Church of the Servant CRC, Grand Rapids

During their Jubilee year, Church of the Servant (CoS) spent time reflecting on their mission as a community of refuge, fellowship and hope. In response to decisions made by CRCNA Synod 2022, they now clarify their calling as a community of belonging in Christ.

Church of the Servant CRC, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, is one of many affirming churches in the Christian Reformed Church of North America. Below, you will find their statement.

Rooted in Christ and nurtured by the Spirit, we grow in grace to share gifts of refuge,

fellowship, and hope.

Our Calling: A Community of Belonging

During our Jubilee year, Church of the Servant has spent time reflecting on our mission as a community of refuge, fellowship, and hope. In response to decisions made by CRCNA Synod 2022, we now clarify our calling as a community of belonging in Christ:

1. God gathers us as a community of believers who are united in the risen Christ and who depend daily upon the Holy Spirit.
2. God provides the life-giving Word through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, who summons us to trust the Bible’s promises and submit to its commands.
3. God cherishes each person as a bearer of God’s very We find our primary identity in Jesus Christ, sealed in baptism and nourished at the table. No other identity-whether racial, cultural, sexual, gender-based, political, ability-based, or otherwise-comes before our identity in Christ. 
4. God calls us to holiness, faithfulness, compassion, and respect in all our relationships.
5. We grieve over the alienation experienced by LGBTQIA+ persons among us, and repent of the ways our congregation has ignored, failed, and harmed them-through words or silence, through deeds or inaction.
6. We believe that human sexuality is a gift from God to be received with gratitude and treated with integrity and care. We affirm that God intends for sexual intimacy to flourish within the covenant of marriage.
7. We seek to honor COS’s rich diversity with a spirit of respect, humility, and We desire to nurture the callings and spiritual gifts of everyone. We are committed to discipling, and being discipled by, Christ-followers from various cultures, communities, and perspectives.
8. We treasure our unity in Christ and love for each other as believers whose views on same-sex marriage and gender nonconformity differ. Believing that such differences do not endanger Christ’s gift of salvation to anyone, we seek to “keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (Eph. 4:3).
9. We embrace each other because of our common identity in All who desire to follow Jesus –including LGBTQIA+ individuals, whether single or married — may receive baptism, bring children for baptism, celebrate the Lord’s Supper, join as members, and serve in any capacity, according to their gifts and callings.

Downloadable Church of the Servant Statement of Belonging.

If your congregation should be included in our list, please let us know!  

(Church of the Servant gathers for worship at 10:00 a.m. on Sundays at 3835 Burton St SE Grand Rapids, MI 49546. Audio recordings of the previous week’s sermon can be found on the church website, or on their YouTube Playlist.)