1 00:00:05,160 --> 00:00:08,200 Thank you for listening to Riverbend Church's podcast. 2 00:00:08,240 --> 00:00:11,560 To find out more about this message or Riverbend Church, 3 00:00:11,680 --> 00:00:14,920 connect with us online at Riverbend Church dot live. 4 00:00:19,280 --> 00:00:24,160 Good morning Riverbend, hope everyone is doing great today. 5 00:00:24,160 --> 00:00:27,760 Real quick, before we jump in, let me just say there's a line 6 00:00:27,760 --> 00:00:32,000 in that song that we just sang at the end that talks about when 7 00:00:32,000 --> 00:00:34,040 you can't hold your arms up. Reminds me of the story in 8 00:00:34,040 --> 00:00:37,880 Exodus 17 of Moses, Aaron and her. 9 00:00:38,800 --> 00:00:41,520 Moses is holding his arms up and his while he holds his arms up, 10 00:00:41,520 --> 00:00:43,160 the nation of Israel wins the battle. 11 00:00:43,160 --> 00:00:45,160 Well, you can imagine if you hold your arms up long enough, 12 00:00:45,160 --> 00:00:47,400 they're going to get tired. And so Aaron and her bring a 13 00:00:47,400 --> 00:00:51,840 stone, put it behind Moses. Moses sits down, Aaron gets on 14 00:00:51,840 --> 00:00:54,680 one side, her on the other, and they hold his arms up for him 15 00:00:54,680 --> 00:00:58,240 because they've realized that they're Better Together, 16 00:00:59,040 --> 00:01:01,880 stronger in small groups. That's the theme of our small 17 00:01:01,880 --> 00:01:05,400 groups here at Riverbend. Better Together, stronger in 18 00:01:05,400 --> 00:01:06,440 groups. I want to encourage you this 19 00:01:06,440 --> 00:01:09,160 morning, if you're not a part of a small group, that's really 20 00:01:09,160 --> 00:01:10,680 where the life of the church happens. 21 00:01:11,320 --> 00:01:13,680 Listen, when you're in those battles and you can't hold your 22 00:01:13,680 --> 00:01:17,160 arms up any longer, that's where the small group comes in. 23 00:01:18,280 --> 00:01:20,600 And our small groups are really, really strong here. 24 00:01:20,600 --> 00:01:23,160 They are so good. You can ask different folks 25 00:01:23,160 --> 00:01:25,040 about things that have happened in their lives over the past 26 00:01:25,040 --> 00:01:27,720 couple of months. The small group has come around 27 00:01:27,720 --> 00:01:29,200 them and held their arms up for them. 28 00:01:29,680 --> 00:01:33,400 I would strongly encourage you this morning, become a member of 29 00:01:33,400 --> 00:01:35,200 a small group. That's really where you're going 30 00:01:35,200 --> 00:01:37,960 to find the life of the church. That's really where you're going 31 00:01:37,960 --> 00:01:42,240 to be encouraged. You're going to be empowered 32 00:01:42,240 --> 00:01:44,360 through small groups. You're going to be taught in 33 00:01:44,360 --> 00:01:47,040 here, but then you can really flesh out those things in small 34 00:01:47,040 --> 00:01:48,680 groups. So I just wanted to mention that 35 00:01:48,680 --> 00:01:49,440 this morning. Good morning. 36 00:01:49,440 --> 00:01:52,320 My name is Todd Slade. Thank you for joining with us 37 00:01:52,320 --> 00:01:54,120 this morning. Whether you're here in person or 38 00:01:54,120 --> 00:01:56,360 whether you're online, thank you so much for being here this 39 00:01:56,360 --> 00:01:58,640 morning. I have the amazing privilege of 40 00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:00,480 serving as the executive pastor here. 41 00:02:00,880 --> 00:02:03,280 Our senior pastor is on vacation this week. 42 00:02:03,280 --> 00:02:06,760 He and his wife and daughter are down, enjoying some time away. 43 00:02:06,760 --> 00:02:10,280 And so pray for them this week. I hope they have a great time 44 00:02:10,280 --> 00:02:13,680 together. Honestly, I could tell you this 45 00:02:13,680 --> 00:02:18,640 morning though, my wife and I came here in September of 2024 46 00:02:19,080 --> 00:02:21,480 and of all the churches that I've served over the past 20 47 00:02:21,480 --> 00:02:25,440 plus years, Riverbend has felt like home immediately. 48 00:02:25,440 --> 00:02:27,600 As soon as we came here, Riverbend felt like home. 49 00:02:27,600 --> 00:02:29,280 And so I want to encourage you this morning. 50 00:02:29,280 --> 00:02:31,360 Maybe you're watching online, you've been watching for a 51 00:02:31,360 --> 00:02:33,880 couple weeks and you think, I don't know if we want to jump 52 00:02:33,880 --> 00:02:35,440 in, dive in. Maybe you've been visiting. 53 00:02:35,440 --> 00:02:37,320 This is your first, second, third time visiting. 54 00:02:37,640 --> 00:02:40,480 I want to encourage you this morning, jump in, dive in. 55 00:02:40,480 --> 00:02:43,960 Look, we love here at Riverbend like any other church I've been 56 00:02:43,960 --> 00:02:47,680 a part of and we would love for you to be a part of the mission 57 00:02:47,680 --> 00:02:50,440 of Riverbend Church. We do have a a mission statement 58 00:02:50,440 --> 00:02:53,080 at Riverbend. It's Riverbend exists to bring 59 00:02:53,080 --> 00:02:56,760 people to Jesus, grow generations in Jesus, send 60 00:02:56,760 --> 00:02:59,400 disciples for Jesus. That's really our mission here, 61 00:02:59,840 --> 00:03:03,200 and we want you to join together in that mission with us as we 62 00:03:03,200 --> 00:03:07,120 try to serve not only Hall County, but really around the 63 00:03:07,120 --> 00:03:08,760 world. We have opportunity this year to 64 00:03:08,760 --> 00:03:10,800 go on some mission trips. We're going to Boston, we're 65 00:03:10,800 --> 00:03:13,960 going to Guatemala, and we're going to Uganda. 66 00:03:13,960 --> 00:03:17,920 And we would love for you to be a part of those trips. 67 00:03:17,920 --> 00:03:21,920 But coming up in just a few weeks, we have Easter, and 68 00:03:21,920 --> 00:03:24,600 Easter is an amazing time. We call it the Super Bowl on the 69 00:03:24,600 --> 00:03:26,840 Christian calendar. Because really this is what our 70 00:03:26,840 --> 00:03:29,040 faith is all about. Jesus rose from the grave 71 00:03:29,240 --> 00:03:31,640 without the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and our faith is 72 00:03:31,640 --> 00:03:34,600 worthless. Our faith is hopeless and what 73 00:03:34,600 --> 00:03:38,960 carries us through when someone around us passes away, but they 74 00:03:38,960 --> 00:03:40,520 knew Jesus as their Lord and Savior. 