I have been reading through the New Testament with several of our kids, though do to vacations and my general laziness on summer nights, we have fallen a little behind. Several days ago now, we were reading Ephesians 2. Following is a section that has stuck with me.

Therefore remember that at one time you Gentiles in the flesh, called “the uncircumcision” by what is called the circumcision, which is made in the flesh by hands— remember that you were at that time separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.  But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing the law of commandments expressed in ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby killing the hostility. And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. 

There are two key themes in this passage that get all tangled up together. First, we were separated from God, but now in Christ we have been reconciled to God. This is huge and the reason for our eternal hope in Christ! Secondly, we were separated Jews and Gentiles because of the law, but now we have become fellow citizens, joined together into one temple with Christ as the cornerstone or foundation of it all.

It is hard as 21st century believers to understand the radical and shocking nature of this idea Jews and Gentiles despised each other. Both saw the other as a heathen, as unfaithful to the gods or the true God. Both saw the other as a threat to the nation (either Rome or a free Israel). And yet, now, because of Christ and their allegiance to him, they have become a new single people. But, living that way as a new united people was hard.

That is why Paul talks about how they need to overcome these outside division like race, gender, economic status and so on in his letters to the churches in Galatia, Corinth, Rome, and obviously in Ephesus as well. In part, though, he has to write this encouragement because these churches were filled with people from different ethnic backgrounds, ages, status as free and slave and so on. They were incredibly diverse communities.

Living in the suburbs of the United States where we live in very economically homogenous neighborhoods and often ethnical homogeneous communities, we do not experience the same kind of wide ranging diversity in many of our daily lives. And then you add to it the consumerist nature of American Christianity where we choose our local congregation rather than simply going to the nearest church. It is very easy to go to a church where everyone is of the same income as you, the same race and ethnicity, similar age, similar kids ages, similar politics, and so on. Honestly, life feels easier when we become the proverbial birds of a feather flocking together, but we also miss out on the beauty and witness of the gospel’s ability to overcome those things in our world that divide us.

One of the things I appreciate about Zion is that even given the limits of ethnic diversity in the suburbs, we are not all alike. Just this week, I spent Sunday afternoon celebrating Marv Huyser’s 90th birthday and Wednesday morning seeing Rhett Kleinjans who is only 2 months old. Some of us work hard in an executive suite and others work hard behind a cash register. Some are married and other single. Some are politically liberal and other conservative. Some are more theologically liberal and others more  conservative.

Which means, when we all get together, if you are intentional to build relationships across some of those dividing lines, you will likely be offended sometimes. And that is awesome! In fact, I would argue that if you are never troubled or offended by someone in your church, you are not in a church so much as a social club. Church community takes work. Work to understand people who are different from you. Work to figure out how to apply God’s word today, even when God’s word can offend. Work to learn how to love people you may never choose as friends, but to whom you have been joined by the Holy Spirit, being made into the holy temple, the very dwelling place of God.

– Greg

Connect to God
This Sunday we will gather in person at 9:30 am and online at 9:30 and 11 am. Because of the expected heat and humidity and risk of rain, we will be meeting indoors at 9:30. However, the online service will be pre-recorded and abbreviated as we will not be live-streaming services over the summer. You can find the services either on our Facebook page or at zionreformed.online.church. We will also rebroadcast a version of the service on WCET at noon on Friday and 4pm next Sunday.

We live in an increasingly isolated world. People spend their days commuting to work, staring at screens, and can go days and weeks without talking with those nearest us. The power and genius of The Great Commandment is that it’s so simple and yet extremely powerful when acted on. The smartest thing that we can do collectively to impact our community is to actually live out Jesus’ command to love our neighbors. What might God do if we embraced the lost art of neighboring and loved those nearest us as followers of Jesus?

The sermon will reference a neighborhood map. If you are not with us in person on Sunday you can find the map here.

Grow in Community
Weather permitting, our kids ministry will be outside all summer long. This is for kids ages 3 through going into 3rd grade. We’ll be meeting by the picnic tables to read Bible stories, pray together, do other outdoor crafts/games, and play on our church playground!

However, we need more volunteers for our summer kids ministry during church! We know that Zion church loves kids, and wants to support young families. If you’d be willing to help on a Sunday this summer, please contact Rachel Brower at 616-669-3412. Thanks!

The nursery is open again this summer. Nursery is for children ages 0-3. The nursery check-in will be inside at the nursery. Young children are also welcome in the main worship service. Thank you to all those serving in the nursery!

We are reading through the New Testament over the next year as a congregation. The reading schedule for this coming week is below:
8/9    Monday         Colossians 3
8/10    Tuesday      Colossians 4
8/11    Wednesday  1 Thessalonians 1
8/12    Thursday      1 Thessalonians 2
8/13    Friday           1 Thessalonians 3

You can also find the reading schedule on our website under the Ministries tab.

Serve the World
Threads had a great night sorting clothes on Monday. A huge thank you to all the people who came out to go through all the donations. Threads is continuing to accept donations of new and gently used clothing, shoes, and accessories for infants through adults. Also, donations of new socks and new underwear (for kids and adults) would be greatly appreciated.  Please place donations either in the Threads sheds located on Zion’s front steps or in the Threads wooden box in the narthex.  Thank you!

This Sunday, we will be celebrating another great summer at Camp Zion. We will be sharing a video of some of the highlights of the summer, but if you would like to get a little behind the scenes look at Camp Zion, you can check out the video below of interviews with some of our key staff and volunteers.
Camp Zion Recap: https://youtu.be/B34hAeW6j9E

If you need help, either with food, personal care items, help grocery shopping, or with financial needs, please contact Jerrod Holzgen, our chair of deacons, and he can help connect you with the appropriate resources at Zion. His e-mail is Jholzgen@yahoo.com and his phone number is 616-520-1771.

Administration
We continue to thank God for his provision of all of our needs and for the generous support of our congregation with their time, talent, and treasures.

Fiscal Year 2021/22 Budget:  $100,892.43
Fiscal Year 2021/22 Contributions: $64,006.48
Giving Last Week: $5,788.00
Bathroom Building Fund (total given): $2,474.00