Point of Grace Online Worship - June 7, 2026

Prevailing in the Power of the Spirit

Message Notes 6/07/26 

"If the Holy Spirit was withdrawn from the church today, 95 percent of what we do would go on and no one would know the difference. If the Holy Spirit had been withdrawn from the New Testament church, 95 percent of what they did would stop, and everybody would know the difference."

– A.W. Tozer

The Two Camps

The "Word" Side

The Theological Camp

The "Spirit" Side

The Charismatic/Pentecostal Camp

"If these two would come together, the simultaneous combination would mean spontaneous combustion."

– R.T. Kendall

1. Grounded in Deep Need

We need the Holy Spirit to remind us that Prayer is grounded in deep need.

“I have many more things to say to you, but they are too much for you now." John 1:14-18

We only truly learn to pray when we run out of our own strength.

2. The Goal of Prayer is Jesus

We need the Holy Spirit to remind us that the goal of Prayer is Jesus.

"The Spirit of truth will bring glory to me. He will take what I have to say and tell it to you. All that the Father has is mine. That is why I said that the Spirit will take what I have to say and tell it to you. But when the Spirit of truth comes he will lead you into all truth." John 1:14-18"He will not speak his own words. He will speak only what he hears and will tell you what is to come." John 1:14-18

The goal of the Spirit is to exalt Christ.

"But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you." John 16:17"I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper. He will give you this Helper to be with you forever." John 14:16

Word Studies:

●       The Greek word for "another" is allos, and it literally means "another of the same kind" or "another one of me."

●       The word for "advocate" is parakletos, and it can be translated as "helper".

"O churches, take heed lest ye trust in yourselves; take heed lest ye say, 'We are a respectable body,' 'We are a mighty number,' 'We are a potent people;' take heed lest ye depend on your ministers, or on your elders, or on your wealth, or on your charity; for if ye do, the Holy Spirit shall depart from you, and leave you as an empty vineyard, a fruitless field."

– Charles H. Spurgeon

3. He Prays When We Can't

We need the Holy Spirit to remind us that He prays when we can’t.

"Now in the same way the Spirit also helps our weakness; for we do not know what to pray for as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words; and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God." John 14:16"And take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. With every prayer and request, pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be alert with all perseverance and every request for all the saints," John 14:16

Point of Grace Online Worship - May 24, 2026

5.24.26 – Servant in You – 4 – Kinship and Pentecost 

“Servant in You” – Kinship and Pentecost Sunday

On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.
5 At that time there were devout Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. 6 When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers.
7 They were completely amazed. “How can this be?” they exclaimed. “These people are all from Galilee, 8 and yet we hear them speaking in our own native languages! 9 Here we are—Parthians, Medes, Elamites, people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia, 10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the areas of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism), Cretans, and Arabs. And we all hear these people speaking in our own languages about the wonderful things God has done!” 12 They stood there amazed and perplexed. “What can this mean?” they asked each other.
13 But others in the crowd ridiculed them, saying, “They’re just drunk, that’s all!”
14 Then Peter stepped forward with the eleven other apostles and shouted to the crowd, “Listen carefully, all of you, fellow Jews and residents of Jerusalem! Make no mistake about this. 15 These people are not drunk, as some of you are assuming. Nine o’clock in the morning is much too early for that. 16 No, what you see was predicted long ago by the prophet Joel:
17 ‘In the last days,’ God says,  ‘I will pour out my Spirit upon all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams.
18 In those days I will pour out my Spirit  even on my servants—men and women alike— and they will prophesy.
21 But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord  will be saved.’[h]

22 “People of Israel, listen! God publicly endorsed Jesus the Nazarene[i] by doing powerful miracles, wonders, and signs through him, as you well know. 23 But God knew what would happen, and his prearranged plan was carried out when Jesus was betrayed. With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed him to a cross and killed him. 24 But God released him from the horrors of death and raised him back to life, for death could not keep him in its grip. 
 36 “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!”
37 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”
38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”
40 With many other words he warned them; and he pleaded with them, “Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.” 41 Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about 3,000 were added to their number that day.

This is the birth narrative of what we today call the “Christian Church on earth”

One Special Day …. that continues today!

-        Wind and Fire – Presence and Power

-        A new community of Presence based people.
What divides broken humanity does not divide any more when the Presence of God revealed in Jesus now manifested by His Spirit is at the center.  

