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Our church family is made up of many different ages, backgrounds and abilities. Nevertheless, our unity is found in Jesus Christ, whose love transcends age, overcomes ethnic differences and holds all His people in the bond of His peace.

Our desire is to be a faithful expression of the living truth of Jesus Christ so that we can live out our faith as a community of his people, and be His servants in the broader community of Northwest Iowa.

As a congregation, we are very much a work in progress and welcome anyone else who is broken and looking to be made whole through the power of Christ’s grace. Christ announces in John 4:23, that the Father is seeking such to worship Him. Perhaps that might be you?

If Redeemer can help you answer that question in any way, please make use of the information on this site and contact us or visit us. May the Lord who delights in mercy, richly bless you in His love.

Biblical Principles of Worship

At Redeemer United Reformed Church, we seek to worship in a way that is honoring to what God has taught us in His Word.

We strive for our worship to be:

God-Centered: “Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness,” Psalm 29:2.

Christ-Centered: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me,” John 14:6.

Spirit-Motivated: “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth,” John 16:13.

Biblically Saturated: “All Scripture is breathed out by God,” 2 Tim. 3:16. & “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever,” Is. 40:8

Kingdom-Driven: “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come,” (Rev. 12:10. & “Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken,” Heb. 12:28.

Jesus is the head of the church. In the church you hear the voice of Christ and see the gifts of the Spirit used. Jesus is committed to His church, He shed His blood for it and you can't come to Jesus without coming to His people. To neglect the church is to neglect Jesus. Jesus gathers, protects, and preserves His church. God is actively calling the world to repentance and reconciling sinners to himself, and it is through the church that the mission of the Triune God is on display. Jesus builds up His people through it. No Christian and no church should be independent because the Bible calls us to be members of a church and to commune with one another and live together in love and service to one another. Life is a battle, and the Christian life especially, is a supernatural battle and cannot fought alone.

Church is Important

The church is God's family, it is the household of God (Eph. 2:19-22). It is made up of a people who were once enemies of God but have been reconciled to Him through the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ. It is not bound by place or person. It is the community of those who have been called out by God. The church is made up of "sinners" who have been called out of darkness.

Worship is Important

Our worship is regulated by the Word of God. God has told us in the Bible how He wants us to worship Him. Sunday corporate worship is distinct from our individual devotion. God is everywhere present at all times, but He is with His people in a unique way on Sunday. God is both the subject and object of our worship. He calls us to worship. And in worship the Word of God is central. The reading, the praying, the preaching, and the singing all point to the Word of God being the centerpiece to what happens on Sunday.

Worship begins with God's call and ends with his blessing. There is a dialogue that takes place as we participate with our whole being. God comes and inhabits our praises. He speaks and we respond. God speaks to His people through the preaching of His Word and through it He grows and sustains them. Through the sacraments the word preached is made visible, God gives us pictures of what He has done in Jesus for us, and in the disciplining of members God shows us his loving care. Each congregant has a part to play in worship. We lift our hearts and voices together in praise to God.

He marks us with His presence and we receive His good Word of promise and in response His people praise. On Sundays, we are reconstituted and re-commissioned to go out into the world, and confess, and tell of the work of God—who has drawn near to His people in Jesus Christ, through His Spirit, resurrecting them from spiritual death. So Monday through Saturday we live life for the glory of God in our work, and in our neighborhoods because Jesus Christ is King and Lord over all of life.

What to Expect In Our Worship Services

The various aspects of our worship service seek to create a dialogue between God and us, His people. We encourage everyone in the congregation to participate because we all share the same inheritance in Jesus Christ, our Lord. (Heb. 9:15).

In Acts 2:39, the apostle Peter reminds believers that the promise is to them and to their children. Therefore, we give to our children the sign and seal of baptism, which warmly initiates them into the membership of Jesus’ church. Thus, we include our young children in the worship service and encourage them to participate with us in praying, singing, listening, and giving.

Worship services at Covenant Reformed Church consist of the following components:

1. 1. Prelude: A brief time for prayer and meditation before the service officially begins.
  2. Call to Worship: The dialogue between God and us begins by his invitation to worship him. “Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!” Psalm 100:4.
  3. God’s Greeting: The minister, speaking on God’s behalf, pronounces a blessing. “Grace to you and peace, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”
  4. Congregational Prayer: The minister prays to God on behalf of the congregation. He confesses our sins, he gives thanks for our salvation, and he asks the Lord for His guidance in our lives, both as a congregation and as individual members. The minister prays for the congregation’s physical, emotional, and spiritual needs, as well as for the expansion of Christ’s Kingdom.
  5. Congregational Singing: Our opportunity to confess our sins, to praise the Triune God, and remind ourselves of the beautiful riches and wonders of the gospel of Jesus Christ. We take advantage of both Psalms and Hymns in our singing, but especially the Psalms, since the words of God are best suited for praising Him and learning more about Him. “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly… singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God,” Col. 3:16.
  6. Offering: Our opportunity to further show our gratitude to God by taking care of those in need, supporting Christian organizations, and contributing to the general functions and witness of the local church.
  7. Reading of the Law: The Law of God shows us our own sinfulness, points us to Jesus for our salvation, and reveals how we are to live lives of service to God.
  8. Confessing the Creed: In our evening services, we unite ourselves with the Church all ages and all places as we confess with our hearts and mouths the Apostles Creed.
  9. Scripture Reading: We believe that the Word of God is the pillar of truth for faith and practice. The Scripture Reading, in the context of the sermon, serves as the foundation upon which the message is crafted and presented.
    1. 1. Preaching At Redeemer Is:
        
        Preaching of the Gospel: The official proclamation of the Word of God by God’s minister is the most central part of the worship service. Herein, God applies His Word to the lives of His people; He calls them to salvation; and He commissions them for service in His Kingdom.
        
        Biblical: Explaining and Applying God’s Word.
        
        Christ-Centered: Preaching not just words, but a real person, the person of Jesus Christ, and all that He has accomplished for us by erasing our sin debt and actively keeping all of God’s Law for us on our behalf.
        
        Redemptive-Historical: The Scripture text being preached from is always preached in light of its context in God’s grand Story of Redemption. The preacher draws the congregation into the world of the passage, showing how Christ is the only Savior, and then applies the meaning of the text to our lives.
  10. Benediction: The Lord dismisses His people with His blessing: “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace,” Numbers 6:24-26. 5

Order of Worship

Morning Service - 9:30 a.m.

Prelude
Call to Worship
Prayer of Invocation
Song of Praise
Minister: “In whom is your help?”
Congregation: “Our help is in the name of the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.”
God’s Greeting
Gloria Patri
The Law and Summary
Song of Confession
Assurance of Pardon
Song of Thanksgiving
Scripture Reading
Sermon
Song of Application
Congregational Prayer
Offertory
Offertory Prayer
Doxology
Benediction
Postlude

Evening Service – 6 p.m.

Prelude
Song Service
Call to Worship
Prayer of Invocation
Song of Praise
Confession of Dependence on God
God’s Greeting
Apostles’ Creed
Song
Congregational Prayer
Offertory
Song
Prayer for Illumination
Scripture Reading
Sermon
Prayer of Application
Doxology
Benediction
Postlude