Tom McIvor reflects on the wisdom found in Ecclesiastes chapters 3 and 4 Tom explores the themes of life's seasons and cycles — from joy to sorrow, creation to destruction, and friendship to loneliness. Through a biblical lens, he emphasizes the importance of recognizing God's presence in every season, urging us to make God central in our lives. By reflecting on Solomon's life, Tom encourages self-assessment, urging us not to chase worldly success without eternal purpose. A deep dive into living...
Sep 28, 2024•31 min•Season 2024Ep. 39
Billy Hanna looks at Ecclesiastes 2, exploring the theme of life’s pursuits and the ultimate meaninglessness of seeking satisfaction through worldly pleasures, wisdom, and toil. Billy discusses "the preacher’s" investigation into pleasures like wealth, status, and indulgence, showing how all these pursuits end in vanity. However, the message shifts toward hope as Billy emphasizes the profound fulfillment that comes from pursuing God alone. He encourages us to enjoy God's gifts as blessings, not ...
Sep 22, 2024•38 min•Season 2024Ep. 38
Dan Pettersen embarks on a journey through the book of Ecclesiastes, exploring its themes of life's meaning and purpose. Dan introduces the background of Ecclesiastes, commonly attributed to King Solomon, who, despite immense wisdom and wealth, grapples with the concept of life's futility "under the sun." He emphasizes that life can feel meaningless without looking beyond the physical world, yet Solomon hints at deeper truths. By encouraging us to "fear God and obey His commandments," Dan unpack...
Sep 08, 2024•36 min•Season 2024Ep. 36
Billy Hanna wraps up our sermon series on the Book of Ruth, focusing on chapter 4, verses 13-22. Billy highlights the profound themes of redemption, God's providence, and how He works through even the most challenging circumstances. He explores the "double ending" of the book, where the immediate redemption of Naomi is followed by the broader significance of Ruth's story leading to the birth of King David and, ultimately, Jesus Christ. Through this, the Billy emphasizes God’s care for individual...
Aug 25, 2024•38 min•Season 2024Ep. 34
Peter Sun dives into the story of Ruth 4:1-12, exploring themes of redemption, restoration, and divine sovereignty. Peter unpacks the clever plans of Naomi and Boaz, leading to Ruth's redemption through a carefully orchestrated series of events. We see how Boaz, a symbol of Christ, redeems both the land and Ruth, restoring hope for Naomi and her family. Peter highlights God’s unwavering sovereignty, showing how, despite human choices and circumstances, His divine purposes always prevail. Listen ...
Aug 18, 2024•38 min•Season 2024Ep. 33
Jeff Samuel explores the relationship dynamics between Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz, focusing on Naomi’s plan to secure a future for Ruth. Jeff discusses the cultural context of ancient Israel, explaining the significance of "rest," the concept of redemption, and how Naomi’s clever plan leads Ruth to approach Boaz as a potential redeemer. He brings out the deeper themes of love, loyalty, and divine providence, highlighting how God’s hand guides even the most subtle interactions. He also emphasizes the ...
Aug 11, 2024•41 min•Season 2024Ep. 32
Gavin Lynch continues the church's series on the Book of Ruth, focusing on Ruth 2:15-23. Gavin shares a personal story about attending a friend's father's funeral, highlighting the impact of genuine kindness and grace. He then delves into the passage, exploring the profound kindness Boaz shows to Ruth and how Ruth reciprocates by caring for Naomi. Through detailed analysis, Gavin illustrates the loving-kindness (hesed) of God, emphasizing His unwavering faithfulness and mercy. He encourages us t...
Aug 04, 2024•42 min•Season 2024Ep. 31
We take a break from our series in Ruth to celebrate a second lot of baptisms at HBC in a little over a month. Dan Pettersen explores the significance and meaning behind the Christian practice of baptism. Celebrating the baptism of Emma and Adam, Dan discusses the historical and biblical foundations of baptism, tracing its roots back to ancient Jewish practices and the teachings of Jesus. He delves into the symbolism of immersion in water, linking it to themes of repentance, forgiveness, and new...
Jul 28, 2024•32 min•Season 2024Ep. 30
Mark Linton explores the profound narrative of Ruth and Naomi's return to Bethlehem. As they navigate life as widows, we witness Ruth's loyalty and obedience in her determination to support Naomi. Mark discusses the pivotal moment when Ruth gleans in the fields of Boaz, a kinsman of Naomi's late husband, and finds unexpected favour. Through this beautiful story of providence and faith, he discusses the themes of trust, divine grace, and the ultimate satisfaction found under God's protection. Joi...
Jul 21, 2024•33 min•Season 2024Ep. 29
Dan Pettersen delves into the first chapter of the Book of Ruth, exploring themes of faith, loyalty, and divine providence. Dan introduces our new series by setting the historical context of Ruth during the chaotic period of the Judges, a time when everyone did what was right in their own eyes. He draws parallels to modern life, urging us to prioritize spiritual protection over economic gain. Dan highlights Ruth's powerful declaration of loyalty to Naomi and her commitment to the God of Israel, ...
