Sunday Message (1st service) - Pastor Brad Neuschwander (March 29, 2026) | Life Bible Church

Welcome to the Life Bible Church podcast. We

want to thank you for joining us today, and we

hope you find today's sermon impacting as you

listen to it wherever you are in your daily walk.

To find service times and watch messages online,

see our website at lifebiblechurch .org. Now,

enjoy this week's message. Would you tell the

Lord thank you one more time for that? Thank

you, Jesus. Thank you for your love. Thank you

for your provision. You know, Valina texted me

yesterday. I was out on my little riding lawnmower

and I got a little text. The lawnmower is my

happy place as long as it's a riding lawnmower

with the lawns that we have. And it's a place

where I go out to pray. to think. And it's the

one place where I can actually see something

get done. You know, sometimes in pastoring, you're

on the long perspective. And so watching the

grass get cut and things move from one height

to another is a blessing. And she texts me and

she goes, man, I'm really feeling this word about

the cloud, the size of a man's hand and faith

and provision coming. I said, well, it's really

important. I said, pray on it. I think you're

hearing the word of the Lord. And I just want

to second that. I felt like the Lord spoke something

as she was doing what she was doing, which was

incredible, just leading the congregation to

press in and to believe God that the drought

or the limitation or whatever's been keeping

your eyes from What's on the other side and the

provision that's available. We have to begin

to do what Elijah did. There is a time for praying

and birthing. And I'm not going to go into a

message this morning on that. But he got into

a birth stool position. He got into a Holy Ghost,

what I call a Holy Ghost crunch. bearing down,

praying with fervency and earnestness. And that's

what we were talking about. He was stretched

out in his spirit man, but he was bearing down,

praying that God would break the brass heavens

that had locked up the nation because of sin

and things. And when he saw after the seventh

time, He had to get past all the sixth time,

which represents the works of man. He had to

get past number five that represents grace and

get past the understanding of sometimes with

grace, God does things in abundance, but I have

to begin to press through and partner with him.

There's a lot in that, but he had to move past

all of the times. It was grace that was enabling

him to actually pray the persistence until he

saw. The key is, can you now this morning receive

what's in the room from the Lord and begin to

see something different than what's kept it locked

up? So I heard the Lord speak to me on the front

row. I was in the midst of trying to receive

something and I was hearing him ask me the question,

he goes, what can you see beyond the wall? That's

what he asked for me. What can you see beyond

the wall? Now we know the steel is in the ground

for just this project. Now the digging of the

trenches and The tiebacks that are slowly going

in. The question is, do you still have the iron

curtain up in front of your eyes or do you see

beyond what the next steps are? Do you see what's

coming? Do you see the reign of heaven? Do you

see the next things that must be prayed through?

heard and call to me so that I can tell you,

or are you going to stay capped and just waiting

in this season? You've got to now fill your,

if I could say it carefully, fill the womb of

your spirit with vision from heaven. Amen. Amen.

And so I'm just encouraging you where you're

at. I know there's some businesses, some businessmen

and women here. I know there's some areas that

finances, not only for business have been locked

up, but there's also people here that you feel

absolutely trapped by the debt you've been calling

out for God. I believe there is a cloud rising.

Now it may be small, but the issue is you've

got to begin to see it and begin to ask, begin

to call it forth and begin to run. As soon as,

Valina said in this meeting this morning. She

goes, as soon as he saw the cloud, he began to

run. And I heard the Holy Spirit say, Habakkuk

chapter, but I think it's two, write the vision

and make it plain that he who runs may run with

it. It was that clear. God is trying to write

a fresh. vision on your heart. Don't stay in

the atmosphere of famine. Even though you're

there right now, don't stay there in your heart.

See what God is saying. Amen? You receive that?

All right. Keep going. You're doing good. I want

to review just a little bit, but I'm reviewing

within with a point because it is Palm Sunday.

Next week, I mean, it just seems, I just felt

like we just celebrated Christmas. This whole

next week will be part of me just studying for

the theme of what the team has decided. And I

was part of that decision, but I don't remember

what my part was. But I know we've got a theme

here and I'll be preparing a message for that

this week. But as I was thinking about this week

and thinking about what we talked about last

week in regard to Jesus being stretched out in

the Garden of Gethsemane, fervently praying about

the church in Acts chapter 13, fervently praying

Acts 13 · chapter mention

to release Peter after they had lost James. And

we started with this verse, 1 Peter 4, 7 through

11. It says, the end of all things is at hand.

Therefore, be self -controlled and be sober -minded

for the sake of your prayers. We talked about

those two words, sober -minded and self -controlled.

Above all, can we say that? Above all. One more

time. Above all. Keep loving one another earnestly.

That word, the King James says it's fervently.