75 00:03:40,520 --> 00:03:42,720 What really gets us through that is knowing that the resurrection 76 00:03:42,720 --> 00:03:43,920 is true. Amen. 77 00:03:44,560 --> 00:03:46,880 We don't have to worry about whether or not we'll ever see 78 00:03:46,880 --> 00:03:48,960 that person again. If they knew Jesus and you know 79 00:03:48,960 --> 00:03:51,040 Jesus, then we're going to spend all of eternity together 80 00:03:51,040 --> 00:03:54,760 worshiping at his feet. And so Easter is the greatest 81 00:03:54,760 --> 00:03:58,520 day on the calendar because it's the day that Jesus rose from the 82 00:03:58,520 --> 00:03:59,760 grave. And so when you came in this 83 00:03:59,760 --> 00:04:01,200 morning, you should have received something that looked 84 00:04:01,200 --> 00:04:03,640 like this. This is our Easter Connect card. 85 00:04:03,640 --> 00:04:07,760 We would love for you to serve one and attend 1 during Easter, 86 00:04:07,760 --> 00:04:09,800 especially those who call Riverbend home. 87 00:04:10,240 --> 00:04:13,080 We would love for you to serve one, attend one, just pick a 88 00:04:13,080 --> 00:04:16,800 service that you would like to serve at, serve in that service, 89 00:04:17,040 --> 00:04:19,720 but then attend another service. And the way that we've tried to 90 00:04:19,720 --> 00:04:22,280 make this as easy as possible is we've we're going to do 91 00:04:22,280 --> 00:04:23,400 something a little unique this year. 92 00:04:23,400 --> 00:04:26,000 We're going to have a Saturday night service for those who 93 00:04:26,000 --> 00:04:27,680 volunteer. It's going to be Saturday night 94 00:04:28,120 --> 00:04:31,600 at 5:30 and we would love for you to volunteer at one of the 95 00:04:31,600 --> 00:04:34,440 Sunday services, but attend the Saturday night service. 96 00:04:34,600 --> 00:04:37,200 It's going to be the same service that we have on Sunday. 97 00:04:37,560 --> 00:04:40,520 We're just making it possible for you to attend on Saturday 98 00:04:40,520 --> 00:04:43,040 night and then serve on Sunday morning. 99 00:04:43,040 --> 00:04:46,680 And please pray like crazy that God would fill this place up 100 00:04:47,040 --> 00:04:50,160 with people who are looking for what they don't even know 101 00:04:50,160 --> 00:04:52,760 they're needing. And that's the relationship with 102 00:04:52,760 --> 00:04:55,680 Jesus Christ. May they be drawn here on Sunday 103 00:04:55,680 --> 00:04:58,520 of Easter as we talk about Jesus borrowing a tomb. 104 00:04:58,880 --> 00:05:01,560 May they hear the great gospel of Jesus Christ and come to 105 00:05:01,560 --> 00:05:05,640 faith in him. And so thank you so much again 106 00:05:05,800 --> 00:05:08,200 for being here this morning. Well, three weeks ago, we 107 00:05:08,200 --> 00:05:12,280 started a brand new sermon series called Borrowed in the 108 00:05:12,280 --> 00:05:13,960 Gospels. The first four books of the New 109 00:05:13,960 --> 00:05:15,800 Testament, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. 110 00:05:15,800 --> 00:05:21,520 We see Jesus borrowing 5 things. He borrowed a boat, he borrowed 111 00:05:22,040 --> 00:05:26,240 5 loaves and three fish. He borrows a donkey, he borrows 112 00:05:26,240 --> 00:05:29,520 a room and then he borrows a tomb. 113 00:05:30,920 --> 00:05:33,920 Pastor Ben's done a great job covering those first two talked 114 00:05:33,920 --> 00:05:38,080 about borrowing a boat and then borrowing 5 loaves and three 115 00:05:38,080 --> 00:05:41,160 fish. I think there's a joke somewhere 116 00:05:41,160 --> 00:05:44,080 in there about him asking me to preach the sermon on the donkey. 117 00:05:44,400 --> 00:05:48,760 So nothing boost your confidence when the pastor more than when 118 00:05:48,760 --> 00:05:51,560 the pastor comes to you and says, hey, I think we're going 119 00:05:51,560 --> 00:05:53,800 to preach a sermon on a donkey. I think you'd be the great guy 120 00:05:53,800 --> 00:05:57,080 to do that. So a donkey preaching about a 121 00:05:57,080 --> 00:06:02,200 donkey this morning, I guess. So here we are. 122 00:06:03,160 --> 00:06:04,880 Well, if you have your Bibles this morning, I'm going to ask 123 00:06:04,880 --> 00:06:07,160 you if you would please turn to Matthew chapter 21. 124 00:06:12,400 --> 00:06:16,960 I've been praying for you the past few days. 125 00:06:16,960 --> 00:06:18,720 Really. Three weeks ago when Pastor Ben 126 00:06:18,720 --> 00:06:21,880 asked me to preach today, I began praying for those who 127 00:06:21,880 --> 00:06:24,080 would attend today without even knowing who it would be. 128 00:06:25,640 --> 00:06:29,600 But God knew you've been prayed for this morning. 129 00:06:31,040 --> 00:06:34,280 I pray that you would not just hear another sermon. 130 00:06:34,280 --> 00:06:37,840 Hey, listen, I'll, I'll be the first to admit none of us need 131 00:06:37,840 --> 00:06:41,200 another sermon. Most of you have been believers 132 00:06:41,200 --> 00:06:43,640 for longer than I've been alive. Or some of you, not most of you, 133 00:06:43,640 --> 00:06:47,240 some of you, some of you have been believers for 20 plus 134 00:06:47,240 --> 00:06:49,880 years. You don't need another sermon. 135 00:06:49,880 --> 00:06:53,080 You have enough knowledge that'll last you the rest of 136 00:06:53,080 --> 00:06:56,160 your life and you will stand before the Lord and he'll say 137 00:06:56,160 --> 00:06:57,920 well done thou good and faithful servant. 138 00:06:57,920 --> 00:07:01,440 If you've never heard another sermon, you would be just fine. 139 00:07:02,920 --> 00:07:04,800 I don't want you to hear another sermon this morning. 140 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:08,360 I pray that you would lean in today, that you would lean into 141 00:07:08,360 --> 00:07:12,400 what God wants to speak directly to your heart today as we talk 142 00:07:12,400 --> 00:07:16,920 about Jesus borrowing a donkey. There's so much more to it than 143 00:07:16,920 --> 00:07:21,240 just Jesus borrowing a donkey, All right. 144 00:07:21,240 --> 00:07:23,160 And so lean in with me this morning. 145 00:07:23,160 --> 00:07:26,560 And I pray that you will take notes either in the app that you 146 00:07:26,560 --> 00:07:29,440 have on your phone or your tablet or on the paper that you 147 00:07:29,440 --> 00:07:31,480 have in front of us. Let's dive into Matthew chapter 148 00:07:31,480 --> 00:07:33,240 21 this morning. If you don't have your Bible, 149 00:07:33,240 --> 00:07:35,680 don't worry, it'll be up here on the screen. 150 00:07:35,680 --> 00:07:38,160 You can read along with us now. When they drew near to Jerusalem 151 00:07:38,160 --> 00:07:41,200 and came to Bethpage to the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent 2 152 00:07:41,200 --> 00:07:43,920 disciples saying to them, Go into the village in front of 153 00:07:43,920 --> 00:07:47,200 you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied in a colt 154 00:07:47,200 --> 00:07:49,800 with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 155 00:07:50,280 --> 00:07:53,040 If anyone says anything to you, you shall say. 156 00:07:53,040 --> 00:07:54,520 Now let's pause right here just for a second. 157 00:07:55,400 --> 00:07:58,320 Have you ever heard there's a difference between shall and 158 00:07:58,320 --> 00:08:01,280 should or shall and could? Right? 