Presbyterian Church Governance

What do you think about the statement

"all paths lead to the same God?"

What difference does it make whether we make up our own theology?

Read 1 Timothy 6.12-16

12 Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. 13Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. 14 Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you. 15Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress. 16 Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.

What does the Presbyterian Church believe?

The official statement of belief of the Presbyterian Church can be found in Westminster Confession of Faith, (WCF) which is "the subordinate standard". In other word, the bible comes first, and the WCF helps you to understand it. (if you would like a copy let your leader know).

Do you have to believe the WCF to become a "Partner?"

The answer to that question is "No." However, if you want to become an Elder in the church, then is does become a prerequisite for ordination.

So what do I have to believe to become a "partner" in the gospel?

We have a few areas of belief which are "not negotiable" when you become a partners of this church. They are as follows.

1. The Bible and Jesus

a. We believe that the Bible, Old and New Testament, are God's living and active word to us today. (2 Peter 1.21, Hebrews 4.11-13) and is sufficient for life and salvation (2 Timothy 3.16). God's word is perfect and infallible.

b. We believe that the bible speaks about God's plan in Jesus (Matthew 1.1; John 5.39-40; Hebrew 1.1-3; Luke 24.25-27, roman; 1.2)

c. We believe that all of God's promises are fulfilled in Jesus 2 Corinthians 1.²⁰ For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. (see also Galatians 3.16-18; Galatians 4.4)

d. We believe that Jesus is the centre of God's plan and purpose today (Ephesians 1.10)

2. God and Creation

a. God created the world - The world is God's, he made it and he owns it therefore he is the boss. God is also Good and that means that he does not and cannot let sin go unpunished.

b. God made humans in the image of God - we believe that God made humanity (male and female) in his image. He made them to live, honour and serve God by ruling creation for God

3. Humanity and Sin

a. Humanity thinks they know better than God - Genesis 3 tells us that humans thought is would be better if they were "like God" and become law makers. So they "break" God's commands in order to make up their own. The bible calls this "sin" and "rebellion". As a result God curses the earth and humanity with corruption and death. However this death and corruption is only a foretaste of a great death and corruption. A further result of humanities rebellion is that each person is born with an innate inability to submit to God and therefore every person ever born is born a ‘sinner'.

b. Humanity's Problem: God is a good and just God, and thus he cannot and will not let sin and rebellion go unpunished. God's law expects perfection. Galatians 3.10 says this "Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them." We will all stand before the judgment seat of God. (2 Corinthians 5.10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil"

c. But it remains God's desire to bless humanity. Thus God has made some promises in the Old Testament, one to Abraham (his descendent will "bless the nations"), one to King David (one of his descendents will reign on God's throne forever) and the promise of the New Covenant (where God will pour out his Spirit and write his law on our hearts). All of these promises find the fulfilment in Jesus. 2 Corinthians 1.20 says "For all the promises of God find their Yes in him (Jesus)."

d. God calls all people to repent and believe in his Son (Matthew 3.2; Acts 2.38; 2 Corinthians 7.10; 2 Peter 3.9)

4. The Life of Jesus

a. Born of Mary and the Holy Spirit - fully Man and Fully God

i. Human (Hebrew 2.17)

ii. God (Philippians 2.5-10)

iii. Trinity (Romans 8.9-11; Hebrews 1.8-12; Acts 20.28; John 1.1-3)

b. The Messiah

i. Matthew 1.1; Romans 1.1-6

ii. Matthew 12.15-21

iii. Luke 4.16-21

c. Lived a perfect life

i. Tempted but without sin - our high Priest and brother (Hebrews 3

ii. Sinless - Hebrews 9.14; 1 Peter 1.19;

iii. This is my Son with whom I am well pleased (Matthew 3.17; 12.18

iv. 2 Corinthians 5.21

d. Substitutionally Death

i. Became sin for us - 2 Corinthians 5.21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

ii. Galatians 3 - Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us-for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree"-

e. Substitutionally life

i. Ephesians 2.4-6

⁴ But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, ⁵ even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ-by grace you have been saved- ⁶ and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus (cf. Colossians 3.1-4)

f. Returned to the Father and Sent His Spirit

i. John 14.6 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. (see also John 15.26; Acts 1.8; Luke 24.49

5. Forgiveness and Salvation (see above - "the Gospel")

6. The Second coming of Jesus

i. Jesus will come back to judge the living and the dead (1 Peter 4.5; 2 Timothy 4.1; acts 10.34-43)

The Message of the Bible

o The message of the bible is all about Jesus. Take for example the very first line of the New Testament

o Matthew 1.1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

o There is a reason why Matthew begins his biography about Jesus this way. There were two great promises in the Old Testament that are to restore God's blessing to creation and to remove the curse that corrupts humanity and life due to human rebellion against God.

Read

a. Genesis 2 15The LORD God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. 16And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, 17but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."

In order to remove the curse of death, God has made a promise of blessing.

o The first is found in Genesis 12.1-3 (see also Genesis 15.1-20; and Genesis 18). These promises are all about a descendant of Abraham being a blessing to all the nations.

