Good morning. Church is the joy together with
you. All welcome you to do in church,
is Chris said, my name is Joel party and we can pass through
preaching and oversight and have the privilege of serving as one
of the pastor's here, gathered with you guys each Sunday and
one of the highlights of my week and not just around the time of
Easter, but every Sunday when we come together, and we just
remind ourselves of our key through the singing of songs,
right through the preaching of the word, your community
Fellowship, you all these things that we do their acts of of
worship to our key. So it's an honor to simply be a
part of what God is doing in the world here among each.
Yeah, that's a joy. It was encouraging to me to be
reminded that Jesus is coming. Soon.
As I was hearing that song into sweeping of gravity.
We're going to get to see Jesus based on what we do.
Weekly just reminding us of that, sort of Dark World.
Sometimes we can. So as you can see, we're taking
a break from the Gospel of John to spend time.
Our Easter series. We're going to be looking at the
last week of the life of Jesus. So if you don't know what that's
called traditionally, it's been called Holy Week.
And so Holy Week is a Time on the church calendar.
When we just focus on what Jesus did the very last week of his
life. Now, if you grew up in the
church, depending upon your upbringing, you might have no
idea what Holy Week is or you might be very familiar with the
different Christian Traditions deal with it differently.
Currently, but I want to give you a quick rundown of the
significant days of old people. So as you guys know, next week
is Easter. So that's kind of what it's
based off of their working backward to the last week of
Jesus life. So quick graphic.
I found online to kind of show you those days.
And so what you see there in the top left is what's called Palm
Sunday. That would because today, it's
exactly one week before Easter Sunday, when Jesus rose from the
grave. And so that's the passage, you
just turned red as what we're looking at today, and then what
you see, Inside of the Last Supper, that was on Thursday of
that same week. So, just a few days later.
That was, when Jesus in the upper room with his disciples.
He washed the feet of his disciples, and it's called
Maundy Thursday. We use the word Monday, Monday
from mandates or commandment, and it's when Jesus gave this
new, commandment to his disciples that they love one
another, in the same way that he loves them and he washes his
feet and demonstrates that for. And then there's good Friday.
These are ones are probably more familiar with Friday when Jesus
was put on a cross to be crucified for the sins of the
world. And then, lastly, the one were
most familiar with even if it's kind of been hijacked by our
culture, but Easter Sunday or sometimes as we call it,
Resurrection, Sunday. And Sophia, this series for this
first week, we're zooming in and looking at what's called Palm
Sunday and next week. We're going to be looking at
Resurrection Sunday. So the title of this two-week
series is worship and wonder. So today we're looking at the
first half of that what's called?
Worship. We're going to look at it
through the lens of Palm Sunday. What is worship?
What does that mean, it specifically the Matthew
account, so that you just to read.
So we're going to be in Matthew 21, which is the first book of
the New Testament. If you need help finding it, you
can just Google it on your phone.
If it's easier to follow along that way.
And we'll also have the verses on the screen.
We are using the CSV translation.
So now that we kind of have a grasp of where we are in the
last week of Jesus life. Let's look closer at are serving
today. So like I said, we're talking
about this idea of worship. Now, most of the time when we
think about worship, unfortunately, our minds go to,
maybe what we just did a few minutes ago, where we sing songs
together corporately either here at church or at some big event
and we even used that language. Now Andrew will tell you like
I'm super anal. Like we even call him the
director for music instead of the Rector for worship because I
want it to be said like he's leading worship through song but
whoever is up here should be directing worship.
We hope right now your Drawn into worship through the
preaching of the text. And so, worship is not less than
singing songs corporately. There is something special about
that, but it's so much more. It's our entire life in the Old
Testament. When you heard the idea of
worship, it was always connected to service this idea of
everything, we do should be done in adoration and reverence to
God and the reality is that our hearts were created to worship
that everything we do. We are worshiping someone or
something. NG.
Now, often we might be that someone or something, we're
worshipping our own desires. And so, the problem there is not
that we're worshipping. It's the object of our worship.
It's what we are worshiping and that's often what is off.
So today, my goal for us is to slow down, Andre fix our Gaze on
the only one, who ultimately can handle our worship, the weights
of all of our, our trust and our adoration, and all glory.
