Prepare The Way

We are celebrating today just the beginning.

Just the beginning of what Jesus was set out to do to fulfill his purpose.

First of all, before we start off today, I want to say thank you.

You may notice the wall looks a little different today.

These boys pulled a 13-hour day working at this church yesterday 13 hours we have a few in the middle.

Oh, and Ashley was there too.

I know she's up there.

Oh, he didn't say my name.

And Truett was here too, being a trooper.

He didn't whine, but only a couple of times.

His dad beat him on that.

So we're good.

All the dyers were here.

Eventually Sister Bridget showed up, so Howard and Aaron, brother Howard, actually he soldered we see it going in right there.

He soldered things and it wasn't acting right and he had to find Jesus about four times.

Yesterday wasn't acting right and he had to find Jesus about four times yesterday, but thank God, he didn't find the devil.

So, yes, baptism on the 22nd and the Deeper Connect group, anything we mention up here, whether Brother Jim or Brother Vernon mentioned something going on in the church, you will always find a sign-up sheet out there For our growth track.

If you have not been through our growth track yet this is where you know what we believe as a church, our core values, our core beliefs, where we stand on the word and the truth of God's word, and we will not back down from that, no matter what the culture says.

And we need to know where you are spiritually and you need to know where you are spiritually.

You can't fight a battle if you're not properly equipped, and one of the last things that Jesus said before he ascended to the Father was go and make disciples.

A dead church does not produce disciples, but an alive church produces disciples, and that's what my goal is here at this church.

So this body of believers, the sheep produce sheep and we do it all together.

So sign up for that out there.

We're waiting until that growth track fills up a little more.

He mentioned baptism Sunday.

If you want to, we have one that reached out to me and asked if she can rededicate her life.

If you have come back to the Lord recently and you have strayed for a while and you want to get dunked again, I believe God welcomes that with open arms, because you need to say once again I am rededicating my life, I have given everything in me.

I'm showing an outward washing of what God is washing on the inside of me, and you need to declare that with everything inside of you, every opportunity.

And why not do it here?

So, if you will stand with me for the reading of God's word Today, we're going to be coming from the 12th chapter of John and this is going to be one account.

It's counted in all four gospels, but in chapter 12 of John.

I just pulled it from here and it's starting in verse 12.

And we're going to be 12 and 13.

If you don't know, today is Palm Sunday, right?

Y'all don't know.

Today is Palm Sunday, right?

Y'all don't know.

Okay, it's all right, you're in the right spot.

Verse 12, it says the next day, the news that Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem swept through the city a large crowd of Passover visitors.

Now let me explain something to you.

In some of the other gospels it accounts for people who had seen Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead.

They knew his reputation already and they heard he was coming to town.

How many of you know that the Spirit of God will draw the crowd unto himself?

Verse 13, it says and the visitors took palm branches and went down to the road to meet him.

They shouted praise God.

In some of the translations it's Hosanna.

We worship you, lord, blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord.

Hail to the King of Israel.

Let's pray, father.

We thank you so much for your spirit already resting upon this place today.

We thank you, god, for what you have done, what you are going to do.

Even when we don't see you working, we know that you are still active in our lives.

In the rest of this service, use your humble servant, god, speak through me, anoint me, lord, to bring forth your word like I have never brought it before.

In your precious name, we pray amen.

Now, a few weeks ago, we talked about a topic and we were talking about being broken before God.

You may remember the mirror that didn't act right and I hit it one time and it flopped and flailed and went underneath the altar.

But I believe that brokenness will drive you to the altar.

I didn't plan that and actually I was to somebody I think it was at prayer meeting and I said I told everyone hey, don't come over here because the mirror's broken.

It's on the floor, and every single person who came to get prayer stood right by the brokenness.

When you become broken before Jesus.

It attracts the others who are broken, and we talked in this story about this woman.

In all four gospels she is accounted for, but three out of the four call her a sinful woman.

They name her and identify her as what she has done, instead of where she was positioned.

In only one gospel it actually mentions who she is as what she has done instead of where she was positioned.

In only one gospel it actually mentions who she is.