Read

Gen 12.1Now the LORD said to Abram, "Go from your country and your kindred and your father's house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed."

o The second great promise is found in 2 Samuel 7. This is the great Messianic promise (God's special King). In 2 Samuel 7. 12-13, God makes a promise to David that one of his descendants will rule on God's throne forever.

Read

12 When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

o Thus when Jesus is born into human history, he becomes the fulfilment of all God's promises. 2 Corinthians 1.20 says,

For all the promises of God find their Yes in him (Jesus).

In other words, everything that God is doing in the world is caught up in Jesus. He is the promised blessing to the nations (Justification- see Galatians 3.8), and the eternal descendant king of David (Romans 1.1-4).

Whatever else is taught, the conclusion is always that God is working in the world through the message about Jesus.

Core Values

1a. Expositional Preaching

This is preaching which expounds what Scripture says in a particular passage, carefully explaining its meaning and applying it to the congregation. It is a commitment to hearing God's Word and to recovering the centrality of it in our worship.

1b. Biblical Theology

Paul charges Titus to "teach what is in accord with sound doctrine" (Titus 2:1). Our concern should be not only with how we are taught, but with what we are taught. Biblical theology is a commitment to know the God of the Bible as He has revealed Himself in Scripture. 2 Corinthians 1.20 says 2 Corinthians 1.²⁰ For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. The gospel is the interpretive key to understanding the bible and the purposes of God in his world.

3. Biblical Understanding of the Good News

The gospel is the heart of Christianity. But the good news is not that God wants to meet people's felt needs or help them develop a healthier self-image. We have sinfully rebelled against our Creator and Judge. Yet He has graciously sent His Son to die the death we deserved for our sin, and He has credited Christ's acquittal to those who repent of their sins and believe in Jesus' death and resurrection. That is the good news.

4. Biblical Understanding of Conversion

The spiritual change each person needs is so radical, so near the root of us, that only God can do it. We need God to convert us. Conversion need not be an emotionally heated experience, but it must evidence itself in godly fruit if it is to be what the Bible regards as a true conversion.

5. Biblical Understanding of Evangelism

How someone shares the gospel is closely related to how he understands the gospel. To present it as an additive that gives non-Christians something they naturally want (i.e. joy or peace) is to present a half-truth, which elicits false conversions. The whole truth is that our deepest need is spiritual life, and that new life only comes by repenting of our sins and believing in Jesus. We present the gospel openly, and leave the converting to God.

6. Biblical Understanding of Partnership

Partners should reflect a living commitment to a local church in attendance, giving, prayer and service; otherwise it is meaningless, worthless, and even dangerous. To be a member is knowingly to be traveling together as aliens and strangers in this world as we head to our heavenly home. This ought to be evident in a deep commitment to a Growth Group.

7. Biblical Church Discipline

Church discipline gives parameters to church partnership. The idea seems negative to people today - "didn't our Lord forbid judging?" But if we cannot say how a Christian should not live, how can we say how he or she should live? Each local church actually has a biblical responsibility to judge the life and teaching of its leaders, and even of its partners, particularly insofar as either could compromise the church's witness to the gospel.

8. Promotion of Christian Discipleship and Growth

A pervasive concern with church growth exists today - not simply with growing numbers, but with growing partners. Though many Christians measure other things, the only certain observable sign of growth is a life of increasing holiness, rooted in Christian self-denial. These concepts are nearly extinct in the modern church. Recovering true discipleship for today would build the church and promote a clearer witness to the world. This commitment to discipleship and growth ought to be evident by involvement in a Ministry Team.

9. Biblical Understanding of Leadership

Presbyterians agreed upon was that there should be a plurality of elders in each local church. This plurality of elders is not only biblical, but practical - it has the immense benefit of rounding out the pastor's gifts to ensure the proper shepherding of God's church.

Working together - a Mission and Vision

Our Mission statement is simple

"Sharing our lives and the gospel"

1. Sharing the gospel with each other (church, growth groups, and other meetings)

2. Sharing our lives together (Church family camps and hospitality)

3. Sharing the gospel with others (home, workplace, friends and relatives)

4. Sharing our lives with others (hospitality and sincere friendships)

Vision statement

Our vision statement communicates what we want the church to be like in the future.

To be a prayerful joyful and caring Christ-centred church that is committed to God's desire to bring the Gospel of Salvation to the world through trained disciples of Christ who share their lives and the gospel

The significant words in this paragraph

2. Prayerful - We Exist to Do Things That Can't Be Done without God's Special, Supernatural Grace (From John Piper)

Our desire to prayer or not to prayer is a direct reflection upon our dependance upon God. Each year, there will always be a series on prayer. Why do we do that? We do it to make a statement as a church-a statement to God, to the world, and to our own consciences-that we exist as a church to do things that we cannot do without the special, supernatural grace of God.

Our Prayer series proclaims: This Presbyterian Church exists mainly to do the humanly impossible.

We don't exist to preach, but to preach in the power of the Holy Spirit so that people are supernaturally awakened from unbelief and changed beyond what any human could cause.