Since love covers a multitude of sin, show hospitality

to one another without grumbling. As each has

received a gift, use it to serve one another

as good stewards of God's varied grace. Or another

word. has his multifaceted, multicolored, manifold

grace. Be good stewards of it. We're talking

about the something more church and we're talking

about how Jesus, if we're gonna be that church

that he does the something more through, positioning

ourselves to have the heart of the king. The

main heart of the king is what? Being a servant.

And just for sake of review, our last point before

we went to 1 Peter 4 was this. Jesus never bypassed

the little day -to -day things for the big cross

experience. Now listen, we're going to be celebrating

today the big cross experience. And next Sunday,

the cross and the resurrection. And we should

always do that here in the house of God. But

the power of serving in both prayer and stewardship

of serving in love is what Jesus demonstrated

to us. I'd like you, if you would, to turn in

your Bibles to Psalms 118. We're going to get

there. In Jesus' name. Psalm 118. And talk, as

Peter was saying this about fervent prayer, fervent

love, fervent above all else, that being stretched

out, that idea of, are you doing okay? Just,

you're doing really good. That idea of just allowing

yourself to grab on to the very theme of the

heart of God and allow yourself to be pushed

or stretched beyond the boundaries of how you

would normally love. Every one of us as people

have boundaries. You may not. Even people that

don't have boundaries have boundaries. But there

always seems to be a marker. Of what you think

you're willing to give. And the Lord is constantly

in this verse here, above all. Above all means

go further than what you would normally do. So

when we think about Jesus, he was the supreme

example. He went further than what people would

have normally done. Everything about his life,

everything about, as we get ready here to celebrate

today as Palm Sunday, everything that he did

went further than people's expectation, their

demands, and he constantly lived to please the

Father, stretched out in his love, stretched

out in his prayer, stretched out in his will.

That he would honor the Father. Jesus rejected

powerful ministries presented by Satan. We read

about him in Luke chapter 4. Matthew 4 as well.

Luke 4 · chapter mention

He was tempted with fame. He was tempted with

power. And all that comes with it in the natural.

And he chose to be filled and anointed. With

the Holy Spirit, God anointed him because of

his choice to choose the Father. And every stage,

the anointing came to be yielded to the will

of being stretched out to the Father's purpose.

The anointing came on him. The Spirit of God

came on him when he came out of the waters of

baptism. But the anointing had to be tested with

character. It's a big deal. A lot of people receive

the anointing, but it doesn't stay on them genuinely.

They can pervert the anointing. Why? Because

they won't allow the depth of their character

to actually be yielded to the stretching out

of Christ. And so what do they do? They yield

to various temptations of fame, of power. Of

an easier route to go in the flesh than the route

of the narrow way that the father asks of them.

It was the anointing on Jesus that caused him

to yield to the direction of the Lord over every

other avenue and path. Jesus, we could put this

up here. Jesus rejected the sensational. He rejected

the speedy. And he rejected the spectacular.

Everything that Satan offered in his way. Notice

the three temptations. I'm not going to dive

into the deep temptations of the Lord because

there's so much there. But turn these stones

into bread, right? Come, I'll show you the nations

and the world. Just worship me. Just bow your

knee in homage and recognize that I have been

given authority and I'll give it to you. Or just,

just come on. The angels will bear you up. Come

on, just, just, you're hungry. Make this work,

the fame, they'll know you. He rejected the sensational.

He rejected the spectacular and the speedy. Meaning

what? There's a quicker way to get this done.

If you'll just do it my way, you'll just put

yourself on Facebook and Instagram. If you'll

just market yourself. If you'll just. go do what

the marketplace says you should do about your

ministry, then you could do it quicker. This

whole moving from place to place and city to

city, just as you're drawing a crowd, isn't working

real well. Listen, Jesus rejected every avenue

that would get him to partner with a human understanding.

That's why Jesus had to rebuke Peter. It wasn't

the fact that Jesus thought that Peter was just

a horrible person. Because when Peter heard that,

you know, son of man is going to be crucified.

Peter said, God forbid that that happened. Why?

It wasn't the fact that Peter was just trying

to think devilish. It was the fact that he was

just thinking. He was thinking out of his own

love and out of his own expectation of what Jesus

would mean to him. And now think that through.

How many of us get caught on thinking about what

certain things mean to us and that we try to

force feed something that's not really the father's

will because we've bit down on what that means

for us if we lose that. Jesus chose the low road

of suffering and he chose the cross. Jesus didn't

storm Israel by messianic force. That would have

been sensational and speedy. Can you imagine

12 legions of angels when one angel can wipe

out over 149 ,000 Assyrians? 12 legions of angels

are saying, all right, sick them. A nuclear blast

would have nothing on 12 legions of angels given

the charge to complete rule. That's not the way

of our king. That's the way of the kings of the

earth. He refused to give in to any of that.

My kingdom is not of this world, he said. Jesus

refused to flaunt his power of knowledge. to

show people he was the Lord. Now, he did this

in amazing ways. He still showed it, but he didn't

create a pool around him to constantly drop words

of knowledge and words of information constantly.

