Sunday Sermons

Why Doesn’t God’s Word Change Me More?

In James 1:19–27, we’re challenged to consider what happens after we hear God’s Word. We can listen, agree and even feel challenged, yet walk away without putting it into practice. James calls us to receive the Word humbly, look into it carefully and live it visibly.

In this message from Horizon Church Canberra, Ps Simon Wagg explores what it means to come to the Bible with a teachable heart and allow God’s Word to shape our everyday lives. From being quick to listen and slow to become angry, to controlling our tongues and caring for vulnerable people, James shows us how faith becomes visible in the way we speak, care and live.

Through Jesus, we have been forgiven and given new life, and God has given us his Holy Spirit to help us respond. As Scripture reveals areas that need to change, we can ask the Spirit to soften our hearts, strengthen us to obey and help us put what we have heard into practice.

Whether you’re looking for a church in Canberra, exploring Christianity, or wanting practical Bible teaching about spiritual growth and living out your faith, we’d love you to join us at Horizon Church Canberra.

Bible passage: James 1:19–27
Horizon Church Canberra | Christian church in Canberra, ACT

How Do I Deal With Temptation?

In James 1:13–18, we explore where temptation comes from, how it works and how we can respond. James shows us how our own desires can draw us away from God, and how even good desires for security, intimacy and acceptance can become destructive when we pursue them in the wrong ways.

In this message from Horizon Church Canberra, Ps James explores how to recognise the desires beneath our temptations, ask where they are taking us and respond before they take hold. Through practical examples from everyday life, he unpacks James’s challenge to examine our hearts, establish wise boundaries and bring our deepest needs before God.

At the heart of this passage is a reminder of God’s unchanging goodness. Every good and perfect gift comes from him, and through Jesus, he has already given us new life. As God’s prized possession, we can face temptation knowing that we are deeply loved and that we belong to him. Trusting his goodness helps us resist the lie that we must take matters into our own hands to find fulfilment.

Whether you’re looking for a church in Canberra, exploring Christianity, or wanting practical Bible teaching about dealing with temptation, trusting God and growing in your Christian faith, we’d love you to join us at Horizon Church Canberra.

Bible passage: James 1:13–18
Horizon Church Canberra | Christian church in Canberra, ACT

What does faith look like when life gets hard?

In James 1:1–12, we’re reminded that trials are not a sign that God has abandoned us. Instead, James shows us how God can use difficult seasons to grow endurance, wisdom and a faith that is whole and undivided.

In this message from Horizon Church Canberra, we explore what it means to trust God under pressure, ask him for wisdom, resist divided loyalties, and keep our eyes fixed on the hope he has promised us. James challenges us not simply to know what God’s Word says, but to live with a faith that remains steady when life is difficult.

Being wholehearted does not mean being untroubled. Jesus himself faced anguish, yet remained completely surrendered to the Father. Because of Jesus, we can endure with confidence, knowing that God is at work in us and that his grace is greater than every trial we face. 

Whether you’re looking for a church in Canberra, exploring Christianity, or wanting practical Bible teaching about faith, trials and perseverance, we’d love you to join us at Horizon Church Canberra.

Bible passage: James 1:1–12
Horizon Church Canberra | Christian church in Canberra, ACT

How do you trust God when you lose someone you depend on?

In 2 Kings 2, Elijah is taken up to heaven, leaving Elisha grieving the loss of his spiritual mentor and facing an uncertain future. As Elisha picks up Elijah’s cloak and returns to the Jordan River, he discovers that the God who worked through Elijah is still present and powerful.

In this message from Horizon Church Canberra, we explore what Elijah and Elisha teach us about trusting God through grief and loss, finding hope when life changes, and depending on God’s strength to keep going.

Faith does not mean pretending that loss doesn’t hurt. It means trusting that God is still with us when someone we love is gone. God takes His servants home, but His work continues and His power never fades. Through Jesus and the gift of the Holy Spirit, we can know that God is present and working in our lives today.

Whether you’re looking for a church in Canberra, exploring Christianity, navigating grief, or wanting clear and practical Bible teaching about trusting God in difficult times, we’d love you to join us at Horizon Church Canberra.

Bible passage: 2 Kings 2:1–15
Horizon Church Canberra | Christian church in Canberra, ACT

How do you respond when God calls you into something new?