·        Language no longer separates

And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability……and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers…They were completely amazed. “How can this be?” they exclaimed. “These people are all from Galilee, 8 and yet we hear them speaking in our own native languages! 

·        Ethnicities, gender, age, race, geographies, ---- no longer separate

·        Socio-economic status and social status – no longer separate.

’ God says, ‘I will pour out my Spirit upon all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams.
18 In those days I will pour out my Spirit even on my servants—men and women alike— and they will prophesy.
21 But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved…..38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.”

44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. 

·        Even the most severe social and demographic barriers – the Jew/Gentile divide were overcome by the unifying work of the Holy Spirit.

14 For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us…..He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups.  19 So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. 20 Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. 21 We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. 22 Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.  (Ephesians 4:14-22)

This new Community of Humanity, the body of Christ, the manifests itself to each other and to the world primarily as “LOVE” …. By how we live and act with each other and all people. 

We have been talking about “service” as
“Expressing Christ like love through meeting practical needs in the life of an other … especially those who need our help the most. 

“Servant in You” service is expressed in four critical ways:

Love ----- Hiddenness ----- Availability ----- Kinship

Pentecost makes Kinship Possible

Luke 16:19-31
19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20 At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21 and longing to eat what fell from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.
22 “The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24 So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’
25 “But Abraham replied, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been set in place, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.’

27 “He answered, ‘Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my family, 28 for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’
29 “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.’
30 “‘No, father Abraham,’ he said, ‘but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
31 “He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’” 

The rich man with flowing robes who lived in luxury everyday.

Who gets a name?    Lazarus – “God helps”

The rich man helped Lazarus but did not see Lazarus as ___________!-       

“While he helped Lazarus, he failed to form a lasting relationship with Lazarus.
He failed to see Lazarus on equal footing with himself. He failed to love the person he was “taking care of”. 
He failed to treat Lazarus as a person with head-to-toe human needs and aspirations. This failure toward Lazarus was probably the rich man's failing towards others as well.
 As charitable as he was, he was self-centered rather than other centered. He cared about poverty in general, but he wouldn't get his hands dirty with this particular poor man, Lazarus, who was right outside his door… even though he fed Lazarus the charity case, he refused to invite Lazarus the person to the table with him. Jesus expects his followers to do more than ladle out food to the poor. Jesus expects his followers to treat the poor as our brothers and best friends and ladle our love to them as we do our friends and relatives around the table God has provided us.”  Len Sweet – Tablet to Table 

“Come Holy Spirit”

Point of Grace Online Worship - May 17, 2026

5.17.26    Sermon Notes “The Servant in You – Availability” 

God is calling us to something more significant than than “getting more volunteers” to do all this ministry stuff.

He is calling us to grow as His “Servants” in the world!

The spiritual practice of service is:

The expression of Christlike love through meeting the practical needs of another, especially those most in need of help. 

In this series we are looking at four key ways this Spiritual Practice is expressed:
                 Love          Hiddenness         Availability       Kinship 

Availability

Matthew 20:29-34
29 As Jesus and his disciples were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed him. 30 Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was going by, they shouted, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!” 31 The crowd rebuked them and told them to be quiet, but they shouted all the louder, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!”
32 Jesus stopped and called them. “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.
33 “Lord,” they answered, “we want our sight.”
34 Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes.
Immediately they received their sight and followed him. 

Jesus was radically available while living an intentional life.
His “intentionality” did not outrun His “interruptibility” which responded to “compassion” within.

 σπλαγχνίζομαι (splagchnizomai) – “from the gut” – deep gut wrenching response to another’s condition which compels one to practical action 

Luke 10:25-37
25 On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?”
27 He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”
29 But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’

36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.” 

The context is “how to love?” – God and others – With desire to do it right?

The expert’s question is “Who is my neighbor?”

Jesus answers with a story that reveals and envisions! 

            Reveals?        

The deformation of humanity when intentionality outruns interruptibility
        when compassion-ate gives way to compassion-less.

            Envisions?

The re-formation of humanity, lost in Eden and won back in Resurrection when a new kind of Human, Jesus of Nazareth, filled with compassionate love, entered the fray of broken humanity with healing, wholeness, and blood-bought redemption inviting us to be reborn into new life and re-formed into the image of God. 

Final question!            An invitation to b______________! 