Jul 14, 2024•34 min•Season 2024Ep. 28
Tom Leslie delves into the final section of the book of James, focusing on the profound power of prayer in various life circumstances. Our discussion is anchored in James 5:13-20, where we explore the transformative impact of prayer in times of suffering, cheerfulness, and sickness. Listen as Tom reads and unpacks James 5:13-20, a powerful passage that offers guidance on how to approach prayer in different situations. Discover how prayer serves as a lifeline during hardships, drawing from biblic...
Jul 07, 2024•37 min•Season 2024Ep. 27
Chris Ayers from Pioneers Aotearoa joins us this week to share about the work being done worldwide, and also talk about our commission. Chris starts us with an overview of who Pioneers NZ are and their work, while also giving us a small update on the Pothula Family in Australia and their move currently in progress. Chris then moves his attention to two passages from the Gospels of Luke and John, where Jesus instructs fishermen on casting their nets, and he looks at the contrasts these two passag...
Jun 30, 2024•51 min•Season 2024Ep. 26
While Professor Darrell Bock is in the country for Winter Bible School in Te Puke, we grasped the opportunity to have him pop over to Hamilton for the day to speak at HBC. Prof. Darrell starts us off by discussing how Americans view sports vs the Commonwealth before tying these concepts into his topic for today, discussing what has happened to the Church in recent years. Looking back in Acts 4 and 17, Prof. Darrell looks at how the Church made a difference in its time. Starting in Acts 4, Prof. ...
Jun 23, 2024•49 min•Season 2024Ep. 25
Jeff Samuel brings us our message this week looking at "How To Develop Patience" from James 5:7-12. Jeff dives straight into a review of what Kotie spoke on last week to see how that ties into today's passage before looking at our passage for today in detail. He takes a look at how to hurt someone with grumbling, the opposite of what we should be doing. Jeff then looks at the story of the Prophet Micaiah from 1 Kings 22, and looks at how he invokes what James mentions in verse 10. He then circle...
Jun 09, 2024•48 min•Season 2022Ep. 23
Kotie Smith discusses "How To Be Wise With Your Wealth" from James 5:1-6. Kotie opens with a reading of our passage for today, before breaking it down, starting with discussing who this was written to. Kotie then moves verse by verse, looking at how they can be applied to us today, especially focusing on how we view money vs God. He breaks them into "three sins" outlined by James, before looking at some principals about wealth. Recorded at the Hukanui Bible Church morning service on Sunday the 2...
Jun 02, 2024•30 min•Season 2024Ep. 22
Dan Pettersen discusses facing our future this week, taken from James 4:13-17. Peter Sun opens up our service today with a Pastoral Prayer over our children before Dan Pettersen jumps in to discuss "the future". Dan looks over three key mistakes that are commonly made about the future as outlined by James, and the warning that he gives. Recorded at the Hukanui Bible Church morning service on Sunday the 26th of May 2024 during the 10:00 am service.
May 26, 2024•38 min•Season 2024Ep. 21
Sam Crosbie brings us a shorter message this morning, focusing on just two verses from James 4. While our passage is short, Sam jumps right in and reads the two verses that he's covering. He then talks to us with a warning about looking at things on the surface, rather than being able to see the deeper level and root cause of what may be going on. Sam then ties this into how James speaks into judging those around us, without actually dealing with the underlying problems that may be present. He t...
May 19, 2024•28 min•Season 2024Ep. 20
Peter Sun follows up the message from Tim Norris last week, looking at "Friendship with the World" from James 4. Peter gets right into it and reads our passage for today before looking at how it builds on what was spoken about last week. He then breaks the passage into four sections - The Context; Our Actions; Consequences; and Solutions. Recorded at the Hukanui Bible Church morning service on Sunday the 5th of May 2024 during the 10:00 am service....
May 05, 2024•31 min•Season 2024Ep. 18
Tim Norris discusses "Earthly Wisdom" and "Heavenly Wisdom" and what that means from the end of James 3. We jump into Tim giving us a quick overview of what has been covered in the last couple of chapters before he starts going through the passage for today. Tim looks at how we define wisdom based on people around us and their "status", and how the world defines wisdom from Romans 1, and even in Genesis 3. He then compares this to the "Christian" wisdom that James writes about here in our passag...
Apr 28, 2024•45 min•Season 2024Ep. 17
Gavin Lynch looks at how to manage our mouth as James discusses in Chapter 3. Andrew Linton starts us off with a pastoral prayer before handing over to Gavin who gives us a brief intro before asking Jonathan Linton to read the passage for today. Gavin then looks at the clarity that James hopes to give here, with the theme "Our words have the power to be a blessing or a curse – you choose!", and the main point being "The tongue can cause great destruction if not controlled". He then breaks the pa...
