Grace Point Church - Sermon Audio

The Unveiling - Part 5:  The Messy Middle (Part 1)It’s pretty easy to read the first five chapters of Revelation and then skip over the middle sections to chapter 21 where Jesus makes everything new. There’s just too many questions, too many images beyond our comprehension, it’s just… so… messy. But without the messy middle part, the ending doesn’t make sense. Let’s strap on our seatbelt, lean in, listen close, and see what Jesus has to say to us.   

The Unveiling - Part 4:  The Center of Apocalypse Chapters four and five paint a picture of worship that is going on around the throne of God. The central figure? The Lamb of God. The visual description and significance of the horn, the eyes, and why the lamb isn’t just slain but “slaughtered” can’t be missed. This is the central mystery of the unveiling.

The Unveiling - Part 3:  Intimate & Personal The big idea of the book of Revelation is do not worship at the feet of another person, ideology, agenda, empire, government, leader—do not worship at the feet of anything or anyone. Jesus is telling his church not to compromise no matter how much they hunger to fit in or be like everyone else. The battle is to identify your idols and turn from them. It begs the question, “Who or what do you worship?”

The Unveiling - Part 2:  The Indescribable One In the first two chapters of Revelation, John is trying to explain the indescribable nature of Jesus to the early church. Centuries later, we still fall short in trying to comprehend who he really is. In part two, we’ll look at John’s big, bold words that point to Jesus.

The Unveiling - Part 1:  The Revelation of Jesus Christ John is one of the dearest friends of Jesus and, according to history, the last living disciple. He’s also a pastor. It’s important to remember John is writing to real people about real things that are happening in real time. He's going to pastor, correct, comfort, encourage, and inspire those early Jesus followers with an extraordinary message.

The Prodigal God - Part 4:  We Had To Celebrate Exile is a persistent feeling within the human condition because our sin has destroyed the intimacy with God we once experienced. Without Jesus, we’d never be restored to full communion with God. Without Easter, we’d never have access to intimacy with God. Without resurrection, there’s no hope of the future feast for followers of Jesus. 

The Prodigal God: Part 3 - And Kissed HimWhen God forgives our sin, he assertively initiates the process of reconciliation even before we ask. He absorbs the debt of our sin through Jesus instead of requiring us to repay the debt through our own effort. When we understand that, we are empowered to become a community that doesn't bear grudges, belittle those who have hurt us, or force people to carry the sins of their past any longer.

The Prodigal God: Part 2 - To Be Called SonBy adopting us as sons into His family, God gives us deep security, intimate access to Him, and a future inheritance that can’t be taken away. It’s a family unlike our family of origin in the sense that we get to choose it. Jesus followers choose to be a part of this family but we enter it only by the sacrificial love of Jesus, who set aside his status and inheritance as God’s only son so we might become children of God.

The Prodigal God - Part 1:  Give Me MineFrom top to bottom, the Roman Empire was an authoritarian culture. The emperor’s (Nero) word was law and with no elections, he ruled for life. From the very poor to upwardly mobile, as many as 1/3 of people in the Roman Empire were enslaved. A male-dominated culture left women with little to no power. Struggles with authority figures and structures were part of their day-to-day life. We, too, have challenges with authority figures and structures in our lives. It seems we’re continually bumping into an authority who isn’t doing what we want or listening at all. How we respond to them tells others a lot about us.

Prepared - Part 4:  The Big OneThere’s one question about God that elicits the most emotion but has no emotionally satisfying answer. It’s one of the questions we have such a difficult time being prepared to answer: If God is good, all-powerful, and all-loving, why doesn’t he eliminate suffering. Is he unable or unwilling? Jesus pointed to a day when that question would be answered. In the meantime, we resist injustice and evil around us because our consciences are informed by something inside of us—the image of God.

Prepared - Part 3:  Winning by LosingEarly Jesus followers seemed to face persecution everywhere they went. It would have been easy for them to look around and feel like they were losing. Many express the same sentiment today, they feel like the church is losing in America. The feeling of losing often causes one of two reactions: (1) running away to hide or (2) lashing out. But Peter calls us to something else. We’re called to have a cheerful confidence and humility to lose well.

