R638 Stay the Course

All of us at some point, felt like giving up. But God is calling you today through his word to stay the course. Join us. That's right, God's in Encouraging Word. The Bible itself is what will be diving in, together with Dr. Don Wilton as he brings the message stay the course takes us into God's word to gain not only in situ that commitment but also the determination and the power to know that with God in us, we can face anything we are with you to face as well. Know that we love to pray with you and for you we can connect on our phone at 866-899-WORD 866-899-WORD 9673, and it's like we rediscovered the phone and this time of separation. Now more than ever, perhaps hearing someone pray for you is just what you need 866-899-WORD 9673 would love to connect with you now. Dr. Donald, I'm going to give you a guarantee this morning. God is going to speak to you in a number of areas in your life if you let them do so. Number one is going to speak to you personally is going to speak to me.

What's he going to say I don't know. I know God is been speaking to me this weekend. God is speaking to me personally. What about about everything about my life, my family, my relationships, my attitudes and what is God saying to me. You say to me Don Wilton I want you to study the course. I want you to remain faithful to me. God will also talk to you about your church back First Baptist Church. Whatever church you remember of God will speak to you about your church or church is not there by accident.

This church is not there by accident.

God will speak to you about the ministries of the church.

Your role in those ministries. God will speak to God is moving in an incredible way on this campus we lost people to do extraordinary things.

We bought some about people to wait in line to coming to church. Some of you have to stand out John White because other people are getting right with God not worshiping him, God is going to speak to you about your Sunday school attendance. God is going to speak to Sunday school teachers. I wonder if they some Sunday school teachers here today who all lilting and waning. God is going to say stay the course. Stay the course. We have a Sunday school going on now hundreds of people in Sunday school, you know that some Sunday school teachers. When we began our new Sunday school if they would be willing to teach Sunday school and be prepared in the new Sunday school to have nobody show up for a couple of months. I do like that. Would you become a Sunday school teacher and just talk to yourself for a little while. I wonder if you're ready to give up.

William Carey went to India never had a single convert in seven years. He stayed the course. God's going to speak to you about our world because we got lots of questions in the series Lord why you going to allow those who are left behind to suffer so much, Lord, why is there poverty in the world why they haves and have-nots Lord why is this happening. Lord why we got to do that and what God is going to cite atrocities were to stay the course and can you just imagine. Here is the Lord Jesus Christ standing at the doorway of Jerusalem and he's about to enter Jerusalem knowing something. What did Jesus know Jesus knew that all was ahead of him was the cross, by the way folks, the cross in Jesus time was not death by lethal injection. You didn't just go to sleep. The cross was not just a simple as one bullet in the head. The cross was the most unbelievably horrible death that anybody could ever experience, and because the Lord Jesus Christ standing at the gateway of Jerusalem and God has spoken Jamie's about to enter Jerusalem and Jesus Christ could've turned back Jesus Christ could've said I'm not going to do this. Jesus Christ knew that what lay ahead of him was the cross but he stayed the course.

Matthew 21. Journey with me this morning.

Matthew 21 and this one you going to need your Bibles.

Matthew 21.

The Bible says as they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethpage on the Mount of olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them going to the village gentlemen ahead of you, and at once. You will find a donkey tied there with her baby called by her side untied them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you. Tell them that the Lord means them and he will send them right away. This took place in order to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah say to the daughter of Zion. See, your king comes to you gentlemen riding on a donkey, on a colt with the fall of the donkey by outside verse six disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them.

They brought the donkey and the call to place their cloaks on them and Jesus sat on them a very large crowds spread their cloaks on the road while others cut branches from trees and sprayed them on the road. The crowds between ahead of him and those that followed shot to Hosanna to the son of David, Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

Hosanna in the highest now in Jesus into Jerusalem.

The whole city was stirred and lost. Who is this crowds Onset. This is Jesus, you know, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee by the Lord, right his word upon our hearts.