I want to paint a picture.

Today marks the beginning of Jesus' journey.

If we've noticed all throughout the gospels and Jesus' ministry, the Pharisees and the Sadducees were out to get Jesus from the beginning.

Even when Jesus was first born, someone was trying to kill him, but every single turn Jesus evaded the attack of the enemy and we have him in his grown life, during his ministry that Jesus avoided every single act.

So for him to be caught in the garden was not him being caught, it was him being offered.

And we see this woman and this woman wasn't even named in the majority of the Gospels.

She washed and anointed the feet.

Some say they anointed his head.

Some talk about how her tears.

So she was obviously so broken about who she was because she recognized whose feet she was sitting at and she allowed herself to be vulnerable before Jesus.

You know, we're real good in the church house.

We stop offering vulnerability to God anymore and we want to just come and check it off of our list of the week.

She was sitting and washing his feet.

Now think about this.

She was sitting and washing his feet.

Now think about this.

They did not have shoes or socks like we do.

The purpose of socks is to absorb the sweat so you don't stink so bad.

I know some of y'all got them little ball things you can get from Walmart that you stick in your shoes every night, called odor eaters.

I'm sure, mary, if it was me I would have wished man Jesus should have went to Walmart.

I'm sure, mary, if it was me I would have wished man Jesus should have went to Walmart.

They were dusty, most likely from the terrain.

You cut your feet when you were exposed.

Anybody ever worn open-toe shoes?

You walk in a place that has any kind of rocks or whatever.

It's very easy to slice open a toe.

There's a reason they call it.

He bled like a stubbed toe Because it's nasty, disgusting, so there's probably some scabs.

There is residue on his feet from where he's been traveling from.

There was also residue on this woman from where she had been and that same residue that led her to the feet of Jesus to wash off his residue.

Brokenness attracts the broken Residue that you carry in your life.

If you don't wash yourself, if you don't allow the Spirit of God to wash you, clean, you will attract residue wherever you go.

Nasty, dusty, dirty Imagine the stink.

I've washed some people's feet at this church before.

I'm just pastor steven.

That's disgusting.

You're right.

It was in this place that she was positioned at the feet of jesus, that she took the place that nobody else was taking.

Actually, her sister was saying why don't you get up and help me out with this meal?

Anybody ever been there?

You got some sisters Get up and quit being lazy, quit watching TV To them.

That was their version.

She was literally crying and breaking a year's worth of jar of perfume.

Some scholars say that they believe that that was for her job.

She was a prostitute and what they would do because people stunk a lot more back then is they would dab it on their neck and let everybody know that they were clean and they were ready for work it was his job, I guess and she broke this and they chastised her.

They were saying why in the world did you take something that could have went to the poor?

But this was the reality of this sinful woman Washing Jesus' feet.

This was not a place that was pleasant, but it was a place where she had a purpose.

Now, why is this part of the story today?

As she was sitting at his feet, crying and using her tears to wash his feet, as she used her hair breaking this physical body, a spiritual one is being broken at this time, as she makes this great sacrifice a year's wages she was being ridiculed, mocked and chastised for anointing Jesus.

And in John, chapter 12, judas is mentioned ridiculing, saying hey, we could have used that money for other things.

John 12 · chapter mention

Isn't it true that sometimes the people who are secretly doing wrong often bark the loudest?

All right, let's move on.

Sorry about that, let's go on.

They're getting on to Mary for doing this.

Here's what happened in Matthew, chapter 26.

Matthew 26 · chapter mention

If you're taking notes, write this down.

You can visit the verse later.

But Matthew, chapter 26.

Matthew 26 · chapter mention

But Jesus, aware of this, said to them why do you trouble the woman?

She has performed a good service for me, for you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.

By pouring this ointment on my body, she has prepared, say prepared.

She has prepared me for burial.

Verse 13 truly tell you, wherever this good news is proclaimed in the world, what she has done will be told in remembrance of her.

You know, there's a lot of people in the world today, a lot of people who have haughty spirits about them.

They feel that they have earned something in life and they feel that they deserve something.