That is due him. We can throw that on him and he
will never Let us down. See if we want to grow in living
lives that are full of worship. The answer is not for me to
stand up here and tell you how to worship.
It's to point you to the one who is worthy to be worshiped.
We can't just be told what we're supposed to be doing.
We have to be shown who were supposed to be seeing.
And at the end of the day worship, ultimately is not about
any one of us. It's about the one we are
worshiping. And so, I want to encourage you
in that because it's not about you.
It's actually very freeing. Regardless of whether or not you
come here today. And you feel worthy to worship
King Jesus. I want you to leave encouraged
because we are made worthy to worship him, and he receives our
worship based on his work alone, and what we have to And is that
our unworthiness to worship? Him does not make Jesus any less
worthy to be worshiped and what we're going to see in our time
today that he's the one that prepares praise.
He prepares the way for himself to receive the praise of his
people. And so for our message, I have
one sentence that we're going to look at in three parts.
You'll see it on the screen. So the first part we're going to
look at is Jesus is the king. That's we're going to look at
first. Jesus is the king, and Jesus is
the king who prepares the way for praise.
He's the king who prepares the way for praised by giving his
life away. Jesus is the king who prepares
the way for praised by giving his life away.
So let's start by looking at the first part of the sentence.
Jesus is the king. So, in our text today that you
just heard read, were nearing the end of Jesus's, Earthly
Ministry. Now, he knows that he knows what
he's walking into. It seems like his followers.
Probably haven't fully grasped what that means.
I'm at this point. He's done a lot through his
ministry. He's done a lot in his ministry
where he lives out the Prophecies of the Old Testament.
And today is no different than that.
The context of this passage. Is that Jesus as he often did
was heading to Passover week to Jerusalem, to celebrate the
Passover and he's with his disciples.
And so, as they're getting Close to the city.
He's got this kind of strange request.
You just turn it red. He asked him to go find this
donkey and the Colt of a donkey. So, this donkey and her child,
and to bring this donkey to Jesus, so that he can ride on it
into the city. Now, we could spend a lot of
time talking about the owner of these donkeys and how that all
worked out and how he allowed himself to be used, allowed his
property to be used. So Jesus could ride into town.
We could talk about how the disciples just obeyed this
stranger. But the reality is, that's not
really the main point. The main point of all of this is
about Jesus. The points not the donkey or the
disciples. The point is, that Jesus is the
Fulfillment of a prophecy from long ago.
And our text makes it clear points it out in Matthew, 21 for
through five. This is why this happened.
It took place. So that what was spoken through
the prophet? Might be fulfilled.
Tell daughter Zion. See your King is Coming.
Coming to you, Gentle and mounted on a donkey and on a
Colt, the foal of a donkey. And so Jesus rides into
Jerusalem on this, cult to fulfill two different
prophecies. One is from Isaiah chapter 60,
to I want you to see this so you can see the context.
It says, go out. Go out through the city Gates.
Prepare a way for the people, and it's interesting because in
our text today, it seems like the ways being prepared for
Jesus. But in all actuality it's being
prepared for the people build it up, build up the highway, clear
away, the stones, raise a banner for the people's look, the Lord
has proclaimed to the ends of the Earth, say to daughter Zion.
Look, your salvation is coming. His wages are with him and his
reward accompanies him. And they will be called the
reward is his people, the holy people, the Lord's redeemed and
you will be called cared for a city, not desert him.
There was this prophecy of one who would come and he would
bring Salvation with him for this people of God, and then
another text, if from Zechariah Chapter 9, gets even more
specific. Look at it.
It says Rejoice greatly o daughter, Zion shout and Triumph
daughter Jerusalem. Look, your king is coming to
you. He's righteous and Victorious.
Humble and riding on a donkey on a Colt.
The foal of a donkey. I will cut off The Chariot from
Ephraim. You and the horse from
Jerusalem. The bow of War will be removed
and he will Proclaim peace to the nation's.
His Dominion will extend from sea to Sea from the Euphrates
river to the ends of the Earth. So, there was this understanding
of a messiah like figure, who would come and put an end to war
and violence. He would come humbly and riding
on a donkey. This is in contrast to the
oppressive Warlords. Who would enter a city on a
stallion with their entire Army to show off their might and
their intent, to conquer that City.
