On a quiet block of Crescent Street NE in Grand Rapids, the Heritage Reformed Congregation gathers three times each Sunday - once in English in the morning, once in Mandarin Chinese in the afternoon, and once again in English in the evening. The congregation belongs to the Heritage Reformed Congregations of North America, a denomination shaped by both the Dutch Three Forms of Unity and the Westminster Standards of the English Puritan tradition. Heritage Reformed in Grand Rapids is known for the depth of its worship, the breadth of its publishing work, a choir that fills the sanctuary several times a year, and a Sunday afternoon neighborhood Bible school that has welcomed more than 2,500 local children since 1998.
Sunday on Crescent Street
Three services and one neighborhood Bible school fill the day at 540 Crescent Street NE.
- Morning Worship in English begins at 9:15 a.m. and runs to about 10:45 a.m.
- Mandarin Worship Service begins at 2:00 p.m. and is conducted in Putonghua for the Chinese-speaking members of the congregation.
- Heritage Hill Sunday School, a neighborhood outreach program for children from the surrounding blocks, begins at 3:00 p.m.
- Evening Worship in English begins at 6:00 p.m.
Nursery care is available for the morning and evening services. Greeters meet visitors at the door or in the parking lot, hand them a bulletin and order of worship, and walk families to the sanctuary or the nursery. A host family is also assigned each Sunday to share a meal after the service with anyone who would like company; they can be met at the entrance by the carport.
The Shape of the Worship Service
The worship services are intentionally ordered. Before the service begins, the consistory gathers for prayer. As members enter the sanctuary they find an atmosphere of quiet anticipation. The elder of service shakes the minister's hand at the front, and both say the word "blessing," asking God's favor on the preaching and hearing of the Word.
The service includes a silent prayer, a confession of dependence drawn from Psalm 124:8, a salutation from 2 Corinthians 13:14 or Revelation 1:4-5, the reading of God's Law from Exodus 20 or Deuteronomy 5 in the morning service, the reading of Scripture, a creed in the evening service, congregational prayer, the offering, and a sermon that the church understands as God's primary means of speaking to and saving sinners. Psalms are sung before the reading of the Law, before the sermon, in response to the sermon, and at the close of the service. The service ends with a doxology and a benediction from Numbers 6:24-26, Jude 24-25, or Hebrews 13:20-21.
Worship uses the King James Version of 1611 and sings from the Psalter of 1912, copies of which are found in the pew. The church frames its worship with a list of scriptural principles: it must be God-focused, Christ-centered, Spirit-moved, Word-based, heartfelt, orderly, instructive, shared as a gathered body, under the oversight of the elders, and held on the Lord's Day.
Three Creeds and Three Forms of Unity
The beliefs of Heritage Reformed are described as Scriptural, Confessional, and Experiential. Scripture, the church teaches, is the inspired, infallible, and inerrant Word of God that informs every facet of life and practice, gives form and content to preaching, worship, and singing, and reveals the way of salvation in Christ.
The Confessional foundation rests on the three ancient ecumenical creeds - the Apostles' Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Athanasian Creed - and on the Three Forms of Unity from the sixteenth-century Reformation: the Belgic Confession of Faith, the Heidelberg Catechism, and the Canons of Dort. The denomination also subscribes to the Westminster Standards as the harvest of Puritan theology: the Westminster Confession of Faith and the Larger and Shorter Catechisms.
The Experiential dimension is what the congregation emphasizes most. Belief, the church teaches, must not merely inform the mind but also touch the heart, moving the emotions with an abiding love for Christ, His Word, His holiness, and His people, and bearing fruit in the visible marks of the Spirit. The Heidelberg Catechism's answer on Christ's care for His church - that He gathers, defends, and preserves it through the Spirit and the Word - is the language the congregation uses to mark its own anniversary.
The Pastoral Team
Four pastors share the work of the congregation, supported by ten elders and ten deacons. The elders oversee the spiritual welfare of the members and visit every family twice a year. The deacons oversee the ministry of mercy to the congregation and to the surrounding community.
