Our Message

The message of the Presbyterian Church of Australia is that God appointed Jesus to be the ruler of the world, and that God will judge the world through him. Everyone who trusts Jesus will be forgiven and enjoy eternal life with him. Everyone who does not trust Jesus, but persists in their desire to live without him, will receive what they desire and be cut off eternally from the God who gives life, hope, and every good thing.

God has the right to impose these conditions because he created the world, cares for it, owns it, and controls it. He commands all people everywhere to recognise the authority he has given to Jesus and to submit to him humbly and confidently.

At the time of creation, human beings were without fault before God. However they wanted to live on their own terms and rebelled against his rule, just as we all still do today.

Human rebellion never brings the freedom that people imagine. Instead it subjects us – and the whole creation – to lifelong frustration, failure, decay, and death.

Life in isolation from God might have some pleasure but it can never lead to ultimate satisfaction. In truth, human beings have no power or ability to escape the cycle of death and judgment that we have brought upon ourselves. We desperately need to be rescued, and for that we have to depend on the one person that God promised throughout history to provide.

In due time, a fully human and fully divine Saviour came – Jesus. Although he was born just like every other human being, the fulness of God was in him so that, growing up as a Jew and embracing all the obligations God imposed upon his people in the Old Testament, this Jesus remained free from all the imperfections to which all other human beings were subject. He lived a perfect life, and then surrendered his life to death so that he might be a sacrifice to pay the debt owed by everyone who would trust him. After his death by crucifixion, Jesus rose from the dead and showed himself convincingly to thousands of people who overcame their skepticism and surrendered themselves to the loving rule of Jesus.

Because of his death and resurrection, God now offers forgiveness – an amnesty – to each and every one of us who will admit that we’ve neglected him and rejected his claim to authority over us,. He promises to forgive everyone who turns away from their rebellion against him and asks for his forgiveness. More than that, he comes to live personally in everyone who trusts Jesus and he changes us that we will progressively become more and more like Jesus.

Eventually, Jesus will come to earth again, not to rescue sinners but to demonstrate his authority by restoring all things to their original state of perfection so that God will live with his people in the way he originally intended.

Beyond this very brief summary, the primary beliefs of the Presbyterian Church of Australia are set out systematically in The Westminster Confession of Faith (as amended), a copy of which may be obtained here.