City on a Hill Melbourne

A trellis is crucial for supporting a vine's growth, just as Christians need structure to remain in Christ. A "rule of life" serves as a pattern of spiritual disciplines to encourage flourishing in your walk with Jesus, and is a means of God's grace to deepen love and joy in Christ.

Disciples of Jesus are called to abide in Him and bear his fruit - joy, peace, patience, kindness, self-control and love. As we walk with Christ, the aim is not that we go deeper into ourselves, but deeper into Jesus who has all we need to grow in His life and His love.

How do you prepare for big things? Paul's pastoral plea to the Corinthians is that they examine their faith and abide in the grace of Christ. Even when we struggle with sin or feel stagnant in our faith, we trust that our life is hidden in Christ and that the resurrection power which raised him from the dead is at work in raising us up too. May the love of God strengthen you in your weakness.

Weakness amplifies the grace of God and magnifies the power of Christ. It is when we are weak, that we are strong. The way of the world is to boast in our strength, but the way of Jesus is the way of weakness. Bad things will happen to us, but God can use evil for good. No matter what comes our way, God will never forsake us.

The church ought to be bold, empowered, and boastful not in ourselves but in the Lord. Boldness is about facing our problems head on. Turning the other cheek isn’t about being a doormat or tolerating evil. Strongholds aren't to be toyed with, but taken captive in submission to Christ.

Jesus grabbed a whip and flipped tables to drive out sin. Paul was neither physically impressive nor especially eloquent. Wordly tactics and human strategy will not do, we need divine power through the mighty weapons of prayer and the ministry of the word. The bible is more than a text, it is the sword of the Spirit, to advance his kingdom and fight the darkness. Therefore, "let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord."

As Australians, we are living in one of (if not the) richest country in the world, in one of the most prosperous times in history. How can we be generous with the blessings God has bestowed on us?

May we rejoice in the richness of God's grace to us, and seek to give generously. May we learn from the Macedonians how generosity springs from overflowing joy, for God loves a cheerful giver.

Reconciliation must be grounded in commitment and truth, resting in God's comfort, godly repentance, and gospel encouragement. You need in your life God-centered friends, God-centered counsellors, and God-centered words. When we get wounded by those close to us, even those within the church, we ought to run to the Father. Jesus knew betrayal and oppression, and he had the power to call down legions of angels to fight for him...yet he chose to pray to the Father, forgive his enemies, and become obedient even to death on a cross.

Special guest Matt Chandler brings us a message from Ephesians 5:13-14 on waking up from spiritual sleepiness."The house is on fire, get up!" — This is the urgency with which Paul urges the Ephesians to wake up from the debaucherous practices of Artemis worship and compromise with culture. May we put aside our spiritual sleepiness from the anaesthesia of deceit, through the serpent which causes us to doubt God, rootlessness from superficial love, and the choke of uncertainty and unsatisfaction. The call of our life is contentment in Christ's light shining on us. May we wake up to his life and light.

Idols and holiness do not mix. We become what we worship, and idols embody the demonic darkness from which we need deliverance. So, may we worship Christ with purity of heart and spirit, fully devoted to him. Idols don't have to be tiny shrines of gods we keep in our homes, but good things that have become distorted. What are you chasing after that is keeping you from full devotion to Christ? What false relationships are you holding onto? Lay them down at the cross.