And instead this King. Comes on a donkey.
Humble, bringing. Peace.
Not war. And this is what Jesus is
fulfilling as he rides into Jerusalem, so he gets on this
donkey and he begins down the path to Jerusalem.
And as he does, we're told of this very large crowd that
forms, and they begin to show their honor and reverence for
this man. They do this by taking off their
cloaks, which many of them, probably only had one of and
they throw it down on the ground.
And they also cut off branches from the palm trees were told in
another gospel that it's palm trees and they lay them down in
the road to Are the way for him now, for the nation of Israel,
palm branch is symbolized Victory and celebration.
They were used often in the Feast of booths, which was
another Festival different than Passover, where they would,
again, remind themselves of the Deliverance of Yahweh from the
nation of Egypt. And so, this crowd begins to
surround Jesus in front of him laying palm branches and behind
him following him, and they begin to cry out and exultation
in celebration. Look at verse 9.
They say hosanna to the son of David blessed.
Is he who comes in the name of the Lord hosanna in the highest
heaven? And so this word Hosanna had,
meaning the original meaning was save us.
Please or save us now. It was this cry for deliverance,
but it was also had become this just cry of adoration and Trust
for a king or a messiah like figure someone that people
believes could bring Salvation. This language of son, of David
was also a way for the crowd to confess that they believed.
He was the one that was promised.
The Chosen One, the Messianic King who would Usher in peace
and bring reconciliation and would end oppression oppression
from The Outsiders. Now many people have speculated
who all is in this crowd. Is it the same people that just
a few days later would crab crucify him?
Was it people who were true followers of Jesus, you know,
the reality is we don't know. And most likely there were
different motivations for people being there.
Some might have just wanted to see the show.
He had just raised Lazarus from the dead.
They wanted to see what was going on.
And many of them probably had mixed motivations in their own
hearts. Most likely the crowd was full
of many who had an expectation of a messiah, like figure, who
would overthrow the Roman rule and oppression many in the
crowd. Probably wanted a king who could
simply give them what they wanted, what they thought would
give them safety and power and control.
We know that, even some of Jesus disciples wanted this.
We know this because the previous chapter in Matthew,
were told that a couple of his disciples say, hey, Jesus, can
we set with you on your right and left hand, when you come in
power and Rule and reign? And he's like as you don't know
what you're asking. Like you you think you want to
reign with me? You think that means wealth, and
riches, and power and safety. And it actually means suffering
and service and losing your life.
See, in this passage. One thing is very clear.
And that's that. Jesus is revealing himself as
Lord, and King. When we hear Jesus say this and
make this declaration that he has Authority, and he is in
charge. There are only a few responses.
We can have, we can fight him. We can manipulate him or we can
simply like a child receive him. We can fight his Rule and Reign,
we can oppose him and his message.
We see this with the religious leaders.
Did they just wanted to try to get rid of them?
Put an end to it? They didn't like that.
He was challenging their Kingdom.
They had set up and their way of life.
So they try to get rid of them. And that might be where some of
us are we might find ourselves bucking up against anything to
do with the person of Jesus. We might not like what he has to
say and so we just kind of get rid of the parts.
We don't like we don't like that.
It means that if he's King were not and that means we've got to
surrender control. And so we either ignore him,
find ways to set them to the side and sometimes fight him.
But honestly, probably most of you most of us that's not our
biggest problem. I think most of us would find
that our biggest danger is the second response to manipulate
this King. I mean, we see it all the time.
We can take him and we can co-opt him for our own purposes.
And if you find that Jesus is always agreeing with you and
your stance, you probably done that.
We assume he always agrees with our side.
We make him into our own it. Image.
We make them into the Jesus that we want.
Not that Jesus, that He Is, We Do It politically, right?
We find ways to point out that Jesus always agrees with our
stance and you'll see it on both sides and we just stamp Jesus's
name on it. We do the same with our
denominations, right? We assume if Jesus were alive
today, he would definitely want to be a member of our church,
right? Because we finally after two
thousand years got hit right? That's what we assumed, right.
The reality is Jesus is King period, end of sentence and we
would do way better to Simply acknowledge that than to try to
manipulate. Like I love an example of this
is when Jesus appears as the angel of the Lord to Joshua and
the Old Testament. And so Joshua sees What's called
the angel of the Lord is terrifying.
