Sermon Notes

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Follow Along with the Message

John 15:4-5 (NASB)- “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.”

"Abide in Me" in the NIV Translation- “Remain in me”

1. Abiding means staying connected to the source.

John 15:4-5 (NASB)- “...As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me..."

2. Abiding is making your home in Christ

“Home is the nicest word there is."- Laura Ingalls Wilder, Author, Little House on the Prairie Series

The challenge is learning how to make our home in Christ, not a physical place or external circumstances.

3. God moved in first – He abides in us.

John 14:22-23 (NIV)- “But Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?”

Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.”

John 1:14 (NIV)- “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.”

Message Translation- “The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood.”

God made the first move; He moved in first.

4. Abiding is a lifelong invitation.

Ask the Lord where your home is:

1. Where is your true home right now?

2. What do you rely on for safety and identity — is it Christ or something (or someone) else?

3. Is there an area of your life where Jesus is asking you to abide more deeply?

4. Have you invited Him in and made space for Him to dwell?

Central Idea of Jonah 1-4: When we understand the depth of God's grace toward us, we become willing vessels of that grace to others.

Chapter 1: Running From Love

Jonah 1:1–3 NIV- The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”
But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.

The Storm That Reveals Truth

Jonah 1:4–16 Grace in the Deep

Jonah 1:17 NIV- Now the Lord provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights.

Key Truth: God's love is relentless—it pursues us even when we run.

Chapter 2: Praying in the Darkness

Jonah 2:1–2

Jonah 2:7–10

The Elements of Jonah's Prayer:

1. Honest acknowledgment
2. Desperate faith
3. Grateful worship
4. Clear declaration

Key Truth: God hears the prayers of desperate hearts and responds with deliverance.

Chapter 3: Second Chances and Amazing Grace

Jonah 3:1–3

The Greatest Revival in History

Jonah 3:4–10
Key Truth: God's grace is available to anyone who genuinely repents, no matter how far they've fallen.

Chapter 4: The Heart of the Matter

Jonah 4:1–3

The lesson learned

Jonah 4:6–11

Key Truth: God's heart breaks for people who don't know Him, and He wants our hearts to break for them too.

Living the Message Today

• Three Life-Changing Questions:
• What is your Nineveh?
• What fish belly experience has God used to get your attention and drive you to prayer?
• How do you respond when God shows grace to people you think don't deserve it?

Sermon Notes

D.O.I.N.G Acronym: Divine - Opportunities - Interrupting - Normalized - Goodness

Jesus' life was defined by His Mission:

John 5:19 (NASB95)

Luke 2:49 (NASB95)

Matthew 10:5 (NASB95)

How do we start living like Jesus did?

1. Be with Jesus- as Jesus abided in the Father we must abide in Him

2. Become like Jesus- as Jesus surrendered His life intentionally, we too must lay our lives down at the feet of Jesus

The first step to doing anything for Jesus is to be transformed by THE HOLY SPIRIT.

“But who you are is more important than what you do. Why? Because the love of Jesus in you is the greatest gift you have to give to others. Who you are as a person — and specifically how well you love — will always have a larger and longer impact on those around you than what you do. Your being with God (or lack of being with God) will trump, eventually, your doing for God every time.”- Peter Scazzero, The Emotionally Healthy Leader: How Transforming Your Inner Life Will Deeply Transform Your Church, Team, and the World, pg. 38

DOING well must begin from BEING well

How Jesus was DOING the Father’s will

Jesus normalized goodness

Jesus’ Ministry in Two Categories: HEALING and DELIVERING

• Healing- physical miracles, but also in matters pertaining to identity

• Delivering- miraculous, spiritual deliverance, yes. But also, from oppression and condemnation.

Jesus was interruptible by divine opportunities

Matthew 15:21-28 (NASB95)

What DOING looks like for us today

1. Live to normalize goodness in your EVERYDAY life

Colossians 4:5-6(NASB95)

1 Thessalonians 5:16-22 (NASB95)

James 5:19-20 (NASB95)

3 John 1:11 (NASB95)

Jude 1:20-23 (NASB95)

Matthew 25:34-40 (NASB95)

• Practical step: Pick one or more intentional ways each day to normalize goodness in your life

2. Pray for wisdom to notice DIVINE opportunities

• Warning: This is near impossible if we live hurriedly or passively.
• Practical step: create space that interruptions can fill

Matthew 25:29 (NASB95)