I have tremendous die. Lame is when I read this I have tremendous die llamas. There are great complexions which gripped my heart as I consider the events of Palm Sunday as I consider the abeyance until Jesus comes again. I've often lost myself.

Surely Jesus wouldn't of had these die llamas they not come to understand that he was the God man. Jesus became hungry. That was a dynamic friends. Jesus became angry in the temple just following this account. That's a dial-in Jesus was tempted in all points just like we all was a dial-in Jesus encountered Satan time without number, who offered him what he had knocked off. But that was a die. Llamas to the man who is Christ Jesus.

I'm going to say to you today. As we begin to look toward the cross and contemplate these things that the Bible teaches us that there are some incredible die llamas when I look at these die llamas.

Then I begin to understand, perhaps a little more clearly and perhaps with greater profundity.

The reason why Jesus stayed the course. These die llamas are not uncommon to my own human complexions. First of all, it was the dial-in number of personal preference.

I have a personal preference. As far as Jesus is considered I'll guarantee you if you were to go to those disciples and those people who are with him. They would've thought preferred to have done things a little bit differently and I daresay because Jesus was the son of man, I just imagine for a moment that Jesus faced the dial-in number of these personal preference.

I mean, often rule was about the Lord Jesus and found himself in the garden of Gethsemane, sweating drops of blood and what did Jesus say Jesus said father would you take this cup from me. That's a personal preference. I brought the not have to go through this if you don't mind excuse me father.

Do you know you dealing with, I'm your son father. If you try this cup from me. Now let's not my will but thine be done. I think is Jesus stood on the Mount of olives looking down through the Kidron Valley and across to Jerusalem. I think he faced the dial-in amount of his personal preference and it came in three different arenas.

First of all personal preference concerned the method that God used, to bring about his wound. It involved methodology. I have a real problem with that. I have a problem because of my personal preferences concerning methodology the way God does things.

Did you notice what the method was here. The method was testing other people Bible tells us in these first few verses that Jesus tended to be his disciples and he said gentlemen come down. We told those two disciples. He said listen, I want you to go to a place that you haven't been to to meet a people that you know nothing about and find a donkey that you've never seen. I mean that's what Jesus did. Not going to ask you something you think that Jesus could've done this, his own wife not tell you if you going to talk about methodology and personal preference. I know what I would've said, I'll guarantee what one of those disciples would've said and I might have said it, I'll guarantee they would've said now Lord, could we just talk about this for a moment. You don't seem to understand your message here is to use us. This is your problem you think we could perhaps just stay out of the way for little while, and beside that we are convinced that you are the son of God, you want to donkey you get a donkey. Why get us involved in all of this stuff and besides that, I'll tell you what I would prefer that you do, Lord, if you wouldn't mind just giving me 20 shekels and I'll tell you what the best thing is this is my personal preference I would draw the go to the marketplace in this little village we know they sell donkeys inside of the man is the donkey owner. Excuse me, but I'd like to buy that donkey.

They listen that's my personal preference. Your methodology is the same us somewhere. We haven't been with the mission we know nothing about. To find a donkey we've never seen. Why did Jesus employ this methodology that override the personal preference for one simple reason frame he was testing them. He was testing them. This is a great discipleship principle that was inculcated into the hearts of all believers. He was testing them at the point of their obedience and he was testing them at the point of their fight what God wanted to know was that a company Jesus entrance into Jerusalem was obedience to die llamas for you and me. Obedience means we do it because God has spoken address and means that we trust that God is going to keep please forgive the eruption will be back with more of today's message stay the course with Dr. Don Wilton just a moment. What a challenge of obedience and saying. Sometimes we find ourselves understanding to do but just needing some encouragement to do that we can encourage you to pray for you.