Figure and right away. He's like, bro.
I got to know like are you on our side or theirs?
Because like, this is terrifying and I need to know.
Whose side are you on? And I love the response.
He's like neither, bro. Like that's not the question.
You should be asking like I'm the commander of the army of the
Lord is what he says. And like, you should be asking
whose side you're on. Not, if I'm on your side, whose
side are you on? Is the question you should be
asking to. Jesus is King and it can't be
co-opted or manipulated for your own purposes, to build your own
kingdom or mine or to advance my own agenda.
And so that leaves us with the last option.
The simply receive him to quit trying to fight him or
manipulated him, but take him at his word that he is, who he says
he is. And that that's good news, and
surrender Our Lives to him, to trust him to save us, Hosanna,
not in our own way, or with our own terms and in our own time,
but in his way on his time, and with his own terms, see the
question that every single one of us have to, at some point in
our life come to ask, is the question that was asked in verse
10, which is kind of the hinge verse of this passage.
When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in an uproar
saying, who is this? Got to ask it.
Who is this Jesus we've got to do something with the fact that
he's claiming to be the Divine King.
Yahweh himself and the crowd responds in verse 11, that he is
Jesus from Nazareth. Not just a myth, but it actual
historical figure who lived and breathed and walked the Earth.
And he claimed to be more than just a good teacher or another
Prophet because he can't just be that he claimed to be divine.
He claimed to be the king of the entire.
Cosmos and so we can't just ignore that claim and go about
our lives. Because if it's true, we've got
to do something with it. But that's the beauty of this
game. He's not just a king.
But he's also a savior. He's a king who is preparing the
way for his own praise. That's the next thing we see.
Jesus is the king prepares the way for praise, see these
worshipers of Jesus, as they laid out palm branches in their
cloaks. They thought, they were
preparing a way for this King. But in reality, this King, as he
rode into Jerusalem, knowing he was headed to.
The Cross Was preparing a way for all who would receive him.
See, Jesus knows that we were originally created to worship
him that we are most human. We are most at peace with
ourselves in the world. And with God, when we are in
worship and enthralled with his Beauty and his majesty and His
glory. But he also knows that we have
exchanged worship of our creator for worship of created and
lesser things that can't satisfy.
And so we're chasing after them. But Jesus will have his reward.
He will have worshippers from All Nations tribes and tongues
and he's passionate about that and he will do whatever it takes
to make that possible. See if you were a part of this
crowd and you had expectations for Jesus to set up, this
physical Kingdom, to overthrow the Roman rule.
You'd probably expect him to March, right into the seat of
the Roman capital, and overthrow it with his power.
And might you've seen him work miracles at this point, you
know, he can do it. You'd probably expect him to go
gather the strongest, you know, the most influential in the
city. The most powerful to come with
me. Let's go take care of business.
Other Messiahs had tried this in the past and it had always
failed. But you know where Matthew shows
him going next. First, he goes to the temple.
And he cleans up the temple because there were those in the
temple that had created barriers, where worship of God
was supposed to take place. And these barriers were
affecting The Outsiders the immigrants to foreigners.
And so he passionately goes and clears the way.
Prepares a way for worship to explode, because he says, this
house is supposed to be a house of prayer for all nations.
And instead you made it, a den of Oppression and thieves.
This isn't Jesus just being reactionary, the gospel of Mark
tells us, it was actually the next day.
So when he arrives in, he actually goes looks at the
temple goes back home. Matthew doesn't tell us this.
He condenses it for us, but he comes back the next day.
Very calculated. The cleansing of the temple was
bad news for the oppressors in the religious leaders, but it
was good news for those who wanted to worship Yahweh.
And he's preparing a way for these people to do that.
And then I love this because he really At this point, the
religious leaders really get mad at them because you know, what,
he does next after flipping tables and preparing a way for
The Outsiders. He calls in the lame and the
deaf, who the religious leaders didn't like around in the
temple, launch a Beggar's. We don't want them here.
Let's get rid of them. Let's clean up our front doors,
you know, they're preventing us from making money.
And he brings them and he starts healing them.
You know, what a bunch of kids do then he brings a bunch of
kids and kids were like in our society.