- Pastor John Byl joined the pastoral team in 2022. Originally from Ontario, Canada, he taught high school mathematics for fourteen years before completing a Master of Divinity at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary.
- Pastor Darryl Dedert also joined the pastoral team after completing his Master of Divinity at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary in 2022. Before seminary he taught and worked in Cambodia with his wife Kara for five years.
- Dr. Joel R. Beeke is pastor of the congregation and chancellor and professor of systematic theology and homiletics at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary. He also edits The Banner of Sovereign Grace Truth, directs Reformation Heritage Books, and serves as president of Inheritance Publishers.
- Pastor Simon Yin, ordained in July 2020, focuses on pastoring the Chinese members of the congregation. He and his wife Chunzi are the contact for the Mandarin Worship Service.
- Dr. Brian A. De Vries serves as a minister of the Heritage Reformed Congregations of North America, leads Grace Reformed Church in the Pretoria area, and lectures at North West University and Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary.
Heritage Hill Sunday School: A Mission in the Backyard
The congregation's urban location on Crescent Street places it close to families for whom a Sunday afternoon class is a welcome option. Heritage Hill Sunday School began in October 1998 after several members were burdened for the children of the surrounding neighborhood. It originally ran on Saturday mornings and soon moved to Sunday afternoons.
Between 50 and 80 children attend on a typical Sunday, and more than 2,500 children have attended at least once since 1998. Volunteers gather at 2:30 p.m. for prayer and then walk to pick up children from the neighborhood. Singing begins at 3:00 p.m. with Psalters and hymns, followed by a short devotional at 3:15 p.m. Children are placed in age-grouped classrooms where teachers present the lesson of the day. Children come from a diversity of religious, social, and cultural backgrounds, and many live in poverty, come from broken homes, or have relatives in jail. The work is described by the congregation as a mission field in its own backyard.
The Sunday school offers a teaching slot every other Sunday from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. for volunteers willing to work with young children.
The Heritage Voices Choir
The Heritage Voices Choir brings together 60 singers from Heritage Reformed and other local churches. Founded more than forty years ago, the choir sings for elderly worship services three to five times a year and presents concerts at Christmas and Easter. The director is Rich TenElshof, a pianist, organist, and former member of the Calvin College Oratorio Society. The church organist is Ellis Meschke, who studied organ at Western Michigan University and has played for the congregation since beginning as a church organist at fifteen.
Catechism from Kindergarten Through Twelfth Grade
Catechesis is treated as a God-given responsibility rooted in the command of Deuteronomy 6 to teach the next generation. Instruction begins in kindergarten and continues through twelfth grade, using an age-appropriate curriculum that teaches the biblical, Reformed faith with the experiential emphasis of the congregation's heritage. Elders teach through memorization, illustration, and discussion. The congregation prays that the truths of God's Word and the Reformed faith would transform the next generation and that the Lord would raise up a seed to serve Him through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Bible Studies for Men, Women, and Young Adults
Several smaller groups gather around the Bible throughout the month:
- The Men's Bible Study meets on the last Thursday evening of each month.
- The Women's Morning Bible Study meets on Thursday mornings as announced.
- The Women's Evening Bible Study meets on Wednesday evenings as announced.
- Under Construction, a group of young men, meets on the second Wednesday of every month.
- Proven Men meets for study and mutual encouragement on biblical manhood.
- Young Adults gather for fellowship and service at homes in the congregation.
The New Members Class meets from September through May under one of the pastors and covers the basic doctrines and distinctives of the Reformed faith. At the close of the class, prospective members meet with the elders and, if ready, make public confession of faith before the congregation.