Prepared - Part 2:  Blessings and Curses It’s common to be good to people who are good to us. But when people are mean and cruel it’s uncommon and extremely rare to be good, merciful and kind to them. When our response is “extremely good”, people notice. Extreme goodness is hard to do and requires dependence on God’s power. But when we’re willing to give a blessing instead of a curse—we make Jesus believable and desirable to others.

Prepared - Part 1:  Hope on the Ropes One of the most frustrating things about being a Christian is when someone asks you a question or challenges you about what you believe. If you had fifteen minutes of their undivided attention, you could answer. But what are you supposed to say in a few seconds? How does that do our beliefs any justice? What can we do today to prepare for that eventuality tomorrow?

Dialed in Parenting - Part 4:  Fine Tuning There will come a point when you will not have influence with your child. At that point, you’ll want somebody in their life they’ll listen to, saying the same things you want to say. So you need to ask two questions consistently: Is there someone in my child’s life I need to dial out? Is there someone in my child’s life I need to dial in?

Dialed In Parenting: Part 3 - Priority #1Our kids get their understanding of who God is through their relationship with us and it is our responsibility to teach them how to grow in their relationship with Jesus. To do that we have to pay attention to where our kids are at in relation to Jesus and then figure out how we can help them take the next step. When we are continually doing that, we set them up to have an eternal perspective in life.

Dialed In Parenting: Part 2 - Relationship = InfluenceThe quality of our relationship with our kids will determine how much influence we have with them. And when it matters most, we will want influence with our kids. Influence allows us to guide their development, relationships and future. In part 2 we’ll discover how we develop life-long influence with our children.

Dialed in Parenting - Part 1:  3 Questions Every Parent Should Ask Our lives are formed by three things: relationships, experiences, and decisions. The tendency is to prioritize quality experiences and decisions over quality relationships. If we want to set our kids up to reach their full potential, we need to do everything we can to enhance their relationship with us, influence their relationship with people outside the home, and advance their relationship with God

Breathing Room - Part 4:  TimeWe’re all busy. Our schedules are packed with career, family, friends, church, and other responsibilities. Sometimes our days are so full that we don’t enjoy anything because we’re trying to do everything. Our relationships benefit when we create breathing room in our schedules. But where do we start?

Breathing Room - Part 3:  Dollars and Sense We live in a culture that continually tells us to pursue a higher standard of living in order to improve our quality of life. But “standard of living” and “quality of life” aren’t the same. One has to do with the stuff we accumulate. The other is about the peace we experience regardless of our circumstances. What if your pursuit of a standard of living is undermining your quality of life?

Breathing Room - Part 2:  Choosing to CheatAt some point in our attempts to get the most out of life, we lose control of our lives. We try to force one more thing into our already busy lives and we reach the breaking point. Too much pressure causes an emotional breakdown. Too much debt causes a financial breakdown. Or maybe you’re on the verge of a breakdown in your relationships. What do you do when your work life is so full you don’t have time for the people who matter most?

Breathing Room - Part 1:  Ex-Squeeze Yourself Our lives are busy and fast-paced. Lack of margin increases our stress and shortens our tempers. It can distract us from the most important things in our lives, and our relationships suffer. It can even affect our relationship with God because there’s a connection between our willingness to create margin and our faith. Life, and faith, is better with breathing room.

Dwell - Part 4:  God in the Man Christmas is a time of awe and wonder for many people. Twinkling lights, festive decorations, and manger scenes with Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus. Against the backdrop of reindeer and snowmen, it can cause us to ask the question “what is Jesus doing here?” The answer to that question is found by retracing our steps back to the Garden of Eden—God’s first dwelling place where there was a perfect connection between heaven and earth. The progression from the Garden to the manger is the culmination of God redeeming what was lost.

Dwell - Part 3:  Furniture in the TentGod is on the move to restore and reclaim what was lost and broken. He’s making a way to be with his people once again and recover what sin destroyed. In part two, we’ll see how the furniture God designs for his dwelling place reveals more of his character. Each piece foreshadows the coming of Jesus, The One who ultimately reclaims and restores our relationship with God.

Dwell - Part 2:  Tent in the DesertThe Israelites spent forty years wandering in the wilderness after their rescue from Egypt. God is with them in their wandering and even instructs them to build him a home, called the tabernacle, that becomes the dwelling place of God himself. The amount of effort to build and transport the tabernacle shows us the importance of God’s presence in the midst of his people. 

