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Brookside Church is a local gathering of Christ's church which:

  • Glorifies God in meaningful and uplifting worship
  • Grows together in Christian love and maturity
  • Introduces nonbelievers to Jesus Christ and embraces them with God's love
  • Challenges each other to be wise stewards of the resources God has given us
  • Equips members for witness and service - both locally and globally.

Our Vision:
We envision Brookside Christian Reformed Church as a community of believers, each one using his or her gifts to love, learn, seek and serve.  Brookside walks with Jesus, building redemptive relationships in an ever-growing community.

Our Mission:
As stewards of God’s gifts to us, Brookside Christian Reformed Church is a community that follows Christ and reflects His love by worshiping God, developing spiritually, reaching out to non-believers, and serving others in our world.

Our Core Values:
Undergirding our Mission and Vision Statements are Core Values that have been identified as our non-negotiable beliefs that are basic to our membership and ministries.

Confessional Values:
As members of Brookside Christian Reformed Church we believe:

  • Jesus Christ saves us from the consequences of our sin and reestablishes our relationship with God. He deserves our gratitude and delights in our praise.
  • Our life and ministry must be based on the Word of God, and all our decisions must be tested by the truths of Scripture.
  • We hold to the truths of the Bible as expressed in the Reformed creeds, which include the Belgic Confession, Canons of Dort, and the Heidelberg Catechism.
  • As a congregation in the Christian Reformed Church we will participate in and support our denomination’s ministries.

Ministry Values:
As members of Brookside Christian Reformed Church we are committed to:

  • A ministry focused on a clearly defined vision of what we believe God desires to do through us.
  • A ministry shaped by the Word of God.
  • Shaping our ministry to respond meaningfully to the needs and opportunities within our community.
  • A ministry enveloped by prayer expressed both individually and in community.
  • Striving for excellence in all our church undertakes in its life and ministry.
  • A ministry characterized by grace.
  • Helping every member grow in spiritual maturity.
  • Encouraging all members to participate in ministry through the use of their spiritual gifts.
  • Embracing the diversity we find within our church and neighborhood as a gift God has given to us for our further growth and maturation.
  • A lifestyle that gratefully uses all God’s gifts to honor Him.

People gathering after service in the foyer.

What is the CRC and what do we believe?
"CRC" means Christian Reformed Church. By "Christian" we mean that Jesus Christ is the only Lord and Savior, and the only means of salvation. By "Reformed" we mean that our church, our doctrine, and our Christian life are always to be reformed according to God's Word.

Our roots are in the Reformation of the 16th century. We're Protestant, Reformed, and Calvinistic, tracing our roots back to the Reformation through the teachings of John Calvin. One of the central beliefs of Calvinism has to do with the sovereignty of God. We believe that our salvation is from start to finish a work of God's grace.  We believe that salvation comes only by faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. We believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God for our doctrine and life. We believe that Christ is King and that it is our task to bring every part of personal and social life into obedience to the Lord Jesus.

Our emblem - a cross in a triangle - expresses our basic beliefs.  The triangle stands for the Trinity - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The cross shows our belief in Jesus Christ's death on the cross for our salvation.

We are a group of nearly 1000 churches located in the United States and Canada with missions and organized churches in several other countries. Although many of our extended families originally immigrated to North America from the Netherlands, we are consciously working to become more inclusive and now include not only believers with European roots, but also Asians, Africans, Hispanics and Native Americans.

The Bible is central in worship services and sermons are the focal point of worship. The Christian Reformed Church is a creedal church, meaning that we accept certain historical expressions of the Christian faith as a summary of true doctrine.  These creeds include the Apostle's Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Athanasian Creed. We also have three confessional statements from the time of the Reformation, the Heidelberg Catechism, the Belgic Confession, and the Canons of Dordt.

The Christian Reformed Church practices infant baptism and believes that adult believers and their children are included in God's covenant promise to be our God and the God of our children through Jesus Christ.

We serve the Lord's Supper regularly and welcome fellow Christians from other traditions who are members in good-standing of their respective congregations.

The Christian Reformed Church has traditionally had a strong commitment to Christian education on Sundays and during the week.

Also, be sure to review our FAQ page to get answers to various types of questions you may have concerning our church.

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Brookside CRC is located at 3600 Kalamazoo Avenue in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The phone number is 616-452-3191 and the email is connections@brooksidecrc.org.
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