Glory of Christ Fellowship

You Must Be Born Again John 3:1-15 March 26, 2017 Questions for Study and Meditation Who was Nicodemus? How does this shape our perception of the Pharisees and the leaders of the Jews? Why did he come to Jesus by night? Why did Jesus respond as he did to Nicodemus’ initial statement (see verse 3)? Was Nicodemus’ follow up question in verse 4 a reasonable one? What is the heart of Jesus second statement in verses 5-8? Given who Nicodemus was, why did Jesus make this statement? What is the heart of Jesus third statement in verses 10-15? Why did Jesus point to the sign of Moses and the serpent in Numbers 21:4-9? What’s the most important thing you learned from today’s sermon? From John 3:1-15? How has this sermon helped you to grow in love for God and others? What’s the most important thing Jesus would have you do in light of this sermon? Take some time to worship Jesus. Thank him, praise him, and ask for his help as you seek to strive with other believer...

Announcements - March 26, 2017 Pastor Kevin on Vacation:   Pastor Kevin and family will be on vacation from March 16-30. Please hold them up in prayer as they rejuvenate together. Agape Meal Next Sunday: Next week is Communion Sunday and we will share a meal together after the service. See the back of the announcements for full details about this monthly, all-church meal. GOLD Meeting:   The quarterly meeting for GCF’s leaders will take place on Saturday, April 1 from 8:00-10:00 a.m.  at the church office. All team leaders are required to be at these meetings, and all church members are welcome to attend. Counselors Training:   On Saturday, April 8 from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., Bethlehem Baptist Church is hosting a counselor training for pastors and their spouses, and for counselors and their spouses. This training will be led by David Powlison of the Christian Counseling and Education Foundation. If you’re intere...

Prayer, the Word of God, and the Holy Spirit By Pastor Charlie By his grace, the Lord gave George Müller a heart to seek him in big things and little things from the beginning of his life with God. He also sought to benefit others in practical ways and in spiritual ways, especially seeking to share the gospel with those who weren’t walking with Jesus. Over the years, the Lord taught him how profound and simple a connection there is between prayer, the Word of God, and the Spirit of God. To ascertain the Lord’s will we ought to use scriptural means. Prayer, the Word of God, and His Spirit should be united together. We should go the Lord repeatedly in prayer, and ask him to teach us by His Spirit through His Word. I say, by His Spirit through His Word. For if we should think that his Spirit led us to do so and so, because certain facts are so and so, and yet his Word is opposed to the step which we are going to take, we should be deceiving ourselves. ( Autobiography of Georg...

A Consuming Zeal John 2:13-25 March 19, 2017 Questions for Study and Meditation What was “the Passover of the Jews”? How often was it celebrated and why did Jesus go to the celebration? What did Jesus find in the temple, and what does this tell us about the spiritual climate of Israel at the time? How did he respond and why? How did his disciples understand what Jesus did? How did the Jews respond to what Jesus did? How did Jesus respond to them and why? What was the effect of Jesus’ answer on his disciples? How did the people respond to what Jesus did? How did Jesus think about their response and why? What’s the most important thing you learned from today’s sermon? From John 2:13-25? How has this sermon helped you to grow in love for God and others? What’s the most important thing Jesus would have you do in light of this sermon? Take some time to worship Jesus. Thank him, praise him, and ask for his help as you seek to strive with other believers fo...

Prayer and Evangelism By Pastor Charlie      In November of 1825, George Müller heard the gospel preached and, by the grace of God, he came to faith in Jesus Christ. Sometime later, he read several missionary stories and met with a couple missionaries, and this aroused in him a desire to be a missionary himself. His mentors, however, encouraged him to wait, wisdom which he was willing to receive but which discouraged him a bit. But at that very time, Müller had an opportunity to visit for a couple of days with an older pastor who greatly “refreshed” his spirit and helped him to fix his eyes on Jesus (Autobiography of George Müller, Westminster Literature, page 12).       When he returned to his hometown, he spent some time with two of his old friends. The three of them used to carouse together, but now that Müller was a Christian he no longer partnered with them in sin. He did, however, seek to share the love of Christ, and on this particular occasion...