Listen. He is knowledge. He is understanding.

He is wisdom. He could have just sat on his podcast

and dropped, give him 15 every day. I'm not mocking

that. I'm just saying, you understand, he refused

to do that. He could have held up inside a rabbinical

type school, sat and made. place in the temple

as permanent and had gatherings to himself every

day. He refused to do that. Why? He chose the

small, the insignificant to get out to where

people were, not draw people to himself for what

he could offer. He was drawing people to the

father. Jesus purposely chose a path of humility,

purposely. Jesus chose the Father's will, which

was what? Be born, leave the pinnacle of light,

truth, and revelation, living in and around the

Father as the word from God to now be wrapped

in flesh and blood. I mean, from a... mindset

here of us looking at that is like, ooh, yuck.

If you didn't have to live in this and you had

something better, there's no one that goes to

heaven that wants to come back and trade in the

atmosphere there for the atmosphere here. Come

on. Let alone the son of God who was completely

perfect as the word who came forth from God,

who was God, right? I mean, you talk about a

downgrade. You were flying first class. You are

now in coach by the bathroom. Okay? The reality

is he said yes to live in obscurity in Nazareth.

He said yes to live in Nowheresville. On top

of being downgraded willfully to Nowheresville,

the fact that the center of Jesus' ministry took

place in a backwoods place called Galilee, a

.k .a. the sticks, and was not strategically

located in Jerusalem, says a whole lot. Jesus

embraced humility. He embraced it. That's what

Palm Sunday, that's what today is. It is a, and

I may be doing a poor job. I'm trying to steward

this here. It is the principle to prepare our

hearts to understand it was, yes, it was about

the cross. Yes, it was about the resurrection,

but there could never be a cross and there could

never. be a resurrection that would come in holiness

with destroying the power of sin unless there

was a willingness to come to Jerusalem in humility.

He points to the fact that everything that you

want to do in following Christ has to start and

live in that if you will, in that chamber of

humility. That's what he modeled. Jerusalem was

known for its spectacle. It was known for its

opulence. It was known as the grail, if you will,

the holy grail of all that God was doing. It

was Zion. It was that place. In order to get

there the way God wanted him to get there, he

had to go there in humility. Why do we think

that it's changed? Why do we think that access

to Zion comes now through accomplishment or learnedness

or education? Access to Zion and the presence

of the Lord, access to heavenly Jerusalem. Still

comes the greatest way. Who will ascend to the

hill of the Lord? Those with clean hands and

a pure heart. It starts with humility. Those

who have not lifted up their soul. Those that

have not sworn deceitfully. How do we approach

Zion? We approach it with the very same thing

as I never get to the place. where I have learned

so much, grown so much, that now, yes, there's

boldness as a son to come into the throne of

grace and a daughter to come in, but I never

take for granted that the access is given me

because of the humility of my Savior that I'm

told to be cloaked in. No matter what I've walked

through, no matter what I've experienced, It

is humility that brings me into the very presence

of the King. You know, Palm Sunday, there's a

lot to be said about this. We had a couple of

really great thoughts this morning in the prayer

room that took all of my verses, but I'm going

to preach them anyways. Jesus was, Jesus came

to Jerusalem writing. The Bible says out of Zechariah

chapter nine, and we have it up on the screen

if we could put it up there. Rejoice, O people

of Zion. Shout in triumph. O people of Jerusalem,

look, your king is coming to you. He is righteous

and victorious. Yet he is humble, riding on a

donkey, riding on a donkey's colt. Notice the

connection. He is righteous and victorious. Those

two things by themselves without humility lead

to religion and pride. Righteousness and being

victorious will always have a pull to lift our

soul up in our own righteousness or in the victory

that somehow we're helping take. God did it for

us, but we help him with the credit. Jesus, righteous

and victorious, yet he is humble riding on a

donkey. John 12, 12 through 15 says this. The

next day, a large crowd that had come to the

feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem.

So they took branches of palm trees and went

out to meet him. crying out, Hosanna, Hosanna.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,

even the king of Israel. And Jesus found, John

makes reference here, and Jesus found a young

donkey and sat on it, just as it was written,

fear not, daughter of Zion, behold, your king

is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt. Now we

could also look at the book of Matthew and Mark

about Jesus. sending two disciples to go get

and untying the donkey. We've preached on that

before. It's an incredible passage. The Lord

has need of it. Meaning Jesus always looks to

bring his lordship over two generations. Come

on. One that has never been ridden before and

one that has experienced life. God is looking

to capture. the hearts of the young and the old.

But it was so opposite of what the victorious,

the victors would ride in. Victors would ride

in on stallions. They'd ride in on white horses.

And we know that at his second coming, he will

do that. But at this first coming, everything

has to be done to show us the path. That his

kingdom is about humility. And he lived in humility.