The Esther Guild
The Esther Guild is a women's mercy ministry that meets every other Thursday morning from September through May at the church, beginning at 9:15 a.m. and lasting about two hours. Childcare is provided. Each meeting opens with a devotion and a short business meeting, after which the women share refreshments and work on service projects. The guild prepares Harvest fruit baskets for widows, widowers, and special friends, hosts a Senior Ladies' Tea and a Men's Dinner, prepares meals for those in need, serves refreshments after funerals, and supports ministries such as St. John's Home, Mel Trotter Ministries, Alpha Women's Center, the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans, the Nakekela AIDS Clinic in South Africa, and Agua Viva Ministries in Mexico.
Family Visitation
Family visitation is one of the central tasks of the elders. From September through May, on Tuesday evenings, two elders visit each family in an assigned district to talk, pray, and gauge the spiritual welfare of the household. The elders choose a passage of Scripture to guide the conversation and ask questions appropriate to the ages of those in the home. The practice is designed to keep the church connected and to give families a regular, informal moment around the Word.
Hospitality from the Parking Lot to the Dinner Table
Hospitality is described by the congregation as one of the themes at the heart of the gospel. Greeters welcome each visitor at the door or in the parking lot, hand out bulletins, and help with children. A host family shares a meal and fellowship after the service. Visitors who let the church know they are coming can be matched with a host family in advance for a meal after worship.
Senior Youth and the Annual Conference at Camp Michawana
The Senior Youth Group, which spans junior high through college age, meets every other Sunday evening after the worship service for fellowship, song, and instruction. The president opens each meeting with Bible reading and prayer. Adult speakers, pastors hosting sermon discussions or Q&A sessions, and song services fill out the program. Monthly activities have included ice skating, hayrides, canoeing, biking, gym nights, and group evenings of singing and discussion. The youth also serve through yard cleanups, care boxes for military members, helping with the Heritage Hill Sunday School, and serving meals to seniors.
The annual Youth Conference brings around 140 young people, ages 15 to 25, to Camp Michawana in Hastings, Michigan. Some travel from Europe. The days begin with a prayer meeting, then breakfast, then talks and discussion, then workshops, then supper, then more teaching, then singing around the campfire and devotions in the cabins. Topics, workshops, and speakers change each year. The conference is also offered to youth from other Heritage Reformed congregations.
Four Publishing Houses and a Seminary
A distinctive feature of the congregation is the publishing work that surrounds it. The Banner of Sovereign Grace Truth is a bimonthly magazine published by the Heritage Reformed denomination. Each 48-page issue carries a themed section of articles on a particular subject, along with meditations, Old and New Testament Bible studies, family guidance, doctrinal and practical Christianity, questions answered for teens and adults, Christian worldview, and a children's section.
Gospel Trumpet is a fifteen-year-old non-profit that promotes biblical, Reformed Christianity through radio broadcasts and sermon distribution. Its board is drawn from congregations throughout the Heritage Reformed Congregations.
Inheritance Publishers prints sermons of Reformed divines from the sixteenth through the nineteenth centuries in 30-40 page booklets, specializing in out-of-print sermons. More than 10,000 copies of each booklet are mailed worldwide by a team of volunteers.
Reformation Heritage Books publishes an average of 40 books a year and stocks about 3,000 new titles, along with 2,000 to 3,000 used books, with a specialty in antiquarian Puritan literature. The board of nine is drawn seven-strong from Heritage Reformed.
Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, which shares close ties with the congregation and is led in part by Dr. Beeke, was born in May 1995 and trains men for gospel ministry in a Reformed and experiential tradition. Grace Christian Academy is the congregation's Christ-centered school for children and young people.
Twenty-Five Years on Crescent Street
Heritage Reformed Congregation of Grand Rapids marked its twenty-fifth anniversary in 2018. The anniversary statement credits Christ, the King of His Church, for gathering, defending, and preserving His people through the Spirit and the Word. The congregation looks back on faithful preaching, growth in grace and knowledge, caring for one another as a church family, and reaching out to the surrounding community. It asks for prayer that the coming years would be marked by spiritual renewal, that the Spirit would revive the congregation and its neighbors, that God would be glorified in the salvation of sinners, and that the holy lives of His people would bring Him glory.