NEW: Bible Reading Guide

A new bible reading guide is available for download!

"Alive" will take you through the text of Ephesians in about 16 days and give you some food for thought along the way.  It is in pdf format and has been designed for smart phone or tablets so you can take it with you on the bus, train or wherever you normally do you bible reading.  However, because it is a pdf file it can also be printed for those that prefer a hard copy.

Click the link below to download the file:
Download: "Alive" Ephesians Bible Reading Guide
Depending on the pdf viewer you have on your smart device, you should be able to tap on any of the items on the contents page and it will quickly take you to the reading you are looking for.

I trust that you will enjoy diving deep into Ephesians!

Mundine - The Man in all of us...

When I tuned in to Facebook last night I seriously thought Danny Geale had absolutely smashed Anthony Mundine in a 3rd round knockout... So many punters were rubbing salt into Mundine's wounds as their fingers did a victory dance on their keyboards that I has to quickly duck over to a news site to see the result... it turned out that Geale had only won on points and that up until the last round it was a pretty close fight.  Bemused I went back to Facebook only to see more and more "suck on that Mundine" type comments.

I don't know whether I can remember a time in Australian sport where so much hate-filled vitriol has been poured out on an Australian sports person.  I mean sure every now and then we have all got angry at an under performing sports star or quibbled about a poor selection in the Australian cricket team... I personally remember having not-so-kind-a-word with Greg Norman through my TV screen a couple of times... But this was different... For some reason Anthony Mundine has attracted malicious and scathing venom from the Australian public before, during and after this fight!

The reason for this hatred is Mundine's ego!  Anyone who calls themself "The Man" and claims to be Australia's greatest sporting star has a seriously deluded picture of himself.  There probably hasn't been a man who publicly over-inflates his self-image more than Anthony Mundine; and in a culture where we don't just cut down tall poppies but we get out the whipper-snipper and make sure we do a decent job of it, anyone who sticks their head up as high as Mundine is going to be a prime target.  The hatred Australia has felt towards "The Man" is due mainly to his own pride... We just can't stand the arrogance and self-absorbed delusion that Anthony Mundine has become infamous for.

However, we must ask ourselves the question: if it is so easy for us to spot, name and shame pride when it manifests itself in a guy like Anthony, how come we are so inept at spotting it in our own lives?  We are so quick to jump down the throat of overt self-promotion yet when we exhibit exactly the same self-absorbed behaviour, albeit in a much more subtle and socially acceptable manner, it doesn't even raise an eyebrow.

Augustine, a super old school teacher of the early church, called pride something like the mother of all sins.  What he meant by this was that an over-inflated  view of ourselves was the root cause of pretty much all our sinful behaviour... sin is selfishness and self-promotion... we use sin to elevate our reputations, influence, attractiveness and bank balances.  Think about it:

• Why do we lie - generally because we value our own reputation (or whatever is at stake) more than the person we are lying to
• Why do we envy - because deep down inside we feel that we are better than someone else and deserve to have whatever it is they have more than they do
• Why do we fail to speak-up when we see oppression or bullying - because we believe that our sense of peace and comfort are more important than helping the oppressed
• Why are we gluttonous, greedy and immoral - because we think they are they only things that will satisfy our cravings
• Why are we self-righteous - because we are too proud to admit weaknesses and our desperate need for Jesus

There is no doubt that no matter how sin manifests itself in our lives that it is merely our pride screaming out trying to convince us and the world around us that "We are the greatest!"  We may not hire publicists to promote us, make bold claims about our greatness or come up with punchy catch phrases to cement our superiority, but there is a little bit of "The Man" in all of us.  A part of us that will always respond to preserve, protect and promote... well me!  If we were to be consistent we would be praying on all of our mistakes, misfortunes and failures so we can jump down our own throats with a sharp and sarcastic tone.  We have to face the harsh reality that our pride is every bit as ugly as that of Anthony Mundine.  

But the gospel is the least proud message in the universe.  It tells the story of the real "Man"... the One who could rightfully claim greatness without equal... and yet He did not hold onto His greatness or lord it over some bunch of minions.  Rather Jesus laid down His greatness and embrace weakness and nothingness in order that we might receive all the benefits of His awesomeness.  If anything typified the life of the only one who has any real claim to greatness it would be humility not pride, sacrifice not self-service.  And through this perfect humility He offers us forgiveness for sins and peace with God.  But you can't get it through pride!  In fact the only way to receive what the humble Jesus offers is through  humble acknowledgement of our desperate need for Jesus.

