GCCWS Weekend Messages

Read the Gospels.  You can’t help but notice that Jesus had a lot of fans.  He drew large crowds.  He attracted many spectators.  As long as he was performing miracles and preaching against the sins of others, the fans were happy.  But when his preaching hit close to home, when his teaching was hard to accept, he intentionally drew the proverbial “line in the sand” – the line between fan and follower.  And He invited his fans to cross the line and become His followers.

Over the past several weeks, GCC has been working through a series called “Unfiltered Jesus.”  This series unpacks and explains several of Jesus’ hard sayings.   One of those hard sayings is found in Matthew 10:34, “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword.”   Did Jesus mean what He said?  Was He holding a sword in Matthew 10?  Should violence be used in the expansion of the Gospel?  Join us this weekend as we unpack and explain another hard saying of Jesus.  As we will discover, in Matthew 10:34-39, Jesus gives his followers a warning by using a well-known weapon of warfare – the sword.  Follow Him, and you may face opposition.  Worse than outside opposition, your own family may unfollow you, block you, and reject you.  Which leaves us asking, how should we live when our family doesn’t accept whom we live for?

“if anyone comes to me and does not HATE his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters – yes, even his own life – he cannot be my disciple.”   Did Jesus really say that – that we should hate the ‘nearest and dearest’ in our lives? Isn’t this ‘hate speech’?  What about Jesus’ command to love others?  Isn’t this a contradiction of that!?  NOT AT ALL.  Jesus doesn’t contradict himself, and this is not ‘hate speech’.  This is a figure of speech. This is Jesus exaggerating a point to make a point.  To discover the point Jesus is making and to learn what it means for your life, join the GCC family this weekend as we unpack the next hard saying of Jesus in Luke 14:25-27.  I look forward to seeing you at GCC!

“Everyone has a cross to bear.”  Maybe you’ve heard that expression; maybe you’ve used it.  It has its origin in the Bible but it has found its way into our common, everyday language where it isn’t usually used in the way Jesus intended.  From ingrown toenails to annoying neighbors to giving up chocolate for lent, it’s amazing how many of life’s discomforts are, in the minds of people, “their cross to bear.”    Unfortunately, in its migration into our everyday language, we’ve trivialized “a cross to bear.”  We’ve redefined it to suit our needs and, in the process, the very concept of bearing a cross has lost its Spirit-anointed purpose and power.  What does it really mean to bear a cross?  The answer to that question is found when we take a good, long, hard look at what Jesus really says about “the cross I bear.”  Join me and your GCC family this weekend as we unpack another hard saying of Jesus and learn from Mark 8:31-9:1 what it means to bear our cross!

This weekend, let’s talk about prayer and how it works.  If you’re like me, you probably have a lot of questions about prayer and possibly even some frustration with prayer.  In fact, one of Jesus’ most concentrated teachings on prayer is in Luke 11:1-13.  For many people, it has been hard to understand because it doesn’t always reflect our personal experience with prayer.  “ Jesus, I did ask, but I didn’t get what I asked for.  Must I keep asking and, if so, why?  If you’re good, and I believe you are, why not give me exactly what I ask for, help me find the thing I’m seeking.”  Join your GCC family this weekend as we begin at Luke 11 5 to learn how to pray and how God answers our prayers.

To begin, let me ask you, why would Jesus tell us to ask God not to lead us into temptation?  Every other request we make in the Lord’s Prayer (Luke 11:1-4) fits the character of God as we know Him.  But lead us not into temptation!!? God certainly doesn’t tempt us, but why must we make that request?  What does it mean?  To learn what it means and to explore what God says about temptation in His Word, listen to this message. 

The Church isn't about buildings or preferences. It is an amazing collective of people coming together to worship the Lord. 

Addison and Riley come to you live from Lancaster Bible College's Studio B with special guests David Julian and Darrin Esterly to discuss the Palm Sunday message from Pastor Mike and the ATOMA worship conference.

We continue our series on the path to the cross with a message on the condemnation of Jesus. Be sure to subscribe, rate, and review!

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