Agora Church

We continue learning about The Kingdom of Heaven, and this time we learn that it is like The Parable about a Fishing Net. As with other parables, the language in this parable is clear, concise and strong.  It's a parable found only in Matthew and returns to a similar theme of the parables of the treasure and the pearl, where you sell all - you do what it takes - to gain the kingdom.   On the day o...

Jesus taught in parables for good reason. We’ll be exploring two of His parables this Sunday, considering how we might see growth similar to what happens to a mustard seed, and yeast in dough, in our own lives and communities.

We live in a world which has both good and bad: kindness and evil, wheat and weeds. How should we live as Christians in this world? Can we show something of the "Kingdom of Heaven" where we live? On Sunday we look at these questions and our present role in the Kingdom.

We begin an exciting new series exploring the Kingdom of Heaven. We'll look at what Jesus meant when He proclaimed the Kingdom was near, and how this message might differ from what people of His time expected. As we delve into Matthew 4, we'll reflect on how our understanding today shapes our faith and discipleship. We'll also explore the Parable of the Sower, which teaches us about how the Kingdo...

What does it mean to be intergenerational? The church is a family - a group of people together in relationship with God and in relationship with each other, doing life together. How do our rhythms and practices foster connections and relationships across the generations that help us all grow in faith?

Jonathan's exploits and his relationship with David, and with a weak and jealous father, reads like a novel. But his story from 3000 years ago is very relevant for us today.  How? We will dig into that on Today.

We will be led by Jackie Millar, Prayer Coordinator for CCCNZ. She loves to champion prayer in churches across New Zealand and journey with churches to have strong and flourishing prayer cultures. The book of 2nd Corinthians finishes with these words: ‘May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.’  (2 Cor 13:14). Notice those w...

What rights do you believe you possess? Many would point to the right to life, good health, freedom, and the love and care of others. But what occurs when tragedy strikes, and those rights are taken away? We often find that these rights were just illusions. In that moment, how do we react? Do we feel hurt? Complain? Rebel? Get angry? Or do we place our trust in God? When Joseph was left with nothi...

Nicodemus starts out as a complete sceptic about who Jesus is. However, by the end of the book of John he has become a generous sacrificial worshipper of Christ. What on earth happened in his life to change him like this, and so fast?

Barnabas is a man who is almost invisible throughout the book of Acts yet he is nicknamed as the 'Son of Encouragement' by the Apostles, a good man, full of the Holy Spirit.  A man about which very little is written, yet whose impact is immense. So lets put the spotlight on this character and follow his story.

We begin our new series on some of the minor Bible characters and the role they played in God's overall plan. Shelley is kick-starting this off with Miriam and the role she played across significant moments in the children of Israel's exodus to the Promised Land.

We will delve into Philippians 4:10-23, exploring how to find true contentment and fulfilment. We begin by challenging a materialistic perspective, looking beyond the surface to discover deeper emotions and spiritual truths. We'll discuss the importance of relationships — both within our community and in Christ — highlighting the strength and support they offer. Finally, we'll be reminded of our c...

Continuing our series on Philippians from chapter 3 verses 12 to 21

Paul has been sitting in jail for 4 1/2 years waiting for Nero, a cruel and mad Caesar, to decide his fate. And yet Paul is the happiest man in all Rome! How can that be? Is he mad too?  Today, we continue our series in Philippians, and look at joy (or rejoicing) in the Lord from chapter 3. What is it? Do I have it? Why does it matter? And how do I get it?

We open Phil 2: 12-18 we see Paul calling for unity amongst Philippian believers. This unity in brotherly love, and the way we care for each other and seek to put others before ourselves, should be attractive to our lost world. 

In the first chapter of Philippians we find the Apostle Paul in chains awaiting a decision from an insane Caesar. Does he live or does he die a horrible death? You would expect Paul to be full of anxiety and fear but he's not. So what is Paul's attitude to this? What can we learn from him to help us get through life's hardships, and to prepare us for death's certainty one day?

C.S. Lewis never claimed to have coined the phrase, but he is often credited with referring to Christians as "little Christs." His point is that if we claim to follow Jesus, we should resemble him. Just as an apple tree produces apples and a sheep gives birth to little sheep, those who love God should not only resemble Him, but also produce what He produces - love. While it's easy to say that we l...

This Sunday we continued our sermon series on loving God. We opened the word of God and asked, "How do we love God with all our soul?” We explored both the New and Old Testament and see how different people longed for God. As we reflect on scripture, we should see how much we yearn for the Lord in our lives.

We continue our series based on The Greatest Commandment (Luke 10:27) and take a look at loving God with all our strength.   We hear from Willy Florian who has seen many amazing answers to prayer as he leads a ministry in Tonga that uses radio to reach his people with the Gospel, and also runs village Bible studies and outreach in prison.

Today we'll be looking at what it means to love God with all of our heart. How does that look different to loving him with our mind, strength or soul? We sometimes say - or have heard it said - that we love someone with all of our hearts, which is so lovely, but what does that really mean?  It's also interesting to think about how we really feel about God commanding us to love Him with all our hea...

Looking at the greatest commandment of all. I'd guess most of us can quote this, but could we explain the difference between loving God with your mind and your heart for example? How do you love God with your strength, apart from serving Him somewhere? This is a great series to dig into. Who knows where God might lead you as you draw closer to Him.

People ask us to do things all the time and often an initial “Yes” can be an easy (even exciting) response to give. But what about a second, third or fourth request? God too has called us to say “Yes” to him and that first “Yes” can be very liberating, but then we sometimes find it hard to continue to say “Yes” to God. We explored this dynamic on Sunday with Sue Hanna, Executive Founder of Flame C...

If you’re part of the Agora community then chances are at some stage you have asked “Who is God and what is he like?”  And if you know God, even a tiny bit, or want to, you’ve probably also wondered “So, what does God expect of ME??” These are two of life’s really big questions!! And every religion tries to answer them. But we have the Bible to give us the truth.  The last two chapters of the book...

If you haven’t noticed lately, the world seems to be trying to destroy itself faster and faster. So much disfunction, anxiety, wars, sickness and so on and so on and so on. We’re looking at the book of Micah again, and we will see a clear prophecy that things will get much better ….. one day.  So, how are we meant to live in hope in the meantime. Yes, Jesus is coming back one day (hopefully very s...