BCUC Sunday Sermons & More

In a world that tells us our value comes from success, appearance, achievements or popularity, God tells a different story. From the very beginning of Genesis we discover that every person is created in the image of God. Our identity isn't something we earn or invent - it is something we receive. This is the online service for the 2026 BCUC Church Getaway. We will explore together what it mean...

Greetings to all the children of God. I am blessed. I am blessed beyond my understanding. AND so are you! We are all blessed beyond our understanding. But what does it mean to ‘be blessed’? Does it mean an easy road without bumps nor potholes? Long, straight, flat road. Hmm …. Sounds boring to me. And life’s not like that. As we journey through life, we have ups and downs, curves and straights, hi...

What comes to mind when you hear the word giving at church? For some, it’s a joyful reminder of generosity and worship. For others, it can be an uncomfortable topic. Especially when money is tight or we’ve grown up believing that money isn’t something we talk about. Over the next couple of weeks, we’re exploring why we give and, more importantly, what our giving says about our relationship with Go...

Dear friends of BCUC, Quick, lock the doors—or run away! It is two weeks of a stewardship and giving series at church. Yes, that moment when we talk about money! So perhaps people’s engagement with the series may depend on what responsibilities we might have at church. In all seriousness, though, I want to personally say something to all those who have given sacrificially of their finances in wors...

Dear friends of BCUC, The Noah's Ark story is a well-known story. I wonder how many Noah's Ark kid's play sets have been made and played with around the world? Our imagination can delight in dreaming of every different animal going up the ramp into the Ark two by two and even the two giraffe sticking their heads out of the window looking over a great ocean.  There’s the joyous return o...

Dear friends of BCUC,   This Sunday at Sunday Funday YAV (first concert choir) will be singing a beautiful piece called “I am the gentle light” by Paul Mealor. Paul is a modern day Welsh composer who writes music and lyrics that express Christian theology and his strong Christian faith. The lyrical poetry of the song express a rich and biblical characteristic of God and is a call to faith “if you...

Noah was only 10 generations from Adam, but God saw how wicked humans had become, not only occasionally but with every thought, all the time. Also, divine beings were said to be breaching the boundary between heaven and earth and so it appeared that the whole cosmos was unwinding. People were treating “fallen ones” as mighty leaders, a situation with which we are familiar today.   How did God resp...

Dear friends of BCUC, If you are looking for examples of the perfect family in the bible you need to search pretty hard. Genesis 4 is all about Adam and Eve’s grown up kids. The consequences of bad decisions quickly escalate. The oldest son kills his younger brother out of jealousy because it seemed to Cain that God looked more favourably upon Abel’s offering. Having been warned by God to “watch o...

I wish the story of Genesis finished at the end of chapter 2. But it doesn’t. It ultimately sets the foundations for Jesus saving work on the cross. So that’s good. But if only Adam and Eve didn’t take the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil, if only they trusted the Lord God and kept His instructions, if only they hadn’t listened to the snake, if only they stayed satisfied with every other fr...

After all the creating in Genesis 1, Genesis 2 starts with a day of rest. This is not because God was exhausted but to signal the completion of the creation and to create a Holy Day where eventually the Jews and God would commune. We should note that the Jewish Sabbath was on the final day of the week; first you work then rest. Not a bad idea today to help with a work-life balance. The Christian L...

Dear friends of BCUC, I remember a quiz night question that asked, "What are the first words of the Bible?" The answer is: "In the beginning God created." There's a lot of theology and meaning packed into just those five words. For a start, humans aren't mentioned for another 26 verses, which hopefully gives us a little humility. It all starts with God, and the first tw...

It's time for Kettle Club Sunday and the launch of our new series on Genesis. The first 12 chapters of Genesis—from Adam to Abraham—set up the patterns of God's relationship with humanity for the rest of Scripture and human history. The more I study their connections with the gospel, the more I am in awe of God's plan and thankful for Jesus. This Sunday we'll get a big-picture over...

