Preaching The Unchanging Word of God Unchanged
Helping Christians Strengthen Their Faith in Christ
Join us at our Church Grow as a Christian
We are excited to offer you the chance to get to know us better, understand our values, and explore how you can join our numerous outreach initiatives. Should you have any inquiries or require further details, please feel free to reach out to us via phone at (440) 439-6555 or email us at info@thegospelhouse.com.
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Our Church History
Gospel House ministries was founded upon the hope that its founder and senior pastor, Bob Sepkovich, discovered when he came to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. He had been facing a certain divorce, was an addict, and living without morals. In Jesus, he discovered hope, forgiveness of sin, and a new meaning for life.
In 1966, Pastor Bob found a passionate desire to share the hope of Jesus with all those seeking an answer for life’s difficulties and pain. He shared with troubled youth in churches, members of street gangs and biker clubs, high schoolers, college kids, veterans, and businessmen. However, his biggest impact seemed to be among the disenchanted youth of the 1960s and 1970s. This led to him sharing in a variety of atmospheres, including basements, open fields, school buildings, neighborhood theaters, barns, store fronts, and even prisons.
In 1973, a small group of area businessmen felt the need to reach the youth in the community, regardless of background. The businessmen, along with Pastor Bob, felt that Jesus could reach not only the troubled youth, but also the “good kids” who thought that they could find happiness in things like education or success. He could reach their families too. The businessmen encouraged Pastor Bob to quit his job and pursue ministry full time, and The Bob Sepkovich Ministries for Jesus Christ was founded.
That same year, the ministry acquired a small two story house to use as a meeting place and offices. Within months, the doors were open for our first Bible study “rap”, which was named from a piece of 1970s lingo meaning to get together and talk. The house was named “Gospel House”, as the word gospel is translated in the Bible to mean “good news”. As Pastor Bob and his staff continued to share the good news of Jesus, the ministries became known as “The Gospel House”, which remains the name to this day.
By 1975, the ministry had grown so large that we began holding services in the Bedford Historical Society church. Within the year, we had outgrown that building and began holding services at the Bedford Nazarene Church on Tuesdays and Thursdays. These two evening services became our main services for the next decade. Additionally, the community in and around Bedford recognized the value of our ministry and embraced us.
As we continued to grow, it became necessary to find our own building for Sunday services. We do not believe in passing an offering plate, so we relied on Jesus to move on His people to find the funding. Being unsure if people we had connected with over the previous thirteen years would decide to make the Gospel House their home church, we were able to build our own building on 20 acres in 1985. Within the first year, our building was filled. Within two years, it became necessary to find more room to meet the increased needs of our ministry. We built a second building on our property that houses a gymnasium, kitchen, and additional meeting rooms.
Since 1973, we have been blessed to have had outreaches to nursing homes, V.A. hospitals, and The City mission, as well as maintaining a presence in juvenile detention centers and every prison in the state of Ohio. We are able to reach out to the hungry as well through our food pantry. We also continue to have addiction recovery programs, as well as regular men’s, women's Bible studies and a men’s accountability group. We aim to reach people where they are and share the hope of Jesus.
The message of the ministry has been constant and remains the same even today. By giving his congregants the “Unchanging Word of God, Unchanged”, Pastor Bob shared and continues to share the power of Jesus Christ to bring about a changed life with hope and forgiveness. We have been blessed as a ministry to see thousands come to Christ, with at least 57 men who have also answered the call to pursue ministry full time. They, like Pastor Bob, aim to “win our world for Christ”. We invite you to come visit with us on Sunday morning at 10:00 am.