St Michael's talks & sermons

In this sermon, Ginni Shaw continues our series on John 3.16, exploring what it means to "believe in Jesus", by means of 3 vignettes in Acts 16, where three very different people come to live by means of their trust in him.

Key reading

Acts 16.11-34

Steve Shaw continues our series on John 3.16. What is this world that God loves? How does it sit in relation to God's providence, love and care?

Readings:Proverbs 8.22-31

Romans 8.18-28

John 1.1-14

Continuing our series on John 3.16, Tim unpacks how it is possible for God to love, and how the doctrine of the Trinity seems to be a necessary basis for a loving God.

Key texts:

1 John 4.7-16

Exodus 34.4-7

This sermon is the first full sermon in a series on John 3.16. It's one of the most famous verses in the bible, but worth unpacking slowly. This week, Tim asks, who is the God who so loved the world?

The key text here is Exodus 3.1-15

Tim begins by reading an extract from what's called 'The Memorial' of Blaise Pascal.

The disciples who gather behind locked doors in John 20 are afraid of the authorities; afraid because of their loyalty to Jesus. Are there parallels with us? Are we loyal to Jesus, but afraid because of Christianity's cultured despisers? If so, how might we let Jesus breathe his Holy Spirit on us this Easter.

Texts:

John 20.19-23

Acts 5.27-32

In this sermon, Rebecca Packer breaks down the story in John 12.1-9, where Mary anoints Jesus' feet. What becomes possible when we sit at Jesus' feet?

Reading:

John 12.1-11

Reconciliation is a major theme in the New Testament. What does it look like in practice? Jesus' parable of the "prodigal son" helps us work out what we need to do to become reconcilers, rather than clinging to entitlement or resentment. In this sermon, Tim borrows heavily from Henri Nouwen to explore how to live in Gods' love, and how to rejoice when your children beat you at chess.

Readings:

Luke 15.1-3, 11-32

2 Corinthians 5.16-23

Lent is hard work, because it asks us to stop distracting ourselves from letting God examine us, inside and out. In this sermon, Matthew explores the idea of God's judgement; why we find it so difficult, and why we need to listen to Jesus' call to repentance.

Reading: Luke 13.1-8

In Luke 13.31-35, Jesus gets a tip-off that Herod wants to kill him. This triggers his famous lament over Jerusalem.

In this sermon, visiting preacher, Alison Swinfen, walks through that gospel passage, drawing clear parallels between the tyranny of Herod, and the tyranny of those rulers today who want to kill innocent citizens. How does Jesus' response to Herod guide our response to the political violence of our day?

A great drive of contemporary Western culture encourages us to be our "authentic", "our true selves". But is that a desirable goal, for Christians or anyone? On the second Sunday of Advent, when John the Baptist excoriates his audience for their hypocrisy, Matt Packer guides us to ponder what true authenticity looks like...

At our parish camp earlier in the year, our speaker suggested that the tyranny of overwork is the biggest barrier to Kingdom growth in our parish. Rebecca takes up the challenge by taking us through the challenging territory of resisting the pressure to let work define our lives. On the first Sunday of Advent, she calls us to make commitment to Jesus the very centre of our lives, not a side-hobby

Useful scriptures

Exodus 5

Ephesians 6

On the Feast of Christ the King, Ginni unpacks the good news from Isaiah 40, bringing us the affirmation that our hope is in what God has done and will do, so that we need not give in to the power of despair.

Key Readings

Isaiah 40

One of the biggest powers that holds Western people captive is intellectualism. The intellect is obviously a great gift from God. But what about when it goes wrong? Jessie declares what's important in this sermon in our series on the Powers .

Readings:

Jeremiah 9.23-26

1 Corinthians 1.18-31

Mark 13.1-8

Westerners live in an epoch and a culture that celebrates powerful personalities and encourages self-assertion. How does this square with a biblical understanding of humans, made in the image of God, and yet called to community?

Readings:

Psalm 139.1-18

Romans 12.3-8

Matthew 12.46-50

Continuing the series on the Powers, Tim picks up the suggestion from parish camp that "superficiality" is one of the key powers of our age, distracting us from deep life in Christ. While pleasure is clearly a God-given gift (after all, "the Son of Man came eating and drinking..."), what goes wrong when it becomes all we live for? And then what happens when unchecked pleasure allies with some of the other powers, like Money and Sex? With some trepidation, Tim closes by offering a defence of the traditional Christian understanding of marriage, recognising that our ideals don't always match reality...

Readings:

from Job 28.12-15, 20-28

James 3.13-18

Luke 7.31-35

In last week's sermon, Steve talked us through the role of "The Powers" in the letter to the Ephesians. This week, Tim recapitulates that theology by looking at Colossians, and then applying that theology to Money. Can money be redeemed through simple and generous living?