You may not think of yourself as proud and boastful like "The Man" Mundine, but left to our own devices our pride will grow into an abhorred beast of burden.  Lay it aside and repent of your pride-filled sin and receive the humble Jesus today!

Lance Armstrong & the greatest tragedy of all

There are too many tragedies to be told in the sad story that is Lance Armstrong!  The betrayal of fans, sponsors, fellow competitors, his family… The fact he profited financially from his deception… The outright lies he told everyone… The charity he started now being on shaky ground… It doesn't matter which way you look at this story, there is pain, turmoil and tragedy! But perhaps one of the greatest tragedies won’t even rate a mention on the nightly news, Internet coverage or even the Oprah interview.

I think most people don’t realise how performance enhancing drugs actually work.  It is easy to get a picture in your head of some wonder drug, some magic pill that suddenly boosts performance and creates Tour de France champions!  However the reality is that they are not miracle drugs… they can't turn average hacks into champions... they only aid and boost the capacity of an athlete to train so that their eventual performance is enhanced…

So here  is the tragedy; Lance Armstrong still had to train ridiculously hard!  In fact it was widely publicised throughout his career that no one trained as hard as him.  Now in light of his recent confession I think we might be tempted into thinking that this was all a lie, that he wasn't really the super training machine that we came to believe he was.  But the reality is that it is more than likely that he was a super training machine... you don't take a few drugs then nek minnit get on a bike and ride up and down french mountains.  Lance Armstrong probably rode more miles on his bike in one year of training than all the commentators, bloggers and armchair critics have ever ridden in their combined lives.  

And then there is the Tour de France itself... only one, albeit the most famous, of the races in the cycling calendar... over 3000km in 20 stages... up and down mountains that are far bigger than anything we have here in Australia... it is one of the most grueling tests of endurance in the world of sport.  Lance Armstrong finished this race 13 times… 13 times he rode every single mile, through the pain of blisters, injuries and legs burning from the pain of climbing 2880m up the French Alps… It is not as if the drugs he took put a motor on his bike that meant he didn't have to put in the effort to ride those hills.

Now I am certainly not trying to drum up sympathy for Lance Armstrong, but I think we have to acknowledge that there are very few people on this planet who were more dedicated to their training and competing than him.  And hence this is the great tragedy of his life... the tragedy is that it was all for nothing… 

Lance Armstrong has given his whole life to training and competing in cycling races… sacrificed every ounce of energy he had and yet it was all for nothing… he has been disqualified, dethroned and  disgraced because he broke the rules… See no one cares about all his training now... No one gives a stuff about his monumental efforts now… And all his accomplishments have been stripped away... All because he cheated!  His whole life has been wasted, not one ounce of his energy and effort has amounted to anything... Lance Armstrong put ridiculous stress through his body, drained every last drop of energy from it and sacrificed hour upon hour upon hour of his life AND IT WAS ALL FOR NOTHING!

But an even greater tragedy would be for you to suffer a similar fate when it came to your salvation!  See there is a way in which you can attempt to live out your Christianity which will see you put in miles and miles of effort, hours and hours of time but come up completely empty handed in the end. 

If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations— “Do not handle, Do not taste, Do not touch” (referring to things that all perish as they are used)—according to human precepts and teachings? These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. (Colossians 2:20-23)

There are far too many people living out their Christianity through the lens of the Law.  Far too easily faith for us can become a matter of simple obedience to laws like, “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!”  And we start to rate our level of faith and gain our assurance of salvation from our capacity to keep the laws that we make for ourselves…  When we are doing a good job of obeying our laws we feel happy and sure in our salvation, but if we go through a struggle then doubt, fear and guilt creep in and we do everything we can to beat ourselves back into shape.  There is no more grueling regime of religion than the legalistic one.

But here is the tragedy!  According to Paul in the text above legalistic adherence to human made regulations is destined to perish... Like Lance Armstrong you can give your life to the grueling and relentless pursuit of legalism and it will bleed you dry, take everything that you have and give you nothing but devastation in the end!  For a time you will look wise, look holy, look like you have it all together, look like you are on top of your game, but in the end you will be disqualified, dethroned and disgraced.  

