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.