Announcements - March 19, 2017 Pastor Kevin on Vacation: Pastor Kevin and family will be on vacation from March 16-30, suffering in Florida for the sake of the gospel! Please hold them up in prayer as they rejuvenate together. GOLD Meeting: The quarterly meeting for GCF’s leaders will take place on Saturday, April 1 from 8:00-10:00 a.m. at the church office. All team leaders are required to be at these meetings, and all church members are welcome to attend. Counselors Training: On Saturday, April 8 from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., Bethlehem Baptist Church is hosting a counselor training for pastors and their spouses, and for counselors and their spouses. This training will be led by David Powlison of the Christian Counseling and Education Foundation. If you’re interested in attending, please contact Pastor Charlie at charlie@gcfmn.org . Good Friday and Easter Services—Save the Dates: This year our Good Friday service will take place on Friday, April 14 from 6:00-7:00 ...

A Prophetic Feast John 2:1-12 March 12, 2017 Questions for Study and Meditation Where was Cana? Why do you suppose Mary, Jesus, and his disciples were invited to the wedding? Why did Mary approach Jesus about the lack of wine at the wedding? How do you understand his answer in verse 4? Why did Jesus turn the water into the best of wine? Can you think of Old Testament stories on which this story draws? Can you think of New Testament passages to which this story points? What does it mean to say that this act was “a sign”? What was the purpose and effects of the sign? What’s the most important thing you learned from today’s sermon? From John 2:1-12? How has this sermon helped you to grow in love for God and others? What’s the most important thing Jesus would have you do in light of this sermon? Take some time to worship Jesus. Thank him, praise him, and ask for his help as you seek to strive with other believers for the faith of the gospel.

Prayer and Conversion By Pastor Charlie Over the last few months, I have been writing about various aspects of prayer by directing our attention to particular portions of Scripture. Over the next few months, I will be writing about various principles of prayer by directing our attention to the experiences of such leading lights as George Müller, Andrew Murray, Hudson Taylor, and E. M. Bounds. My prayer for the coming devotionals is that we will see the work of God in the lives of others and grow in the desire to see God build prayer-stories in our lives as well. Let’s begin with George Müller’s conversion story. George Müller grew up in a culturally Christian home, and thus by custom he regularly attended church and took the Lord’s supper twice per year. However, he did not hear a clear presentation of the gospel until he was twenty years old. About one month after he turned twenty, a friend named Beta invited him to a home Bible study. There he received the warm welcome of...

Behold, the Lamb of God John 1:35-51 March 5, 2017 Questions for Study and Meditation When John saw Jesus, what did he say? What effect did this have on the two disciples who were with him? Do you think John was jealous? How did Jesus respond to the two who left John to follow him? How does their interaction display the focus Jesus had about his mission? Once they were settled, what actions did Andrew take and why? What did Andrew say to Simon? What did Jesus say to Simon? What can we learn from this interaction? What did Jesus command of Philip? How did Philip respond? What, then, did Philip do? How did Nathanael respond to the news about Jesus? What did Jesus say to him? What effect did this have on Nathanael? What’s the most important thing you learned from today’s sermon? From John 1:35-51? How has this sermon helped you to grow in love for God and others? What’s the most important thing Jesus would have you do in light of this sermon? Take som...

Announcements—March 5, 2017 Agape Meal Today: Join us after the service for a meal together. All are welcome! Silent Auction for Haiti Mission Trip Today: There will be a silent auction today to raise money for the Haiti mission trip. Bids will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. and again right after the worship service, close to 11:45 am. Act Like Men on March 11 from 8:30-11:00 a.m. at the church office: All men ages 13 and up will benefit from a morning devoted to exploring the biblical call to manhood and masculinity. This will be the first in a series of three sessions. A hearty breakfast will be provided. Bring $3 to cover the cost of food. Sign up with Pastor Kevin by Thursday, March 9 if you plan to attend. Women’s Retreat—March 24-25/26: We are excited to have Kathy Stokes return as our speaker. She will be speaking on Jesus Christ, our abiding place, our home. Pick up the retreat brochure at the information table. See Claire Belknap, Jenny Arant or Susan Fergus if...

Why Does God Sometimes Not Give What We Ask? By Pastor Charlie Have you ever prayed fervently and, as far as you could tell, according to God’s will, and yet the Father did not grant your request? If you answered “yes” to this question, you’re not alone. In 2 Corinthians 12:1-10, the apostle Paul tells of a time when he prayed with passion, three times, that a “messenger of Satan” would be driven away from him, that a “thorn in the flesh” would be removed from him, but in the end the Father answered “no.” Instead, he replied, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (12:9). I once prayed and asked the Father to deliver me out of a situation, but my sense of his reply was this: “I don’t want to deliver you out of this; I want to develop you in this.” And that is precisely what he ended up doing in my life. How, then, are we to understand such experiences in light of such a strong promise as this: “…ask whatever you wish, and it will be done ...