Palm Sunday 3/20/16 The Big Trip (50)

Dear Father in Heaven: I give You praise, honor, and glory today as it was given to You here on earth years ago. This, the beginning of Holy Week, and I first give thanks to you for all the events that Jesus went through this week and mostly the gift of giving us His blood to wash us clean of sin. Please clear me of sins today. Please be with the family of Diane Downs Staub as she has come to You. Please help me with the message today and the messages of this week, this very busy week, in the hearts and minds of we who love and follow Jesus. Please, after the message, help me to get it dispatched. In Jesus' Name, I pray. Amen.

Dear brothers and sisters, please pray for the family of Diane Downs Staub as she passed away yesterday. Diane and I go way back. She lived on my paper route. She was in our class of 1959 at John Harris High School, and in later years I was her pastor for awhile as she resided at The Bridges of Bent Creek. It was while we were at The Bridges when Diane prayed the sinners' prayer with me. And she did it in faith. She might have been saved before that, but on that day she either became saved or renewed in Jesus. Either way, all honor and glory to Him for His gift of Salvation to all of us who ask. God is so good. Do you love Jesus today? Please, don't let it go another day. Let me get to the message, with the same scripture I used last week.

Palm Sunday: March 20, 2016: The Big Trip (Day Fifty) Also the first day of spring

Luke 19:28-44 New International Version (NIV)

Jesus Comes to Jerusalem as King

28 After Jesus had said this, He went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 As He approached Bethphage and Bethany at the hill called the Mount of Olives, He sent two of His disciples, saying to them, 30 "Go to the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, 'Why are you untying it?' say, 'The Lord needs it.'"
32 Those who were sent ahead went and found it just as He had told them. 33 As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, "Why are you untying the colt?"
34 They replied, "The Lord needs it."
35 They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. 36 As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road.
37 When He came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:

38 "Blessed is the king who come in the name of the Lord!"

"Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!"

39 Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, "Teacher, rebuke your disciples!"

40 "I tell you," He replied, "if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out."
41 As He approached Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it 42 and said, "If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace -- but now it is hidden from your eyes. 43 The days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment against you and encircle you and hem you in on every side. 44 They will dash you to the ground, you and the children within your walls. They will not leave one stone on another, because you did not recognize the time of God's coming to you."

Brothers and sisters, we talked the other day how Jesus sent two of His disciples ahead of Him to bring back a small donkey colt for Jesus to use and how everything was just as He said it would be when they would see the donkey. After the disciples brought the burro back to Jesus they took off their cloaks on it and placed Jesus upon the animal. Please remember that the colt was never ridden, meaning it could have been hard to ride. As they gathered and started their descent down from the Mount of Olives, where Jesus had been showing the other disciples how to put those red things in the olives ... no, no, that did not happen I want to keep you honest on this. The Bible in verse 37 talks about "The whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen. I want to point out here that He had a whole crowd of disciples. Are you a disciple for Jesus today? If not, you should be. Being a disciple for Jesus is one job that is assigned to all of us. You can check Mark 16:15 for that assignment. Also notice that the disciples were joyfully giving praise to Jesus. Have you ever been to a church where nobody smiles or they are afraid to lift their hands to God and shout out GLORY TO GOD, PRAISE YOU, JESUS, THANK YOU, JESUS? If that is your church, I dare you to stand up some Sunday while singing and give a big old shout-out of praise.

One other thing I want you to notice is how often Jesus tells His disciples something like how they would find the donkey colt and it happens. That is why I am so excited about heaven, for He also told us some things about that and it is all good, and it will be as Jesus said. In verse 38 these joyful disciples are shouting and singing "Blessed is the King who comes in the Name of the Lord!" "Peace in Heaven and glory in the highest!" Then as we see in verse 39 some of the Pharisees told Jesus, "Teacher, rebuke your disciples!" Tell them to be quiet. I would bet you that in some churches today if you were to stand up and shout out for Jesus and sing and dance a minute or two some of the "goody two-shoe people" would either stare at you, talk to you about your behavior after church, or just plain have an usher come over and tell you to sit down and shut up or you will be removed. WELL, GLORY, THROWN OUT OF CHURCH FOR PRAISING GOD. What an honor that could be because for sure you would have been in a dead church. I want you to know and understand this. Jesus is alive and when it comes to you and me, He wants us to be alive also. So come alive today, sing and shout that victory. Do like the people did on that first day of Holy Week back then and wave those palm branches around. A lot of churches give out palm branches as people leave church, maybe they should be handed out on the way in so people can wave them and shout as the preacher talks about Jesus and His Triumphal Entry.

Brothers and sisters, please enjoy this Holy Day and I will be writing each day as we go through this Holy Week. Please note now we will have communion on Thursday.

Dear Father in Heaven: Today we want to sing and shout our victory that we have with You. Please help us know that You love to hear us sing and shout, that You love for us to make that joyful noise unto You. Help us sing it out. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

Brothers and sisters, go forth now singing and shouting for Jesus and bring a good disciple for Him. Love ya.

Pastor Dan

Sing the wondrous love of Jesus;
Sing His mercy and His grace.
In the mansions bright and blessed
He'll prepare for us a place.

When we all get to Heaven
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus
We'll sing and shout the victory!

While we walk the pilgrim pathway,
Clouds will overspread the sky;
But when traveling days are over
Not a shadow, not a sigh.

When we all get to Heaven
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus
We'll sing and shout the victory!

Let us then be true and faithful,
Trusting, serving every day.
Just one glimpse of Him in glory
Will the toils  of life repay.

When we all get to Heaven
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus
We'll sing and shout the victory!

Onward to the prize before us!
Soon His beauty we'll behold;
Soon the pearly gates will open;
We shall tread the streets of gold.

When we all get to Heaven
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus
We'll sing and shout the victory!

When we all get to Heaven
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus
We'll sing and shout the victory!