St Michael's talks & sermons

In the last of our series on Jonah, Ginni unpacks Jonah's anger after Nineveh repents. The text reveals there is more than one way to be 'lost,' not only through wrongdoing but also through pride and moral superiority. How do we respond when God uses discomfort to expose and invite us to grow? Gospel reading and key texts: Jonah 3:10-4:11 Hebrews 12:1-11 Luke 15:11-32

Through Jonah 3, Tim leads us to examine who we extend grace to - as God's mercy often extends further than we want it to. There's much to be reminded of through Jonah's reluctant obedience. Yet, reframing God's anger as a deep commitment to both justice and restoration, helps us to see how Jesus himself embodies both justice and mercy. Gospel reading and key texts: Matthew 21:33-4...

Matthew examines Jonah's story and the parallels and differences with that of Jesus. Both descend and rise, but only one reveals a wider mercy. The challenge for us is sincere faith can still be limited and lacking in compassion beyond our immediate community - personal spiritual matters, but it must lead us outward. Gospel reading and key texts: Matthew 12:38-42 Jonah 2 Psalm 42

Using the image from early theologian Irenaeus, Tim describes Jesus and the Holy Spirit as the "two hands of God," through whom He creates, saves and transforms us. We're also invited to trust God with open hands and to join in on His mission of renewing the world - through the small daily acts but also the larger societal challenges we struggle to hold faith for. Gospel reading and...

Pentecost marks the shift from Jesus' completed work to the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in believers. In this sermon Steve encourages us to stop relying on willpower or chasing spiritual highs but instead to intentionally make space for the Holy Spirit to work in and with us daily. Gospel reading and key texts: John 20:19-23 Acts 2:1-21 1 Corinthians 12:3-13

Chris delves into a challenging provocation - what if we see the Resurrection and Ascension not as two seperate events, but as two sides of the same reality? It tells us that Jesus is heaven's champion vindicated by God, not a hero or an emperor. It also tells us that Christ didn't shed his humanity, but that human life is not permanently woven into God's own identity. Gospel reading a...

Traveling through this week's key texts, Tim reflects on the critique of modern life as producing many who feel entitled, lonely and fearful. Baptism itself has something to tell us, about our antidote, which is to live in loving community, and trust in God's love - where we can find freedom from entitlement, loneliness and fear. (Earlier in our service we celebrated an infant baptism, you...

This sermon investigates what Jesus' statement in John 14, 'I am the way, the truth and the life' can mean for us. Following Jesus isn't a one-time decision but an ongoing choice. As we trust, it transforms how we understand God, live our lives face hardship and even approach death. The sermon ends with an invitation to reflect on a poem. The poems referenced are: The Call | George...

This sermon looks at scriptures which describe leadership responsibilities in terms of shepherding. God calls all leaders to care for the whole, whether they are in the church, politics, the family or wherever. John 10.1-11 Ezekiel 34.1-12 1 Peter 2.19-25

Competing with the sound of the rain, Vicar Tim has as rethinking the Emmaus story. As Jesus show ups incognito, interrupting ordinary lives rather than arriving in a blaze of glory - there's a lesson. God's grace often comes by way of interruption but are we too wedded to our own agenda? And we do notice, how do we respond? Gospel reading and key texts: Luke 24:13-35 1 Peter 1:17-23 Acts...

Is 'Doubting Thomas' the right label for a man who volunteered to die with Jesus and was the first person in scripture to call Jesus 'my Lord and my God'? Guest preacher Lawrence challenges us that perhaps doubt isn't the enemy of faith - it's often the pathway to something much deeper. Gospel reading and key texts: John 20:19-31 Colossians 1:15-20 Psalm 16

In this discussion, Professor Dr. Cyril Hovorun analyses the religious dimensions of both Trump and Putin's self-projected mythologies. What do they have in common? And how do they differ? And how does religious myth making help us understand present global affairs? The book referenced is Political Orthodoxies: The Unorthodoxies of the Church Coerced by Cyril Hovorun. The Front Porch is a seri...

