Third Sunday of Easter: The Essence of Resurrection

β€œWhat we know is that when Christ is openly revealed, we’ll see himβ€”and in seeing him, become like him. All of us who look forward to his Coming stay ready…” 1 John 3: 2Β  We are children of God. Through the love of God, we are claimed and called God’s children. β€œSee what love” is […]

Second Sunday of Easter: How We Respond

Join us this Sunday, April 7, at 10 am for worship, either in person or online. We'll celebrate the Second Sunday of Easter, reflecting on the themes of unity, generosity, and divine mercy as portrayed in Acts 4:32-35 and 1 John 1:1-2:2. Let's come together to explore the transformative power of Christ's resurrection and the […]

Sunday, March 31st ~ Easter Sunday

Christ the Lord is risen! Alleluia. Come, join us for Easter as we sing our praise and raise our joys and triumphs high with brass, choir, organ, and timpani declaring that love’s redeeming work is done. Easter begins in the dark and moves into our lives as the dawn lights up the sky and our […]

Maundy Thursday

Join us in person or online March 28, 2024 at 7:00 PM With water and a basin, we remember that Jesus tells the disciples that he wants to wash their feet. They are bewildered by this gesture of humility and service that reverses all normal roles of authority. In humility, we symbolically wash our hands […]

Kalamazoo FUMC Sunday, March 24th ~ Palm Sunday

Led by: Rev. Matt Weiler Bulletin: https://www.umc-kzo.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Bulletin_March_24_2024.pdf It is Palm Sunday, a time when we remember Jesus’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem. And so we, like those who hailed Jesus on that day wave our palm branches, shouting β€œHosanna – Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.” However, by the time […]

The Call of Love and Life

β€œVery truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain, but if it dies it bears much fruit” ~John 12:24Β Β  We are called to experience, celebrate, and share God’s love. This is our mission as First United Methodist Church of Kalamazoo. Our call […]

Justice: What the Cross Means for Justice

In the Old Testament, when Moses raised the staff of the serpent any who had been bitten by a venomous snake could gaze on the staff and be healed of the serpent's poison. It is a strange reference to an obscure story. The point is, those who look to Jesus who was lifted up on […]

Inclusion: Bent on Mercy

Inclusion seems to be a buzz word of the time with many organizations and entities claiming inclusion as a value. For Christ followers, inclusion is an ancient spiritual practice that was embodied by Jesus. His life and ministry consistently exemplified that love and community must include the marginalized as they too were God’s beloved. Jesus […]

Community: We are the story we tell

This second Sunday of Lent we raise the congregational value of COMMUNITY. How fitting then to celebrate the baptism one of our youngest disciples as the community reaffirms our own baptismal covenants and welcomes a child into the covenant. In our Baptism we put on the grace of God through Jesus Christ, and we commit […]

First Sunday of Lent

The story of Jesus’ baptism and the Spirit driving him out is certainly brief in the Gospel of Mark but there is plenty of drama. With the clearing away of details, we find ourselves focusing on Jesus. This is the meaning of the season of Lent. The opening verses of Mark are demanding our attention, […]

Transfiguration Sunday

Join us in person or online at 10:00 AM. Elisha saw an astonishing thing take place right before his eyes when Elijah, the greatest of the prophets did not die but was swept away into the heavens by a chariot of fire. The student was so devastated he tore his clothes in two. The next […]

Belonging: Manna and More

Join us this Sunday at 10:00 AM for a special Sunday, where our Young Adult resident, Jonathan Townley, will be preaching. We will also have a reading from β€œThis Here Flesh: Spirituality, Liberation, and the Stories that Make Us” by Cole Arthur Riley, the first of the writers we will continue to feature throughout the […]