They walk around like they deserve whatever they get, but people remember brokenness.

People remember brokenness, so let's bring this home.

So today's title is prepare the way, prepare the way.

So let's bring this home.

Turn to your neighbor and say prepare the way.

Now turn to your second choice and say prepare the way.

Speaking of prepare the way, I forgot before I started.

Happy birthday, sister Crouch, woo Woo.

For those of you who know me well, you should be very impressed that I remembered that before I got to the end of my sermon.

I will get focused and I forget about everything else that I'm supposed to say.

So let's bring this home.

We have a savior, jesus, the Messiah.

So we have, all of a sudden Jesus is talking about this is something that is beginning to prepare the path to his crucifixion, that is going to prepare the path for his burial.

So we have a savior, jesus the Messiah.

Now listen, let's get my flesh in it for a minute.

Normally I'm talking about the other way, but let's talk flesh If I am Jesus.

Okay, I don't know if you know this, but donkeys are not attractive.

I have never seen a donkey and I was like, oh, I have never seen a donkey.

And I was like, aw, that's so cute.

There ain't a lot of paintings of donkeys.

You don't see a lot of pictures of donkeys unless they're goofy, looking with some sort of hat on or something.

Now, when Jesus the Messiah at the very beginning we're going to pave a picture here At the very beginning, when darkness first was introduced to light, he was there.

When there was nothing and something was created, he was there.

When man first appeared on the scene in Genesis, he was there.

When Satan fell from heaven, he was there.

From the very first sin, jesus was there, sin leading up to God wiping out the entire earth with the flood, and say, hey, let's push the reset button and start this baby over.

That was not working out.

He was there when the father decided in his infinite wisdom, this was the perfect time, this is the perfect moment to send my son For us to die for us.

He submitted himself.

He did not have to leave heaven, he did not have to submit himself to our cruelty to bear the weight of our sin.

He submitted himself being born of a virgin so that he could go from there to here.

He chose to submit himself to being born in humble beginnings among the very animals he shared in creating.

Raised by a stepfather and his biological mother, he was the out in the house.

He had other brothers, half brothers.

They were heavily taxed.

He came out of an oppression.

He came into a place of oppression.

They were heavily taxed.

Some scholars believe that from far and near, rulers would take 50 to 60% of their household income for themselves.

Can you imagine?

I hate the taxes now, but, my goodness, he walked among us, giving his all to love and take the time to teach us.

You know what I love about Jesus is he was such an intelligent guy that he knew how to take something so elevated above us, all that there is above that we know and understand, and bring it down to where we can see it.

You know, we in the church house have become a Pharisee generation.

Uh-oh, hold on, hold on To where we love to say the these and the thous, but we don't do it in love.

What is the point of speaking the word of God if no one can understand it?

Even Paul said Paul was well-learned, paul knew the scriptures.

But he said I do not speak from what I know, I do not speak from my knowledge, but I allow the spirit to speak through me so that you can understand, because the spirit will meet you wherever you are, whenever you are, whenever you need him, he will be right there on top.

He walked among us, he gave his all and he loved to teach the people.

And it seems like apparently the disciples love to be corrected, especially Peter.

He was a go-getter but man, his foot went in his mouth so many times.

I'm surprised he ever had a speaking part.

All of this he did for us, jesus did for us, and then he was what John calls.

In his little paragraph here he labels it the triumphant entry of Jesus.

The triumphant entry of Jesus.

He comes in riding on a donkey.

When you think triumphant, I mean this is the era I grew up in.

I watched the original Aladdin, like the cartoon, like when they came in and the genie had Aladdin.

They're like hello, my hunter, or whatever it is.

That wasn't the right song.

But they walk in, they have the big, huge elephants, they have the white horses and the stallions and the steeds and everybody's riding and dancing.

That's a triumphant entry That'll impress somebody.

And the king of kings and the lord of lords comes in on a donkey.

Have you heard the noise a donkey makes?

It's even ugly.

Even the sound they make is hideous.

But the king of kings chose to come in the same way.

He came in the world.

Humble beginnings, humble beginnings, humble ways.

