About us

Birkenhead Community Church is an independent Christian church. We meet in the Rawene Centre at 33 Rawene Road in the heart of Birkenhead on Auckland’s North Shore (see map).

You’ll receive a warm welcome from our church family which is made up of a lot of different people who come here to worship… kids, teens, young adults, families and elderly, from a whole range of backgrounds. It’s a great mix and we love meeting together to learn and worship God.

And we’re not just open on Sundays. As well as our services we have people meeting throughout the week for small groups, ministries, sport, social events and more, so people can connect, serve and discover more about what God has in store for them.

So come along to Birkenhead Community Church this Sunday at 10am – we’d love to meet you.

Contact us

What we believe

This is our statement of faith… It’s not an official creed or confession, and it doesn’t try to define the ‘rules’ for being part of our church – it is simply the foundations on which we set our faith. We believe that:

  1. The Bible, as originally given, is inspired by God and is the supreme and final authority on all matters of Christian faith and action (2 Tim 3:16).

  2. There is one God, eternally present in three persons – God the Father, God the Son and the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:15-17; Matt 28:19).

  3. Man was created in the image of God, but as a result of sin is lost and powerless to save himself (Genesis 1:26; 2:16-17; Romans 6:23).

  4. Redemption from sin only comes through Christ. We’re all fallen people and the only way to save ourselves from the guilt, penalty and power of sin is through Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross. Christ, the virgin-born Son of God, died for our sins, was buried and rose again the third day – and through faith in Christ’s life, death, and resurrection, we are redeemed. (Romans 10:9-10; I Corinthians 15:1-4; Ephesians 2:1-10).

  5. Jesus Christ rose from the dead and now sits at the right hand of God with all authority in heaven and earth (Rom 6:4; Luke 9:22).

  6. The Holy Spirit works in people to give them repentance toward God and a faith in Christ Jesus – by believing in Him we have the redemption from sin that Christ died for and gifted to us (John 3: 5-6).

  7. The Holy Spirit lives in us and is active in the church today. Through Him we can live more like Christ and be empowered to carry out His work (Eph 1:12-14; 2:22).

  8. We’re waiting for Christ to return in all His glory so He can fulfill God’s kingdom. He’ll gather his people, judge the world in righteousness, and renew creation (Matt 24:27; 1 Cor. 15:23; 1 John 2:28).

  9. God is sovereign over creation – in the way he reveals Himself, in redemption, and in the final judgement. If we believe in Christ we receive the reward of eternal life in heaven. If we don’t believe, we are condemned to punishment and eternity in hell (Rom 10:9-10; 1 John 4:15).

  10. All true believers belong to ‘one’ church – described in the bible as ‘the body of Christ’. As a part of this holy, universal church, we worship Christ and proclaim Him as Lord (Eph 1:22-23; 1 Pet 2:5).

Our history

The Birkenhead Community Church family has been meeting together for 100 years now here in Birkenhead. And there are many families who have children, grandchildren and even great-grandchildren still actively involved at BCC.

In 1912 a group of Christians had a vision to create a local church in Birkenhead. Though we’re a relatively independent church now with no distinct denomination, we started out as a Christian (Open) Brethren church and still have some of that history carrying through. Like many modern Christian churches, we fit in the Protestant Evangelical basket… but in everyday terms we’re a relaxed, modern, family church with a focus on serving our local community.

Here’s a bit of our timeline…

Approx 1912
The church began, meeting in the home of Mr RE Stott on Onewa Road.

1915-29
‘The Assembly’ grew and moved to rented premises in Birkenhead known as Forrester’s Hall.

1929
The church was gifted a building in Hinemoa Street called the Gospel Hall and occupied it for 33 years. They also used the Victoria Hall in Mariposa Crescent for youth groups and a hall in Birkdale for Sunday School.

1962
The church grew and moved to a new building in Willow Avenue, built mainly by volunteers from the congregation. The church was renamed ‘Willow Avenue Gospel Chapel’ and then ‘Willow Avenue Chapel’.

1996
The church had grown considerably and the Willow Ave facilities were now too small so they moved Sunday Services to Birkenhead College as a temporary measure. The church had also been renamed ‘Birkenhead Community Church’ a few years earlier.

1999
The Willow Ave building was sold to another church group.

2000
The old Dick Smith warehouse in Rawene Road was purchased and turned into the Rawene Centre by the Willow Christian Trust. It gave Birkenhead Community Church the opportunity and facilities to run several existing community projects and begin some new ones. BCC use this community centre on a regular basis.

2023

The Willow Christian Trust changed it’s name to the Rawene Community Christian Trust.

Today
Well-known in the Birkenhead community, the Rawene Centre has been developed considerably over the years and is used extensively by BCC groups and ministries, as well as local organisations.

Our vision

As a church, we see the way Jesus lived as the perfect example to base our lives on – in our family relationships, with friends, at work, and at play. And this example really drives our vision as a church – to be a group of believers reaching out to our community.

At BCC we have 6 founding values that we follow.
To be…

We want to provide people with a welcoming, encouraging and challenging environment to grow and develop their faith. We love our community and want to serve the people of Birkenhead and beyond in a way that points them to Jesus.

If these are things you desire for yourself, your family and your friends, come and join us and become part of a group of believers reaching out to the people they see every day.