Calvary Fellowship Of Ottawa

The shock, confusion and deep mourning of the disciples is turned to Joy as they encounter the empty Tomb and the risen Savior. He is alive! And now, before He ascends to the Father, the focus is on the task ahead for His followers. We are sent to proclaim Eternal Life in Jesus' Name. But we can only do that through the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. Are you sharing your faith - your absolute conviction that Jesus is Lord? Are you asking the Holy Spirit to fill you and use you?

In His prayer for all believers (“those who will believe in Me through [the disciples'] word”), focuses on Spiritual Unity, Heavenly Hope, and Perfect Love. Many see this as a mandate exhorting believers to work to build unity. It is not. We are exhorted elsewhere to seek unity (i.e. Phil. 2:1-4). But here, Jesus prays that we may be so united with Him - as He is with the Father - that unity in the church will be the natural by-product. Unity in the Body of Christ requires humility and mutual respect. That only comes as we are joined in intimate union with Jesus. How personal is your relationship with Jesus?

Have you ever realized that your expectations were different from God's expectations? Have you ever wondered what happened in the history of the Bible from when Israel split into two kingdoms until the time of Christ? This sermon starts with a fictional character who gives a true historical account of those time frame. We see the character, Aaron, unable to align His expectations with Jesus' expectations, even after He has died and rose again. Aaron wants to fight for the freedom of his people, and is determined that the Messiah will too. The sermon then goes to Luke 22 where Jesus is praying at the Mount of Olives and says, "Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done." (Luke 22:42). We are then faced with this question: Are we aligning our will and expectations with the Father, or are we, like Aaron, unwilling to change our expectations?

In verse 3, Jesus gave the essence of salvation - knowing Him. Here He gives 1) More of what it means to trust Jesus: Holding on the God's Word and Living it out in our lives, 2) The Assurance we have in trusting Him: He keeps us and prays for us, and 3) the Mission we have as believers: As Jesus was sent into the world, so He sends us. To fulfill our calling we need to be in the world, not of it. The challenge is to be in the world without the world getting into us!

John 17:1-5 - High Priestly Prayer - Pt.1 - Jesus Prays For Himself Here we have the true Lord's Prayer. But, since that names already taken, we call it the High Priestly Prayer because we have recorded the prayer of Jesus as He prays for Himself, His disciples, and for all believers. His prayer for Himself is that the Father would Glorify Him through the Cross and return Him to the Glory He had with the Father before the foundation of the world. He also declares that He has glorified the Father and finished the work He was given to do. What about us? Do our lives bring Glory to Jesus?

Through the Resurrection, we are born again and have living hope. In natural birth, a baby goes through an amazing change as it transitions from life in the womb (liquid environment) to life outside (oxygen environment). When we are born again, we go through another amazing change as we are filled with the Spirit and learn to walk by faith, not sight. As we do, we learn more of what Jesus has done for us - and the glorious things He has in store for us. This fills us with Hope. Not ‘wishful thinking' but a blessed anticipation of things to come.

Jesus tells the disciples "A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father." They are having a hard time understanding, so He patiently repeats it in multiple versions until they start to get it. Embedded in the passage is a key to understanding the difficult sayings of Jesus: Ask. When Jesus encourages us to “ask and receive”, we do not usually think of asking for understanding - but that's often the most important thing we need to ask for - and receive.

When the Holy Spirit works among God's people, He doesn't want the attention focused on Himself. He wants Jesus to get all the glory that people will be drawn to Him and find life. Because of this, we can be confident of the Spirit's help when we seek to glorify Jesus with our lives. In this study, we look at some of the ways we can bring glory to Jesus: Good Words | Spiritual Gifts | Church Unity | Praising Jesus | Pointing to the Cross | Trusting Jesus in Trials & Death | and Godly Living

Through the Prophetic Scriptures, Biblical Principles, and Personal Communication, the Holy Spirit shows us what's ahead. Not just for all of us, through prophecy, but to each of us through His personal ‘voice' to us as He leads us towards Heaven. Learning to discern His ‘voice' to us is a life-long process that takes faith, perseverance, and a growing familiarity with the Word of God. How's your communication with the Holy Spirit? Take time to listen and learn - it makes following Jesus a Grand Adventure!