In 1 Kings 19, Elijah finds Elisha in the middle of an ordinary working day and places his cloak over him — a call that will completely change the direction of Elisha’s life. Elisha doesn’t know everything that lies ahead, but he knows enough to trust the God who is calling him.

In this message from Horizon Church Canberra, we explore what the call of Elisha teaches us about hearing God’s call, trusting God with an uncertain future, the cost of following Jesus, and being faithful in the ordinary seasons of life.

Faith does not mean knowing exactly how everything will work out. It means trusting the God we know with the future we don’t. Elisha leaves behind the familiar because he believes that following God is worth more than holding onto the life he already knows.

Whether you’re looking for a church in Canberra, exploring Christianity, discerning God’s direction for your life, or wanting clear and practical Bible teaching about faith and discipleship, we’d love you to join us at Horizon Church Canberra.

Bible passage: 1 Kings 19:19–21
Horizon Church Canberra | Christian church in Canberra, ACT

After the incredible victory on Mount Carmel, Elijah suddenly finds himself exhausted, afraid and deeply discouraged. In 1 Kings 19, he runs into the wilderness, sits beneath a tree and tells God he has had enough.

So how does God respond to Elijah’s depression?

In this message from Horizon Church Canberra, we explore what 1 Kings 19 teaches us about faith and depression, exhaustion, loneliness and the compassion of God. Rather than condemning Elijah for lacking faith, God listens to him, cares for his physical needs, meets him in the quiet and reminds him that he is not alone.

Elijah’s story gives us a powerful picture of the God of compassion and mercy — a God who sees us in our darkest moments, remains present even when he seems silent, and is not finished with us.

Whether you’re looking for a church in Canberra, exploring Christianity, wrestling with faith and mental health, or wanting clear and practical Bible teaching, we’d love you to join us as we continue through the story of Elijah.

Bible passage: 1 Kings 19
Horizon Church Canberra | Christian Church in Canberra, ACT

In 1 Kings 18, Elijah stands on Mount Carmel before the prophets of Baal and calls God’s people to make a choice: how long will they waver between two opinions? What follows is one of the most dramatic moments in the Old Testament as God answers Elijah’s prayer and reveals that he alone is God.

In this message from Horizon Church Canberra, we explore what the story of Elijah on Mount Carmel teaches us about divided loyalties, unanswered prayer, trusting God, and the difference between idols that cannot respond and the living God who hears and answers.

The God who answered Elijah is still the God we can trust today — not because he always answers in the way we expect, but because he is living, faithful and worthy of our whole-hearted worship.

Whether you’re looking for a church in Canberra, exploring Christianity, or wanting clear and practical Bible teaching, we’d love you to join us as we continue through the story of Elijah.

Bible passage: 1 Kings 18
Horizon Church Canberra | Christian Church in Canberra, ACT

In 1 Kings 17, Elijah meets the widow of Zarephath in the middle of drought, desperation and loss. Yet in each seemingly hopeless situation, God speaks, provides and proves that his Word can be trusted.

In this message from Horizon Church Canberra, we see what Elijah and the widow teach us about trusting God when we can’t see the outcome, obeying God even when it costs us, and discovering hope in hopeless places.

Whether you’re looking for a church in Canberra, exploring Christianity, or wanting practical Bible teaching to help you grow in faith, we’d love you to join us as we continue through the story of Elijah.

Bible passage: 1 Kings 17:7–24
Horizon Church Canberra | Christian Church in Canberra, ACT

In 1 Kings 16–17, we meet Elijah at one of the darkest moments in Israel’s history. King Ahab has led God’s people away from him, yet God has not forgotten his people and has not stopped keeping his promises.

In this message from Horizon Church Canberra, we look at what Elijah teaches us about trusting God in difficult times, having courage when faith is unpopular, waiting where God has placed us, and depending on God’s provision one day at a time.

Elijah’s story reminds us that our confidence is not ultimately in circumstances, political power or our own resources, but in the living God who keeps his Word and provides what we need.

Whether you’re looking for a church in Canberra, exploring Christianity, or wanting clear and practical Bible teaching, we’d love you to join us as we journey through the story of Elijah.

Bible passage: 1 Kings 16:29–17:7
Horizon Church Canberra | Christian Church in Canberra, ACT