What is a church? Is it a building? A group of people? Of course, it’s both. But at Messiah, being a church means more than that. We are a group of people drawn together by God to receive His unconditional love and forgiveness, which He gives to us in His Son, Jesus Christ. That reality gives us hope and confidence. Even when things seem at their worst, we are loved by God, and He has promised never to leave us or forsake us.
That message is what motivated a group to plant a church in this Carrollton neighborhood a little over 50 years ago. In the years after Word War II, the Carrollton and Zilwaukee neighborhoods exploded with new houses and growing families. Eager that these families have a place to hear the good news of Jesus Christ, one family donated their farm to be the home to the newest Lutheran church in the Saginaw valley. Others quickly joined in the efforts. Led by the Rev. Lavern Franzen, sent to be a missionary to the area, the new church held her first service on November 8, 1964 in the Carrollton Middle School gymnasium. Just a few weeks later, the new congregation officially joined The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod and chose their name: The Lutheran Church of the Messiah.
In early 1965 ground was broken at the donated farm for the church, which would also include a Christian day school, serving children in kindergarten through eighth grade. Work progressed quickly and on June 19, 1966, Messiah dedicated the building and began her ministry to the Carrollton and Zilwaukee neighborhoods in which God had placed her.
For 50+ years, every aspect of Messiah’s ministry and mission has been driven by that first guiding hope: full forgiveness by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Messiah has never been content to simply exist. We are eager to spread this great love of God with everyone who will hear it. This has taken on many different forms throughout the decades. For the first twenty years, it was seen in the operation of the day school. But the 1980s brought a shift in our congregation that led us to focus on different ways to spread the Gospel. Since then, we have put a greater emphasis on community involvement in Vacation Bible School (held annually in July), community picnics, helping our neighbors get to know one another, and many other ways of showing the community that we exist to serve them, not the other way around. We want everyone to know that we are an inviting church, centered on Jesus Christ and His work for us.
That is exactly what it means to be Lutheran. Lutherans believe as true everything the Bible teaches. We believe that, even though we have sinned, God does not want anyone to be lost eternally because of their sin. So He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to live a perfect life, to take the sin of the world on Himself, and to die in our place, receiving the punishment we deserved. By His death on the cross and resurrection from the dead, He won forgiveness for all who believe in Him. He gives that forgiveness to us by His Word, the Bible. When that Word is read to us, it creates faith in us, and that faith receives every good gift of God, most importantly the forgiveness of our sins. Because we have faith, because Jesus has died for us and forgiven us, heaven is open to us, and we eagerly await eternity with Him.
So, what is a church? What is Messiah? It all comes down to Jesus and His forgiveness. We have been gathered together to receive His forgiveness and want the same for everyone else. That’s why we have been here these first 50 years—to tell everyone that great, good news. That’s why we’re here for you—to give you the same joy we have. That’s why we’ll be here tomorrow—to make sure all generations know the love of Jesus Christ.