You cannot win your salvation.. You cannot work or train for your salvation... Salvation does not go to the victors but the losers... The salvation offered in the gospel is the free gift of God!  Jesus Christ through His life, death, resurrection and glorification has alone won our salvation and graciously imparts it to all those who repent of their incapacity to please God and put their trust in Him.

Don't waste your life conforming it to legalistic regulations that you are never going to be able to keep and are actually powerless in the battle against sin.  Don't sacrifice hours and hours of your life and every ounce of energy you have on a regime that is only going to disqualify you in the end - that would be the greatest tragedy of all.

The Gospel is Better than your New Year's Resolution

THIS YEAR...
I am going to lose weight...
I am going to quit smoking...
I am going to spend more time with the kids...
I am going to find Mr/Mrs Right...
I am going to get that promotion...

Almost without consciously thinking about it our minds switch into resolution mode at this time of year.  It's funny because it's just a date on a calendar... it's not like 01.01.13 is going to usher in a radically different regime of life compared to 31.12.12!  And yet it seems normal and natural at the end of year to reflect on the last 12 months of life and speculate on what lies ahead.  For many the thought of a New Year is the promise of a new start; the hope of a different life, a better life, a more fulfilling life.

And so we make our resolutions... And for a brief moment in time adrenaline surges through our veins and a sense of determination grips us... nothing is going to stop us this year!  The fact that we failed to keep last year's resolutions, if we can even remember them (HINT: They were probably the same as this year's), doesn't deter us in the slightest; we steadfastly set our face towards a new version of ourself and embrace the challenge with zeal.  2013 will bring a healthier, wealthier and more spiritual you!

I don't know if anybody really knows what percentage of resolutions made each New Year actually come to fruition, but I reckon it would be pretty low.  Every year once the holidays are over, the adrenaline subsides and the grind of daily life recommences... and all our resolutions seem to have given us is a crippling sense of disappointment, anger and guilt; the knowledge that we failed again!

See the problem is that our resolutions, no matter how honourable and well-intentioned, are actually powerless to address the real issues that we face in day to day life.  First and foremost resolutions are a decision of our will... thus they are fueled by our will-power alone.  The success of my resolution all hangs on whether I can steel my determination and summon the strength of character from within to confront the things that tempt me to abandon my resolution.  We think, "Either I have a strong enough will to defeat temptation or I will be defeated by it!"

But the problem with this is that our failures are not primarily matters of the will... but rather they are matters of the heart.  See we are not stupid, clueless idiots... we know that the thing that we want to change is bad for us and those around us... that is why we want to change it!  But it is not our knowledge of the problem or our desire to overcome it that is lacking... more often than not it is our hearts... our emotions... that pull us away from our goals!  Don't believe me?  Then why are most diets normally broken through "comfort eating"?  Because when our heart has been injured it tricks us into thinking that the only way it can be healed is with chocolate, ice-cream or a juicy steak... The reality is that most resolutions will be broken when our hearts are vulnerable; when we are hungry, lonely, angry or emotionally drained.

So you can make all the resolutions you want this year... you can steel up more courage than ever before... make promises to yourself, get others to keep you accountable or even be prepared to beat yourself into shape, but unless the fragility of your heart is dealt with you will only ever be adding more weight to the guilt that will eventually crush you.  The first time your heart feels lonely, angry or overwhelmed it will grab for anything and everything to cure its cravings.

The gospel is radically different from a New Year's resolution because the gospel actually deals with our hearts!  Jesus came not to strengthen your will-power but to completely change your heart!  But so many people view Jesus and the gospel as a kind of New Year... they think Jesus forgives our sins of the past and gives us  fresh start so we can steel our resolve and give life another crack... but the reality is that this is just a recipe for more failure and Jesus did not come to set us up for more disappointment and guilt.

Our response to the gospel begins with repentance... a concept that is the polar opposite to will-power... rather than a proud attempt to overcome our weakness it is the honest acknowledgement of our failings and our incapacity to save ourselves.  But this repentance is followed by belief... specifically the belief that Jesus Christ through His life, death and resurrection has fully paid the price for our sin.  The gift of God in the gospel is the complete regeneration of our heart... God removes the very cause of all of our problems and gives us a completely new heart that begins a process of daily renewal in our lives by the power of His Spirit.