Readings:

Deuteronomy 8.10-18

Colossians 1.15-20

Luke 16.10-15

Steve Shaw picks up where John Crawshaw left us at church camp. John got us thinking about "The Powers" that Paul introduces in Ephesians. Steve reminds us that These Powers are part of the created order, and that they have a proper place in creation, under Christ, the head. And when we see them out of order in the world around us, our first port of call is not fervent prayer, nor frantic action, but submission to Christ. That submission will then help us in the taking our part in the reordering of creation to which Christ calls us.

Readings:

Ephesians 1.15-2.10

Ephesians 6.10-18

Freshly back from the tangi of Kiingi Tuheitia and the coronation of Kuini Ngā Wai hono i te pō, Māmari Stephens weaves the parallels between the situations of Jews in Exile in Persia under the Emperor Xerxes, and the situation of Māori in Aotearoa New Zealand today. In examining the story of Queen Esther, she ponders how God uses our soft power to work for the good of those who feel the need to hide their identity.

Readings:

extracts from the Book of Esther

Matthew 14.25-31

Exile was totally disruptive of the life of God's people. The best and brightest were compelled to work for a foreign regime. But, rather than doing so grumpily, exiles like Shadrach, Meschach and Abednego throw themselves into life in Babylon, in line with Jeremiah's instructions in Jeremiah 29. They dig in to life in Babylon, but they also dig into life with God. And then, when they're asked to cross the line, they know when to say "No". In this sermon, Tim encourages us to do the same; to "dig in" to where God's call takes us,and to "dig in" to God.

Readings

from Daniel 1,

from Daniel 3

Luke 20.20-26

In part 4 of our Civil Servants of Scripture series, Tim looks at some of the officials named in the reign of King David. You can't rule a kingdom without a lot of dedicated officials. But the rot starts at the top. What if power goes to the boss's head, and your boss is the king? Tim talks briefly about Joab, and more extensively, Uriah, to consider the place of officials when power is misused. How does God see this misuse of power? And how should we respond?

Readings:

2 Samuel 8.15-18

2 Samuel 11.1-27

Matthew 20.24-28

This week, our Civil Servants of Scripture Series looks at Deborah. The story is sometimes seen as an indictment on male leadership, or perhaps as an exaltation of the preferability of female leadership. But what if we see it as an exploration in collaboration and co-operation? How might that help us to approach our work in the world with a spirit of service, calling, and co-operation? Rebecca leads us through these questions - and more - in this sermon!

Readings:

Judges 4 & 5

Matthew 26.6-13

The story of Joseph is so big, he gets two sermons in this series on Civil Servants of the Bible. This week, Joseph has been installed as effective prime minister of Egypt. Matt outlines for us the qualities of a good servant, including the quality of "anticipation". How does Joseph's faith in God help him to anticipate the nation's needs, and to plan appropriately? And how does his faith help him to break the cycle of scapegoating that dogs the operations of government?

Readings:

extracts from Genesis 44 & 45

Acts 7.9-15

Luke 15.20-24

This week's sermon starts a new series on the Civil Servants and Public Officials of the Bible. We live in a civil servant town. All our lives in Wellington are touched by personal connections to the civil service. Many of us work there. Many of us will work there. And even if we don't, all our lives are affected by the policy decisions and executive actions of civil servants. This series asks us how to navigate that life as Christians. How does the Bible help us to think through our multiple allegiances, to our employer, to the State, and above all to God?

In this first sermon, Ginni introduces us to Joseph, with the early part of his public career as an official in Potiphar's house. He's confronted early with the complexity of different loyalties. Can he stay true to YHWH, and be a good servant? And what about us? How do we maintain our faith in God when things seem to be falling apart around us in our workplaces?

Readings:

Genesis 39

Matthew 6.25-34

In the final sermon of this series, Dr Andrew "Burge" Burgess takes us in awe up the Mountain of the Ascension. What does the Ascension teach us about life in the world, about time, and about mission?

Readings:

Exodus 40.33b-38

Acts 1.1-11

John 14.15-24

The paradoxical climax of Jesus' ministry is his ascent up Mt Golgotha, to the cross. Why is this paradoxical moment so important? Why is it the way to life?

Matthew Bartlett explores these questions in this sermon.

Towards the end, he references a painting by Ioannis Moskos, which can be found here:

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a1/Crucifixion_by_I.Moskos_%281711%29.jpg

Readings:

Isaiah 53.4-12

2 Corinthians 5.14-the end

Luke 23.32-47

The words of Jesus are good! From the vista of the Sermon on the Mount, we can see Jesus' vision for a good society, built on the wholehearted faith of those who open their lives to God. As the floodwaters of our time rise, we're called to remain faithful and generous and committed to others, trusting that God will make that generosity possible.