Apr 21, 2024•41 min•Season 2024Ep. 16
While we take a break from our current series, Lewis Varley challenges us to summarise what the Bible is all about in 12 words or less. Lewis dives straight in with the question for this week, breaking for a couple of minutes to allow those present to discuss their answers. He then turns to Luke 24 to see how Jesus answers the question. After reading the passage, Lewis gives us some context of what we've just read before drawing six points from it. While looking at these points, Lewis also share...
Apr 07, 2024•31 min•Season 2024Ep. 14
Kanda Sami brings us a special Easter Sunday message this morning. Kanda starts with a couple of anecdotes about preaching and the journey he's been on to speak this morning, before turning to Romans 5 and looking at the paradise that Adam lost being re-gained through Christ. He then looks at 1 Corinthians 15 and the Ressurection story presented here. Kanda then looks at five different ways that the devil has tried attacking God's plan, and how even through all this, Jesus achieved the cross. Ka...
Mar 30, 2024•47 min•Season 2024Ep. 12
Peter Sun brings us into chapter 2 of James in our new series, looking at the pitfalls of partiality, Peter takes us for a quick overview of our study, reminding us of the overall theme of James being "maturity in Christ". He then tells a story of a conservative church in America, and how it relates to our passage for today regarding partiality. Peter then looks at what partiality is (stereotyping) and how we should react to it as a Church. He then looks at three points as to why believers shoul...
Mar 23, 2024•36 min•Season 2024Ep. 12
Andrew Linton wraps up James 1 in our new series this week. Andrew begins with a brief overview of what we know about James, before getting James Broadbridge up to read our passage for this morning. After the reading, he follows up with a survey on how many people skipped lunch that morning, before swinging to look at the concept of "no Bible, no breakfast", which leads into our title for today's passage. Andrew then breaks the passage into four divisions, with four steps - one from each section...
Mar 16, 2024•27 min•Season 2024Ep. 11
Dan Pettersen brings us verses 12-18 from James 1 this week in our new series. Dan does a quick review of prior weeks before starting with a story of his time in Korea and the test for the English language school, which leads to the discussion of the homonym "peirasmos" which James uses in this part of the passage. He then looks at the homonym and the trials and temptations we may face, and what James has to say about this. Dan looks at five "principals" about dealing with temptation, also looki...
Mar 09, 2024•39 min•Season 2024Ep. 10
Kristopher Stout joins us from Word of Life (Executive Vice President of International and Youth Ministries) and shares about righteousness as discussed in Ephesians 6:14. Kris takes us through why this topic has been on his heart before reading through the text on the Armour of God in Ephesians 6:10-17. He then looks at the importance of the Armour of God, and why we need to put it ALL on. Kris then dives into why righteousness is important, looking at references from both the Old Testament and...
Mar 02, 2024•40 min•Season 2024Ep. 9
Billy Hanna continues our study in James this week, while also taking a chance to chat about baptism. Billy jumps right into it, reviewing the passage from last week for context before looking at verses 5-11. He then looks at his statement "In order to face our trials with a Godly perspective, we need God’s wisdom", looking at three points that this encompasses. Billy then looks at what baptism is and why it's so significant in the Christian life, being done in obedience to Christ. Recorded at t...
Feb 24, 2024•33 min•Season 2024Ep. 7
Sam Crosbie jumps right into the book of James in our new series, looking at the first four verses this week. Sam looks at the passage right away, starting in verse 1 of James chapter 1, to introduce us to our audience. He then looks at the analogy of running for the sake of running, or for doing something for an "end goal" but no other purpose, before swinging around to his statement for this passage - “A desire for maturity should outlast any desire for a trial to pass.” Sam then looks at what...
Feb 17, 2024•32 min•Season 2024Ep. 7
Dan Pettersen kicks off our new series "Putting Our Faith Into Practice" with an overview of the book of James. Dan starts by looking back at our series from last year and what we covered, which leads into the series we're going into looking at how we take what we learnt last year and make it practical. Dan then looks at who James was, and where he fits into the narrative. He then dives into an overview of the book, looking at the overarching theme of maturity, and breaking it down into five poi...
Feb 10, 2024•37 min•Season 2024Ep. 6
Gavin Lynch wraps up our book overview of Nehemiah, and our "Who Are We?" series as a whole this week, looking at Nehemiah 13. Gavin gives us an overview of our study this year leading to the question "What do we need to do now?" Gavin then looks at an illustration of how we can tend to "play up when the Master isn't home". Titling his message "Avoiding the Pitfalls", Gavin presents his theme for today as "God's people should strive for obedience in all areas of life." As he progresses through t...
Dec 16, 2023•41 min•Season 2023Ep. 50
