Thursday July 2 2020
A daily e-mailer from
Matt Matthews
 
To Members and Friends of 
First Presbyterian Church
Champaign, Illinois
 
 Dear Friends,
 
            Thank you for those who joined the Wednesday service for wholeness. Eric Corbin crafted a beautiful service, and he and Judi Geistlinger led it beautifully. God is good.  
 
Take on Race:
 
Racism is anti-Christian. In 2016, the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) approved a comprehensive churchwide anti-racism policy called “Facing Racism: A Vision of the Intercultural Community.” The policy states:
Racism is a lie about our fellow human beings, for it says that some are less than others. It is also a lie about God, for it falsely claims that God favors parts of creation over the entirety of creation. Because of our biblical understanding of who God is and what God intends for humanity, the PC(USA) must stand against, speak against and work against racism. Anti-racist effort is not optional for Christians. It is an essential aspect of Christian discipleship, without which we fail to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Structural racism is not only the “opposite of what God intends for humanity,” but is also an example of how sin is systemic rather than simply personal. As the PC(USA)’s anti-racism policy states, “Reformed theology offers a nuanced understanding of sin. Calvin did not understand sin to be simply an individual belief, action, or moral failing (Calvin, 1960). Rather, he viewed sin as the corporate state of all humanity. It is an infection that taints each of us and all of us. No part of us — not our perception, intelligence, nor conscience — is unclouded by sin.”
Psalm 14:3 and Romans 3:10 remind us, “There is no one just, not even one.” The PC(USA)’s policy also reminds us that this realization “does not mean that human beings are awful. Rather, it means that we must have humility about our own righteousness, and that we must cling to the grace of God in Jesus Christ.”
 
NEWS:
 
Make a donation to DREAAM for anyone’s birthday. Send  them to the church, or directly to DREAAM at  https://www.dreaam.org/take-action

Fridays

Men’s Prayer 8:30 am
Email zoom@firstpres.church for the link.

Friday Night Lights Bible Study 7:30 pm
Email zoom@firstpres.church for the link.

Good Word: 
 
Ephesians 2:19-22
 
¹⁹ So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, ²⁰ built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. ²¹ In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; ²² in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.
 
Let us pray 
 
As the wind is your symbol, so forward our goings. As the dove, so launch us heavenwards.
As water, so purify our spirits.
As a cloud, so abate our temptations. 
As dew, so revive our languor.
As fire, so purge out our dross. Amen. 
Christina Rossetti (1830–1894) 
 
PEACE to you all,
 
Matt Matthews
Cell: 864.386.9138
Matt@FirstPres.Church