rated story, to say the least, but it can teach us something very important about the significance of Advent—if we look close enough. A tumultuous beginning Herod’s Fortress in MasadaHerod’s Fortress in Masada After the Romans pushed out the Hasmonean kingdom in 63 BC, an official named Antipater was installed to govern the land of Israel. Antipater put his son Phasael in charge of Judea and Herod in ...

How do your pastors handle their power? That’s right, their power. Does that make you cringe to think about pastors having power? If so, it’s understandable. When we talk about power today, we do so in a particular social climate. Even ordinary folks, unfamiliar with foreign names like Nietzsche and Foucault, have caught the drift, and the negative connotations of power. This is why it might sound jarring in many ears to hear about pastoral power. Power, however, rightly defined, is first a gift and blessing from God, not an evil to be avoided. Power, writes, Andy Crouch, is “our ability to make something of the world” in fulfillment of the charge God gave our race to be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion (Playing God: Redeeming the Gift of Power, 17). To be human is to have power. With brains and hands, minds and muscles — and a voice — God enables us to fulfill his call, and increases our power as we exercise it effectively, especially as we con...