And it was clothed in humility. Rode in in humility.

Went to the cross in humility. Why? Because that

is the way of our king. And without that we have

no cross. We would have a death. But we wouldn't

have victory. Because pride. And self -righteousness

never accomplishes the victory. The Bible says

that, and I don't want to spend too much time

on this, but it says they had palm branches in

their hand. Why palm branches? Well, we could

talk a lot about palm branches, but bottom line,

it represents a celebratory parade type event.

They didn't have little Israeli flags, right?

You know, the twin American -Israeli flag that

they were holding. No, they didn't have that.

They didn't have the flags where they could just

go to the trinket store and everybody just buy

a little flag for a parade route. But what they

did have is they loved celebration and they loved

parades. They especially loved parades of the

victors. And it says in Zechariah 9 that they

were holding palm branches. And it says it also

in the New Testament scriptures. But Zechariah

9 points to something very, very crucial. It

says they were rejoicing. It uses that little

phrase in the King James. It says, and they rejoiced

greatly. Which means to spin around. I know,

not, you're not playing spin around music. You

know, I just, you could stop. You're doing a

really good thing. You do need to understand,

as they were coming to the festival, because

everybody was coming to Jerusalem for Passover,

they had now got branches. Now here is the incredible

part of the sovereignty of God on this. And I'm

going to try to just get this out of my heart

because I believe the Lord is pressing on me

in regard to this. We understand something about

the nature of our God. He holds his timing close

to his vest. And then when it's ready, he releases

it. Now he sometimes always will give his prophets

the prophetic advance. warning, letting us know,

hey, this is about to happen, and it'll give

a few cues. So you need to understand that as

everybody came to Passover, they did not come

to Passover thinking this was the Passover. This

was like the last Passover. before the Lord's

eyes. Not that you can't celebrate Passover,

but this is the culmination of everything that's

happened since Exodus is happening now. Here's

how God in his sovereignty moves. In the fact

that he was now opening the time as Christ was

coming to the cross, several things were happening

on that day. First of all, it would be the 10th

of Nisan, meaning what? It was time to select

the lamb. Every household would have had to select

a lamb. It was said of that day that a lamb could

feed 10 in a house. Isn't that interesting that

10 represents the number of the law? There would

be a lamb selected to cover what the law says

was guilty, that the blood would satisfy the

10. Come on, somebody. I want you to think that

through for a second. Blood of the lamb would

be enough to satisfy 10, 10 representing the

10 commandments, 10 representing everybody who's

under the law. Every household would now pick

a lamb in which could include up to 10 over every

person that has fallen short in their own righteousness,

in their own ways, in their own understandings.

God had made provision in the Old Testament.

And now on that day, Jesus riding a colt of a

donkey. Have you seen donkeys? Donkeys are not

beautiful. Donkeys are not graceful. Donkeys

can be ornery. Now there's a difference between

a mule and a donkey. Mules are just stubborn.

But a donkey can have an attitude. Now, we know

from the scriptures that Balaam thought his donkey

had a serious attitude. Right? And his donkey

spoke back. I remember hearing a story as I grew

up as a child in our home about my mom. Parents

decided to get her a donkey. And that donkey

didn't like my mother. And so every time she

would go to ride the donkey, it would make one

token pass through the pasture and then head

for the barn and squeeze the barn door and knock

her off right at the barn door. Now, we can suppose

probably that this donkey was nice to Jesus.

But you need to understand something. This riding

the foal of a donkey means that Jesus was now

riding something that had never been broken.

So please get that in your black and white understanding

because you have to have that. It's not just

the little. bedtime story where he says he rode

the foal of a donkey. One of the reasons he had

the mother to go with the foal of the donkey

so that the kid wouldn't act up. Why? Because

if you have the parent of the donkey with the

young donkey that's never been broken or ridden

before, never had a saddle, never had a weight,

never had a rider, all of a sudden it's more

bound to respond in calmness than in fear and

anxiety. And what we don't understand is when

the Bible says they greatly rejoiced, it means

to spin around, and that word means to do it

loudly. Think of that for a second. Loudly. Loudly

rejoicing and spinning around. Right? However

you want to picture it, I'm probably not doing

a really good job, but the reality is palm branches,

loud voices, and a donkey that has never been

ridden would have done what? It would have been

what? Donkey eyes. Peeled back. New weight on

it. And having, it didn't say that the anointing

settled the donkey and its steps were like bada.