This sermon was a version preached at the 9am service, with a more informal rant about social media and the sermon on the mount preached at the 10.30 all age service.

Readings:

Matthew 5.1-12

Matthew 7.24-29

In this sermon, Sam follows Jesus up the Mountain of Transfiguration. The beautiful truth revealed in this climb is that, in Jesus, God gives us the gift of Godself. Since Jesus has climbed the mountain, it's not all up to us: we have instead the privilege of following him.

Readings:

Exodus 32.31-34, 33.12-18

Psalm 8

Matthew 17.1-13

"Zion" is among the most evocative names in Scripture, suggesting the union of heaven and earth in the Jerusalem Temple Mountain. In this sermon, Tim sketches the way "Zion" develops from a nationalistic symbol, via being a symbol of universal hope for the nations, to a place in the heart set aside for the worship of God "in spirit and in truth".

Since St Michael's is being called in this season to "deeper worship", what does it mean for us to erect Mt Zion in our hearts? Tim suggests is requires us (i) to keep up the habit of worship, (ii) to be honest, and to confess where we are struggling to surrender to God, (iii) to be wholehearted.

Readings:

Micah 4.1-5

Psalm 48 (cp. also Psalm 87)

Hebrews 12.18-29

John 4.19-25

Mt Sinai is one of the most famous mountains of scripture, the mountain where the 10 Commandments are given. In this sermon, Matthew ponders those commandments, and explores the difference between obeying them as a matter of external obedience, and obeying them as a joyous offering from the heart. In the process, he calls us to lives of worship, and gives us a helpful side-helping on mimetic desire.

Readings:

Exodus 20.1-20

Jeremiah 31.31-34

Luke 22.14-20

Mt Moriah is the mountain of sacrifice, the mountain where Abraham shows himself willing to give up everything for God. It's a troubling and mysterious story. In this sermon, Tim asks us to exercise our imagination for what would be possible for St Michael's if we let God have our all. On the way, he gets some help from Soren Kierkegaard, and some from Bishop Justin Duckworth, to ask, "what would it mean for St Michael's to lay everything at God's altar?". What Sacred Cows might need to be sacrificed on the way?

Readings:

Genesis 22.1-14

Romans 12.1-8

Mark 10.22-31

At the Diocesan leadership camp in early 2024, a (sort of) anonymous prophetic message was shared with St Michael's, "Piki Mai!" "come on up [the mountain]". This series responds to that message, by exploring some mountains of scripture, exploring what it might mean for us to come higher up and higher in, in our life together with Jesus.

In this opening sermon, Jessie Thornton-Black gets us ready to climb by observing the preparations Elijah takes on the Mountains of Carmel & Horeb/Sinai in 1 Kings 18 & 19.

Readings:

1 Kings 18.41-46

1 Kings 19.11-17

Luke 14.25-33

What does it mean to believe in Jesus? In this final part of our post-Easter series on 1 John, Ginni Shaw gives us a beautifully clear statement of what it means to believe in Jesus, and where to go to deepen that belief. the process, she helps revive our faith if it's at risk of going stale.

Readings: 1 John 5, especially vv. 1-12

Sermon preached at the 9am service, so the acoustic is a bit different from normal, and there is less heckling...! And there's a reference to Charles Taylor, just for Rayne!

Professor Chris Marshall joins us to unpack the rich symbolism of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday.

Tim continues our interrupted series on 1 John with some reflections on Chapter 4. Why is it good news that Jesus has come "in the flesh", as a human? How do we dwell in that truth?

Bishop Justin brings the first of his two-part sermon on the Good News. This week: the good news of the cross.

The lectionary sets readings from 1 John for the weeks after Easter. Before this sermon, Tim played the first few minutes of the Bible Project overview of 1 John, and then dives into 3 issues that arose for him from Chapters 1 & 2.

- who is this God John is passionate about?

- what does it mean to walk in the light?

- how do we get into the light?

The Law is a massive theme across the whole bible. How do we understand it, from its place in the Torah's wilderness narratives, right through to Jesus, and Paul's apparent reevaluation of it.

These are the questions Rebecca guides us through in this helpful overview of the theme of Law.

Readings:

Exodus 19.3-6, Ex 20.1-17

Deuteronomy 4.5-14

Galatians 3.23-4.7

Who is God?

One Jewish answer to this question, repeated throughout the Hebrew Scriptures, is: "God is the God who liberated us from slavery in Egypt".

In this sermon, Dr Philip Fountain recounts the way that Jewish people recall the Exodus in ritual and story. He reminds us that this story has empowered liberation struggles throughout the world. And he closes by reaffirming that Jesus carries all those memories into the Last Supper, the meal he calls us to share every time we remember him

Readings: Psalm 114 | Psalm 136 | Luke 22.14-23

Music after the sermon: 'Let My People Go' by 1814.