* We don't exist to teach Sunday school, but to teach in the power of the Holy Spirit so that children and young people and adults are supernaturally converted and built up in faith and love beyond what any human could cause.

* We don't exist to sing, but to sing in the power of the Holy Spirit because the affections of our hearts are supernaturally illumined, and the glory of Christ is seen and savoured beyond what any human or any music could cause.

* We don't exist to do evangelism and missions, but to do evangelism and missions in the power of the Holy Spirit so that hard, unbelieving hearts would be supernaturally changed into soft, believing hearts. And the list could go on and on

2 Joyful - One of the fruits of the Christian life empowered by the Holy Spirit is joy. Joy does not come from within ones own being, but from the joy of our salvation that is found in Jesus. As a church, we ought to ooze joy because we are blessed by God beyond measure, for we have a wonderful and glorious future in Jesus!

3. Caring - It would contradict the gospel and dishonour God if the local church was not caring. Caring for those who belong to the local church and caring for the people whom we meet every day. There is also a sense in which we ought to be caring for the society in which we live.

4. God's desire - the church must begin with a clear vision of what is God's desire, and not our own. It is God's desire to see people of all nations brought to repentance and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. Luke 19:10 ^"For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost."

5. Gospel - must be the central message of the Christian church for God says, "it is his power for salvation for all who believe, (Romans 1.16). The Apostle Paul wrote "For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified" (1 Corinthians 2:2) and 1 Corinthians 9.16 "Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel"

6. Trains mature - church is meant to be intentionally discipling and training people in the knowledge and love of God and in their service of Him. Colossians 1:28-29 Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. ²⁹ For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me.

7. share - The goal of growing in the knowledge and love of Jesus is to sharing our lives and the gospel with others. The apostle Paul is a wonderful example of this with the church in Thessalonica. 1 Thessalonians 2:8 So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.

1 Sends Out - God's desire to bring people to Christ is a global mission and so we seek to send out and support those who leave home to tell others about Jesus. The great commission is still God's voice to the church today Matthew 28:18-19 ¹⁸ And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."

The Presbyterian Church Kemspey and SWRocks are intentional about the service we offer to God.

Our prayer to the father for the next 5-10 years is that we would grow into a church that continues to proclaim the gospel in this area.

There are many areas of our community that need the grace of God

Mercy Ministries (acts of kindness to those in need)

Ministry to the elderly (by offering more midweek church services)

Ministry to people with chronic mental health ( to have a growth group specifically geared to those with chronic mental illness)

Ministry to those who are near poverty (through weekly feed and delivery of grocery gifts)

The Gospel to go out

Scripture

To increase the of Scripture teacher (train people to be involved in SWRocks, and East Kempsey)

Youth Work

Employment of 2 trainee who will eventually take up a fulltime youth ministry (one indigenous)

In particular - to be an integral part of the local high schools (to be involved with Scripture Union)

Mother's group (playgroup)

in Kempsey to establish a first point of contact with the community and offer true and committed relationships for young mums and dads

Craft group

is another first point of contact with people who desire to know Jesus.

Holiday Kids Club

We presently hold 1 HKC each year (alternatively at each centre). There is a vision that the church increase its outreach to hold a number of HKC in order to reach out with the gospel

Edifying the Church

Second Worker

To have a full time second full time worker who is experienced and mature to take responsibility for one congregation

Increase our awareness of Gospel work and workers overseas - (mission co-ordinator)

Secretary

A need for Secretary to organise the administrative side of our minstries

Ministry co-ordinator

who will oversee that the ministries are equipped and developed to grow the gospel

Prayer meetings

through a people dedicated to endure and wrestle with God in prayer.

Music team

Music encourages our emotions in the Christian life. Although we must be discerning of our emotions, non the less, God encourages us to sing his praises. There is a vision that our gathering will be filled with music to the Lord done in respectful and humble way. May God raise up people for this task.

The development of Elders

There is a vision that the church will be nurtured by mature Christian men who love their families, church and Jesus with wonderful passion. These men are to be identified, trained and ordained as elders in Presbyterian Church of Australia. The role of these men is to edify the church through teach of the gospel and pastoral care.

Pastoral Care

Pastoral care is envisaged to happen within the realms of Growth Groups. However there are time and situations when this is not applicable or sufficient.

A Team

There is a vision to develop a team of godly people who will be trained in counselling and pastoral care. This team begins its training in early 2010.

Presbyterian Social Service

The denomination offers professional counselling for those in need. There are some subsidies available for those who cannot afford the cost.

The vision if this church is only contained by the depth of your imagination and trust in our Great God. Central to our mission and vision of this church is the concept of Hospitality.

Do first ministry paper on Hospitality

Look also at Luke 14 (especially 14.12-14)

Jesus said also to the man who had invited him, "When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. 13But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just."

Hospitality is a vert important part of society in the first century, and it was an expected that it happened. There were not many hotels or motels around, instead there was an exception to invite the sojourners in for a meal.

However, Jesus teaching on hospitality shows that the concept of hospitality was distorted. How does Jesus address the issue in the above statement?

How does this convict you and the way you live?