159 00:08:01,280 --> 00:08:05,720 Jesus says here, you shall say to them, This is not a, If you 160 00:08:05,720 --> 00:08:09,680 want to say this, say it. This is not, you could say this 161 00:08:09,680 --> 00:08:12,560 amongst other things. No, Jesus says you shall, this 162 00:08:12,560 --> 00:08:14,240 is a command that Jesus is giving them. 163 00:08:14,720 --> 00:08:19,040 You shall say to them, you know, I'm the executive pastor here. 164 00:08:19,040 --> 00:08:20,640 So I go through all of our documents. 165 00:08:20,640 --> 00:08:22,360 I do all those things. And one of the things that we 166 00:08:22,360 --> 00:08:26,040 look for in our, in our doctrinal or in our, in our 167 00:08:26,480 --> 00:08:30,640 bylaws is the word shall. If it says you shall meet on 168 00:08:30,640 --> 00:08:33,600 Sundays, then we don't have the option to not meet on Sundays, 169 00:08:33,600 --> 00:08:35,440 right? Unless it snows and then nobody 170 00:08:35,440 --> 00:08:38,400 does anything right. But if it says shall you have to 171 00:08:38,400 --> 00:08:41,480 do it? OK, Jesus says here you shall 172 00:08:41,600 --> 00:08:45,040 say the Lord needs it. We'll have more on that here in 173 00:08:45,040 --> 00:08:48,160 just a minute. And he will send them at once. 174 00:08:49,120 --> 00:08:52,520 This took place to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet saying 175 00:08:52,720 --> 00:08:55,200 say to the daughter of Zion, behold, your king is coming to 176 00:08:55,200 --> 00:08:58,160 you humble and mounted on a donkey on a colt, the foal of a 177 00:08:58,160 --> 00:09:01,840 beast of burden. The disciples went and did as 178 00:09:01,840 --> 00:09:03,800 Jesus had directed them. They brought the donkey in the 179 00:09:03,800 --> 00:09:07,520 colt and put them on the on their put on them their cloaks, 180 00:09:07,520 --> 00:09:09,640 and he sat on them. Most of the crowd spread their 181 00:09:09,640 --> 00:09:12,160 cloaks on the road road, and others cut branches from the 182 00:09:12,160 --> 00:09:14,280 trees and spread them on the road. 183 00:09:15,480 --> 00:09:17,640 And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were 184 00:09:17,640 --> 00:09:19,320 shouting Hosanna to the Son of David. 185 00:09:19,320 --> 00:09:22,320 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, Hosanna in the 186 00:09:22,320 --> 00:09:24,600 highest. And when he entered Jerusalem, 187 00:09:24,600 --> 00:09:27,040 the whole city was stirred up, saying, Who is this? 188 00:09:27,560 --> 00:09:32,880 The crowd says this is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth of 189 00:09:32,880 --> 00:09:34,360 Galilee. Father, I pray that you would 190 00:09:34,360 --> 00:09:36,040 speak to our hearts this morning. 191 00:09:37,280 --> 00:09:40,440 Fathers, I've already said we don't need another sermon. 192 00:09:41,360 --> 00:09:45,320 Father. We need life transformation. 193 00:09:47,200 --> 00:09:49,520 Father, I pray that you would speak directly to our hearts 194 00:09:49,520 --> 00:09:53,040 this morning. Lord, number one, we would leave 195 00:09:53,040 --> 00:09:56,200 here encouraged. But #2 Lord, we would leave here 196 00:09:57,360 --> 00:10:03,800 more desirous of serving you. However that is, Father, may you 197 00:10:03,800 --> 00:10:05,400 speak to your people this morning. 198 00:10:05,920 --> 00:10:10,160 In Christ's name we pray, Amen. Well, as we dive into the 199 00:10:10,160 --> 00:10:13,120 message that God has given us for today, let me get begin by 200 00:10:13,120 --> 00:10:17,120 giving you the theme or the main idea that is driving this sermon 201 00:10:17,120 --> 00:10:20,360 series borrowed. And that theme is simply what 202 00:10:20,360 --> 00:10:24,680 Jesus borrows. He blesses to use for our good 203 00:10:25,400 --> 00:10:29,280 and for His glory. Again, what Jesus borrows, He 204 00:10:29,280 --> 00:10:33,840 blesses to use for our good and for His glory. 205 00:10:33,840 --> 00:10:37,600 And I think we'll see this play out throughout this passage this 206 00:10:37,600 --> 00:10:39,800 morning. Look back with me, if you would, 207 00:10:39,800 --> 00:10:49,680 at Matthew 21, verses 1 and 2. Now when they drew near to 208 00:10:49,680 --> 00:10:52,920 Jerusalem and came to Bethpage to the Mount of Olives, then 209 00:10:52,920 --> 00:10:56,400 Jesus sent 2 disciples saying to them, go into the village in 210 00:10:56,400 --> 00:11:00,240 front of you and immediately you will find a donkey and a colt 211 00:11:00,240 --> 00:11:04,160 with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 212 00:11:04,640 --> 00:11:08,960 Now stop with me and just think for a second, is this not a 213 00:11:08,960 --> 00:11:14,600 weird ask of Jesus? Hey guys, go into the city, 214 00:11:15,400 --> 00:11:17,800 there's going to be a donkey. Immediately when you go into the 215 00:11:17,800 --> 00:11:22,760 city, untie that donkey and bring it to me. 216 00:11:23,440 --> 00:11:27,360 Now it's a weird thing to ask here is essentially Jesus is 217 00:11:27,360 --> 00:11:30,440 telling his disciples, hey, look, go into the city and steal 218 00:11:30,440 --> 00:11:32,360 that donkey and bring it to me, right? 219 00:11:32,840 --> 00:11:34,440 I mean, it's a weird thing to ask. 220 00:11:34,920 --> 00:11:38,160 Jesus says don't worry about asking permission, Just go into 221 00:11:38,160 --> 00:11:39,920 the city. You'll find the donkey tied up. 222 00:11:39,920 --> 00:11:44,000 Untie that donkey in her colt and bring them to me. 223 00:11:44,000 --> 00:11:47,520 If someone asked me to do this, man, I've got some questions, 224 00:11:47,720 --> 00:11:50,360 right? I've got lots of questions. 225 00:11:50,360 --> 00:11:55,120 My first question is, hey, Lord, isn't that stealing? 226 00:11:56,160 --> 00:11:59,480 Isn't stealing wrong? You know what Jesus says? 227 00:11:59,480 --> 00:12:01,120 Well, if they say anything to you, just tell them the Lord 228 00:12:01,120 --> 00:12:03,040 needs it. Oh, OK, that makes it easier. 229 00:12:04,040 --> 00:12:06,840 I'm going to steal your donkey or, you know, I'm going to take 230 00:12:06,840 --> 00:12:09,680 your donkey and the colt. Now, one thing we need to 231 00:12:09,680 --> 00:12:12,080 understand is when you have a donkey and you have a colt, 232 00:12:12,600 --> 00:12:15,640 you're probably raising up that colt to replace that donkey at 233 00:12:15,640 --> 00:12:19,320 some point, right? So it's kind of like having your 234 00:12:19,320 --> 00:12:21,400 main car that you drive everywhere and then you have a 235 00:12:21,400 --> 00:12:24,400 secondary car. In case your wife or your spouse 236 00:12:24,400 --> 00:12:26,680 takes the first car, you have the second car to go somewhere. 237 00:12:26,840 --> 00:12:30,640 Well, they're kind of raising up this colt to do the work of the 238 00:12:30,640 --> 00:12:35,080 initial donkey when that donkey is no longer able, right? 239 00:12:35,080 --> 00:12:38,320 So not only are they still in the primary donkey, but they're 240 00:12:38,320 --> 00:12:40,720 also still in the backup, if you will, right? 