This is the story of the very first Christian Reformed Church in all of California. It is a very fascinating story of the Lord's work.
A few brave Dutch pioneers had settled in Redlands in the very early years of the previous century. By 1910, a group of about seven had been drawn together by bonds of language and the Reformed Christian faith. Each Sunday, they had a service as they gathered together for worship in their various homes. The Christian Reformed denomination declared Redlands as a Mission Post. On May 11, 1911, a new congregation was formed, and received its first pastor, and adopted the name First Christian Reformed Church of Redlands. A year later, the congregation built its first worship center, just 28 ft. by 38 ft. The basement was used for meetings and Sunday School classes. The parsonage was finished by June 1912.
The organizing group was small and congenial; everyone was eager and willing to work. When the news that a Christian Reformed Church had been established in California, many families came. By December 1912, the little church building was filled.
The rapid growth of the church also brought its challenges. With new families came new ideas about how things were to be done. The transition from the Dutch language to English was the controversy of the day, when some were afraid that English would become the spiritual downfall of their children. By 1932, the language problem and some theological issues led to the departure of about half the congregation to form the Hope Protestant Reformed Church. In 1936, another group left to form the Bethany Reformed Church.
Yet God blessed the growth of the church. The Redlands Christian School started, and brought in more families. In the 1921, the church building was enlarged. In 1945, the church had grown to 70 families. As the church continued to grow, 16 families left in 1949 to form and build the new Highland Christian Reformed Church, while the original church built a new, larger building on Church Street in 1950. God had blessed each congregation as they both continued to grow and follow the Lord Jesus.
Then in 1995, God had moved the two churches to merge and forge a common vision for growth, outreach, and worship. The new, unified church accepted the leadership of a new pastor, Tim Spykstra. The church also constructed a new facility, building upon the existing property of the former Highland CRC. This is the building you see today.
We have seen God move in mighty, powerful ways over almost a century of church's history. Yet because we have a God whose love and mighty works "are new every morning" (Lam. 3:23), the church is witnessing a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit. You will notice a great eagerness in the people to worship God and meet Him in the worship services. You will notice a fervor for prayer and outreach to our neighbors. You will notice generosity and compassion in the hearts of the people. You will notice non-religious visitors awakened to the reality of Jesus for the first time. You will notice that God is adding to and building the church. And so we invite you to come and see for yourself. By God's grace, you will be blessed.
About the Christian Reformed Church
The River CRC is supported by a 140-year old denomination called the Christian Reformed Church of North America. The denomination has almost 300,000 members and about 1,000 churches. The denomination runs the largest evangelical Christian college in the United States, Calvin College, in Michigan, with about 4,300 students. It also supports a Bible College in Grand Rapids, and five other Christian colleges. It also has its own radio and television program, the "Back to God Hour" broadcast and "Primary Focus." These programs are broadcast locally in the Inland Empire Area and the Los Angeles Area. The programs are also broadcast throughout the word in nine languages.
The word "Reformed" means that the church is aligned with that historic branch of Christianity that withdrew from the Roman Catholic Church in the 1500's. That branch has influenced great historic preachers such as Jonathan Edwards, George Whitfield, and Charles Spurgeon. In modern times, many Christians are familiar with the books of "Reformed" writers such as R.C. Sproul, John Stott, J.I. Packer, and James Montgomery Boice.
The early Christian church was like the single trunk of a tree. After about 1,000 years of growth, the trunk divided into two major branches - the Eastern and Western churches. In 1517, the Protestant Reformation divided the Western (or Roman Catholic) church into several new branches. One of these Reformation branches, formed under Martin Luther's influence, was called the Lutheran church. Another branch developed under the influence of Ulrich Zwingli and later John Calvin. These churches were called "Presbyterian" in Scotland and "Reformed" in continental Europe. The Reformed churches flourished in the Netherlands. In the early 1800's some of these Dutch Reformed people moved to the United States, and in 1857 they started the Christian Reformed Church of North America.