That's not what it says. If you've worked with

any animals in nature, you understand. I don't

care if you're a donkey whisperer. The reality

is loud noises and crowds and loud chanting and

yelling as people converge around it and on it

is going to do what? It's going to scare the

widow donkey. Okay? And so we've got to get that

in the picture of Palm Sunday as Jesus comes

to town. Why was God, not only was it the day

of selecting the lamb, four days later, Jesus,

this was now everybody selected their lamb for

Passover. Four days later, Jesus would be taken

outside of that city and crucified outside the

city gate. And we would find him on the place

of slaughter. The same place that those lambs

would be on the place of slaughter. But this

is how wonderful the father is. On that day,

he would do what? He would now put something

in the mouths of the people they would say and

quote, but didn't understand. Hosanna, Hosanna.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

He is the root of David. Hosanna to the son of

David. If you read it in Matthew's account and

you read it, they quoted the son of David. What

was that a reference to? That was a reference

that they were saying with their own mouth, Jesus

is the Messiah. Now only the spirit of God can.

Bring an atmosphere where that begins to be released

over the whole city. That was not planned. It

wasn't an organization. God knew the timing that

was about to take place and what happened. The

Spirit of God let loose on that city because

it was a prophetic. time where the Spirit of

God was hovering and saying, I'm going to allow

people in their ignorance like a fresh young

colt that have not had an understanding. They

haven't been totally inoculated by religions

of the past and religion of 4 ,000 years like

the Pharisees and the scribes have. That's why

they got mad. Do you hear them? Tell them to

be quiet. And Jesus said, even the rocks will

cry out if they don't do this. Why? be as dumb

as a rock, but when the Spirit of God pours out,

all of a sudden you say things that are meant

to be in tune with heaven. Come on. Trust me,

I am one of those people. I'm not the sharpest

knife in the door, but when the Spirit of God

comes, I can say some things from heaven that

are His, and I have no ability to take credit

for any of it. Hosanna. You don't have to amen

too loud on that. Hosanna, blessed is he who

comes in the name of the Lord, even the king

of Israel. What were they saying? This is the

Messiah. This is the king. That's what shook

everything. in the scribes, the Sadducees, the

chief priests, and all of those that liked the

formalities and the places of what they were

preaching. That to them was incredulous, but

it was a prophetic statement. Not just prophetic,

it was prophetic of what was coming and was in

just in a few days would take place, but it was

a truth that had been. already declared before

the foundation of the world was made, as the

Bible says. That Jesus Christ was slain before

the foundation of the world. So they were doing

what? Connecting Jesus to a Davidic root. Connecting

him to the Davidic messianic prophecies. Declaring

that he is the rightful heir to the throne that

David was promised by the fathers. He was promised

in a new dimension. How can I say this carefully?

Above the Mosaic order. David's dimension had

a grace superior to Moses's order. And that's

why God put a boundary around it and allowed

David to live in a tabernacle, fully encompassing,

fully available to anyone around the very Ark

of the Covenant. God was connecting that promise

saying, this is the air of all who will open

the atmosphere for all to know me. Incredible.

And so as they were rejoicing greatly and spinning

around and exalting, literally the word means

to spin around, jump up and down. And they says,

loudly. They were shouting, waving their victory

palms and celebration as Jesus was writing this

cult. The people were saying, Hosanna to the

son of David, a messianic statement. And they

were quoting now because this would have been

in their understanding of what was taught in

the Psalms. This would have been the platform.

of what we would now look at Psalms 118 of the

messianic Psalm declaring that all that that

Psalm is about is Jesus. Of course, it relates

to us personally as well, but it finds its fullness

in Christ. I want to read just part of that Psalm.

I don't have, it's 29 verses and I'll read 19

through 29. Listen to the Psalm now and listen

to it as though Jesus, the word of God is saying

it over himself. Because remember the word of

God, this is the word and he's declaring it in

advance. Open to me the gates of righteousness

that I might enter through them and give thanks

to the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord. The

righteous shall enter through it. I thank you

that you have answered me and become my salvation.

The stone that the builders rejected has become

the cornerstone. This is the Lord's doing. It

is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day that

the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad

in it. Save us, we pray, O God. O Lord, we pray,

give us success. Do you understand that that's

what they were saying? Hosanna means save us

now, we pray. They're quoting Psalms 118. And

notice what the gates are that he's coming through.

He's come through the gates of the city, but

he's saying thanksgiving and celebration is now

the gates of the Lord. Don't we get that in the

New Testament somewhere? Come on. We enter his

gates with what? And we enter his courts with

praise. Come on, somebody, you're slinging them.

Come on, I love it, right? Now, the reality is

this was out of their mouth that they are prophesying.

They're taking 118, the Messianic Psalm, everything

they'd been taught as little boys and girls in

the synagogue about someday the Messiah is going

to come. What happened? At that very moment,

the Spirit of God begins to pour out revelation

and people start quoting scriptures and singing

it and dancing it and prophetically acting it

out. know what it's about just like many charismatic

services they're singing and dancing and most

of them don't have a clue of how significant

it is but the reality is the first incredible

poured out if you want to call it Charismatic

service happened when Jesus brings his presence

to a people that had a promise. Jesus brings

his presence to a people who had a promise. That's

what Palm Sunday's about. He didn't come in like

everybody expected him to come in. but he came

in nevertheless. And what they wouldn't have

understood in their natural mind because it bypassed

their fleshly expectation, the spirit of God

in them responded to what the promise was. That's

why I thought it was so important of what Valina

said this morning. Why? Jesus came in. To a people

who have a promise. Then it says this. Save us

we pray oh Lord. Oh Lord we pray give us success.