The Holy Spirit Guides Us Like the ultimate mountain guide, the Holy Spirit is with us to guide us, personally, throughout our walk with Jesus. The key is learning to recognize His ‘voice' in the many ways He makes Himself known to us. The first step is being convinced that He does speak directly to believers - and that He really wants to speak to you. He does. Our part is to develop our spiritual sense of hearing. Get ready, learning to follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit makes walking with Jesus a grand adventure.

The Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgement. That means He is whispering truth into the heart of every living soul. We look at what is meant by that - and how this should give believers confidence in sharing Life with the not-yet-believers around them.

John 14:25-27 - The Ministries of the Holy Spirit - Pt.2 As He abides within us, as believers, the Holy Spirit teaches us and reminds us of the truth. The Bible is His primary source as He brings spiritual light to our minds and enables us to understand the Word of God. He also uses our daily lives as a ‘whiteboard' on which He draws His lessons on how to apply the Word in practical ways. Not only that, He is our continual ‘prompter' - bringing His truths to our minds just when we need them!

Trying to live a fulfilling Christian life without relying upon the Holy Spirit is Impossible. It's also Frustrating, Discouraging and can lead to Disillusionment. In the Gospel of John, Jesus not only stresses our need for the HS, He gives us 7 Vital Ways the Holy Spirit Helps Us - The 7 Ministries of the Holy Spirit. In Part 1 we have the first and primary ministry of the Holy Spirit to believers: “… And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—“ John 14:16.

“These things I have spoken to you, that you should not be made to stumble.” (John 16:1). Jesus warned the disciples about what was coming so they would not stumble. To be fore-warned is to be fore-armed. To stumble is to become offended and tempted to fall away from our trust in Jesus. As believers we can stumble over persecution or suffering. We can also stumble over conflicts in the church. We can even be offended by Jesus Himself. Rather than being surprised at this, we should be prepared and face it honestly. Most importantly, we must bring our struggles to Jesus - including our struggles with Him.

In John 15:1-17, we saw the blessings of abiding in Jesus: a fruitful life. Here, in verses 18-27, we get the cost of our union with Christ: Persecution. Jesus warned us, the apostles wrote about it, and now we are seeing it throughout the world. As wickedness increases, persecution against those who represent righteousness increases as well. How should we respond? Do not be surprised; Love your enemies; Bless those who curse you; Do good to those who mistreat you; Pray for those who hate you; and, in all things, commit yourself to the Lord

John 15:1-17 - The Fruitful Life Just Adam & Eve were sent out to be Fruitful and Multiply, the Lord sends us out to be Spiritually Fruitful so that the Gospel will Multiply. In John 15, Jesus gives us the Importance of a Fruitful Life, the Key to a Fruitful Life, and the Marks of a Fruitful Life. The key takeaway is John 15:5 - “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” Abiding in Jesus is settling down into Him; being at home with Him; centering your life around His presence and daily guidance. Is He a welcome Guest in your heart? Are you at home with Jesus?

Jesus has been telling the disciples that He is going away, but will still be with them (by His Spirit) - something that they ultimately won't understand until it happens. So He also encourages them with a promise of peace, a reminder of Heaven, and an assurance of victory. Do we understand everything Jesus says? No. Can we trust Him anyway? Yes!

The disciples will carry the gospel to the world. It's being entrusted to them. Jesus is letting them know what they'll need to accomplish the mission. Today, the Gospel is in our hands. We need the same instructions and tools. What is needed to do God's work? Prayer, Obedience, and full dependence upon the Holy Spirit. Simple, but all-encompassing. Jesus promised that He would not leave us as orphans. He fulfills that promise by dwelling in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. Intimate union with Jesus involves a continual conversation with Him marked by loving obedience and the power of the Holy Spirit. That's how God's work gets done in our lives. What has Jesus been doing through you lately?

