What We Believe
Our Statement of Purpose
Emmanuel means “God with Us” and the purpose of Emmanuel Church is to celebrate, embrace and share that good news made known in Jesus Christ.
We as a church strive by the power of the Holy Spirit to celebrate, embrace and share the faith, hope and love we receive by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
The words “Faith, Hope and Love” herald the sanctuary entrance as a “sermon in stone” on the outside wall of our building. It is a testimony and challenge to all of the kind of commitment to God that founded Emmanuel Church in 1947.
It is our desire that those cornerstones of “Faith, Hope and Love” that we can only experience and share through a relationship with Christ would be written on the
inside of our hearts and be outwardly evident in our lives and our church in this time and in this place.
"I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted."
Job 42:2 NRSV
How We Worship
Worship is the central act of the church’s life. It is the action of acknowledging God’s praiseworthiness and glory. We acknowledge God’s presence with us through songs, hymns, prayers, sacraments, giving gifts, and listening to a message from the Bible.
Worship celebrates God’s greatness and faithfulness to his people. Worship enables believers to articulate their faith and to act it out in word, song, and action.
Emmanuel Reformed Church is a member of the Reformed Church of America (RCA). The RCA is a Protestant Christian church denomination. Information about the RCA, its mission and vision, its history and structure, its creeds and statements, and its statements of beliefs can be found at the RCA website.
Our worship is corporate.
Worship is not a performance with the pastor, musicians, and worship leaders as performers and the congregation as the audience. God is the audience and the whole congregation is involved in the service, in prayer, song, and offering.
Our worship is liturgical.
Sometimes the expression “liturgical” is used to describe a church whose worship is highly formal and follows specific rituals; this is not the sense in which the term “liturgical” is used in our church. The word “liturgy” means “the work of the people.” Our church worship is liturgical in the sense that our worship involves the whole people of God in the activity of worship. It includes singing, praying together, and a message given by the pastor, based on a passage from the Bible.
Our worship is sacramental.
When we celebrate the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, God comes to us through all of our senses. We hear God’s promise of forgiveness; we see and hear the water of baptism that cleanses; and we touch and smell and taste the bread and wine that signifies Christ’s body and blood. Our faith is awakened, renewed, and energized when we celebrate the sacraments.