241 00:12:40,920 --> 00:12:43,880 And when we say steal, I want to be careful that we're not 242 00:12:43,880 --> 00:12:45,920 talking really about stealing. We're talking about borrowing. 243 00:12:45,920 --> 00:12:47,000 We'll get there in just a second, right? 244 00:12:47,320 --> 00:12:50,320 So Jesus says, look, go take this donkey. 245 00:12:50,720 --> 00:12:54,480 Well, I'm not sure that I'm not asking a lot of questions at 246 00:12:54,480 --> 00:12:58,160 this point. I mean, you know, the main point 247 00:12:58,320 --> 00:13:02,360 here is not really about them not questioning Jesus, although 248 00:13:02,360 --> 00:13:04,120 we could spend a lot of time on this, right? 249 00:13:05,680 --> 00:13:07,640 They just go into town. They just get the donkey and 250 00:13:07,640 --> 00:13:12,880 they come back, right? Here's kind of what I think may 251 00:13:12,880 --> 00:13:14,760 have been going on in their minds. 252 00:13:15,480 --> 00:13:18,360 Think with me just for a minute. These guys have been with Jesus 253 00:13:18,360 --> 00:13:20,720 now for three years. This is the end of Jesus's 254 00:13:20,720 --> 00:13:22,920 ministry. He's about to ride into 255 00:13:22,920 --> 00:13:26,520 Jerusalem for the last time. And as he rides into Jerusalem 256 00:13:26,520 --> 00:13:28,960 for the last time, he's riding into Jerusalem to go to the 257 00:13:28,960 --> 00:13:32,440 cross for all of our sins, right? 258 00:13:33,280 --> 00:13:35,520 They've been with Jesus for three years at this point. 259 00:13:35,520 --> 00:13:39,440 And man, Jesus is not your ordinary dude, right? 260 00:13:40,400 --> 00:13:43,000 Jesus has turned water into wine. 261 00:13:43,600 --> 00:13:46,520 How many times were you at a wedding and somebody turned 262 00:13:46,520 --> 00:13:48,200 water into wine? Yeah, that's really never 263 00:13:48,200 --> 00:13:50,280 happened before, right? Not to us. 264 00:13:50,840 --> 00:13:52,640 Well, how many times have you been hanging out with the guy 265 00:13:52,640 --> 00:13:56,280 and you come across a paralytic and Jesus says, pick up your mat 266 00:13:56,280 --> 00:13:58,720 and go. And the paralytic, the man who 267 00:13:58,720 --> 00:14:02,920 had been paralyzed for a lot of his life, picks up his mat and 268 00:14:02,920 --> 00:14:05,720 walks out. I've never been around that 269 00:14:05,720 --> 00:14:08,600 before, Right? How many times have you seen a 270 00:14:08,600 --> 00:14:12,600 guy encounter a blind man? He spits in the dirt, makes some 271 00:14:12,600 --> 00:14:15,440 mud, puts it on his eyes. The guy goes and washes in the 272 00:14:15,440 --> 00:14:17,320 river and comes back, and the guy can now see. 273 00:14:17,920 --> 00:14:19,600 Right. Anybody ever been a part of that 274 00:14:19,600 --> 00:14:21,160 before? I haven't. 275 00:14:21,960 --> 00:14:24,800 So these guys have been with Jesus all of this time these 276 00:14:24,800 --> 00:14:26,800 three years. They've seen Jesus healing all 277 00:14:26,800 --> 00:14:30,120 kinds of people, doing all kind of miraculous things, making a 278 00:14:30,120 --> 00:14:33,720 crazy storm on the ocean, be completely still. 279 00:14:35,120 --> 00:14:38,200 I think at this point, these guys trusted that Jesus really 280 00:14:38,200 --> 00:14:41,240 wasn't just some ordinary dude. He was a little bit more than 281 00:14:41,240 --> 00:14:43,720 that, right? And so when Jesus looked at them 282 00:14:43,720 --> 00:14:48,400 and said, hey, go get that donkey, these guys said, yes, 283 00:14:48,400 --> 00:14:50,800 Sir, he's got something that he's going to do here that's 284 00:14:50,800 --> 00:14:52,600 going to blow our socks off, right? 285 00:14:53,480 --> 00:14:55,480 And so that leads to the to the next question. 286 00:14:56,280 --> 00:14:59,880 Why a donkey? Why a donkey? 287 00:15:00,960 --> 00:15:08,080 Here is God in the flesh, Jehovah Jireh, the alpha, the 288 00:15:08,080 --> 00:15:11,720 Omega, the beginning, the end, God in flesh. 289 00:15:13,120 --> 00:15:17,640 Why a donkey? Jesus could have used a white 290 00:15:17,640 --> 00:15:21,040 stallion or even a black beauty. He could have used the chariot 291 00:15:21,280 --> 00:15:24,040 pulled by the most beautiful Clydesdales you've ever seen in 292 00:15:24,040 --> 00:15:26,880 your life. All of those things would have 293 00:15:26,880 --> 00:15:29,600 been perfect and they would have been right for Jesus to ride on. 294 00:15:29,600 --> 00:15:32,360 After all, we are talking about the Son of God here. 295 00:15:34,080 --> 00:15:38,080 So why donkey? Well, I believe this donkey 296 00:15:39,240 --> 00:15:42,880 showed great humility of our Lord and Savior. 297 00:15:44,800 --> 00:15:47,960 If you remember, Jesus came into this world not as a king. 298 00:15:48,360 --> 00:15:52,400 Jesus came in a very humble fashion, not even in a normal 299 00:15:52,640 --> 00:15:56,480 birthing chamber. Jesus was born in the most 300 00:15:56,480 --> 00:16:01,920 humble of all places, a stable. Just the same way that Jesus 301 00:16:01,920 --> 00:16:06,200 came in as a humble child, he's going to go out as a humble 302 00:16:06,600 --> 00:16:10,920 saviour. Jesus. 303 00:16:10,920 --> 00:16:13,520 Humility on full display here. And there's quite a bit of 304 00:16:13,520 --> 00:16:16,880 prophecy that points to the true king riding into Jerusalem on a 305 00:16:16,880 --> 00:16:17,880 donkey. Check this out. 306 00:16:17,880 --> 00:16:22,160 Zechariah 99 says this. You rejoice greatly. 307 00:16:22,160 --> 00:16:25,360 O daughter of Zion, shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem, behold, 308 00:16:25,360 --> 00:16:28,200 your king is coming to you righteous and having salvation. 309 00:16:28,200 --> 00:16:31,080 Is he humble and mounted on a donkey? 310 00:16:31,760 --> 00:16:36,160 On a colt, the foal of a donkey, in total fulfillment of 311 00:16:36,160 --> 00:16:40,760 Zechariah 99, Matthew tells us that Jesus used this borrowed 312 00:16:40,760 --> 00:16:47,120 donkey, not stolen borrowed donkey to ride into Jerusalem 313 00:16:47,120 --> 00:16:51,400 for the very last time. And all the while, as Jesus was 314 00:16:51,400 --> 00:16:54,360 riding into Jerusalem on this donkey, he's being praised. 315 00:16:54,640 --> 00:16:58,560 Hail the King of the Jews, hail the King of kings and the Lord 316 00:16:58,560 --> 00:17:01,400 of Lords. They're shouting at Jesus as he 317 00:17:01,400 --> 00:17:02,880 rides in. And this leads to the first 318 00:17:02,880 --> 00:17:05,280 thing that I really want to draw your attention to this morning. 