We worship kids. Like they're the center of our
attention. That's one extreme to The Other
Extreme is this society which was kids were nothing.
They were less than they were just a nuisance.
And you know what they do, they start dancing.
They start celebrating in the temple and saying the same thing
that was said, earlier, Hosanna to the son of David.
And so, he exchanges the commotion of Oppression and
money changers for this beautiful commotion of a bunch
of Outsiders. A bunch of the least of these, a
bunch of kids. He's breaking every rule there
is instead of going to the powerful and the strong and
Gathering an army to bow to him and help overthrow the Romans he
goes and hangs with The Outsiders.
They supposedly inadequate. What is he doing?
Well, first of all, he's again fulfilling prophecy.
We won't go to it. But in Psalm 8, we're told
already that God prepared praise for himself from the mouths of
infants and babies. And so Jesus is fulfilling this
and in doing this, he's revealing his divinity.
He's saying I'm not just some other dude.
I am God in flesh because the praise that was prepared.
That's why they get upset because they're calling him
Yahweh while boss. And he's Hosanna.
He's saying this is about me. And then lastly is showing us
the way of his kingdom and what our response should be.
When we come into contact with this King and his kingdom.
It's not to co-opt him. It's not to fight against him.
It's to Simply fall on his Mercy, like these blind and
these lame who had no other option.
Like these kids who just fully trusted because they didn't know
any better and say hey save us now.
However, you want to do it. How how whatever looks like save
us now. This week was having
conversations with people who are experiencing Jesus.
And, and like, I leave with this weight because like, we want to
be a place where we disciple people, but I'm also like almost
scared for people who are experiencing just like, you
don't know what you're about to give up, but you're going to
lose your life and it's going to be hard and it's going to be
painful sometimes but like it's gonna be worth it and it's like
the sweet voice of the spirit is like bro.
I got this. It's not on you.
You can't transform Hearts. You can't make blind.
I see you can't make lame legs Dance for Joy.
You can't make kids understand. I got it.
We reminded how dependent we are on him.
Jesus finds those who know they need something outside of
themselves to save them and he shows up and he tells them good
news and he shows them, good news, and he's preparing the
way. For praise and worship to erupt.
And what he does here is just a foretaste of what he's about to
do in a few days as he gives up his own life, and that's the
last thing. Jesus is the king who prepares
the way for Praise by giving his life.
Did the beginning of our text today?
We're told that Jesus approached Jerusalem and wasn't the first
time he had done this. But this time it was different.
He knew that this time, his interactions would lead to him
suffering for the sins of humanity.
And that in order for humans to be counted worthy to worship
him, and he would have to enter into their unworthiness.
That he would have to experience the darkest parts of the human
experience. Shame humiliation violence.
And eventually death itself. See all of history.
Not just this week was leading up to Good Friday.
When just a few short days after he rides into Jerusalem, is
called the triumphal entry. So he rides in triumphantly and
just a few short days later. He would be led outside the city
Gates and defeat to be murdered. even he wept in the garden to
like, is there another way, and it's not just a physical toll
that's about that happened to his body, but the emotional and
spiritual weight of what was coming, and he knew So, he
trusted his father. Even with losing his life, he
knew that to prepare the way for worship to arise from All
Peoples that he would have to walk, not just into the gate of
Jerusalem, but into the very Gates of Hell itself.
And that's what he did on. Good Friday.
And this wasn't what was expected of this King.
If the if the leader of the revolution is dead, then how
does the revolution go forth? But this King came as Zechariah
prophesied. Not to continue the cycle of
violence, but to end it by succumbing to it.
Little did the crowd knows it when they cried for Jesus to
save them that he would answer their requests, but he would do
it by giving up his own life. And this is the way of this King
and his kingdom, as Jesus said, you gain your life by losing it.
The greatest in his kingdom. Is he who serves not?
He who responds in violent power.
Jesus always used his power and authority to serve.
That's a control, not to manipulate.
And this willingness to give up his As life which were told no
one takes his life. He gives it up and he dies and
he's placed in a tomb where he really died.
That's why we're told that his body really lay there on Holy
Saturday and it seemed like all hope was lost.
But as we're going to see more next week in full Jesus didn't
stay dead. I guess, I like, I love Easter
but like every week is Easter Sunday, every day.
