True Christianity

Jump to: God the lover : : God the revealer : : God the rescuer : : Christian believing

Christian means many things: a good person, a religious person, a traditional person, a churchgoer. So what's at the heart of Christian faith?

God the lover

In the beginning was God, the three-in-one, enjoying the eternal relationships of perfect love between Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God didn't create the cosmos because he needed to be loved, but out of overflowing love and artistry.

On planet Earth, God's greatest creative act was the human race. Made of the dust of material existence, humans are also spiritual beings, capable of free choice, loving relationships and serving God. This God-given freedom to love carries risks: we are free to choose not to love. Tragically, the human race acquired a bias towards selfishness, producing broken relationships, the exploitation of the weak and rejection of God.

God the revealer

Rather than abandoning humankind, God continued to reveal himself. Not only through nature, art and loving relationships, but also through the story of the Jews and the books of the Bible they began to write. The Jews were chosen as God's people not because they were powerful, but weak. Their story tells how God rescued them from slavery, stayed faithful when they turned from true worship and right living, and promised a better future both in this life and beyond death.

God's ultimate promise to the Jews was the Messiah. God's appointed king would come and fulfil the promises of God. God's special servant would suffer for others, removing the power of sin and death.

God the rescuer

In Jesus, God's promises are fulfilled. He called his first disciples to follow him. Then he was crucified by the authorities in Jerusalem, just as he foretold. But on the third day his tomb was left empty and he was raised from the dead. The first Christians declared that all who put their trust in the risen Christ receive God's undeserved gifts: forgiveness for every wrongdoing, the present outpouring of God's love by the Holy Spirit, and life beyond the grave caught up into God's eternal community of love.

Christian believing

Christian believers have discovered enough of God to say to others, without abrasiveness or apology, come and join us as followers of Jesus Christ.