Then they said this. Blessed is he who comes

in the name of the Lord. What are they saying?

You're blessed and you have the power to deliver.

That's that word. We bless you. From the house

of the Lord. Do you hear what they're saying?

They're saying. Quoting the psalm. Hosanna. God

save we pray. Blessed is he who comes in the

name. The one who is the son of David. The right

messianic root. The one who is the fruit and

the promise. Of all that God has said. That we've

been waiting for years. Now. Blessed is he who

comes. Now deliver and bring salvation now. Then

he says, verse 27, for the Lord has made his

light shine upon us. What's that? Revelation.

He's brought his light. He's brought his truth.

He's brought his, all of the things that he brings

from the realm of his father, light, truth. purity,

revelation, insight, the fulfillment of the scriptures.

He's bringing it. They're quoting the Psalm.

And then they say, and then the Psalm says this,

and maybe this is where we'll just camp a little

bit. Bind the festival sacrifice with cords to

the horn of the altar. Bind. The festival sacrifice

to the horns of the altar. Now, if you'll read

the fullness of Psalms 118, and you've been reading

with me on Psalms 119 now, Psalms 118 verse 19

Psalms 118:19

as we're progressing through, notice we're starting

with thanksgiving. Notice we're starting with

gratitude. Notice we're talking about Jesus being

the revelation and the pinnacle and the cornerstone

that the builders rejected. And in him, All my

hope is alive and I'm praying for God to do because

I've got a promise, right? He's marvelous in

our eyes. Oh, let's rejoice and be glad. Here

is the key to binding the sacrifice, the festival

sacrifice with cords on the altar. It is supposed

to be done with rejoicing and celebration. That

is not often how we view what happened at the

cross. Now, are there moments to think about

in sobriety what Jesus took for us? Absolutely.

But he doesn't just leave us with the scourge

and the nails and the false witnesses and the

mocking and the slander and the spear through

the heart. In God's wonderful, amazing way, he

released the prophetic word years and years ago

as he wrote this psalm about what he would do.

He says, as he would come, the spirit of the

Lord would put words. in the people and they

would quote back to God his word. They would

make declarations of who he is and they would

begin to start something even though they did

not know what they would do. Remember, Jesus

actually quoted that on the cross. Father, forgive

them. They don't know what they do. I think he's

still tying that back into even as he came in

Jerusalem, they did not understand what they

were doing. Because they had the prophetic word,

but they didn't take it for their time. They

believed it, but it was still at a distance.

Do you understand why that's so important? When

God releases a now word for a house, I'm not

talking about, now I'm back to the service this

morning. When he releases a now word for the

house, you can still hear it, receive it at a

distance, and it won't come to pass. Hear. What

was God's mercy? I'm going to declare in advance

that people will line Jerusalem with celebrating

and rejoicing of who I'm bringing as a sacrifice.

And that will be what my son rides in on to the

most excruciating, the most difficult thing.

that he's ever experienced being severed from

our relationship because of the sin of the world

being put on him. It will be under the sound,

not of the jeers of crucify him, crucify him.

He will remember the sounds of rejoicing. He

will remember the sounds of celebration. That's

why the book of Hebrews picks it up in chapter

13. For the joy that was set before him, he endured

the cross. God would always bring celebration

and rejoicing around what he came to bring the

world as a sacrifice. It says, bind the festival

sacrifice. What was the festival? They were there

at Passover. Bind it with cords to the horns

of the altar. Okay. We don't often talk about

the horns of the altar. What does that even mean?

The horns of the altar. Well, you probably remember.

I'm sure you're thinking of it right now. Leviticus

4 .7. and Leviticus 16, I think it's around 16

or 17, it says that, especially in Leviticus

4, 7, it says that when a person sins unintentionally,

they are to go to the high priest with a animal,

a bullock, and they are to release that animal

to be slaughtered, and in that process, they

are to take the blood, And they are to recognize

their sin that they sinned against the Lord unintentionally.

And now they take, okay, I'm gonna pick on you.

They take the blood and they smear it down the

horns of the altar, which there were four horns

on the side. of the brazen altar meaning one

on one corner one on the other one on the other

corner one on the other corner so every place

where the bronze altar was that was made which

was the first thing that you would come into

in meeting the priest that was there or the Levites

that were there as soon as you came to the door

of that the courtyard the first instrument of

approaching God was what The bronze altar. Bronze

speaks of what? Judgment. It speaks of sacrifice.