Is Resurrection Day. Like Jesus is Alive and he got
back up from the grave and I'm glad we got a day to really
celebrate it, but we celebrate that all the time because he
lays in the Tomb on the Sabbath day and then he rises again to
conquer death hell and the grave.
And we're told it's the first day of the week which was the
same day that the original creation projects.
Started and now this new creation project, this new
people that Jesus is forming Goes Forth and he promised he
was going to create this people all the way back in Isaiah.
With him rising from the grave, he puts to that puts to rest the
doubts in our hearts. Of everyone who received him as
king because he is risen, everyone who cried, save us now,
can have hope to live as well. And so, in a good Friday, world,
where Darkness abounds, we can have Resurrection Sunday, hope
because he came to end all violence and War, and Division.
Look again, this week. We've been reminded of the
destructive nature of humanity because mass shootings are like
becoming so common. It's like we see it in the news
all the time, and we're almost desensitized to it.
It's like my heart cries. I like come quickly do something
about this. Like, you're not.
Okay. It's senseless.
But there is a day coming. When all weapons, all swords.
All AR-15s will be beaten into garden tools.
Like there's a prophecy. And in the point here is that,
what was used as a tool to tear down and Destroy will be
transformed into a tool to cultivate and build up and bring
about flourishing. This is what Jesus was
accomplishing in the cross and Resurrection for our own hearts
that are broken. And also for the entire Cosmos,
which is groaning to be restored.
This is the Glimpse in the foretaste.
We get on Palm Sunday when Jesus prepares a way for us.
And we can rejoice and celebrate, because Jesus is
risen. The one who was rejected has now
become the Cornerstone building a new people, and we become the
true Temple, the temple that he cleans like in Christ.
He is the true Temple and in him, we are now the Temple.
And so we worship him. Not just with songs or words or
empty platitudes, but with our entire life, Because Jesus
entered into the gates of hell, we can enter into the gates of
his presence, and we can be counted worthy to worship Him.
You with your baggage, with your Brokenness, with your trauma,
with your mistakes. Whatever it is.
You carry, like you, because of the work of Jesus can stand in
his presence and sing songs to him, and he receives it just as
sweet and cents. Jesus is fulfilling all of
Israel's history and all of the world's history.
So he's putting us back to that. But he's also pointing us to the
Future. Revelation 7 verse 9.
After this I looked and there was a vast multitude that crowd
that numerous crowd was just a foretaste this vast multitude
from every nation tribe people and language which no one could
number standing Before the Throne and before the lamb they
were clothed in white robes and look what they're waving palm
branches in their hands. And they cried out with a loud
voice salvation. Belongs to our God.
Who is Seated on the throne and to the lamb?
One day because Jesus prepared the way for us.
We will stand in his presence completely worthy and white
robes us, what that signifies waving, the palm branches of joy
and salvation will be worshipping him.
And like when we see this King, the only natural response is to
respond and surrender and explode and worship and that's
what transforms us. That's what Corinthians tells us
your transform from one degree of Glory to another, as you see,
his Beauty and Majesty. It actually has real world
implications. Since it changes, you changes
actually possible. As we follow our team into this
new way, we become those who prepare the way for others.
To see, we become a people of Peace, not the vision.
We bring love not violence. We bring hope not condemnation
because that's what Jesus brought to you.
And not just on Sundays and the money through Saturday, our
entire life becomes worship. Everything our job, our career,
whatever it is, our schooling, our parenting are being Are, you
know having a spouse being married.
Everything takes on new meaning? It's not just the emotional
responses, you know, conjured up in a worship setting missing.
Those are bad things. But when we begin to see him in
the everyday, like, that's when it starts to click, just the
humble. Always flashy.
I just a little a Monday in the seemingly mundane The Humble
things of life. Actually begin to worship.
You say that was God, working the entry of this King, wasn't
big and flashy was normal and humble, but it was powerful and
that's my hope is that we can get a childlike glimpse of the
beauty of this King. Unfortunately often we grow
older than God in the way that we live and what I mean by that
is we look for fulfillment and satisfaction, the things of this
age and often we numb ourselves and we lose our wonder and
worship the everyday things that God is doing in life.
GK Chesterton, Chesterton explored this idea in his book
Orthodoxy. This is what he said.