Scripture starts in a garden and ends in a city. So what's the problem with building a tower as part of a city, as in the Tower of Babel?

In this sermon, Matthew traces all sorts of interesting clues in the Babel story that the people are critiqued for imposing an "anti-pattern" on reality; a pattern that looks attractive, but it ultimately too rigid and imperial for God's purposes. By contrast, the life-giving pattern Scripture describes is more receptive. It involves receiving a name from God, against the life-sucking anti-pattern of seeking to establish a name for ourselves.

Scriptures

Genesis 11.1-9

Revelation 3.12-13, 21.22-22.2

For those who heard the Genesis stories as Sunday School kids, it's easy to overlook how profound they are. In this sermon, Matt Packer explores one aspect of the very profound story of Cain & Abel - the role played by imitative desire. Beginning with a summary of the theory of Mimesis, Matt helps us to see that we are by nature creatures who imitate others, often out of jealousy and envy. That sheds helpful light on the killing of Abel, and challenges us each to ponder, "Who am I imitating?"\

Texts:

Genesis 4

John 21.20-23

Matt also references the video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgB9p2BA4fw

Mostly, this series takes the scriptures at face value, without asking the historical or scientific questions. This sermon is an exception, as Jonathan Boston takes a theistic evolutionary perspective on the account in Genesis 3. He then asks how a committed Christian should understand the doctrine of the Fall, and how that should shape our life in today's world. Fittingly, the sermon was preached on Hiroshima Day 2023, a day when we remember the tragic ability of humanity to wreak destruction.

Texts: Genesis 3

Romans 8.18-27

Tim continues our series on the archetypal stories of the Old Testament with a look at human vocation in Genesis 2. What can we learn from taking seriously the patterns of life in The Garden of Eden for life today?

Texts:

Genesis 2

John 20.10-18

Note: Tim assumes people have watched the following Bible Project video : https://bibleproject.com/explore/video/priests-of-eden/

In a world of perceived chaos and crisis, how do we find meaning and hope? This new series looks to the archetypal narratives of the Old Testament to find the repatterning to which St Paul calls us in Romans 12.1-2.

In this opening sermon, Matthew Bartlett explores the rich patterning of Genesis 1, and how it points us to the central place that humanity holds in God's creative intention. How can knowing this place, and living out of it, help us to live in a time when most people feel, as WB Yeats said, that "the centre cannot hold"?

Readings

Genesis 1; Luke 24.13-27 ; John 1.1-8

What does God call us to give to the life of the church? And why? In this sermon, Sam exhorts us to see all we have as gift from God, such that it's easier both to give and to receive. And might that not encourage us to give a whole lot more?

Readings

Numbers 3.40-51

2 Corinthians 8.1-15

John 12.1-8

If worship is about offering our whole lives to God (Romans 12.1-2), what's so special about worship services? Can't we just worship Monday to Friday, and get a sleep-in on Sunday?

Readings:

Revelation 4

Revelation 5

Mark 12.28-34

In Episode IV of this series on The Church, Tim goes off lectionary to outline the kind of behaviour Paul expects of Christian communities. If a church is too big to tease the vicar, does it mean it's too big?

Readings

Romans 12.1-16

Matthew 12:46-50

Anglicans in Aotearoa & Polynesia celebrate Te Pouhere Sunday, the Sunday when we remember the unique 3-Tikanga Constitution of our Anglican Church. Alan Cameron today explores what being people of the Treaty of Waitangi might mean for the Christian church here.

The series on The Church continues, with this Trinity Sunday exploration of The Trinity & the Church. How does the doctrine of the Trinity empower and encourage us to live and witness as church?

Readings:

2 Corinthians 13.-11-14

Psalm 86.8-13

Matthew 28.16-20

This is the first sermon in a series on The Church, taking its cue from 3 Sundays in the New Zealand lectionary, with 3 bonus sermons on other aspects of Being the Church..

This week, Jessie Black discusses Pentecost as the Birthday of the Church, and probes how to retain hope when our hopes for God to do great things through the church are disappointed.

Readings

Acts 2.1-21

1 Corinthians 12.3-13

John 20.19-23

Readings for Sixth Sunday of Easter

1 Peter 3.13-22

Acts 17.22-31

John 14.15-21

In this sermon, Rev. Dr. Tim McKenzie follows Paul to Athens, and wonders how his preaching methodology here helps build bridges for the gospel into Athenian culture. Or does it? Tim notes that the people of Athens were a tough crowd; it's one of Paul's least successful preaching gigs in Acts. Might his invocation of Greek poetry and philosophy help us proclaim our faith in secular, 21st C Wellington (supposedly one of the most secular cities in the world)?