Hebrews 4:14-16
14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Point of Grace Online Worship - May 10, 2026

5.10.26    Sermon Notes “The Servant in You – Hiddenness” 

God is calling us to something more significant than than “getting more volunteers” to do all this ministry stuff.

He is calling us to grow as His “Servants” in the world!

When Jesus comes to live in us by His Spirit He brings His heart with Him. 
The heart of Jesus becomes the animating center of our being. 
The heart of Jesus is a servant’s heart… and its foundational core is Love!

The spiritual practice of service is:

The expression of Christlike love through meeting the practical needs of another, especially those most in need of help. 

If practicing the way of Jesus isn’t filling me to overflowing with the love of Jesus, I’m nothing more than noisy — religiously busy but out of tune with God’s redemption in me and the world around me.  But if practicing the way of Jesus is deepening my own experience of God’s irrevocable love to the degree that I increasingly serve others with the same kind of love then my life is harmonizing with the renewal of the world.

Tyler Staton 

In this series we are looking at four key ways the Spiritual Practice is expressed:

Love          Hiddenness         Availability       Kinship 

Jesus is forming a necessary humility in us as He calls us to serve in Hiddenness
          with quiet stealth
          in the midst of the ordinary. 

Matthew 6
“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.
5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. 

Recognition for serving is best left in God’s hands and not engineered for me by me.

Some of our “serving” needs to be “in secret” with “quiet stealth” - a healthy rhythm of keeping the “self” in check.

Do you have “secrets” with God? 
Am I content with only the Father seeing? 

The humility that “hiddenness” forms serves in the ordinary and not just extraordinary situations of life! 

John 13:2-
2 The evening meal was in progress, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. 3 Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; 4 so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. 5 After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.
12 When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. 13 “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them. 

“Many of us, imagining the environment where Jesus will form us into a radical gift of sacrificial love for the world, picture … a soup kitchen … or rehab program…. or third world village.… and don’t get me wrong, it could be that. We’ll get there in the coming sessions.

Most of us tend to imagine service to be practiced among people we don’t know in environments we aren’t currently in, but it’s worth noting that Jesus grounded service in ordinary places, and among everyday relationships.
The office of the business executive….the kitchen of the stay-at-home parent… the classroom of the high school student… the studio of the designer…. the shared living room in the college dorm….the dinner table of the married couple.
Jesus is grounding the most sweeping, glorious of promises in the most common, ordinary places and ordinary company … by humbly taking up ordinary service — all in the name of love. And that, for me at least, serves as both a comfort — and — a confrontation.  Because the truth is:
 Most of us (myself included) are better at doing “projects” of love than becoming “people” of love.”   (Tyler Staten) 

Serving with Hiddenness leaves recognition in the Father’s hands, finds contentment knowing its enough that the Father sees and lifts the otherwise mundane and ordinary opportunities into the realm of the holy.

There is only One truly safe place for the servant to go for
affirmation, validation, strength and encouragement….
into the presence of the One who served us in the hiddenness of
divinity wrapped in humanity and gave His life in service to us. 

Help us, Father, to remember that your loving gaze is always upon us;

That no good deed escapes your delighted attention.
Lead us to serve in familiar and hidden places,
beyond all other rewarding eyes but yours.     Amen.

Point of Grace Online Worship - May 3, 2026

5.3.26    Sermon Notes “The Servant in You – LOVE”

“Disciple and Do the Servant in You” 

God is calling us to something more significant than than “getting more volunteers” to do all this stuff.

He is calling us to be “Servants” ….

When Jesus comes to live in us by His Spirit He brings His heart with Him. 
The heart of Jesus becomes the animating center of our being. 
The heart of Jesus is a servant’s heart.

Matthew 20:25-28
 25 Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 26 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” 

Living as a Jesus servant in this world is the meaningful life Christ intends for us.  It is the absolute best intention our savior could have for our lives … to live into our beautiful design as humans created in the image of God. 

There is one place to start.  One core foundational characteristic of the Servant Heart of Jesus that beats within everyone that calls on His name that identifies as a Jesus follower.

LOVE is the foundational virtue value and essence of the heart of God in Christ.  LOVE  

To quote Tyler Staton, from some of the resources we are encouraging you to engage with,
“The aim and destination of the spiritual journey is not work/life balance, personal peace, or even character formation (as an end in itself) but to become love — that my inner journey of formation would pour out of me actively in service to others.   Love, in the Christian imagination, is different than in our modern, Western sense.  It’s not just nice, warm feelings of goodwill toward “humanity" generally.  But incarnate, embodied, practical actions of self-sacrificial service, as we see in Jesus.