319 00:17:06,480 --> 00:17:10,359 Jesus often uses what is already near you. 320 00:17:11,160 --> 00:17:13,520 Jesus often uses what is already near you. 321 00:17:13,520 --> 00:17:16,400 Jesus said to the two disciples, go into the town in front of you 322 00:17:16,400 --> 00:17:20,079 and immediately you will find the donkey and her cult weren't 323 00:17:20,079 --> 00:17:24,440 on the other side of the city. The donkey and her cult weren't 324 00:17:24,440 --> 00:17:27,119 at the temple. The donkey and her cult weren't 325 00:17:27,160 --> 00:17:29,560 anywhere far away. They were actually really close 326 00:17:29,560 --> 00:17:34,040 to where this story took place. And so the point that I want to 327 00:17:34,040 --> 00:17:37,440 make by saying that is this. Jesus often uses what is already 328 00:17:37,440 --> 00:17:43,200 near to us. What I also want you to mention 329 00:17:43,200 --> 00:17:45,400 or to realize this morning is God doesn't use just 330 00:17:45,400 --> 00:17:49,920 extraordinary things. God uses available things. 331 00:17:50,680 --> 00:17:53,280 God doesn't just use extraordinary things. 332 00:17:53,280 --> 00:17:57,480 God uses available things. Let me help make this as clear 333 00:17:57,480 --> 00:17:59,360 as I can. What if God wanted to use your 334 00:17:59,360 --> 00:18:03,120 house for let's say United weekend? 335 00:18:04,160 --> 00:18:07,200 What if God wanted to use your house for a small group 336 00:18:07,400 --> 00:18:10,200 gathering? What if God wanted to use your 337 00:18:10,200 --> 00:18:13,640 house just for a lunch meeting of some sort that had to do with 338 00:18:14,600 --> 00:18:16,800 your faith or having to do with your church? 339 00:18:17,560 --> 00:18:21,440 What if God wants to use you to invite your Co workers to Easter 340 00:18:22,760 --> 00:18:24,720 and to come in the in the in three weeks? 341 00:18:25,520 --> 00:18:29,360 What if God wants to use whatever is near you to bring 342 00:18:29,360 --> 00:18:34,400 glory and honor to Himself? I can promise you this morning, 343 00:18:34,960 --> 00:18:37,920 God is wanting to borrow those things that are close to you. 344 00:18:38,640 --> 00:18:41,360 He's going to bless them for your good, but He's going to use 345 00:18:41,360 --> 00:18:45,280 them for His glory. Yes, sometimes it might not make 346 00:18:45,280 --> 00:18:50,400 much sense at all. Hey guys, go borrow a donkey and 347 00:18:50,400 --> 00:18:52,280 bring it to me. I'm sure those guys were like, 348 00:18:52,280 --> 00:18:54,240 now why a donkey? What's she's just going to do 349 00:18:54,240 --> 00:18:58,320 with this donkey, right? But they went and did as Jesus 350 00:18:58,320 --> 00:19:03,280 said, God doesn't just use extraordinary things, He uses 351 00:19:03,280 --> 00:19:06,240 available things. And I just want to ask this 352 00:19:06,240 --> 00:19:12,520 morning, if God wanted to use you, are you available for him 353 00:19:12,520 --> 00:19:16,480 this morning? Are you available for God to use 354 00:19:16,480 --> 00:19:19,600 you for your, for your good and for his glory? 355 00:19:20,600 --> 00:19:25,600 Jesus often uses what is already near us as a reminder this 356 00:19:25,600 --> 00:19:27,520 morning. Second, there's a powerful line 357 00:19:27,520 --> 00:19:29,400 in verse 3. It's loaded. 358 00:19:29,960 --> 00:19:32,520 Jesus uses 4 little words here that are huge. 359 00:19:32,520 --> 00:19:34,520 And what I want you to see though, before we get to those 4 360 00:19:34,520 --> 00:19:37,320 little words is this. Jesus asked for what already 361 00:19:37,320 --> 00:19:40,320 belongs to him. Jesus asks for what already 362 00:19:40,320 --> 00:19:44,160 belongs to him and he uses 4 little words to show us this. 363 00:19:45,080 --> 00:19:50,280 The Lord needs them. The Lord needs them. 364 00:19:50,280 --> 00:19:53,360 And this is a powerful, powerful statement. 365 00:19:53,360 --> 00:19:56,520 Have you ever heard somebody say make Jesus Lord of your life? 366 00:19:57,320 --> 00:19:59,720 Have you ever heard that in a church service or have you ever 367 00:19:59,720 --> 00:20:04,080 heard that somewhere? You ever, you ever thought about 368 00:20:04,080 --> 00:20:07,080 what does it mean to make Jesus Lord of my life? 369 00:20:07,080 --> 00:20:10,920 Well, oftentimes people make things Lord of their life 370 00:20:10,920 --> 00:20:13,480 without really even realizing that they're making it the Lord 371 00:20:13,480 --> 00:20:16,760 of their life. Oftentimes that looks like money 372 00:20:17,480 --> 00:20:22,760 or it looks like possessions. Oftentimes it looks like stuff, 373 00:20:22,840 --> 00:20:25,800 right? Without us realizing it, we buy 374 00:20:25,800 --> 00:20:29,360 a house and before we know it, that house is our Lord because 375 00:20:29,360 --> 00:20:31,080 it takes money to pay the mortgage. 376 00:20:31,520 --> 00:20:34,680 It takes money to replace the water heater when it breaks. 377 00:20:35,240 --> 00:20:38,040 It takes money to pump out the septic tank, right? 378 00:20:38,040 --> 00:20:41,720 And before you know it, that house is Lord over you because 379 00:20:41,720 --> 00:20:44,120 whatever that house does, you answer to, right? 380 00:20:44,120 --> 00:20:47,120 You don't have a choice. You have to pay that mortgage. 381 00:20:47,360 --> 00:20:49,240 You have to do this. You have to do that when it 382 00:20:49,240 --> 00:20:51,520 comes so that house becomes Lord over you. 383 00:20:51,520 --> 00:20:55,200 When we talk about making Jesus Lord of our life, really what 384 00:20:55,200 --> 00:20:58,480 we're talking about is everything that we own. 385 00:20:58,520 --> 00:21:02,840 Now, you don't really own it because really God is the maker 386 00:21:02,840 --> 00:21:05,360 of all things and really it all belongs to God. 387 00:21:05,760 --> 00:21:09,120 So instead of us being owners of our stuff, we just become 388 00:21:09,440 --> 00:21:15,520 stewards of our stuff, right? We don't really own anything. 389 00:21:16,040 --> 00:21:19,000 And you heard it said before, pastors say this all the time. 390 00:21:19,240 --> 00:21:22,360 I've never seen a hearse behind a funeral procession, right? 391 00:21:22,800 --> 00:21:24,160 People can't take their stuff with them. 392 00:21:24,160 --> 00:21:26,680 When you go to heaven, well, that's just a reminder to us 393 00:21:26,920 --> 00:21:29,040 that we don't own anything. God owns it all. 394 00:21:29,040 --> 00:21:33,280 We're just stewards of that. And what God wants to do is God 395 00:21:33,280 --> 00:21:38,000 wants to use those things for your good and for his glory, 396 00:21:38,320 --> 00:21:40,680 right? The Lord needs them. 397 00:21:40,680 --> 00:21:42,840 That is a powerful, powerful statement. 398 00:21:42,920 --> 00:21:46,560 It helps us to realize who we are in light of who Jesus is, 399 00:21:47,080 --> 00:21:51,240 right? And reality we're not much at 400 00:21:51,240 --> 00:21:54,840 all right. God is the one who owns the 401 00:21:54,840 --> 00:21:58,800 cattle on 1000 hills. And so we are when we make Jesus 402 00:21:58,800 --> 00:22:02,920 Lord of our life, we become stewards of everything that he 403 00:22:02,920 --> 00:22:07,480 has given to us. Jesus tells his disciples go 404 00:22:07,480 --> 00:22:09,320 into town and get the donkey in the colt. 405 00:22:09,720 --> 00:22:12,240 This fulfills the prophecy of Zechariah 99. 