Life is filled with troubles, yet Jesus says “Your heart must not be troubled”. What's the answer? “Believe in God; Believe in Me.” Believe - Trust - in Jesus. Simplistic? No. Simple. Trust Jesus, and Focus on Hope. Jesus is going to prepare a place for those who are His. And He's coming back to take us to be with Him forever! The answer to a troubled heart is to Trust Jesus - for today, tomorrow, and forever.

Jesus knew that Judas would betray him, but He chose him anyway. Not only did He choose Judas, He loved Judas and washed his feet along with the others. That's what Jesus does. Jesus also knew Peter would deny Him 3 times, but He chose him and loved him also. Jesus loved them both, yet one returned to Him and the other went to hell. As Paul said in Romans 5:8, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” That's Jesus-Love. And that's what His followers are called to: the New Commandment - “Love one another as I have loved you.” As Romans 13:8 says, “Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.” How are you doing? Are you repaying your debt to love others?

The crowds are swelling in Jerusalem for the Passover. Word of Jesus is spreading like wildfire - especially with the resurrection of Lazarus. The Religious leaders have made it clear they want to arrest Jesus and everyone is wondering “Will He come to Jerusalem?”. Yes, He's coming. With the Triumphal Entry He proclaims Himself as the Messiah. All are curious. Many believe, and others do not. He is controversial and believing in Him has consequences. Even some of those who believe are afraid to acknowledge Him. What about you?

They were just shepherds. At the time, shepherds were looked down upon so much that their testimony was not considered reliable in a trial. Yet, that's who God sent His Heavenly Choir to - to give the Greatest Message of All: “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord.” (Lk. 2:11). Why? Because the Good News is for All People! - And that especially includes you and me. They were just ‘doing their thing' and Heaven broke in with a Devine interruption that brought Heavenly Blessings. God is doing the same today. Will you listen when He ‘interrupts' your life - or will you miss it?

Finally at the border of the Promised Land, God calls Joshua to step up and lead Israel in. There's much to learn about God's Calling here. Who God Calls: God calls those who are faithful, not necessarily talented or educated, but simply faithful. Why God's Calling is Important: Because those who serve must have the assurance that they're in God's will. What God's Calling Provides: Those who respond to God's calling can be confident that they will have 1) Guidance 2) Promises 3) Encouragement, and 4) Close Fellowship with God. What God's Calling Requires: Saying ‘Good-bye', Pulling up the 'tent-pegs', Stepping Out and Staying in the Word of God. God has a Calling for You - What Will You Do?

In this Bible Study on Sunday morning at Calvary Ottawa, Pastor Dan Schilke from Northgate Ministry was our guest. We looked at Paul's final words in 2 Corinthians 13:14. He writes: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.” We were encouraged by the picture of the Trinity that was presented in this little benediction. The GRACE of the Lord Jesus Christ, the LOVE of God and having COMMUNION with the Holy Spirit.

In this Bible Study from Pastor Steve at Calvary Fellowship on Sunday Morning, we returned to the verse by verse study of the Gospel of John. This week we looked at the story of Raising Lazarus from the dead. So often we get caught up in the miracle that we miss the purpose of the miracle. Pastor Steve reminded us that it is not enough to just believe in the miracles and person of Christ but we need to act on that belief with our will. All believed including the demons but only a few acted upon it and gave all glory to God. The question of the day was not 'do you believe?' but 'will you believe?' #Lazarus #raisingLazarusfromthedead #John11 #CalvaryFellowship #doyoubelieve? #willyoubelieve? #BibleStudy

This Sunday morning visiting speaker Doug Sprunt shared a word of hope from John 15:1-11. Jesus begins this passage with the two words “I am”. When we consider this truth and the 6 other “I am” statements of Jesus in John's gospel, it is clear Christ is our sufficiency. Jesus then refers to himself as “the Vine” and his Father is the Vinedresser. Our place is to abide totally in the Vine. And let God prune whatever may need pruning in our lives. No matter what- He knows exactly what He is doing. Trust. Rest. And abide. Much fruit will follow and our Father will be glorified through us.

