Cutlerville East Christian Reformed Church

John’s Christmas story is very different than that of Matthew and Luke: no shepherds, angels, Magi, inn keeper, not even a baby! And no Old Testament characters to foreshadow Jesus’ coming. John gives us new parable-types, a concept and a building, presenting Jesus as the “Word made flesh.”  Scripture:  John 1:1-18

While Luke begins his Christmas story “in those days Caesar Augustus,” Matthew narrows the focus to “during the time of King Herod.” It is helpful to be reminded that all the characters in the Christmas story fell under Herod’s long shadow, and that includes the Magi. Why the Magi? Why did God include them as part of Jesus’ greeting party? Why did Matthew tell their story rather than the angels &a...

How do you view angels? In the Bible, angel announcements tend to cause fear, so they have to come with assurances. This Advent we will explore how these assurances are more than simply about an angel appearance. What was Mary afraid of? How did Gabriel assure her? Notice that Gabriel is going down in the world, from the Temple in Jerusalem to a small village in Galilee. He calls a teenage girl to...

What’s in a name? Names make a difference. That is especially true in the Bible, where names revealed character. Adam means “earth,” because he was formed from the dust of the ground. A change in names could also symbolize a change in character: Abram (father of one family) became Abraham (father of many nations); Jacob the deceiver General Fund Offerings and Percent of Budget 11/26 11/19 11/12 11...

 How do you view angels? In the Bible, angel announcements tend to cause fear, so they have to come with assurances. This Advent we will explore how these assurances are more than simply about an angel appearance. In each one, God has something specific to say to the character(s), to Israel, to us. In the passage for today, the assurance is that, out of the silence of several centuries, God has he...

Scripture:  Psalm 144

Scripture:  Mark 8:1-21

Matthew 25:14-30

 Most every explanation of the Trinity engages in some sort of heresy. The doctrine of the Trinity is truly a mystery. Theologians have studied it for centuries, with no simple explanation. Why? God is beyond human comprehension; our finite minds cannot grasp his immensity. So why the doctrine? It is crucial to the Christian faith. If you deny the Trinity, you also deny Christ and his salvation; y...

As Paul writes to the Ephesians, he seems to be addressing the question, “What does it mean to be a little church in a big city?” by reminding us that God has chosen us from before the creation of the world to be building blocks in his Temple. He also addresses the question, “how then do we live as part of the New Community?” by giving ethical instructions on living as individuals (as children of...

We began the 2nd section of the Heidelberg Catechism being reminded of our great debt to God, then focused on the need for someone else, a Mediator, to pay the debt for us. And not just a monetary debt, for the wages of sin is death: eternal death, separation from God the Father. But the Bible, as the catechism reminds us, is filled with the good news that Jesus Christ is the perfect Mediator and...

Paul has moved from a theological explanation of what it means to be the church to a more practical focus on living as the New Community: communally (unity in diversity), personally (children of light), and now relationally. Ephesians 5:21 gives the overall theme: mutual submission. The New Community is a place where mutual submission is practiced by all, a result of being “filled w/ the Spirit” (...

Paul is in prison and appears to know that his end is coming (4:6-8). His main concern, in what some have called his “last will & testament,” is about the future of his Gospel message in the face of the heresies and false teachers of the day. Paul looks to Timothy, writing to encourage him in his faith, but also charging Timothy to “guard the gospel.” This letter is a passing of the torch, as...

We’ve been asking the question, along with the church in Ephesus: what does it mean to be a little church in a big city? Paul has given us the theological background; now he’s turned to the practical outworking of this in our lives: what does it mean personally? Paul is writing to some, Gentiles, who have a long-established habit of “being in the dark.” Their former lifestyle doesn’t match their n...

 We’ve looked at the tremendous, unpayable debt we have to God. The only way this debt can be paid is through a mediator who is truly human and truly righteous, and is also true God. Now we explore where we can find such a mediator. LD 6-7 really explore some Christian essentials that we’ll look at over the next few weeks: our mediator, our faith, and our gospel. We start with the mediator.  Scrip...

 We’ve been looking at the theological foundation of the New Community, the Church: chosen by God, redeemed by the cross of Christ to be in community, and called to reveal the mystery of God’s grace to others. Now, in the second half of his letter (Eph. 4-6), Paul has a more practical and ethical focus: how we should live in this New Community? In Ephesians 4:1, he tells us to “live a life (Eph. 4...

The Heidelberg Catechism refers to our sinfulness as causing a debt to God. As our Creator, Redeemer, and King, we owe God love and obedience. But our continual sinning makes us pile up more debt, hindering our ability to pay it off. Given this, we might think we are still in the “sin and misery” section of the catechism. But, instead, we have begun the section on our salvation. The first three qu...

The Apostle Paul, excited about God’s grace expressed in the cross of Jesus Christ, is about to continue his prayer for the Church. But he interrupts himself to explain the mystery of God’s grace: by His grace, God has chosen to reveal that mystery to Paul, has called him to be His chosen servant to proclaim it, and is going to reveal His wisdom through the Church, as the community which carries o...

Lord’s Day 4 of the Heidelberg Catechism is engaged in what theologians call “theodicy” – the justification of God. The three questions were undoubtedly ones the catechism writers had heard (or anticipated hearing) in connection with the biblical teaching about God’s wrath against sin. • Isn’t God unjust since we as sinners obviously can’t keep his law; it’s unfair! • Is he really going to punish...

At the center of history stands the cross of Jesus Christ. The vertical dimension is restated in Ephesians 2:13: Jesus came down to meet us where we were (the grave) and brought us up to glory, into relationship with God. But there is also a horizontal dimension to the cross, which depicts Jesus, arms stretched wide, reaching out and embracing all those reconciled to God, bringing them into commun...

“Image is everything!” say the advertising executives on Madison Avenue. Indeed, we live in a world of the image-conscious. Image is really about reputation. So even common folks are tempted to hide who we really are and try to project who we want to be. The Bible reminds us image-conscious people what are true image is, or should be. Beyond our reputation, our name, who we want others to think we...

Earlier in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he reminds us that God chose us as building blocks of His new community in Jesus (1:1-14), and he prays that we might have open eyes to who we are in Jesus (1:15-23). So who are we, we who have been built into God’s new community? When Paul opens our eyes in Ephesians 2:1-10, the first sight is awful and heart-wrenching: it’s a graveyard, with our own tom...

Peter and John have just healed a crippled beggar, preached the good news/bad news (for some) Gospel, been imprisoned, and confronted the Jewish Supreme Court (Sanhedrin). It was time to be recharged! They went back to the church (not a building but a people) for fellowship and they prayed together. Then they were reenergized and went back to work! Do we follow the same pattern? Do we use Sunday f...