406 00:22:12,240 --> 00:22:15,200 But I believe there's so much more going on here. 407 00:22:15,200 --> 00:22:17,440 It's it's a little bit deeper than we think. 408 00:22:18,320 --> 00:22:21,760 There's a story in First Kings one about King David's fourth 409 00:22:21,760 --> 00:22:25,680 son, Adonijah. You are all mostly familiar with 410 00:22:25,680 --> 00:22:28,600 who King David was. King David was the greatest king 411 00:22:28,600 --> 00:22:32,320 in all of Israel's history. He had he was a man after God's 412 00:22:32,320 --> 00:22:34,280 own heart. There were so many things that 413 00:22:34,280 --> 00:22:37,280 happened to the nation of Israel under King David that really he 414 00:22:37,280 --> 00:22:40,400 was the greatest king ever. One First Kings 1 David has 415 00:22:40,400 --> 00:22:42,920 gotten to the end of his life and all the things that God has 416 00:22:42,920 --> 00:22:46,320 used him to do and all the things that he has used King 417 00:22:46,320 --> 00:22:48,800 David to fulfill in the nation of Israel. 418 00:22:50,040 --> 00:22:53,920 David's coming to the end of his life and we read an interesting 419 00:22:53,920 --> 00:23:00,400 story in First Kings 1, David's fourth, fourth son, Adonijah, 420 00:23:00,880 --> 00:23:03,960 appoints himself as the king to take his father's place. 421 00:23:04,040 --> 00:23:10,040 Did you hear what I said? Adonijah appoints himself to be 422 00:23:10,040 --> 00:23:14,000 David's replacement. He arranges for himself to ride 423 00:23:14,000 --> 00:23:18,520 into the town like a king. It says this in First Kings 15. 424 00:23:18,800 --> 00:23:23,560 Now Adonijah the son of Haggath, exalted himself, saying, I will 425 00:23:23,560 --> 00:23:26,200 be king. And he prepared for himself, 426 00:23:26,240 --> 00:23:31,560 Chariots, horsemen, and 50 men to ride before him, to run 427 00:23:31,560 --> 00:23:36,320 before him. Adonijah had had set up all 428 00:23:36,320 --> 00:23:38,720 these things to make people think that he was the rightful 429 00:23:38,720 --> 00:23:43,200 king. Listen to this in First Kings 6. 430 00:23:43,760 --> 00:23:48,880 First King 616 tells us that Adonijah had never disappointed 431 00:23:48,880 --> 00:23:52,160 David and that Adonijah was a good looking man. 432 00:23:53,440 --> 00:23:56,040 Actually, I think that might be why Pastor Ben asked me to 433 00:23:56,040 --> 00:23:57,520 preach this message this morning. 434 00:23:58,600 --> 00:24:00,360 Sounds a whole lot better than the donkey, right? 435 00:24:03,000 --> 00:24:07,320 Here's the point. Adonijah looked the part. 436 00:24:09,040 --> 00:24:13,280 He rode into town on these majestic horses and Chariots. 437 00:24:14,880 --> 00:24:17,080 He had all these men running before him. 438 00:24:17,080 --> 00:24:20,200 Here comes the king. He played the part. 439 00:24:20,200 --> 00:24:23,440 He acted the part. He looked the part. 440 00:24:24,680 --> 00:24:28,760 It was only one problem. Adonijah wasn't the king. 441 00:24:29,800 --> 00:24:32,440 David had already prepared to appoint Solomon as the next 442 00:24:32,440 --> 00:24:35,400 king. And when David found out all the 443 00:24:35,400 --> 00:24:40,240 Adonijah had done, he placed Solomon the rightful king. 444 00:24:40,400 --> 00:24:44,400 Listen to this. He plays Solomon on a donkey, 445 00:24:45,040 --> 00:24:48,360 and he rode Solomon into the city on a donkey. 446 00:24:49,440 --> 00:24:51,720 Sounds a whole lot like what we're talking about in Matthew 447 00:24:51,720 --> 00:24:56,280 21, doesn't it? The king is coming into the city 448 00:24:57,160 --> 00:25:00,040 riding on a donkey, and his name is Jesus. 449 00:25:02,800 --> 00:25:05,560 I wonder this morning how many of us, when it comes to truly 450 00:25:05,560 --> 00:25:10,600 following Jesus, have convinced ourselves that if we just play 451 00:25:10,600 --> 00:25:15,640 the part, if we just look the part, if we just tell other 452 00:25:15,640 --> 00:25:19,000 people, hey, I'm a Christian, I follow Jesus. 453 00:25:20,280 --> 00:25:25,720 If we convince other people that we really are of him, you know, 454 00:25:26,080 --> 00:25:30,000 attend church every Sunday, give a little money in the giving 455 00:25:30,000 --> 00:25:35,320 boxes, serve every time there's opportunity to serve, tell other 456 00:25:35,320 --> 00:25:39,800 people, hey man, I love Jesus. We look the part, we play the 457 00:25:39,800 --> 00:25:44,960 part, we act the part. But in reality, the words of 458 00:25:44,960 --> 00:25:50,880 Matthew 723 are true of you. This morning Jesus says this. 459 00:25:50,880 --> 00:25:52,200 And then I would have clear to them. 460 00:25:52,520 --> 00:26:00,040 I never knew you depart from me, you workers of lawlessness, just 461 00:26:00,040 --> 00:26:02,480 like Adonijah. Just because you look the part 462 00:26:02,480 --> 00:26:08,040 or play the part doesn't really mean that you are the part. 463 00:26:09,640 --> 00:26:13,200 This morning, I pray that you would allow the Holy Spirit to 464 00:26:13,760 --> 00:26:17,320 do a little soul searching this morning to make sure that you 465 00:26:17,320 --> 00:26:21,360 are indeed the part, that you are indeed a son or daughter of 466 00:26:21,360 --> 00:26:23,840 the Most High King. And if not, the good news is, 467 00:26:24,400 --> 00:26:26,000 listen, your heart is still beating. 468 00:26:26,400 --> 00:26:29,240 You still got breath in your lungs, right? 469 00:26:29,240 --> 00:26:33,760 Praise the Lord that he hasn't allowed you to die yet, right? 470 00:26:34,400 --> 00:26:38,200 But the Bible promises death is coming to all of us and we'll 471 00:26:38,200 --> 00:26:41,720 stand before him in judgement If you haven't made Jesus Lord of 472 00:26:41,720 --> 00:26:44,400 your life. And I beg you today to make 473 00:26:44,440 --> 00:26:48,680 Jesus the Lord of your life. As we close this morning, one 474 00:26:48,680 --> 00:26:53,560 last point I want to make. What you release to Jesus 475 00:26:53,680 --> 00:26:56,720 becomes part of his redemptive plan. 476 00:26:58,040 --> 00:27:01,880 So I talked a little while ago about Jesus riding into town on 477 00:27:01,880 --> 00:27:03,840 a donkey. Well, why was Jesus riding into 478 00:27:03,840 --> 00:27:07,640 town on a donkey anyway? Well, Jesus was riding into 479 00:27:07,640 --> 00:27:12,280 Jerusalem because he was riding into town ultimately, ultimately 480 00:27:12,280 --> 00:27:16,000 knowing that he was going to Galgoth, he was going to that 481 00:27:16,480 --> 00:27:19,360 that heel that there was going to be a cross on the top of that 482 00:27:19,360 --> 00:27:22,800 hill and Jesus was going to be nailed to that cross for your 483 00:27:22,800 --> 00:27:27,080 sin and for my sin. Jesus was riding into Jerusalem 484 00:27:27,080 --> 00:27:30,920 on this donkey for the very last time because he knew that he was 485 00:27:30,920 --> 00:27:33,320 ultimately going to be betrayed and he was going to die on a 486 00:27:33,320 --> 00:27:38,400 cross. The donkey in her cult became a 487 00:27:38,400 --> 00:27:40,640 major part of the story of redemption. 