The donkey does not have a king flair to it.

When I think king, I do not think.

Donkey Doesn't even cross my mind.

They're not even in the same ballpark, they're in two different sports.

Donkey does not scream king to me, guess what?

Donkey doesn't even scream Messiah to me.

To me, the Messiah should be coming in on something that is even above what a king would come in on.

But that's not what happened.

There is nothing about this animal that says royalty.

It's pretty much the opposite.

But do you know, throughout the scriptures and in biblical texts, donkeys are often betrayed in works as symbols of service, suffering, peace and humility.

In Numbers, chapter 22, we see a donkey talk 22.

Numbers 22 · chapter mention

We see a donkey talk.

God could have picked any other animal, any other animal, and he chose a donkey.

God uses a donkey to speak to Balaam.

Some of y'all are crying about being the donkey.

You know what I'm saying.

You keep looking at God to make things exactly perfect and come out exactly how you're praying for it and you're not receiving the donkey that he's bringing into your city.

You're looking at the donkey instead of who is on it.

Because I said it last week and I'm going to say it until the day that I die, just like David, you are not meant to put on Saul's armor.

Where you are, what you have, who you are, you will be equipped, when the time comes, to face your giants exactly how God has ordained you to face your giants.

It's your job to prepare the way.

You have to be in your field of waiting, preparing yourself, being used by God in whatever season, whatever circumstance.

David himself was anointed as a young man, but he still went out into the field, the scholars say for about another 15 years before he even went to slay the giants, because he had some preparation to do.

God had some work to do in his life.

Think about this A prophet of God comes into your house and anoints you to be the king of Israel and then your dad says, okay, son, time to go back to the sheep.

I'd be like dad.

I believe it's your time to go back to the sheep.

I'm going to be king.

It wasn't time.

I had some preparation to go through.

He had some preparation to go through.

What you see before you today on this stage.

This is the end, and just the beginning of another season of preparation in my life that God has brought me through.

We've got to stop looking at people in their season of preparation and acting like they're in their promise, because where God is leading somebody to does not mean they have gone through what he is working with them in.

They're used for service, suffering, peace and humility.

Stop crying about.

You're not the beautiful steed.

I might have been laughing when I was writing this.

I want jesus to use the least likely of these.

I don't know why, but he does.

Probably because he knows that we will understand that it is not us and it is only him.

Because if we were as good and as great as we really wanted to be and we really felt like we were the boss and everything, guess what we would try to run the show and try to say we know God's will, when we only want our will to be done with his stamp of approval.

I took all my breath on that one.

I want Jesus to only use me where I'm comfortable.

I want Jesus to only use me where I'm comfortable.

Oh, don't send me to do that, lord.

I can't do that.

Jesus preferred to use donkeys.

So giddy up.

Every other time the Pharisees tried to catch him.

Every single time that's recorded.

You see him escaping, just barely, just barely.

He's escaping.

Now, put yourself in his shoes.

Now think about this.

Wearing his sandals, you go into a city that you know well.

You have preached in the streets, you have done miracles in the surrounding areas.

You have done miracles.

You have been a mouthpiece and the hands and the feet of God in these people's lives, and right now they're putting palm branches down so you can walk over soft ground.

Your animal, the ugly donkey, doesn't even have to walk on hard rock and all the other things that they had to walk on.

Oh, we're gonna pave the way for Jesus, and the same people who are yelling Hosanna will soon be screaming to crucify him.

Sometimes in your life, the way that God prepares for you, it will be pleasant, and sometimes the same people who were once pleasant will lead you into your purpose, because God's fulfilling a promise to where you have to go through some pain, because, I tell you this, no promise that God is leading you to does not have a valley of pain.

It doesn't.

I don't know about you, but I know, through me and what God has done in me, that I had to go through a season of pain, a season of preparation, so that when I got to the other side, no matter how hard I studied and how hard I felt insignificant, I knew that it was not me.

It had to be God, because every part of me, inside of me, wants me to do well.

Me inside of me wants me to do well, but until I allow God to speak through me and submit myself fully to him and be broken at his feet, I cannot be used and I cannot remain anointed.