In this sermon, Deborah takes a fresh 'look' at the Palm Sunday story, leading us on a meditation about vision - God's vision. Looking at Jesus' sorrowful yet redemptive sight of humanity, and our need to see the world with compassion rather than ambition. Palm Sunday challenges us to examine not only what we see, but how we see too. The book referenced is The Blurred Cross: A writ...

This recording starts with a reading from John 11:1-45. The mysterious and strangely moving narrative of the raising of Lazarus forces us to face death, and not hide behind either heavenly escapism or 'Christianity as social good.'  Tim ponders attitudes to the story of Jesus at Lazarus’ tomb as fully sharing our grief and yet uniquely able to conquer death.  As we draw nearer to Easter, t...

Getting closer to Lent, the Gospel episodes from the lectionary sequence show opposition to Jesus growing on the way to Easter. As a blind man is healed by Jesus, rather than compelling belief, an undeniable miracle seems to lead to dispute and reinterpretation. In this sermon, Tim argues that faith is not an intellectual conclusion you can reason from a safe distance, but it's a trust you act...

Matthew reflects on Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well - taking us through the historical and cultural context. As this marginalised woman became a witness to many, Matthew also challenged us to consider the difference between 'attractional ministry' and Jesus' model of going out and sharing faith. Who might we consider Samaritans in our own lives and how can we...

Tim explores the Transfiguration in this sermon, considering that strange moment when Jesus is revealed in full glory before three bewildered disciples and why it might exactly the vision we need in the sombre season of Lent. As Lenten practices clear the way to hear Jesus' voice and find courage to shine his light - we're invited to ask ourselves, 'what would it look like to go up the mountain an...

The forty days of Lent in the church calendar echo Jesus' temptations in the wilderness as described in Matthew 4. In this sermon Rebecca investigates the meaning of Lent and why it matters. As temptation distorts good things sought apart from trust in the Father, we are encouraged into, "..allowing our habits and routines to be disrupted and reshaped, so that we are formed as disciples,...

Tim takes on the next part of the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus takes God's law deeper from external rule keeping to an inner heart-level righteousness that reflects the character of the Father. As we move into the season of Lent the invitation to practical response is clear, and we know the goodness of the Jesus way, where our part starts with the heart. Gospel reading and key text Mat 5:2...

Starting with Jesus' call to his followers to be salt and light in the Gospel of Matthew - in this sermon Tim contrasts an oftentimes bleak, cynical view of humanity with this charge to live visibly different lives shaped by the Spirit and his purposes. Listen for Bugonia spoilers, four practical cautions about living the Jesus way, and to be reminded of our lives as a chance to re-humanise ot...

The Beatitudes from Sermon on the Mount contain both blessings and promises as Jesus establishes what the kingdom of God looks like and who is at its heart. Jachin explores and encourages our understanding with these three key questions: What does blessed mean? Who are the blessed? Why are these blessed? Gospel reading and key text: Mat 4:23-5:16

In the first week of Advent Tim takes us on the journey of Gus' (Saint Augustine) conversion and how intellectual understanding gave way to humility before Christ. Instead of rapture timelines and attempts to control the future, we are reminded that Advent's invitation is to a season of humility, as we orient our lives towards Christ's return with hope, active faith and a longing praye...

On Christ the King Sunday, Jonathan leads us through a thoughtful reflection on the meaning and relevance of the kingdom of God in today’s world. Radically distinct from worldly power and political structures - we looked at what Jesus said about the kingdom, and its implications for politics and the signs of the times in Aotearoa in 2025. References: Dr Lamma Mansour's interview with Archbisho...

In the last sermon of this three part series looking at what's involved in apprenticing to Jesus - Tim notes that in order to do as Jesus did, we need to ask, 'What is God up to in the world today?' and 'what role does the church play in what God is up to today?' The work of reconciliation Jesus began continues in a beautiful fractal-like pattern through his followers as we mak...

Identifying as a Christian is not a guarantee that you are becoming like Jesus. In this sermon, Tim looks at what Jesus was like, what it means to be a servant and the impact of unconscious formation. Note: We take a brief pause at 3min40sec to watch a Diocesan safety video, but it was not recorded here. Book mentions : ⁠Practising the way⁠ by John Mark Comer Gospel reading: Mark 10:35-45 Key text...