God is Faithful and Provides for His Church
The theme of all good church planting updates is the faithfulness of God. This one is no exception. Perhaps that has to do with the ever-faithful God whom we worship. God has been faithful here in Birmingham Alabama, especially through a challenging season. As the Psalmist says,
For like the heavens are high over the earth,
his steadfast love prevails over those who fear him.
Like the east is far from the west,
so he makes our transgressions far from us.
Like a father has compassion on his sons,
YHWH has compassion on those who fear him. (103:11–13, author’s translation)
This is the God whom we worship, a God who treats us as his children, who scatters our transgressions as far as east is from west, a God compassionate to those who reverence him. And truly God has been faithful and compassionate through a season of transition here in Birmingham.
The Shift in Denominations
As a refresher to the reader, I was originally sent by Christ Reformed DC (URCNA) to explore forming a church plant in Birmingham and to gather a core group. Less than six months later, due to some leadership challenges at that church, it was clear that a new overseeing church would be needed. After nearly ten uncertain months of praying and searching for that oversight, we are now a mission work of the OPC Presbytery of the South. I sustained transfer exams and was installed as evangelist by the Presbytery. This change in denominations has been unexpected and yet a blessing.
The Lord has truly provided for us by the work of the Presbytery. Its home missions committee has been greatly encouraging to me personally. Many fathers and brothers in the Presbytery, but especially on the home missions committee, have invested time in the past year in getting to know us and our work. Our provisional-Session members have already been a godsend as partners in the ministry and they are beginning regular visits to the fledgling flock here. For those co-laborers I am eternally grateful.
Accompanying the shift in denominations, a new name was in order. We were initially “Birmingham United Reformed.” As part of preparing to join the OPC, we had the core group submit and vote on names. We chose Ascension Presbyterian Church. It is part of our way of combating “Ascension Deficit Disorder.” But on a more serious note, the Ascension of Christ is not only a major Christian doctrine included in the creeds; it also looms large in Reformed Theology. Our Savior is ascended, pours out gifts upon us, and will bring us to himself.
Recently, we had our first members make membership vows. To mark the occasion, I preached on membership from Ephesians 4:1–16. This passage explicitly connects the Ascension of Christ to the ministry of his church. One of the benefits of membership in the body of Christ is also a benefit of being united to the ascended King. As the Heidelberg Catechism says, Christ’s ascension to heaven benefits us in that “we have our own flesh in heaven as a sure pledge that Christ our head will also take us, his members, up to himself” (HC 49). Part of being members in Christ’s church is being united to the head of the body. We, united to the head, are nourished by him and assured he will bring us to himself.
When we gather for worship, Christ is drawing us, his members, to himself. As the Epistle to the Hebrews reminds us,
You have come to mount Zion, and the city of the living God—the heavenly Jerusalem—and to myriads of angels at the festival; and to the assembly of the firstborn enrolled in heaven, and to God the judge of all things, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect; and to Jesus, mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling speaking better than the blood of Abel. (Heb 12:20–4, author’s translation)
We are named Ascension because our ascended savior, Jesus, pours out his gifts on his church and draws his church to himself, the head, in the heavenly city. As a mission work, it is our privilege to be on the ground floor and front row of Christ by his Spirit drawing us to himself in a new community.
What We Are Doing Right Now
First, we are now meeting for worship at 10am at East 59 Cafe. East 59 is a wonderful Christian-owned business, and they have been exemplars of Christian hospitality to us. On Sunday mornings I am preaching through 1 Corinthians, we are singing psalms and hymns from the Trinity Psalter-Hymnal, and we are celebrating communion weekly. We are looking for an accompanist, so that is an item for your prayer list.
On Sunday nights we are meeting in our home to sing, study the shorter catechism alongside the book Glorifying and Enjoying God, and pray for one another.1 We always end the Lord’s day with fellowship—we have light refreshments and spend time in fellowship together to close out the day.
As I mentioned above, we have received our first members, so I am now preparing for our first two baptisms. Truly God is already blessing our small community with growth.
Lastly, we meet weekly for men’s prayer on Wednesday mornings where we read a psalm and pray for one another. We meet at a coffee shop downtown, near everyone’s work. This is a wonderful time for the brothers who are able to make it.
How to Support Us
There are a few ways you can support our work here in Birmingham:
- First, tell your friends and family about our work. If you know someone in Birmingham, send them this update!
- Second, pray for the Lord to continue to provide committed members. Like most church plants, we need committed individuals and families to help us become stable.
- Third, pray for our own outreach to our own friends and families.
- Fourth, pray for our members and regular visitors.
- Fifth, as I mentioned above, pray that God would provide an accompanist.
- Lastly, If you would like to, you can give via tithely at our website. We are not yet registered as a 501(c)3, but are seeking to be.
Truly our God continues to be faithful. We pray that his faithfulness to us would draw others to join and commit to this new mission work in Birmingham. We ask that you would join us in prayer that God would establish the work of our hands (Ps 90:17) and grow another embassy of his kingdom here in Birmingham, Alabama.
Note
- William Boekestein, Jonathan Landry Cruse, and Andrew J. Miller, Glorifying and Enjoying God: 52 Devotions through the Westminster Shorter Catechism (Grand Rapids, MI: Reformation Heritage, 2023).
©Luke Gossett. All Rights Reserved.
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