The same people right now in this text, hosanna, hosanna, praise the one who comes in the name of the Lord.

We watched a video a minute ago and they were wanting a king who would come, like King David did, like the years before.

Anybody can testify that you like what you remember, that you want God to do what you remember and that's like what you remember, that you want God to do what you remember and that's not what God was trying to do.

God was trying to lead them into a place that they needed.

Not necessarily what they wanted.

Oftentimes, most of the time, that is how it works, because if we really took the reins and did what we wanted, it would never turn out how we really need it.

The same people yelling crucify him.

I don't know if I could take that path.

I don't know if I would be man enough.

I don't know if I could kill my flesh enough to make this path where they were preparing the way, singing his praises they didn't even care how ugly that donkey was.

They didn't even care that Jesus couldn't even afford his own.

They had to borrow it.

Come on, anybody like nice vehicles.

His was ugly and borrowed, but the way that was prepared for him into the city was leading him right to that hill.

I don't know if I could have handled watching the people that I know, because I mean, we have several accounts of Jesus being able to know what the Pharisees were thinking and being able to answer them before they even spoke.

Imagine what he could feel and hear as he was going through this crowd.

They wanted the king to save them from the people who were over them, the Roman empire, the oppressors that were taxing them.

Everything that the Romans did was at the expense of them.

Even the crucifixion was the Roman way.

They were expecting someone to come in and demolish, but actually it was not something that was going to be demolished only when the veil was torn.

But then the Holy Spirit was going to come to rebuild and the promise was coming.

The promise was coming.

The king was actually there to set them free from a deeper bondage that they didn't even understand, that they needed freedom from.

You know, oftentimes in my life I have went through seasons in my life and I I'm looking up and I'm like God what are you doing?

I am trying to do everything right and it looks like to my left, there's destruction.

To my right, there is destruction.

And he said now the path is cleared, you can see better.

Well, okay.

Most times I go through a season, I don't understand it in the middle of it.

Can anybody else agree that if you understood what was going on in the middle of it, you probably would try to have your hand in it?

I'm as guilty as they come.

Here's what I know.

Jesus will never ask you to go or do that he has not already done.

You ever feel betrayed?

He's felt it His own people, people related to the people who experienced miracles underneath his ministry, were the ones yelling out crucify him.

The people who came to the Lord were the ones screaming out crucify him.

Sometimes the path to your purpose is paved with pain.

Just like Jesus, it was full of people on your side.

Today and tomorrow they may be your worst enemy, because we know that it rains on the just and it rains on the unjust.

There is misery and pain in everyone's life.

Wouldn't it be so much sweeter with Jesus.

But God has a plan and purpose for everyone here today.

Sometimes preparation can be unpleasant and this sucks us, but the Bible promises you will have troubles, you will.

It's not you might, or sometimes it says you will.

But count it all as joy, because when you have the joy of the Lord, you have strength, and if you have strength, you can fight any battle that comes your way.

You will have troubles, but count it all as joy.

What we discover over and over and over again is when we are in the middle of preparation, it's always, always, always, leading you to a promise.

Now, this gives us hope, this builds our faith, even when we don't see God working, even when we don't know what is going on, even when I said this before when my child gets quiet in the other room, it scares me and I have to go see what he's doing, because I know that when he gets quiet, he's doing something he might not need to be doing, because I know that when he gets quiet, he's doing something he might not need to be doing.

Don't base your faith on not hearing God move, because when he is silent, he is up to something that you can't even comprehend.

Yet he's not letting you in because it's not your business.

Is that hard to hear In the middle of your valley?

In the season of preparation, sometimes you feel like you're buried.

But let me tell you where you are buried, and it is dark.

God has planted you, and first some things in your life have to die so that you can begin to grow.

John 14, 3, it says this and if I go, this is the promise that he gave us, because we right now cannot see heaven, we right now cannot have the eyes that sometimes God gives us glimpses, but we don't even have the comprehension.

I believe John 14, 3, it says if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me back and take you to be with me, that you also may be where I am.