Dear friends of BCUC,   What does it mean to be fruitful in having a leadership greenhouse? There's probably a lot about that statement that doesn't initially make sense. Let's break it down: Leadership. Whether we like it or not, the church - and before that, the nation of Israel—thrived or faltered depending on its leadership. At times I've wanted to be part of a utopian Christia...

This week, we're exploring the sapling stage of the greenhouse, or what we might call the "budding leader." Saplings are incredibly fragile. As they grow, they depend on water, sunlight and the right environment. Without the care they need, they struggle to thrive. In discipleship and leadership, this is the stage where intentional investment matters. As a church, how are we caring f...

This Sunday, we begin a new three-week sermon series called Leadership Greenhouses. While the title might sound like a series just for church leaders, it's actually a series about discipleship, growth, and raising children of God. Using three parables from Mark's Gospel, we'll explore how Jesus creates environments where faith can grow and flourish. Just as a greenhouse provides the ri...

This can be a confronting reading. Jesus is preparing his disciples for their mission and the opposition that they will face. They should expect what happened to their teacher to happen to them. However, he wants to stress loyalty and courage and emphasise that trust in God is greater than any fear of people. The Jews needed that message particularly when Jerusalem had been destroyed and they foun...

Psalm 67:2 sings, “May your ways be known throughout the earth, your saving power among people everywhere.” When you read the big picture of the whole Bible, from Genesis through to Revelation, one of the themes you will notice is that the nation of Israel, the descendants of Abraham, were blessed by God to be a blessing to everyone else. At times they remembered this; many times they kept the ble...

What does it look like to do local mission? In 1 Thessalonians we see a church with an incredible story - a complete turnaround from serving idols to worshipping the true and living God. The gospel went deep into this church, transforming them from the inside out. As this church lived out authentic gospel shaped community, the good news rang out from them to others all around their region, and man...

Dear friends of BCUC, Anyone who has watched the cult classic film The Blues Brothers would know that the movies is about Jake and Elwood Blues who are “on a mission from God” to get the band back together and raise money for a church orphanage. Church mission is a word used by many people and can sometimes seem to mean almost everything the church does or very specifically, making new converts. ...

This week we celebrate Pentecost! Followers of Jesus celebrate this day as the birth of the Christian Church. Happy Birthday! In Acts 2:1–21, we read of the Holy Spirit coming upon the disciples, empowering them to speak in different languages so that people from many nations could hear and understand the good news of Jesus. The crowd was amazed by what they witnessed, while others questioned what...

On Sunday we have the last in our “Jesus invites” series, with Jesus inviting us into relationship with Him. In the John reading Jesus explains the concept of remaining in deep relationship with God to the Jews using words and pictures the Israelites, an agricultural people should understand well - the vine, or vineyard. Jesus casts God as the gardener, himself as the vine, and us as the branches,...

Megan, Bryan and Benji talk about BCUC for the fourth exciting instalment of BCUC Talks! Jokes, faith, heavenly slices and more. Special guest Kaitlyn!

When you think of transformation, what comes to mind? Maybe it’s a caterpillar becoming a butterfly, or simple ingredients like flour, butter, and sugar turning into a cake in the oven. Or perhaps it’s more personal, reflecting on your life before Jesus and your life with Him. Transformation is something we all recognise in different ways, and it often brings the beauty of new life. As we explore...

Dear friends of BCUCHow often in the last six months have you thought about baptism? Has the topic been part of your prayers? Do you have a passion to see and be part of the journey of more people being baptised? Do you consider what you are doing right now—even reading this message—as part of you “living out your baptism”?Jesus invited his disciples at the end of Matthew’s Gospel to go and make d...

Dear friends of BCUCImagine being invited to a party and, as soon as all the guests have arrive, the host stands up and makes a speech telling everyone to leave. You might think, “But I just got here!” This may be a little like how the disciples felt when Jesus told them to “go and make disciples of all nations”. The Christian life is actually a rhythm like the tides, coming together and going out...