It speaks of death. Leviticus 4 says that's what

you do. Same with Leviticus 16. Everything has

to have blood smeared on the horns. What are

the horns for? Well, the horns were for, and

I'm just gonna give you one scripture, 1 Kings

1 Kings 1:50

1, verse 50. It was for when you, Okay. Here,

that's a horn. Okay. Now, when you did something

that you didn't intend to do, and you read about

this where God in the land, in the book of Joshua,

when God... began to divvy up all the land for

the children of Israel in the promised land he

put certain cities called cities of refuge and

in those places of cities of refuge he would

put a place where someone who had unintentionally

done something not under premeditated conditions

but unintentionally sinned he would say you could

go flee and grab the horns of the altar And you

would grab that horn, you would hold that horn,

and you would keep you from what? The manslayer.

Who's the manslayer? The one that now was the

family representative assigned to take you out

because you killed Uncle Jim. Yeah, you were

chopping wood together, but you didn't do a good

job of putting your axe head on, and your axe

head hit Jim right in the head, or how about

a Hebrew name? hit Jokoah right in the forehead

and killed him, you stop, drop, and roll like

the old TV commercial and you get your little

hiney to the place of the horn of the altar and

you grab on there until the elders come. Why?

Because this horn becomes your place of safety.

We've got a whole new... Level of friendship.

All right. Okay. Thank you. That's what God was

saying prophetically in Psalms 118. Combined

the festival sacrifice. With cords at the horns

of the altar. Now here's where there's a whole

lot of maybe confusion. Some people see it as

you had to bind the sacrifice to keep it from

moving. Why? Because you were gonna, well, it

should have been dead. You wanna bind it down

so when you put the fire on it, it will consume

the sacrifice. But in this passage, there's an

overwhelming tense of saying, now, in this process,

your binding is, what you brought from the festival.

You now need to interweave your life with the

bows that come to burn the sacrifice. You're

included at that altar. So when it says, come

now. bind the festival sacrifice to the altar

he wasn't just now dealing with the priests he

was dealing with the public to come and join

prophetically years and years ago Jesus would

move it off of a Priestly ministry only. And

begin to move. That this sacrifice. That would

be on the altar. Would now be joined. With every

single person. Who would celebrate. At the festival.

And their lives would be entwined. With the sacrifice.

So that joy. And celebration. Would be connected

to. Everybody bringing their bow or their, if

you were the cords, be intertwined with cords

of love. Remember, a three -stranded cord is

not easily broken. I will offer him not the calves

of my lips, as the old King Jimmy says, but I

will offer him the sacrifices of my lips so that

now the rejoicing and the love that comes, I

will not, what? Offer your bodies as a living

sacrifice. holy and acceptable to God. So what's

happening? I now come in the festival with my,

my bows. The palm branches. And I am now what?

Joining myself at the horn of the altar. To the

sacrifice. Where the place where the blood has

been put. Where I found mercy. And for me it's

mercy. For the sacrifice it's death. But I'm

rejoicing. Because someone thought of me. And

brought me hope when I had no hope. And God declares

right from the beginning as people began to prophesy

that Jesus would be the hope for anyone who would

grab the horn. Grab the horn. Mean what? Understand.

Here's the deal. Here's the big deal. The horns

of the altar were made out of what? Not out of

metal. The brazen altar was made out of what?

It was made out of acacia wood. Same wood. Come

on, hear me. Same wood that Noah made the ark.

It was made out of acacia wood. The horns of

the altar were made out of wood. The rings that

were in the wooden. horns were rings that were

put there that would hold the sacrifice on it,

prophetically declaring that the cross that was

lifted up, that had the rings that lowered the

cross and threw it into the ground as Jesus was

nailed to it, would be a wooden cross. Yes, it

was overlaid with bronze and judgment. Jesus

would become the sin, sacrifice, and payment

for the world's sin. And God prophetically type

and shadowed it for 4 ,000 years on an ark. And

then on the backs, as they carried all of the

tabernacle furniture, everywhere they camped,

the brazen altar would be set up and it would

be the first step before they ever entered the

glorious presence of the Lord. Back then, It

was solemn and it still is. It's the fear of

the Lord. But it is always meant to be accompanying

the fear of the Lord with rejoicing and celebration

because one who finds that horn called the cross,

one who finds the blood that was shed there.

means that there's mercy because the high priest

on duty is no longer a man. He is the God man

and he lives to intercede for all of us. He lives

to intercede. Play some interceding music. There

may be an opening. This is a rough job. Hallelujah.

You're doing a great job. Would you bow your

head and close your eyes for a moment? I don't

want to go any farther today because I really

believe that's the message the Lord wants to

prepare for us. Jesus came in in humility. He

lived. as a servant, filled with humility and

stretched out completely to do the Father's will.

And God pours his spirit out even now. As we

look to the cross, Jesus said to Nicodemus in

John 3, he said, if I be lifted up. I will draw

all men unto me. He tied in that bronze serpent

on a pole to Nicodemus. He kept tying in the

fact of judgment that he would take the judgment

of sin. He would take the judgment of the world.