In Phillipians 3:12-14, Paul shares his Passionate Desire "to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me”. In the process, he gives us 5 Principles for Moving Forward in Life and our Walk With Jesus. 1. SOUND PERSPECTIVE - Have a realistic view of ourselves "Not that I have already reached the goal or am already perfect", 1. SINGULAR-FOCUS - “one thing I do”, 3. SHORT MEMORY - “forgetting what is behind”, 4. STRONG PURSUIT - “I make every effort to take hold of it”, 5. STRONG MOTIVE - “I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God's heavenly call in Christ Jesus.” What about us? Jesus says “Follow Me!” How passionately are we following Him?

KEYS TO JOY In Philippians 3:1-3, Paul exhorts believers to “rejoice in the Lord”. Joy is meant to be a fundamental part of believers' lives - not a ‘bubbly emotion', but ‘contented gratitude' flowing from a settled confidence in Jesus. What a blessed state that is. Paul follows up by warning believers to watch out for that which can rob us of our joy - legalism and those who promote it. Legalism is the opposite of the Gospel because it encourages us to trust in our religious performance rather than the finished work of Jesus. Joy is found by trusting in Jesus, not ourselves. Finally, Paul singles out 3 Traits of Joyful Believers: Worshiping by the Spirit, Glorying in Christ Jesus, and Putting No Confidence in the Flesh. WORSHIP BY THE SPIRIT The power and presence of the Holy Spirit in believers' lives is what makes all the difference. It's what makes it about a relationship with Jesus and not just a religious commitment. It begins with being born-again by the Spirit. Becoming spiritually alive, a new creation, enabled to know the Lord personally, and having our eyes opened to the Word - all of this is by the Spirit. Trying to live the Christian walk apart from the Spirit is joyless. Learning to be filled by the Spirit and led by the Spirit so we can walk by the Spirit brings joy. This is all part of worshiping by the Spirit. GLORY IN JESUS Glorying in Jesus is simply being Jesus-Centered and Jesus-Focused in everything. Though it's simple, it takes commitment, trust, and a determination to reject the joy-stealers of legalism and condemnation. Draw near to Jesus, keep pursuing Him, continue growing in your understanding of Who He is and you'll find your heart glorying (boasting) in Him throughout the week. PUT NO CONFIDENCE IN THE FLESH Satan does not want you to have joy. If he can get you to put confidence in yourself - your abilities, your experience, your ‘wisdom', your …, you'll be robbed of joy. But if we learn to trust Jesus and the fact that His power is perfected in our weakness, then we experience great freedom. When I learn to put my trust in Jesus, and not my flesh, I am released from the idea that the Lord can only use me, or work through me, if I'm feeling spiritually strong or mature - or if I think I've been especially good lately. Putting no confidence in the flesh frees me to live for Him and serve Him through simple, dependent faith (trust). It's no longer a matter of my ability, but His ability working in my availability. Such freedom. Such joy! Are you available?

Martin Luther King Jr said that Sunday morning was the most segregated hour of the week in America... it still is for the most part. But another type of segregation has existed in the church for a long time—it even plagued Jesus and led to His arrest and death. When self-righteous religiosity shuts out those who are considered to be in the margins of society. The Jesus Movement of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s was noted for hippies who responded to the gospel and started coming to the church. This was true at the beginning of Calvary Chapel. We were not part of the established churches. It was a time of revival and change. But the Jesus Movement was greater than the hippies. It saw religious people learn to embrace the irreligious and unchurched with the love and grace of God. This needs to happen again, especially since we, the Calvary Chapel Movement of churches, have become the establishment! In Luke 7:36-50, we read the story of a sinful woman who invades the inner circle of religious elites, the Pharisees, who were gathered at Simon the Pharisee's house. Why? Because Jesus was there! The woman came to honor Jesus. She trusted Him. She saw God's grace and love in Him. So she came to honor Him and show her respect and love for Him. Some questions we need to ask ourselves as believers are— Are we more like Simon the Pharisee or Jesus towards those considered marginalized by society? Do we trust in our own self-righteousness or God's grace? Do we realize we all have self-righteous blind spots? This parable reminds us of the heart of God and mission of Jesus to rescue and redeem humanity. And the power of God's mercy and love is always greater than judgment and self-righteousness.