 That’s service: to willfully enter into the life of another, at cost to myself, that they might have more life.”

“Jesus, when asked what the most important command in Scripture was, gave a common, predictable answer: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. What was less predictable though, and set Jesus apart from the other rabbis of his day, was what followed: “And a second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself.”  Jesus inseparably joined together love for God and people. The way I love others is directly connected, even revealing, of the true state of my heart toward God. 

The spiritual practice of service is:
The expression of Christlike love through meeting the practical needs of another, especially those most in need of help. 

 John 13:12-17
12 When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. 13 “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. 14 Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. 15 I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. 16 Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. 17 Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.
34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

The spiritual practice of service is:
The expression of Christlike love through meeting the practical needs of another, especially those most in need of help. 

1 John 3:16-18
 16 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? 18 Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.

1 John 4:7-12
7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. 

These verses help me face one of the significant challenges of life as a “Servant of Christ” ….  

I am prone to let the How? of doing spiritual practices (serving) out run the “why?” of doing (serving)! 

Jesus always calls us back to letting the Why? take the lead.
And the “WHY” for any spiritual practices in the way of Jesus is LOVE……  

Why serve? …..  LOVE …. from God overflows in love for God and others.     

11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. 

The “WHY” must outrun the “HOW”.      The “WHY” is LOVE! 

If practicing the way of Jesus isn’t filling me to overflowing with the love of Jesus, I’m nothing more than noisy — religiously busy but out of tune with God’s redemption in me and the world around me.  But if practicing the way of Jesus is deepening my own experience of God’s irrevocable love to the degree that I increasingly serve others with the same kind of love then my life is harmonizing with the renewal of the world.

Tyler Staton

Point of Grace Online Worship - April 26, 2026

Point of Grace Worship 4.26.26  Sermon Notes – “Risen Jesus Deals with My Default to the Known” 

John 20:21-22
21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 

Luke 24:45-49
45 Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. 46 He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”

Matthew 28:16-20
16 Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Acts 1:3-9
3 After his suffering, Jesus presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God. 4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”……….
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 

The Risen Jesus wastes no time opening up the next chapter of the “Salvation of Humanity” Epic.

Redeemed people are now the authorized empowered communicators
of the saving gospel of the Risen Jesus
whereby all peoples must be saved.

Footnote: This is plan A and there is no plan B! 

Jesus seems to be very excited about authorizing and empowering people to be His witnesses, proclaimers, disciple-ers, literally His Kingdom Bringers who bring the message and ministry of His Kingdom to a world of people who desperately need it. 

Luke 10
After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. 2 He told them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field. 3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves…….. 9 Heal the sick who are there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ 

17 The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”
18 He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you. 20 However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
21 At that time Jesus, full of joy through the Holy Spirit, said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this is what you were pleased to do…….. 23 Then he turned to his disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see. 24 For I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”  

In these vision casting, mission sending, empowerment granting, words of Jesus one very evident but often overlooked gift is given.  This gift is a literal rescue for us in dealing with two powerful defaults that will derail us well intentioned “sent out” followers of Jesus.

The derailing default to “self-reliance”!
The derailing default to “the known out of fear of the unknown”!  

The gift that counters all derailing defaults is “Jesus – The Present One” ……. He is still saying, “Follow Me”

Jeremiah 29:11-14
11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,” declares the Lord, 

Point of Grace Online Worship - April 19, 2026

Point of Grace Worship  4.19.26  Sermon Notes – “Risen Jesus Deals with My Default to Self Reliance ”

John 21
Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee.[a] It happened this way: 2 Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus[b]), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. 3 “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
4 Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
5 He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?” “No,” they answered.
6 He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
7 Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. 8 The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. 9 When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.
10 Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” 11 So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. 12 Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. 13 Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. 14 This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.

15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, 
“Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”
 Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”
The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” 
He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep. 

Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” 19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. 
Then he said to him, “Follow me!”
20 Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is going to betray you?”) 21 When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”
22 Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.” 

Jesus is dealing with something in Peter that has been his “Achilles heel” in following Jesus. 
Peter’s most vulnerable place is his “self-reliance”.  Jesus, being the good shepherd and loving disciple maker, knows Peter must experience the death of “self-reliance” to live the “Jesus reliant” life he was designed for.
This is our primary issue as well.
Peter’s failed self-reliance, epically portrayed in the three denials after Jesus’ arrest, are the  “elephant in the room” context of the John 21 story.   

