Our Faith and Message
The apostle Paul writes in the Bible, “…God was reconciling the world to Himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation” (2 Corinthians 5:19).
This is the heart of our faith at First Lutheran Church and also the message we seek to share. Our world and the people in it – including us! – were fallen and helpless to bring ourselves back to God. What we could never do, the Lord Himself did! He sent His Son, Jesus, down to our world. Jesus, a real Man, is also truly God at the same time. By the life He lived, by the death He died in our place, and by His resurrection from the dead God made peace with the world which had rebelled against Him. He forgives out of undeserved mercy, because of what Christ has done, and not because of our goodness.
The Christian church is sent by God into the world to bring this message of reconciliation – the message of what Jesus has done to make peace with fallen humankind – into every time and place. We host many activities and groups, but this is the heart of what our church is called to do. By proclaiming and teaching the Good News of Who Jesus is and of what He has done for humankind, we invite all who will listen to put their trust in Him.
First Lutheran Church was planted 100 years ago in 1920 under the guidance of Lutheran missionary pastors who crossed the river from Detroit by ferry before the days of bridge and tunnel. They founded our congregation to be a lasting place where Christ’s Gospel would be sounded, both to strengthen the faith of those who already believe in Him, and to invite a growing number of people to come to Him. After humble beginnings in a house chapel, our present neo-Gothic building was opened in late 1928 on Victoria Avenue near Giles Boulevard. It has been the home of our services ever since. In 1963, a large addition including offices, classrooms and an auditorium was added to that original structure.
The core of our work happens each Sunday when we offer Divine Services in both the English and German languages. In between the early morning German Service and the later English Service, adults gather in the main church for a Sunday Bible Class involving nearly 40 participants. During that same teaching hour, young children meet for Sunday School in the church auditorium. Services are beautified through strong musical leadership by our organist, and there are choirs who offer vocal music in both our worship languages.
In addition to Sundays, we have other services to mark the main holy days and seasons of the Christian year. So we worship on Wednesday evenings during Advent (in December to prepare spiritually for Christmas), and Lent (remembering Jesus’ sufferings and death); also on Maundy Thursday (the night Jesus gave His people the gift of the Lord’s Supper); Good Friday (the day of His death in our place); and Ascension Day (the Thursday when Our Lord returned to heaven); as well as on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Details on these and other groups and activities are available on this website. We’re glad to have you spend time on these pages … but we’d be overjoyed to have you join us in person for worship and study if you live here in the Windsor-Essex County area. Welcome! Welcome! Welcome!