Welcome to our church

Welcome to the website of Calvary Community Church. We hope that this site will help you get to know us better. We would enjoy meeting you at our Sunday service in North Olmsted.

Services start at 10:00 AM each Sunday. Please join us for a wonderful time of Biblical teaching and fellowship.

Current Sermon Series

We are continuing our study of the Gospel of John.

    Now you can listen to our sermons online.

    Discipleship

    A listing of all discipleship postings can be found here.

    The Lost Art of Discipleship

    I plan to continue writing short insights on the topic I began last week. That topic is: The Lost Art of Discipleship. 

    The topic is more than a complement to the Christian life; it is the Christian life. To be Jesus' disciple is to come into a saving relationship with God through Him. It is all that the Bible tells about what it means to receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savor, and thus be saved. Without it, one cannot be saved. 
    The command of what we call "The Great Commission" of Matthew 28:16-20, is a command to "make disciples." That is the active mandate of the passage. There it is. The commission is a call to go about the world and make, or better, receive, disciples by means of the gospel who would commit to be followers of Jesus. 

    So, what is a disciple specifically? The Greek word simple means, a learner. That's what a disciple is -- he or she is a learner. But a learner of whom? The answer may seem obvious... A disciple is a learner of Jesus alone. 

    But being a learner of Jesus is not so obvious when one considers the competing rivalries for that place. There are many. Some are good people; well meaning dragons. Being Jesus' disciple is an exclusive relationship with Jesus alone. Let me try to make that exclusive relationship understood to you. 
    The late pastor and teacher James Montgomery Boice said, "I am no man's disciple; and no man is my disciple." That sounds like odd words from someone who desires to mimic Jesus' pattern in "making disciples." But Boice's concern was profound and a 'must-resolve' to every disciple of Jesus. 
    Boice made the distinction between a cult and true Christianity. The cult seeks conformists to itself -- a person, an institution, a good denomination, or a defined way of conformity. But Jesus alone seeks disciples according to the Word of God alone. And, although you may, and should, appreciate the teaching from credible teachers -- I being one -- I trust that it is Jesus, by faith, you follow. Do you? 

    Here are a few passages to meditate on and embrace; perhaps even memorize. Yikes! They are passages all from the Gospel of John: John 1:43; 10:4-5, 27; 12:26; 13:36-37; 21:19-22. 

    A Rewarding Exercise  

    Take a journey on these verses from the Gospel of John. God will give you insight into what it means to be Jesus' disciple. Here is your "Cliff Notes" cheat sheet: John 8:31-32. 

    Here is my call, a teacher, to you: Pledge yourself and commit to never following a teacher, movement, or even a church. Pledge yourself to be a learner of Jesus alone, as certainly and practically as were his disciples: Peter, Andrew, James, John, and the rest throughout history to this day, June 14, 2009. And be faithful to your local church leaders who point the finger of discipleship to Jesus alone.