He said, because children have abounding Vitality because they
are in spirit Fierce and free. Therefore they want things
repeated and unchanged. They always say, do it again and
the grown-up person does it again until he's nearly dead
like think about it. Right?
Your kids like do it again? Tickle me again.
Let me jump off the couch again. I'm like, no, I'm tired.
Stop on board. Our grown-up people are not
strong enough to exalt and monotony.
But perhaps, God is strong enough to exalt in monotony.
I want you to think about this. It is possible that God says,
every morning to it again to the Sun and every evening, do it
again to the Moon. It may not be automatic
necessity. That makes all daisies alike.
It may be that God makes every Daisy separately, but is never
got tired of making. It may be that he has the
Eternal appetite of infancy. For we have sinned, and grown
old and our father is younger than we.
And we see God in the everyday, may we be reminded of the
Beauty, and the Simplicity of the gospel story that Jesus rode
into Jerusalem to save Sinners and make the cosmos Knew by his
life. And Resurrection.
I was reminded of this just a few weeks ago.
I had the privilege of serving back in our new Eden kids
classes, and it was, it was an amazing, just reminder for me
and such a joy. Now, to be honest, when I
scheduled myself because I did, I was a little disappointed.
I don't think it was that I was serving that.
They're like visit another time of the week.
I think I'd be fine. But like I have serious fomo.
I hate missing out serious fear of missing out and I was like
man, I'm going to be back there with these kids, you know?
And all the good stuff, you know, is going to be happening
in big church, right, you know out here because the spirit of
God moves, you know in a greater way out here than back there in
that greasy kitchen, you know where the kids are right.
And I would never said that out loud.
I can't actually believe that, but my feelings and my emotions
were kind of in that. At space and so we're out here
singing. Then we go to the back, you
know, and I was just kind of hit one of the questions we have.
We start with family time back there.
We ask the kids. You know, what was one of the
highlights of your week? Best part about your weekend
was, you know, worst part about your week and then we ask them.
You know, how have you seen God working this week?
And you know, I thought man these kids, you know,
kindergarteners and younger, you know, they're not going to
understand this. But one of the ones I got from
one of the young men Was he said?
Well, you know, I was sick this week that laying my head on my
pillow and immediately I felt better and I woke up feeling
great. And it's easy for me to just
dismiss that well, that's coincidence, but I was able to
just and I told him, I said, man, isn't that amazing that God
made your body that way he created your body to kind of
heal on its own and deal with that.
Isn't that awesome? And then one of the young girls,
you know, not even knowing what actual Miracle it was, but she
said I got a good night's rest. I slept really good.
You know, normally my sister bothers me and she left me alone
and I slept really good and I'm like, you'll really appreciate
that. That is a miracle.
You know, the older you get. But is there giving God credit
for this just seemingly mundane stuff.
I thought maybe maybe this is true worship and its most pure
form and maybe this could be what God is after us, just
simply trusting him that that he's in control.
That that he's good that he's for us.
He's not out to just get us is actually for good.
And he cares enough about getting a good night's rest or
just a simple sickness and we give them credit.
Even if others think we're crazy.
And we got near the end of our time and so, you know, kids are
getting restless. And so we're just putting some
songs on them and they're just dancing on the rug and just
singing songs about Jesus and singing loud and in that moment,
like I felt like I got a glimpse of Eternity.
And you know to be honest like I didn't care if y'all heard us
out here was like screw y'all like we're worshipping out here.
I don't care if it's distracting.
No can deal with it. Like this is just as important.
And I thought about it, and I feel like, the spirit gave me
this gift. Just the fact that before the
foundations of the world. That God cared enough.
But our little kids here. And about his own worship that
he ordained praise to rise to him from a greasy kitchen from
the mouths of these little kids. And yeah, they don't know it all
and if you ask them to pontificate about God, they're
probably going to spew bunch of heresy, like but Jesus is being
worshipped based on his work alone based on the fact that he
prepared the way for it to happen.
My prayer for us. Like, I mean, this from my own
heart is that I would never grow too old to join in their song of
worship. Not only with our lips, but with
our lives. May we like little children like
the Blind and the lame man, who knows?
They need healing. May we cry out save us now
because of the death and resurrection of Jesus.
We know that he will answer our request.