Jesus left his heaven above, his home above, to come down and walk beside us to teach us and lead us to a salvation, and to then leave and go to the father and then send the comforter and we can receive the power that the veil was torn and we no longer have to go to a priest or a preacher.

We can ask him ourselves, we can approach God's throne room boldly.

He bids us come, come in boldly to the throne room.

He offers that to us and he says that one day, one day, we will be able to go with him.

That is the hope of the Christian faith that one day, one day, we will be able to go with him.

That is the hope of the Christian faith that one day, one day, I love my life, I love my wife, I love my child, I love our home, I love my church.

I love the position that God has raised us up to and the servanthood that he has instilled in us.

God has done so many things in our lives, but I am so ready to go to heaven.

You know why Jesus says if you love your life and gain the whole world, you lose your soul.

You know why Because we are so attached to the things we have down here.

We're not ready to go yet.

So we stop the preparation in our hearts and in our lives to go there, because we want it to last just a little bit longer.

I'm guilty too.

I am guilty too.

I don't want to end what is going on here.

I love doing what I'm doing.

I thrive in this situation.

I thrive with my wife, like she is my best friend.

I enjoy her so much.

She said I'm not allowed in her mansion.

She said, unless I want to come over and do some laundry, that's fine.

Y'all think I'm kidding, but listen.

Let me ask you this are you willing to let go of everything inside of you, everything that has been holding strings to you, pulling at your heartstrings, that have been distracting you from God so much.

I wish that we could go back 50 years and not have cell phones.

Something is constantly pulling for our attention.

But thank God we could share the gospel in the way that we do with the people at home that can't come or the people that will never step foot in this church.

That is awesome.

But, man, the distractions.

We live in a day of mass distractions, distractions.

We live in a day of mass distractions.

The devil doesn't even have to do it for us anymore.

We offer ourself to it.

It aggravates me that I don't have to go and order a magazine for something, to come to my house to find something.

I don't need that now.

Things are free and at the push of a little screen and we carry it around with us every day.

Every little detail in your heart, every little thing that you've been holding on to, every little dark corner of your heart, every dark room that you've locked up and thrown away the key.

You don't want nobody in there, but you don't want the Holy Spirit to come clean it out either If you give everything.

If God can use a donkey, if he can use a sinful woman to illustrate brokenness, imagine what he can do with you.

It doesn't matter of your sin, it doesn't matter what you.

You may have cursed somebody out in the parking lot and you came in here and you're like praise you, jesus.

God still loves you, god still cares for you.

But Jesus died on the cross.

In a few days it's going to be the day that he was crucified.

He died on that cross so you do not have to live the way that you're living now.

He died on the cross, so the people that you love do not have to live the way that they're living now.

That we could have love for those that we don't even know and just automatically love them.

We don't have to know them.

The way I feel that God's love is.

This is how I feel God's love.

Y'all fresh on this, and the Westbrooks too.

When you hold that baby, he is a stranger, she is a stranger.

Nobody has to tell you how to love that little baby, but when you hold that little baby, there's something that clicks inside of you and you're like I did not even understand the level of love that I could have felt until now.

That is the love of God, displayed through our children, that he desires for us to have for each other.

That's a serious love.

You may correct your child, you may spank them, you may time out them.

Whatever you do, you may lock them in their room or whatever, or you may make them go outside.

Maybe that's their punishment.

My son, if I take away his friends, he's dying.

If he can't go out and hang out with his friends, the world is over.

He's mine.

But there's these things in our lives that we keep holding on to.

Let go of the attitude.

Let go of how you were treated, because most of the times when we're treated a certain way as a child, we end up acting that way as an adult and you may not even realize it.

Let go of what has been done to you.

Let go how you have been treated and forgive.

Leave it behind you and walk away, never to return.

And forgive.

Leave it behind you and walk away.

Never to return.

Forgive everything, all the dark places.

Jesus took this journey and paved the way for you to make it to the cross.

John 14, 6 says this Jesus told him I am the way, the truth and the life.

No one can come to the Father, except through me.

Jesus prepared the way for us.

He prepared the way he took the weight of sin, death and hell and the grave for you, for me.