Awaken the Wonder: Our Father's Work Message

The heavenly Father is depicted as actively at work—continually, intentionally, and through multiple means. His work is most clearly seen in Jesus: the miracles, teaching, Sabbath ministry, the cross, and the resurrection are presented as direct expressions of the Father’s ongoing activity to heal, forgive, and reconcile humanity. That work is not merely a model but a present, operative power that brings temporal restoration and ushers in eternal hope. The kingdom’s nearness calls for a renewed way of thinking: God is not distant or idle but is constantly bringing salvation and transformation into the world.

This divine activity extends globally. Historical and contemporary evidence—missionary advances, translations of Scripture, waves of baptisms, and even digital prayer movements—are given as signs that God is advancing salvation across continents. Particular attention is drawn to vibrant growth in Asia and Africa and to generational hunger for Jesus among young people, which suggest the Father’s worldwide, ongoing work. The Spirit’s presence fuels education, medicine, art, and institutions rooted in Christian conviction, showing that God’s work shapes culture as well as souls.

The Father also works through the local church. Word ministry, sacraments, education, worship, feeding ministries, pastoral care, and baptism are portrayed as ordinary means by which God accomplishes salvation and sanctification. Congregational life—day school teaching, small groups, food distribution, prayer, and funerals—are not merely service programs but channels of divine activity, where grace is imparted and lives are changed.

Finally, God’s work is personal and vocational: believers are invited to participate in the Father’s work daily. Trials, service, and routine labor are reframed as means through which God refines character and accomplishes preordained purposes. The faithful are reminded that every act done in Christ is, in itself, participation in the Father’s workplace—so that ordinary life becomes sacred calling, empowered by the Spirit to do the works of Jesus and even greater works through prayer and mission.

Key Takeaways

• 1. He works through Jesus God’s primary revelation of his labor is in Christ—miracles, teaching, cross, and resurrection reveal the Father’s ongoing engagement to reconcile and restore. Viewing Jesus’ deeds as the Father’s work reframes human need from isolation to an encounter with divine activity aimed at healing, forgiveness, and eternal hope. [02:11]
• 2. God is active worldwide today The kingdom’s advance is visible in global baptisms, Scripture translations, and grassroots prayer movements, especially across Asia and Africa; these phenomena testify to a God who works beyond cultural and geographic limits. Such evidence calls for sober confidence that God remains sovereignly at work in history. [07:24]
• 3. The church channels God’s work Local congregational practices—preaching, sacraments, education, feeding ministries, and pastoral care—are ordinary means by which God effects salvation and formation. Seeing ministries as means of grace turns routine service into sacred participation in the Father’s ongoing labor. [11:50]
• 4. Believers participate in daily work Everyday tasks and trials are opportunities for cooperation with God’s purpose; suffering refines character and common labor advances the kingdom. Christians are invited to “go to work” with their Father, recognizing vocation and obedience as means by which God fulfills his prepared plans. [17:24]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [01:03] - Opening question: What does Dad do?
• [01:47] - Series: Awaken the Wonder
• [02:11] - Statement 1: He worked through Jesus
• [03:26] - Sabbath ministry and healing
• [05:13] - The cross and resurrection explained
• [06:02] - Statement 2: God works around the world
• [07:24] - Global gospel progress and baptisms
• [09:28] - Worldwide prayer movement noted
• [10:52] - Gen Z hunger for Jesus
• [11:50] - Statement 3: God working through Trinity
• [14:19] - Baptisms and ministries at Trinity
• [15:36] - Practical ministries: feeding and care
• [16:46] - Statement 4: God working in lives
• [17:24] - Romans 8:28 and trials refined
• [19:35] - Ephesians: created for good works
• [21:20] - John 14: believers do greater works
• [22:10] - Closing invitation and amen

1. According to John 5:17, what two entities are described as actively working?
2. In the context of the Sabbath, what specific types of work did Jesus perform that revealed the Father's work? [02:33]
3. What are some of the global signs mentioned that indicate God is actively working around the world today? [07:24]
4. What are some of the ordinary means, or ministries, through which God works in the local church? [11:50]

1. What does it mean for the kingdom of heaven to be "at hand," and how should that reality change the way a person thinks and lives? [06:02]
2. How can everyday trials and suffering be understood as a part of God's work in a believer's life, according to Romans 8:28 and James 1? [17:24]
3. If all believers are God's "workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works" (Eph. 2:10), how does this redefine a Christian's view of their daily vocation and tasks? [19:35]
4. Jesus said his followers would do "greater works" than he did. What role does prayer and the Holy Spirit play in making this possible? [21:20]

1. The Father is continually at work to heal, forgive, and reconcile. Where in your life or in the life of someone you know are you longing to see this active work of restoration right now?
2. God's work extends globally through things like Bible translation and mass baptisms. How does knowing this stir your heart for the world, and what is one practical way you can participate in or pray for His global work this week? [07:24]
3. The local church is a channel of God's work through preaching, sacraments, and care. Which of these ordinary means has been most significant for your faith recently, and how can you more intentionally engage with it? [11:50]
4. Every act done in Christ is participation in the Father's work. What is one routine task or difficult relationship in your life this week that you can consciously reframe as "going to work with your Father"? [17:24]
5. The Spirit's power is at work within us to do immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine. What is one situation where you feel limited or inadequate, and how can you rely on this power rather than your own strength? [12:28]
6. A call to "change the way you think" is a call to repent and believe God is working. What is one area of your life where you have been thinking like God is distant or idle, and what truth from Scripture can you replace that thought with? [06:02]
7. Young people are showing a hunger for Jesus. Who is one younger person in your sphere of influence that you can encourage or share the hope of Christ with this week? [10:52]