And here again, John, here again in Matthew,

The prophetic word that the people were quoting

of Psalms 118, that messianic passage that undoubtedly

is all about Jesus Christ. It would be a reminder

that he is the one we run to for mercy. And he

is the high priest that we have that ever lives

now to intercede for us. I want us to understand

this morning as I'm just spending a little time

and we're waiting on the presence of the Lord

there, I'm going to ask for a response in a little

bit, but I first want to speak to the whole of

us and say, when Jesus comes into a place of

his people, he always has with him an atmosphere

and a word to bring. breakthrough on your behalf.

He always has it. And he's here today. He's here

today. He's been here through the worship service.

He's been here through the preaching. Some of

you, you just, you've got to grab hold that the

king has now entered in, in humility. He didn't

come in the... spectacular in man's eyes, but

he's here right now next to your heart and your

mind. And he brings the fullness of his kingdom

and he's writing in humility and meekness. That's

what the Bible says he is. He says a smoking

flax or a burning wick, he will not bruise or

crush. That's who he is. And the Lord invites

you today. For there is blood still on the horn

of the altar, on the cross, the blood still cries

out. The blood of Jesus cries out a better word.

It declares mercy instead of judgment. It declares

mercy instead of judgment. It declares mercy

instead of judgment. Not only for your sin, but

for others. He's declaring your voice by the

Spirit of God should come out of you. I have

mercy instead of judgment. Forgive those who

trespass against you as now your heavenly Father

has forgiven you. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

So Father, in the name of Jesus, as I'm asking

right now in the name of Christ, that you would

begin to do what you always do. Holy Spirit,

you cause people to get their eyes off of the

natural and get it on to who you are lifting

up. You are lifting up still the Son of Man.

You are being, Lord, you are being elevated.

You are being exalted. You are being magnified

in this place. And you are drawing hearts to

you. And I'm asking this morning, wherever people

are at, whether they're in a backslidden condition,

whether they're in a place of lukewarmness, whether

they've never known Jesus, the Spirit of God

is being released to draw people unto you. Why?

There is mercy still crying out. It's time to

begin to call people to rejoice. Because the

sacrifice has been given from the Father. Wherever

you're at and whoever you are, I don't know your

situation, but God knows perfectly. If you're

here today and you'd say, I got to get my life

right. I'm not living how I know the Spirit of

God would want me to live. I'm not trying to

live by my own righteousness, but I'm certainly

not living in accordance. with his word and what

I know in my heart and conscience that he's put

inside of me, I'm not partnering with grace in

the right way. If that's you, or maybe you're

just living lukewarm. You're straddling the fence.

The Lord comes today and says, it's time to make

a decision. I don't want to spew you out of my

mouth. That was his word to Laodicea. Because

you're lukewarm. I can't hold you. I can't keep

you with me. Because you're playing in both camps.

Oh, that you were hot or cold. He wants you hot.

But he's calling you back to himself. Or maybe

you're here this morning and you've not made

an official decision to say, Jesus, I have not

bowed my knee in lordship. I will be like the

centurion. on that day of crucifixion that when

Jesus gave his life and said, it is finished,

the centurion in a bowed knee position said,

truly, he is the son of God. It's time to give

your life to Christ. If you're here this morning

and you can just respond with some level of lifting

your hand. I'm going to ask you to do so right

now. The Holy Spirit just tugging on your heart.

If you're in one of those categories or anywhere

in between, between a backslidden state, a lukewarm

state, or I need to know Christ, just lift your

hand, lift it high above, and I'm going to begin

to send somebody to you. Coming right to you,

sir, right now. Anyone else? In the back. Thank

you, John. You got him? Thank you. Anyone else?

Come on, you gotta help a short man look over

the crowd here. Hallelujah, they're coming to

you. Anyone else? Come on, today is the day of

salvation. Today is the day of decision. Today

is a day where you begin to partner with the

Spirit of the Lord and say, I am not going to

live the way I came in. I am going to partner

with the King. And I'm going to rejoice because

I found that I have found the one who's giving

me mercy, grace, and a reason to love God afresh

and continue with him. One more time. Thank you.

Thank you. All right. Father, you see every heart.

You see every hand. Lord, today, Lord, sometimes

we quote scriptures, we know what we think, we

know what we're saying, but Lord, we are so dependent

upon your spirit. We're asking you to, Lord,

increase the place of honor and worship in our

hearts for you. Let us be that group in Psalms

118 that binds the sacrifice to our heart that

Jesus You are forever bound to us and we have

found your mercy, your grace and your love and

we now rejoice with thanksgiving every time we

think about your name. Whether we're here in

the corporate house or we're at home or work,

let that be bound to us and us to you. We love

you, Jesus, and we bless you. In your mighty

name we pray, amen. We are so grateful for those

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