Dwell: Man in the GardenWe were created in the image of God. Even more than that, we were made to dwell with God. And even more than that, we were made to dwell with others. We see the rational, relational, creative, and vocational attributes of the image of God in our first parents. It’s in our very DNA. We begin our series at the very beginning… in a garden.

Give.Serve.Love.:  Week 3 - Love The arrival of Jesus signaled the end of the Temple model and the beginning of something new—an approach to faith characterized by love of others. The Temple model is you-focused, but Jesus’ new covenant calls for a focus on the you beside you. This is what’s required if we want to follow Jesus’ example and radically love the people around us.

Give.Serve.Love.If we’re honest, many of us tend to serve either to please others or to prove something to ourselves. Throw in some religious guilt, a few sad pictures, and a little arm twisting, you’ve got a recipe for some short-term servanthood. But if we are going to serve for the long haul, without insecurity or arrogance, we first need to understand our identity and our purpose.

Give.Serve.Love.:  Give Jesus followers should be the most generous people on the planet when we understand God’s generosity toward us. Once again, we’re going to be encouraged to be extravagantly generous and show our community that our faith is more than just sermons and songs.   Bottom Line: God’s extravagant generosity toward us compels us to be extravagantly generous toward others.

Made for More:  The Shared Tables What began as a simple way to bless their community grew to be so much more. Ryan and Cindy Neill saw a hunger for relationship in their community and it inspired them to start something. What began as a prayerful hope to bring a small group of people together, outgrew the space in their home, and now meets in a local gymnasium. The Shared Tables is all about sharing a meal and the love of Jesus with anybody and everybody.

Made for More:  The Bridge The Bridge exists to empower Topeka children to become servant leaders through long-term mentoring relationships. Through their programs—Lunch Buddies and Life Buddies—they desire to connect kids with mentors during elementary school that then follow them through high school graduation.

Made for More:  Trash Mountain Project Trash Mountain Project exists to develop Christ-centered environments for children and families living in trash dump communities. Since 2009, TMP has worked internationally in developing countries to partner with local churches, individuals, and organizations to bring sustainable change in communities that surround or depend on landfills by providing nutrition, discipleship, education, and more. They have partnerships in 12 communities, across 5 countries, and have visited more than 56 trash dumps worldwide.

Made for More:  Topeka Rescue MissionSince 1953, Topeka Rescue Mission has been a beacon of hope in the Topeka and NE Kansas communities to those experiencing homelessness, hunger, poverty and many forms of trauma. In 70 years of service they have grown from a small facility with basic services and just a few beds, to a multi-facility organization that provides shelter, food services, housing opportunities, human trafficking and trauma interventions, rehabilitation, and education for thousands of people in need every year.

Talking Points:  Part 4 - Dear POTUSIf you had the opportunity to write a letter to our next President and you knew it would show up on their desk in the Oval Office what would you say? What advice would you offer? What changes would you suggest? What if God were to write a letter to our next president? What do you think He would say?Study Guide

Talking Points - Part 3: Uncomfortable CitizensOur political views are shaped by a number of variables: our backgrounds, education, and personal experiences to name a few. All of those things combine to create our citizenship, our place of being. But if our primary allegiance is to God’s kingdom rather than an earthly political system, how are we supposed to live here and now? Through Paul’s letter to the Philippians, we’ll learn how we’re called to prioritize the progress of the gospel and the practice of love.  

Words Matter Discover the transformative power of words in this week's message from Pastor Craig Congdon, inspired by Proverbs 12:18. Reckless words can cause unseen, internal damage, much like the thrust of a sword, leaving lasting scars. However, wise words have the power to bring healing and mend those wounds. This message challenges us to speak intentionally and uplift those around us, reflecting the love and compassion of Christ.STUDY GUIDE

Talking Points - Part 2: One is the WinThere’s one thing Jesus prayed for us, one thing he went before his father and asked for. It wasn’t uniformity in political views, it was unity in mission. The unity Jesus prayed for can serve as a powerful witness to the world around us. In part two, we’ll be challenged to prioritize the people around us over our political differences. We’ll talk about practical strategies for maintaining and even mending relationships as we pursue unity inside the church. 

