Who is the Christian Reformed Church Today?

What is identity? For many of us, our personal identity might be bound up in vocation. For example, Belinda is a banker; she always has been and thought she always would be. But when she retires, what is she? For others, identity is bound up in a relationship—often a child (or spouse). Darryl is Tyler’s dad. Darryl coached Tyler’s baseball team, took his friends on spring break to Florida. But when Tyler goes to university, who is Darryl? Questions of identity are tough and disruptive. They not only guide our approach to today, but they affect our orientation to the future.

Through the prophet Malachi, the Lord said, “I the Lord do not change.” Except for the Lord (and his Word), everything else changes—including the church. Similar to Belinda and Darryl, the church in North America is going through a time of shifting identity. Once at the center of society, the church finds itself increasingly at the periphery (or fighting for a seat at the table) and is anxious about it.

Denominations that were once ethnically and culturally homogeneous find themselves negotiating diversity as first- and second-generation immigrants move into leadership and influence. The epidemic of polarization, fueled by social media, that plagues our politics and our dinner tables has boiled over into the church and affected our relationships with each other.

These and other changes have shifted the identity of North American churches in the past 30 years. The Christian Reformed Church is no exception.

Orientation to Culture

So, what is CRC identity? Perhaps no single confession has been more critical to the identity of Reformed churches in general, and the CRC in particular, than the sovereignty of God over all creation (Belgic Confession, Art. 13). From this confession comes our Reformed understanding of salvation. Also from this confession comes our understanding of common grace (God’s favor given to all humanity to restrain sin and sustain life in society and culture).

And from this teaching comes the “transformationalist strain” of our identity—that we seek God’s kingdom in all areas and endeavors of life. As a result, we have had a long history of social engagement through building institutions such as schools, universities, seminaries, mission agencies, retirement homes, labor unions, mental health hospitals, adoption agencies, etc. This aspect of our CRC identity has attracted so many (including me) from other Christian traditions with more ambivalent attitudes toward life outside the church to join the CRC.

Yet the growth of secularism and the marginalization of the church in society in the past several decades has challenged this aspect of our identity. The call to seek God’s kingdom in all areas of culture and life remains strong in the CRC, but it is tempered by the recognition that until Christ returns, our efforts to “claim every square inch” will be provisional. We are learning that faithfully proclaiming Christ in culture can sometimes lead to discomfort, pushback, and even persecution. We are becoming “tempered transformationalists” who entrust ourselves to Christ’s victory while eagerly awaiting Christ’s return.

Orientation to Mission

Another key aspect to the identity of the CRC is that we are a covenant people. God covenanted with Abram to make him a blessing to all peoples (Genesis 12). God covenanted with Israel to make it a light among the nations (Is. 49). God has covenanted with us and our children to be a royal priesthood, “proclaiming the praises of him who called you out of darkness” (1 Peter 2).

Despite the orientation of covenant toward mission in Scripture, at times CRC folks have leaned into isolation. In our annual denominational survey, items related to local mission, such as showing mercy, seeking justice, and sharing the gospel, have consistently ranked as activities we do not participate in well individually or promote strongly as congregations.

Yet there is a new movement of Spirit-empowered mission shaping us today. Whether because of changing neighborhoods or aging congregations, God has reminded us that the gospel and growth go together. Discipleship, evangelism, and church planting are high on the CRC agenda. We are recognizing that the good news is not just good words but also good deeds done in gratitude.

At the center of this movement of mission is a movement of prayer. Growth is an act of God, and we heed the call to pray for renewal. We are becoming “prayerful preachers” of gospel words and gospel deeds.

Orientation to Togetherness

A final critical confession to the CRC identity is that we are one in the Lord. We confess our connection to one holy, catholic, and apostolic church (Nicene Creed). We acknowledge “Three Forms of Unity” (our Reformed Confessions) binding us to Reformed and Presbyterian communions around the world. But we are broken.

In the words of one of the CRC’s contemporary testimonies, Our World Belongs to God, “We grieve that the church, which shares one Spirit, one faith, one hope, and spans all time, place, race, and language, has become a broken communion in a broken world” (Art. 40). Upholding a traditional view of marriage and sexuality was essential for our witness, yet we lament the ways our anxiety and anger on these topics contributed to our disunity in the past several years.

Despite this, today God is weaving CRC congregations into a new tapestry. Decades ago much of our unity and identity was cultural, based on a shared Dutch immigrant experience. Today 25% of our congregations are primarily non-caucasian, and many more are multiethnic.

New members and new generations bring different practices and perspectives. With this new identity often comes conflict and misunderstanding. Many point out that today there is a “lack of trust in the system.”

Trust is a choice, graciously offered and gratefully received. Will we give and receive? In the midst of all of this, there is a growing appetite for an identity in togetherness rooted in a shared vision for Reformed mission and ministry. Our identity is shaped by “toughened togetherness.”

Unchanging Identity Rooted in Christ and His Word

The only constant in our world is change. Yet, through all our upheavals, one thing has remained the same. As a communion of churches our identity is centered on Christ and his Word (see page 10 of the denominational survey). Hebrews reminds us, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Heb 13:8). Therefore we have hope.

While our Christian Reformed communion and our congregations might be temporary, the gospel will go forth. The church will endure. Therefore we are “sent with the gospel of the kingdom to call everyone to know and follow Christ and to proclaim to all the assurance that in the name of Jesus there is forgiveness of sin and new life for all who repent and believe. The Spirit calls all members to embrace God’s mission in their neighborhoods and in the world: to feed the hungry, bring water to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, care for the sick, and free the prisoner” (Our World Belongs to God, Art. 41).

Going back to the beginning, Belinda is still a banker, but she can now use her skills of administration and finance in other ways. Darryl is still a dad; he just needs to change the way he interacts with his son. In the same way, much of our CRC and Reformed identity has stayed the same. We remain united in Christ, committed to our confessions, and are called to mission.

With these roots of our identity continuing, I wonder how God is calling us to live into these things today as he continues to shape and mold us in new and different ways. Let’s have a conversation about this. Please share your reactions and thoughts about our CRC identity in response to this post[1] on the Network.