The gospel is radically better than any New Year's resolution because it actually deals with the root cause of our problem... our sinful hearts.  What's more it doesn't load you up with the unrealistic expectation of perfection and weigh you down with the fear of failure... instead it tells the story of the One who came and lived the perfect life but died to pay the price for all of your failures!  Where there is only guilt, disappointment and failure in a resolution... there is only freedom and forgiveness in the gospel.  Only this Jesus is able to truly satisfy your troublesome heart!

This year perhaps you don't need a New Year's resolution but a New Year's repentance!
In 2013 perhaps you shouldn't crave a new start but a new heart!

You don't win a Silver... you lose the Gold: Why the gospel is better than the Olympic Dream

Aussie culture is known for its sporting pride and uncanny ability to punch above our weight in most sports that we participate in.  Nowhere else is this seen more vividly than every four years at the Olympic Games.  Time and time again we have come up trumps against the odds... rising victorious over the bigger and more powerful nations, filling the hearts of young children the nation over with a passion to live the Olympic Dream!

That is until this year!

This year so far we have seen our athletes fall agonisingly short of all that was expected of them.  This has brought cries of anger and frustration from the media and viewing public alike.  Only in Australia can 2nd in the world be a failure... If we could bottle the Australian attitude towards our athletes into a single phrase it would be: "You don't win a Silver... you lose the Gold!"

There is no margin for error when you follow the Olympic Dream... it is winners covered in glory and losers covered in shame.

I feel for our athletes when they are forced to break down in tears at post-race interviews.  It is like they bet all of their hopes, dreams and self-worth on victory only to see it ripped from their grasp by 0.01 of a second.  What a terrible system to live under... the Olympic Dream that promises so much fame, glory and significance, but can just as easily rob you of everything and leave you broken, shamed and defeated.

Jesus Christ was never one to beat around the bush when it came to speaking hard truths.  In Luke 17:33 He says, "Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it."   The Olympic Dream tells you to bust your guts hoping to promote your life and find everything you ever hoped and dreamed of... but time and time again it leaves you lost, broken and hurting; feeling like a failure.  Jesus was right here... if you seek to preserve your life you will lose it because just like the Olympic Dream you are trusting in something that is destined to fail you... no one is guaranteed of Gold at the Olympics... just ask the guys who fell over in front of Steve Bradbury... you can train the hardest, be the strongest, mentally prepare yourself and even earn the tag of favourite, but at the end of the day there are things outside of your control...

The sad thing is that so many people live their lives with their own dream of Olympic proportions... sure only a small percentage of people actually pursue high level sport, but pretty much everybody puts their hopes in "preserving our lives" one way or another.  Sport, education, career, relationships, attractiveness, sex, power, riches and fame... we are all chasing something that we think will "make us" something that we hope will fulfil our lives.  Jesus says that this is destined for failure because none of these things will last... all of them will disappoint us and leave us broken... if we seek our lives we will lose them.

But Jesus goes on to say that "whoever loses his life will keep it."  In other words if we lay down our quest for finding meaning, significance and joy in the things of this life that are destined to fail, we will actually find what we have been looking for!  If you lose your life you will keep  it!  Ultimately Jesus offers Himself as the perfect example of this:  He was the eternal Son of God and yet He relinquished His right to a heavenly dwelling and took on the very nature of a broken and weak human being... He suffered in every way that we suffer and endured mockery, torture and ultimately an agonising death on a cross all so that we might have life.  Jesus lost His life when He laid it down for us on that cross; dying the death we should have died... but God raised Him from the dead and gave Him the Name above all Names!

The Olympic Dream will crush you!  And so will the Career Dream, Relationship Dream, Riches Dream, Sex Dream and any other Dream.  They will promise you the world but leave no room for failure... they will nver give you a sense of surety about life... you will always be walking on unstable ground just one slip away from a complete meltdown.  Jesus is the only pursuit that will never let you down.  To abandon your pursuit of meaning and significance in the things of this life and to pursue life in Christ instead is to take your hopes and dreams off shaky ground that is crumbling around you and place them on a rock solid foundation that will never fall.  Unlike the Dreams of this life which offer you everything with no guarantee of success, Jesus has guaranteed His promise of life to the full by giving His own life as a down payment on your eternal joy!

The Olympic Dream offers you the slightest chance of momentary glory saturated with the fear of failure... The gospel guarantees you the fullest of joys and most glorious life forever...