Talking Points - Part 1: THE KingdomThere is a kingdom far greater and longer lasting than America. That’s kind of hard for some of us to hear but it’s true. Jesus in king, but his kingdom is a different type of kingdom. But, since Jesus is king, Jesus is king over our politics. In part one, we’ll be challenged to submit to Jesus as king over our politics and find our primary citizenship in Jesus’ kingdom.

Rooted Commissioning ServiceIn this all-church gathering Grace Point commissioned Pastor Marc Giffin and launch team for the planting of Rooted Community Church.

Helping the Next Gen Win: Part 3-  Label MakerWe all wear labels. Many of the labels we wear were placed on us by others—parents, siblings, friends, teachers, coaches, or coworkers. But what if we’re carrying around the wrong labels? Who has the right to label you? Who are you going to allow to label you? Who knows best how to label you? Labels create expectations and expectations influence the direction of our lives. 

Helping the Next Gen Win: Part 2 - Information vs. InterpretationThis generation is the first that doesn’t need adults for information. They can google it or ask Siri and have the answer in a matter of seconds. But they do need adults for interpretation. Just because they have the information doesn’t know they know how to apply it wisely. What can we do to help the next generation see the world in a way that sets them up for success? That’s what we’ll explore in part 2.

Helping the Next Gen Win: What's the Win?The Greatest Generation. Baby Boomers. Generation X. Millennials. Generation Z. Each generation is distinct from those that came before and those that come after. They have different priorities and different experiences. They see the world differently. It’s easy for the generations to live in conflict and competition. But what is our responsibility to the generations that come after us?STUDY GUIDE

Jonah: Part 4When God works in the lives of others, how do we respond? The book of Jonah ends with an angry prophet and so many questions unanswered. But we know that God is “gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love.”

Jonah: Part 3Have you ever received unwarranted mercy that changed your life? That's what happened in Ninevah.

Jonah: Part 2When faced with incredible darkness how do we respond? Does God's love toward us depend on our response to discipline? Or is God relentless about rebellious sinners? We'll look at Jonah's prayer from the belly of the whale to find out.

Jonah: Part 1In the first part of this series, Pastor Jim Walden shares the five things that happen when we run from God’s call in our lives, and he shares a personal story of his own Jonah moment.

Forgotten God: The Gifts (part 2)One of the most controversial (and divisive) topics in the church today is the issue of the miraculous gifts—primarily speaking in tongues. There is both the error of embracing more than the Bible says but also the error of not embracing as much as the Bible says. Following the Spirit and offering yourself to be used for the good of the church is always the goal.

Forgotten God: The Gifts (part 1)Over and over again we read of Jesus praying, healing, and performing other miracles. He didn’t have the power in and of himself to do those things, he was accessing the power of the Holy Spirit. Followers of Jesus have access to that same power through the gifts of the Holy Spirit. His gifts and their use in the church is what we’ll explore in part 4.

Forgotten God: Part 3 - How?We know who he is and what he does but how are we supposed to relate to the Holy Spirit daily? What does it even look like to walk in the power of the Holy Spirit? In part three, we’ll identify four ways the Holy Spirit acts as our advocate. As we make the daily decision to walk by the Spirit we’ll find the comfort, truth, guidance, and encouragement we need.

Forgotten God: Part 2 - What?Defining who the Holy Spirit is difficult enough, but what about his purpose in this world and our lives? Is he a good luck charm? A magic 8-ball for all of life's difficult decisions? A get-out-of-jail-free card? Or is his purpose in our lives something altogether greater? In part two, we’ll define what the role of the Holy Spirit is in our lives. He has many functions, roles, and activities—some of them mysterious—but all of them meant to produce in us one thing.

Forgotten God: Who?The Holy Spirit was given as a gift to the church and ironically has been one of the most divisive issues throughout church history? What, or who, is the Holy Spirit? Is it an unexplainable encounter, an emotionally driven experience, or a supernatural force? Like many people throughout history, you might find the Holy Spirit to be a bit of a mystery. However, the Bible is clear—the Spirit is the source of power in your life. But many Jesus followers don’t live that way. So where do we start?

Don't Waste Your InfluenceWhat does it take to be an influencer today? Is it the number of followers you have on social media? Is it the number of viral videos you make? Is it selling a product or a company to your friends? No, each one of us is an influence. You’ll never know the difference one conversation, one word of encouragement, or one expression of love can make in someone else’s life. How are you using your influence?