488 00:27:42,160 --> 00:27:46,400 God the Father was using this donkey and her cult to to bring 489 00:27:46,400 --> 00:27:48,920 the Savior of the world into the city. 490 00:27:49,400 --> 00:27:52,040 But what I want you to think about this morning is think 491 00:27:52,040 --> 00:27:54,320 about the the owners of those donkeys. 492 00:27:55,080 --> 00:27:57,680 Put yourself in those in their shoes for just a moment. 493 00:27:58,720 --> 00:28:00,920 You wake up in the morning and you find that your donkeys have 494 00:28:00,920 --> 00:28:03,480 been taken. Not just one, but both of your 495 00:28:03,480 --> 00:28:07,200 donkeys have been taken. I'm sure there would have been 496 00:28:07,200 --> 00:28:10,280 questions like hey, honey, did you do something with the 497 00:28:10,280 --> 00:28:13,320 donkeys? No, baby, I, I I left them right 498 00:28:13,320 --> 00:28:15,960 where you had them tied up. Well, they're not there, 499 00:28:15,960 --> 00:28:18,640 Honeywell. I don't know, baby. 500 00:28:18,640 --> 00:28:20,280 I didn't do it. You did it. 501 00:28:20,640 --> 00:28:23,440 You probably put them somewhere else than where they usually go. 502 00:28:23,840 --> 00:28:25,760 No, honey, I didn't. I didn't. 503 00:28:25,760 --> 00:28:28,920 You know? And if you're like me, who am I 504 00:28:28,920 --> 00:28:30,720 kidding? Jennifer and I never argue. 505 00:28:30,800 --> 00:28:32,760 We never have a disagreement at all. 506 00:28:33,400 --> 00:28:35,280 I usually say yes, Honey, you're right. 507 00:28:36,360 --> 00:28:38,800 I put those in the wrong place. Let me go see if I can find 508 00:28:38,800 --> 00:28:39,120 them. Right? 509 00:28:39,120 --> 00:28:42,400 That's what I say, right? And that what you men, Mike, I 510 00:28:42,400 --> 00:28:45,600 know what you say. Nancy's always right, isn't she? 511 00:28:45,960 --> 00:28:46,600 Yeah. OK. 512 00:28:46,920 --> 00:28:54,080 Well, I can imagine if if it's us, man, the frustration of 513 00:28:54,080 --> 00:28:58,640 losing your keys, you know, initially you're like, man, I I 514 00:28:58,720 --> 00:29:01,880 I'm pretty sure I hung those on that, on that hook. 515 00:29:02,480 --> 00:29:04,440 I'm pretty sure that I left them on the counter. 516 00:29:05,320 --> 00:29:07,320 I'm pretty sure that they were right here, right? 517 00:29:07,320 --> 00:29:11,560 And as you start looking for them, that, that, that maybe 518 00:29:11,560 --> 00:29:14,280 sense of awe and wonder about what happened to the keys might 519 00:29:14,280 --> 00:29:16,040 turn into all right, I got to find my keys. 520 00:29:16,040 --> 00:29:18,160 It's 9:15. I got to be there at 9:14, 521 00:29:18,400 --> 00:29:21,200 right? You're running a little bit 522 00:29:21,200 --> 00:29:22,720 late, right? You got to find your keys. 523 00:29:22,720 --> 00:29:24,720 And so you start to panic. And then as you start to panic, 524 00:29:24,720 --> 00:29:28,320 you start to get angry. Man, I know I put those keys 525 00:29:28,320 --> 00:29:30,120 right here. Lord, help me find those keys. 526 00:29:30,240 --> 00:29:34,040 I don't know what I did right. I can sure these owners of these 527 00:29:34,040 --> 00:29:36,520 donkeys are like, man, somebody came and stole our donkeys in 528 00:29:36,520 --> 00:29:39,160 the middle of the night, and I don't know what in the world is 529 00:29:39,160 --> 00:29:40,440 going on. Why would people steal our 530 00:29:40,440 --> 00:29:45,360 donkey? And then they see the procession 531 00:29:45,360 --> 00:29:48,520 coming. They see the people taking off 532 00:29:48,520 --> 00:29:51,800 their cloaks and throwing them on the ground, and they see the 533 00:29:51,800 --> 00:29:54,840 King of kings and Lord of Lords come riding in on their donkey. 534 00:29:54,840 --> 00:29:56,960 Can you imagine what it did to their spirit? 535 00:29:57,680 --> 00:29:59,640 They're like, hey, man, that's my donkey. 536 00:29:59,920 --> 00:30:01,840 Jesus. Hey, that's my donkey. 537 00:30:01,920 --> 00:30:03,520 Look, Jesus is riding on my donkey. 538 00:30:03,920 --> 00:30:06,760 Look at Jesus, man. He, he's riding on my donkey. 539 00:30:07,640 --> 00:30:10,400 And for the rest of their life, Can you imagine what they would 540 00:30:10,400 --> 00:30:14,640 have thought? The King of kings who died on 541 00:30:14,640 --> 00:30:21,560 that cross, He used my donkey church. 542 00:30:21,560 --> 00:30:26,400 Can I tell you this morning, Can you imagine what it's going to 543 00:30:26,400 --> 00:30:31,240 be like when we get to heaven and standing around that throne? 544 00:30:31,960 --> 00:30:35,080 There's people that Jesus used us to lead them to faith and 545 00:30:36,360 --> 00:30:39,240 they're standing across from us and we look, hey, man, hey, 546 00:30:39,240 --> 00:30:43,000 look, there's John. I worked with John and that 547 00:30:43,000 --> 00:30:47,480 Bible study at work that I was leading, Jesus interceded John 548 00:30:47,480 --> 00:30:50,560 on his way to hell. And John is around this throne 549 00:30:50,560 --> 00:30:54,840 this morning because God used me, right? 550 00:30:55,040 --> 00:31:00,840 Hey, hey, look, there's whoever that person is around this 551 00:31:00,840 --> 00:31:06,320 throne today because I let my house be used for a Bible study. 552 00:31:06,320 --> 00:31:08,400 And my neighbors saw what was going on and they said, hey, 553 00:31:08,400 --> 00:31:11,480 man, what's goes on at your house on Monday nights at 6:00? 554 00:31:11,840 --> 00:31:13,200 You have all these cars to come in. 555 00:31:13,200 --> 00:31:15,760 But what's happening? We have a Bible study. 556 00:31:15,760 --> 00:31:18,760 Would you mind you want to come? We just hang out for a little 557 00:31:18,760 --> 00:31:22,720 while and that person comes to the to the Bible study and they 558 00:31:23,360 --> 00:31:25,280 find Jesus as their Lord and Savior. 559 00:31:26,280 --> 00:31:32,800 What Jesus borrows, he blesses for your good and ultimately for 560 00:31:32,800 --> 00:31:36,480 his glory. I wasn't planning to say this 561 00:31:36,480 --> 00:31:39,640 this morning, but I feel like I need to. 562 00:31:41,400 --> 00:31:44,000 Several years ago I was pastor at First Baptist Church down in 563 00:31:44,000 --> 00:31:47,960 Moreland, and God had somehow orchestrated the way that God 564 00:31:47,960 --> 00:31:49,680 does. I didn't understand it. 565 00:31:50,200 --> 00:31:53,240 Whatever. God wanted us to go to Ecuador 566 00:31:53,240 --> 00:31:57,080 on mission trips. We were going down to reach the 567 00:31:57,080 --> 00:32:00,760 Afro Ecuadorian people group. They, nobody that they knew of, 568 00:32:00,760 --> 00:32:03,320 had ever come to faith in Christ from that people group. 