In this Bible Study from Calvary Fellowship in Ottawa on Sunday morning, Pastor Andy Falleur read John 10, where Jesus is once again, trying to help the Jews “see” that He is not only the Messiah, but God come in the flesh. He uses the provocative illustration of how He's the good shepherd, and also the gate for the sheep. He once again, asserts clearly his divinity, and they pick up stones to stone him for blasphemy. There's all sorts of wonderful truths in that passage, and we ended by being encouraged by the reality of what it means that He's our shepherd.

In this Sunday morning Bible Study at Calvary Fellowship of Ottawa, guest teacher Gary Van Donkersgoed has a topical study on "The Rewards Offered To Followers Of Jesus". The study follows the word "Crown" in the New Testament, which is consistently applied as something promised to Christians. This is not something tied to salvation or faith in general but highlights some specific things that the New Testament authors seem to be aware of. Paul, Peter, James and John all mention Crowns with a focus on things very dear to God's Heart. They relate to actions, attitudes, responses, that seem to be very characteristic of Jesus's life and of the life that honours God. The four rewards (or crowns) are not for bragging rights, but showcase important things to daily bear in mind. They include 1. A reward for good control of our body (it was bought with a price, so it is not my own to only make my own choices). 2. For sharing the good news with others, and helping their faith to grow 3. For humble Church leadership that is exemplary to their local Church and 4. For persevering through deep and real-life trials, remembering that Jesus is coming back and you can hardly wait

In this Bible Study from a Sunday morning at Calvary Fellowship of Ottawa, Pastor Andy Falleur reads from John 8:12-59, where Jesus is in a heated discussion with the Pharisees and Jews in Jerusalem about his origins. It's a conversation that Jesus wants to have, and they are asking questions that he wants them to ask. He's trying to get them to think and to consider not only who He is, but also trying to shake them from their self-delusion. We can often end up in the same place. Sometimes, we are so familiar with our religion and way of life and we haven't truly encountered the magnitude of Jesus's words and mission. He is the light of the world. Tags: #John 8, #john 8 bible study, #john 8 explained, #calvary ottawa, #calvary chapel ottawa, #calvary chapel bible study, #john 8 12, #john 8 32 explained, #john 8 31-42, #i am the light of the world, #who the son sets free is free indeed, #if the son sets you free you are free indeed, #your father Abraham rejoiced, #before Abraham was I am,

John 8:1-11 - "I See You" In this Bible Study at Calvary Fellowship of Ottawa on Sunday morning, Pastor Steve Weir read to us from John 7:53-8:11. He began with talking about textual criticism, breaking it down into three simple steps: location (where were the scriptural fragments found?), timing (what is the date of the fragments found), and numbers (the more that say the same thing the better). In fifteen minutes he summarized why John 7:53-8:11 should be in the Bible, and why the Bible can be trusted as the authoritative Word of God. He then went on to walk step by step through the text, drawing out the value Jesus placed on women, and His complete knowledge of the Law. The Bible study was loaded, but it was a great reminder that Jesus sees us, and extends grace to us no matter who we are, or what our situation may be. Speaker – Steve Weir Tags: #John 8:1-11, #john 8:1-11 bible study, #john 8:1-11 explained, #calvary ottawa, #calvary chapel ottawa, #calvary chapel bible study, #textual criticism, #woman caught in adultery, #He who is without sin, #stoning, #scribes, #Jesus and women, #go and sin no more,

In this Bible Study on Sunday morning at Calvary Fellowship of Ottawa, Pastor Andy Falleur reads from John 7. This is an interesting passage as it shows how Jesus planned the timing and the method of going public to the Jewish people during the Festival of Shelters. Here we see an example of the intersection between Gods' sovereignty and human agency, along with the character and manner of God as expressed in Jesus.