Grace Presbyterian Church

06/05/2026

06/03/2026

June 3, 2026
God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit
Part 1: Before the Foundation of the world

According to the church calendar, May 31, 2026, was Trinity Sunday. It was a day we celebrated the Triune God - God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Three in One and One in Three. Over the next 4 weeks, let’s look at the Triune God. Today we’ll start with “before the beginning.”

Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God. (Psalm 90:2)

Our eternal God is one being. Each Person of the Trinity is fully God, possessing all the divine attributes, but each maintains distinct personal roles. Our finite minds have trouble grasping infinity. (No beginning and no end.) For me, when I think of before creation, there was God – complete, holy, loving…and only God. No time, no planets, no stars, just an eternal Triune God. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty. (Rev. 1:8)

Moses met God at the burning bush. 13 Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am.] And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I am has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 3:13-14) From Biblehub.com,
“This declaration is one of the most profound revelations of God's nature. The phrase "I AM WHO I AM" (Hebrew: Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh) conveys God's self-existence, eternal presence, and unchanging nature. It emphasizes that God is not defined by human terms or limitations. This name reveals God's sovereignty and faithfulness, assuring Moses and the Israelites of His power and presence. Theologically, it connects to the concept of God as the eternal, self-sufficient being, foundational to understanding His divine nature.” 1

Other things to consider when looking at God before Genesis 1:
Ephesians 1:4-6
4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. 5 He destined us in love to be his sons (and daughters) through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, 6 to the praise of his glorious grace which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.
John 1:1-2
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God;
1 Peter 1:18-20
18 You know that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your fathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was destined before the foundation of the world but was made manifest at the end of the times for your sake.

Before God created the heavens and the earth, He laid the groundwork to bring His creation back into His will and His purpose at the end times.

2 If you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you,
2 making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding;
3 yes, if you cry out for insight and raise your voice for understanding,
4 if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures;
5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. (Proverbs 2)

(Next week: God the son)

1 https://biblehub.com/study/exodus/3-14.htm
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Larry Sears

I AM WHO I AMThis declaration is one of the most profound revelations of God's nature. The phrase "I AM WHO I AM" (Hebrew: Ehyeh-Asher-Ehyeh) conveys God's self-existence, eternal presence, and unchanging nature. It emphasizes that God is not defined by human terms or limitations. This name reveals....

06/01/2026

Sunday, June 21
Men’s Sunday: The men of Grace will lead the service.
Sunday, June 28
Young at Heart quartet sings during & after the service.

05/27/2026

This week’s meditation:

May 27, 2026
A Holy Relationship

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you. (Psalm 32:8)

On May 18th I embarked on a 4,000-mile prayer journey. I wanted to spend time praying and studying and getting closer to God. To begin the journey, I asked for a scripture to give me a foundation to work with. The above scripture came to mind. I’m sharing some of what I have learned on my trip.

The first thing I thought was, why use instruct and teach in the same sentence? In English they mean basically the same thing. In the psalms these two words are not the same. In Hebrew they are 2 different words.
Instruct – to give insight, make prudent, or impart understanding.
This word means to give us wisdom, and discernment necessary to make wise choices.
God is promising to change how we think, so we can live the life He wants for us.
To quote biblehub.com, “This refers to the inward development of wisdom. It focuses on shaping your mindset and giving you the discernment to understand why a path is right, rather than just showing you the steps.

Teach – to throw, cast, or point out.
This word means He gives us practical, direction teaching on the steps He wants us to take.
After He prepares our minds, then God can give us the practical steps He wants us to take.

The second phrase of this scripture, “I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.” shows how personal His care is for each of us. I’m not very good at phone calls, or zoom, or texts. I like to see people face to face. That kind of communication allows me to read their reactions to the conversation. What the psalmist is saying is that God looks us in the face, He turns His attention to us and brings a deeper level of relationship than we realize.

To quote google, “Together, God is promising not just to give you rules to read, but to actively shape your character and show you exactly where to walk.”

Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground. (Psalm 143:10)

Larry

Online Bible Study Suite. Topical, Greek and Hebrew study tools, plus concordances, commentaries, sermons and devotionals.

05/26/2026

Sunday, May 24 was a day of celebration of the gift of the Holy Spirit as we recognized Pentecost Sunday. We also recognized a recent college graduate.

05/22/2026

Pentecost Sunday worship at 10:30 a.m. Always inspirational.

05/20/2026

May 20, 2026

The Best is Yet to Come

“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.” (Acts 1) Jesus spoke these words to the disciples just before He ascended into heaven to sit at the right hand of God the Father. I think as Presbyterians we are often afraid of what the term “you will be my witnesses” means. We form an image in our mind of something we might not want to be associated with. But the truth is that the image we form is incomplete or even wrong.

On the night Jesus was betrayed, He told His disciples, “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.” (John 13) Love one another. That is what witnesses to those around us. How can we love as Christ has loved? That is the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. It is part of the fruit of the Spirit. When the Spirit of God comes to live in us, He brings with Him love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)

In Acts 2, we read the story of how the Holy Spirit showed up and filled the disciples. Peter, the one who denied he knew Christ at the crucifixion, was changed. He understood the scriptures, and was able to tell the people who were witnessing this activity exactly what was happening. Another work of the Spirit in our lives is to bring the Word to our remembrance. Peter went back into some of the prophecies from the Old Testament to tell what was happening at Pentecost.

Later in the Book of Acts (Acts 4), Peter and John were taken before the teachers of the law because they had healed a man who was lame from birth. Verse 8 says, “Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them.” Peter spoke as the Spirit gave him the words. The reaction of the leaders is recorded in verse 13. “13 When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.” That was the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives.

We are blessed because God has chosen to dwell with us by filling us with His Spirit. The Spirit then is able to draw other people to Him through us. The disciples yielded to the Spirit, and many miracles were done by them. They were able to open up the scriptures so others could know and understand what God has written in His Word. They were able to love their enemies as well as their friends.

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you.” Our Father is providing all that we need to be His children, even trusting us enough to put His Holy Spirit in us. The gift of the Spirit, and all the gifts the Spirit brings into our lives, are given in love. The scriptures tell us, “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” (Isaiah 40:10) Do not fear asking the Lord for His Spirit. Your Father in heaven will give good gifts to those who ask Him. (Matt. 7:11)


Larry Sears

05/18/2026

This Sunday, May 24 is Pentecost Sunday. Join us for worship at 10:30 a.m.

05/17/2026

Today is the day. 4:00 p.m. 950 Donaldson