569 00:32:04,520 --> 00:32:07,320 About a year and a half after we started going down to Ecuador, 570 00:32:07,320 --> 00:32:08,840 we were able to go out on the beach. 571 00:32:08,840 --> 00:32:14,680 One day Johnny the missionary down there, took this lady out 572 00:32:14,680 --> 00:32:19,080 into the water and for the first time ever, a baptized believer 573 00:32:19,080 --> 00:32:22,120 from the Afro Ecuadorian people group was baptized right there 574 00:32:22,120 --> 00:32:24,800 in the ocean. I stood there and wept like a 575 00:32:24,800 --> 00:32:29,640 child thinking that the Afro Ecuadorian people group is going 576 00:32:29,640 --> 00:32:32,760 to be represented around the throne from Revelation 17 577 00:32:32,760 --> 00:32:35,080 because of us coming down here and doing missions. 578 00:32:35,360 --> 00:32:38,480 And really on a bigger level than that, because God loved him 579 00:32:38,480 --> 00:32:42,080 enough to send his son to die for them so that they could ask 580 00:32:42,080 --> 00:32:45,680 him to be Lord of their life. And now that Afro, Dorian, the 581 00:32:45,840 --> 00:32:49,680 Echo, whatever the people group that I can't pronounce is going 582 00:32:49,680 --> 00:32:53,200 to be represented around the throne of grace in Revelation 17 583 00:32:53,200 --> 00:32:57,720 because of our faithfulness and ultimately because of God's love 584 00:32:57,720 --> 00:33:05,480 for us. Church, what God borrows, he 585 00:33:05,480 --> 00:33:09,640 blesses for our good and for his glory. 586 00:33:11,520 --> 00:33:15,920 So let me ask you this morning, knowing that Jesus often uses 587 00:33:15,920 --> 00:33:20,520 what is already near to you and that Jesus already owns it all, 588 00:33:21,400 --> 00:33:25,240 what is it in your life that Jesus wishes to borrow so he can 589 00:33:25,240 --> 00:33:29,240 bless for your good and for his glory? 590 00:33:31,400 --> 00:33:34,000 What is it in your life that Jesus wants to borrow? 591 00:33:34,320 --> 00:33:36,320 And here's the real question, church. 592 00:33:38,280 --> 00:33:43,280 Here's the real question. Will you release it? 593 00:33:46,160 --> 00:33:50,480 Will you release it? Often times we think, no, that's 594 00:33:50,480 --> 00:33:52,720 mine. I'm not going to release my 595 00:33:52,720 --> 00:33:54,640 children, Lord, those are my children. 596 00:33:56,000 --> 00:33:58,520 I'm not going to release my home, that's my home. 597 00:33:58,520 --> 00:34:01,240 I'm not going to release my car. That's my car. 598 00:34:04,000 --> 00:34:08,199 The difference is the difference between the ordinary and the 599 00:34:08,199 --> 00:34:15,880 sacred is often just surrender. Often it's just surrender. 600 00:34:16,800 --> 00:34:20,199 That donkey became part of the greatest moment in history, and 601 00:34:20,199 --> 00:34:23,840 not because it was impressive, but simply because it was 602 00:34:23,840 --> 00:34:30,159 available. Are you available this morning 603 00:34:30,719 --> 00:34:34,400 at church? And I ask if you would just to 604 00:34:34,400 --> 00:34:37,360 close your eyes. Let this next few moments just 605 00:34:37,360 --> 00:34:40,400 be a moment that you do business with the Lord. 606 00:34:40,400 --> 00:34:43,800 Perhaps you just need to sit there and pray Our I'm going to 607 00:34:43,800 --> 00:34:47,360 invite our worship team back out here to lead us and one final 608 00:34:47,360 --> 00:34:50,280 song of worship this morning. We're going to have a time of 609 00:34:50,280 --> 00:34:55,679 response. But as we move into this time, I 610 00:34:55,679 --> 00:34:57,920 want this time to be a moment of surrender. 611 00:35:00,480 --> 00:35:03,240 I like to think of it like this as you have your eyes closed 612 00:35:03,240 --> 00:35:06,040 this morning. But you know, often times we, 613 00:35:06,040 --> 00:35:09,360 we, we come to God with the palms closed attitude. 614 00:35:10,000 --> 00:35:13,040 Lord, I'll do this and this as long as you don't ask me to do 615 00:35:13,040 --> 00:35:16,480 this. You know we have 3 mission trips 616 00:35:16,480 --> 00:35:19,120 coming up. Maybe God is calling you this 617 00:35:19,120 --> 00:35:21,840 morning to to go on one of those mission trips. 618 00:35:21,840 --> 00:35:24,880 Yes, the time for sign ups have already passed, but I'm going to 619 00:35:24,880 --> 00:35:28,120 tell you as the executive pastor this morning, I might get myself 620 00:35:28,120 --> 00:35:30,120 in trouble. I hope Ben's not watching. 621 00:35:34,760 --> 00:35:38,040 What if God wants you to go on a mission trip this year? 622 00:35:40,760 --> 00:35:43,440 Instead of holding your palms closed, would you just open your 623 00:35:43,440 --> 00:35:46,360 palms this morning as a yes gesture to the Lord? 624 00:35:48,760 --> 00:35:50,520 Just say yes to him this morning. 625 00:35:51,080 --> 00:35:59,200 Because what God borrows, He blesses it for your good and for 626 00:35:59,200 --> 00:36:03,400 His honor. Father, I pray that you would 627 00:36:03,400 --> 00:36:05,880 have your will and your way in this place this morning. 628 00:36:07,880 --> 00:36:11,560 Father, I have no idea what you want to do with Riverbend Church 629 00:36:11,560 --> 00:36:16,280 this morning and those who are seated before me, but God you 630 00:36:16,280 --> 00:36:23,240 do. Father, long before the owners 631 00:36:23,240 --> 00:36:26,560 of those donkeys took what they thought was possession of those 632 00:36:26,560 --> 00:36:31,880 donkeys, you had a purpose and a plan in mind for those donkeys. 633 00:36:31,880 --> 00:36:36,600 And that was for your Son to ride into Jerusalem for the last 634 00:36:36,600 --> 00:36:45,920 time seated on that donkey. Father, you have great plans for 635 00:36:45,920 --> 00:36:49,440 us. Plans, Lord, that that often 636 00:36:49,440 --> 00:36:51,560 times we don't really even understand. 637 00:36:52,800 --> 00:36:55,600 But God, I pray this morning that you would allow our yes to 638 00:36:55,600 --> 00:36:59,240 be on the table, Lord, because you want to borrow whatever it 639 00:36:59,240 --> 00:37:03,200 is you want to bless it to use for our good. 640 00:37:03,200 --> 00:37:07,960 But ultimately, Lord, you want to use it for your glory. 641 00:37:09,680 --> 00:37:12,600 Father, move in a way that only you can this morning. 642 00:37:12,600 --> 00:37:17,720 Father, send the Holy Spirit to provide whatever this morning. 643 00:37:18,280 --> 00:37:22,160 And Lord, have your will and your way in this place. 644 00:37:25,760 --> 00:37:28,160 Thank you for listening to the Riverbend Church Podcast. 645 00:37:28,560 --> 00:37:31,280 Learn more about who we are as a church and how to connect, you 646 00:37:31,280 --> 00:37:34,160 can head over to our website, Riverbendchurch Life.