Sunday Service 09/13/2026 - GO - Week 6 | The Risk He Took: Sent Into the World, Not Removed From It
GO – Week 6 | The Risk He Took: Sent Into the World, Not Removed From It | Pastor Daniel Kolson
What if following Jesus was never supposed to be safe?
In the early third century, during a violent persecution of Christians in Alexandria, a seventeen-year-old named Origen watched as his father was arrested for following Jesus.
Origen wanted to follow him.
He was prepared to publicly confess Christ—and, if necessary, die alongside his father.
His mother couldn’t stop him by reasoning with him, so she did the only thing she could think of:
She hid his clothes.
Origen stayed home, but he wrote his imprisoned father a remarkable message:
“Take care not to change your mind on our account.”
Don’t deny Jesus because of us.
Stay faithful.
In Week 6 of the GO series, Pastor Daniel Kolson explores a part of following Jesus that we often leave out of the invitation:
It costs something to follow Jesus. And it costs something more to be sent by Him.
Jesus never hid that from His disciples.
He told them they were being sent as sheep among wolves.
He told them to count the cost.
He told them to deny themselves, take up their cross daily, and follow Him.
And on the night before the cross, Jesus prayed something remarkable. He didn’t ask the Father to remove His followers from the world.
He prayed that they would be protected while being sent into it.
After His resurrection, Jesus stood in a room filled with frightened disciples and said:
“Peace be with you. As the Father has sent Me, even so I am sending you.”
Peace first.
Then the sending.
This message isn’t a call to recklessness, guilt, or trying to prove how committed we are. It’s an invitation to surrender—to follow Jesus even when obedience costs us something.
For most of us, that risk won’t look like martyrdom.
It may look like our reputation.
Our comfort.
Our money.
Being misunderstood.
Being rejected.
Or simply praying for someone when we’d rather stay quiet.
Courage isn’t the absence of fear.
It’s going anyway.
And Jesus never sends us alone.
The same Jesus who says GO also promises:
“I am with you always.”
📖 Key Scriptures:
Matthew 10:16 – Sent as sheep in the midst of wolves.
John 17:15–18 – Sent into the world, not removed from it.
John 20:21 – “As the Father has sent Me, even so I am sending you.”
2 Corinthians 4:7–9 – Treasure in jars of clay.
Luke 9:23 – Deny yourself, take up your cross daily, and follow Jesus.
💬 Highlighted Quotes:
“It costs something to follow Jesus. And it costs something more to be sent by Him.”
“The honesty is part of the invitation.”
“Protected and set apart, but still sent.”
“Being in the world without being of it is harder than leaving it. But it is the assignment.”
“Peace comes before the sending.”
“Not invincible. Sustained.”
“Courage has never meant the absence of fear. It means going anyway.”
“Faith is what happens in the space between what He said and what you can see.”
“We don’t take risks because risk is noble. We take them because He is worth it.”
“We are witnesses who go anyway.”
🌟 Key Themes:
Counting the cost of following Jesus
Being sent into the world
Courage in the presence of fear
Surrender over comfort
Risking reputation, convenience, money, and rejection
Living in the world without being of it
God’s presence in costly obedience
Peace before the sending
Depending on God’s power instead of our own
Why Jesus is worth the cost
This week, the challenge is simple:
Take one risk.
Have the conversation.
Pray the prayer.
Talk to the person.
Give when God tells you to give.
Obey the thing you’ve been avoiding.
Don’t negotiate it down into something safer.
And don’t do it from pressure.
Do it from peace.
Because you already belong to Him.
We are witnesses who go anyway.
🙏 If this message blessed you and you’d like to support our ministry:
Give securely online:
📲 Stay connected and grow in your faith:
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/dwellnlc
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/dwellnlc/
Website:
Watch Messages:
https://www.dwellnlc.org/media
🔔 Subscribe and stay connected with the latest sermons, teachings, and updates from Dwell New Life City.
#GO #TheRiskHeTook #CountTheCost #FollowJesus #FaithOverFear #Surrender #John17 #John2021 #TakeUpYourCross #ChristianSermon #DanielKolson #DwellChurch #HolySpirit #KingdomLiving