Luke 22
14 When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. 15 And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.
19 And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”  20 In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
24 A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. 25 Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. 26 But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves……
31 “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift all of you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.”
33 But he replied, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.”
34 Jesus answered, “I tell you, Peter, before the rooster crows today, you will deny three times that you know me.”
…….. 54 Then seizing him (Jesus), they led him away and took him into the house of the high priest. Peter followed at a distance. 55 And when some there had kindled a fire in the middle of the courtyard and had sat down together, Peter sat down with them. 56 A servant girl saw him seated there in the firelight. She looked closely at him and said, “This man was with him.”
57 But he denied it. “Woman, I don’t know him,” he said.
58 A little later someone else saw him and said, “You also are one of them.”
“Man, I am not!” Peter replied.
59 About an hour later another asserted, “Certainly this fellow was with him, for he is a Galilean.”
60 Peter replied, “Man, I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. 61 The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times.” 62 And he went outside and wept bitterly. 

Luke 22 pulls the curtain back to see the discipleship pathway Jesus was leading Peter on to deal with his “default to self-reliance” problem.  It is the problem of our “original sin”.

-        The disciples in general were blinded to their sin of “self-reliance,

-        Jesus predicts Peter’s “self-reliance failure” and intercedes for him. 
What failed was Peter’s reliance on himself.  What succeeded was Jesus’s prayer.

-        Peter’s faith (which was God’s gift to him) did not fail. 
Peters flesh (self-reliance) broke under the pressure of fear and went for self-preservation. 

In John 21 the Risen Jesus deals with the epic fail of “self-reliance” and presents Peter with the gospel of “Christ’s sufficiency and supremacy” which had birthed a “Jesus-reliant” faith in Peter. 

Ways gospel of Jesus shows up.

1.     Miraculous catch of fish.

2.     Breakfast –  “The kindness of God leads us to repentance.”

3.     The Gracious Restoration Questions

15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, 
“Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”
“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”
 Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”
The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” 
He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”
Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.  

4.     The renewed call, “Follow Me”

Very truly I tell you, when you were younger you dressed yourself and went where you wanted; but when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” 19 Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God. 
Then he said to him, “Follow me!”

20 Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is going to betray you?”) 21 When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”
22 Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.”  

The Jesus-reliant life is a life of radical vulnerability. It is the life of Jesus, the One we follow.
Jesus stretched out His arms, in vulnerably humble love, to receive all our sin and pride and the catastrophic fallout and epic fail of our default to self-reliance……. as He stretched out His hands on the cross.

Now those nail-pierced resurrected hands open up to us today inviting us to come into His redemptive embrace.  He still says, “follow me… deny your self-reliance … leave it at the altar… take up your Jesus-reliant life and follow me into the world that needs my Gospel of open hearted and outstretched hands love.”

Point of Grace Online Worship - April 12, 2026

Point of Grace Worship  4.12.26  Sermon Notes – “The Risen Jesus Deals with Our Default to Disbelief”

Do we have a “Default to Disbelief” problem?

John 20:19-30

19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” 

24 Now Thomas (also known as Didymus[a]), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”
But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.”
28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!” 

29 Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe[b] that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. 

How does the Risen Jesus deal with our “Default to Disbelief” then and now? 

Notice the evangelistic heart of the Risen Jesus on full display!

-        Jesus seeks out Thomas and creates a crux moment to deal with disbelief “Stop being disbelieving and become believing!”

-        Jesus blesses those who would believe without seeing (including us).  Jesus trusts that the testimony of the apostles empowered by the Holy Spirit is sufficient to create faith. 

-        The heart of Jesus for people to believe pours out of John.

30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe[b] that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

The “you” is to be taken personally.

“One collects everything possible about a dead prophet.  It all one has of him. But one tells only enough about a living person to introduce one’s hearers to him.  For the disciples and John in particular Jesus was alive.”  Leon Morris  

Notice the confession of Thomas! This is a man of great faith!

-        Jesus, You are “My Lord and My God” 

Notice the “help” Jesus gives to move us from ‘disbelief to belief”!

-        Listen to the Apostle’s testimony     (Read the Gospels – He is present in His Word) 

-        Yield to His gracious kindness as He leads. 

-        Look at His wounds. 

-        Drop your conditions and believe!   

“My Lord and My God”