Pray with you where here at 866-899-WORD 866-899-WORD 9673 but even more so online right now at tewonline.org to you can sign up for something you believe. Personally, I can testify that every morning I read this is a part of my quiet time and jump starts my day. It's an email to the daily Encouraging Word devotion from Dr. Don. It's available on our website tewonline.org you course is no cost involved. It's just a daily email that includes a bit of God's word wonderful insight from Dr. Wilton and some application to how we can apply that to our life every single day and help us in the state. Of course, you can sign up online right now at T.

E. W online.org. Now back to today's message with Dr. Don Wilton personal preference related to the method by which God used to bring about his personal preference concerned me by which God is not now we have a real problem because Jesus was going to come I want you to just consider this because it seems highly inappropriate.

My friends, that any king, much less the King of Kings would make his triumphal entry riding on a donkey donkey likely some of your site will I live with one pasta I mean you've never seen any thing more sorry than a donkey. Listen if I was a donkey, folks, I never leave the house under study right now. You know, I put donkeys and armadillos on the same level. It is most inappropriate to think that Jesus Christ, the son of the living God would come riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, but that is what God's son did because that was God's divine plan. Any questions Jesus Christ did not come in will think I'm in poverty. He did not come in grandeur. He came in meekness. He did not come to slay Israel's enemies, he came to save mankind, my friends, the incarnation of Jesus Christ was about his humiliation, not about his glorification, Jesus Christ. His coronation was like no other correlation at any time. It was anything but triumphant. It was exactly what God intended it to be.

It was the sovereign choice of God the father and God the son, that Jesus Christ would use this means of transport Tatian to enter into the place that makes certain and he stayed the course. My personal preferences Lord use another method find another means. My personal preference also concerns the masses that God used the witnesses will surmising from verse eight through 11. A very large crowd spread their cloaks. Verse nine the crowds that went ahead of him bursting when Jesus into Jerusalem. The whole city was stirred verse 11 the crowds. Onset personal preference concerns the masses that you remember how many times Jesus withdrew from the crowds. Why did he do that he needed rest. Do you not suppose that the Lord Jesus Christ could've done this without the method of using the testing of the faith of his disciples. Do you not suppose that Jesus could've done this without the means of a mere horrible ugly looking donkey you not suppose that Jesus could've accomplished the same purpose without having to parade in front of all these masses of excited and hysterical people seek these personal preference may not have been to do this, but he started the course we must stay the course. We must stand up, we must study the cost we must not back down.

We must die.

The course I tell you this is a time when we have problems. Pray for our young people when we have problems rarely pray for them, but you know the reality is, and I'm just going to say this to young ladies. It involves everybody you know that we've got young ladies who love the Lord Jesus Christ at the time of the prom. They pay an ultimate price because of they stand for Jesus Christ. You know that I know some young ladies who love the Lord Jesus Christ there personal preferences. Lord let me go to that problem. Lord I don't want to have to face my classmates on Sunday and Monday and Tuesday while my friends are going and nobody's gonna take me and the reason why some of them are not going my friends is because there is no boy out there who is asking them that they believe is a boy on the integrity who has principles is going to take them and he she's going to stand on his and it's going to be a farmer and a happy time, but it's not going to be at time of compromise of the principles of Jesus Christ and that young girl has made a decision to sky's tenure comes at the cost we got some young men and some young ladies who don't go to the prom because they not willing to compromise and we got a lot of them who are going who are not willing to compromise. You can go to something like that and have the best time in the world without ever compromising who you are in the Lord Jesus Christ.

But I know some young people who are not willing to lower their standards and go with some drunken bum is going to make all kinds of things and use foul language in four letters and talk about all kinds of things that we all not to talk about and I know some wonderful young people your site, not me. I belong to Jesus Christ and it comes at a great cost. You think that's easy using it's easy to be a senior and watch everybody else going you don't go.

It comes at a great cost.

Let me tell you something. Folks if we going to look to the cross we go to understand something that Jesus Christ was looking to the gates of Jerusalem and the map of the dial-in number of personal preference was overwhelming.

But Jesus played the course is not only the dial-in number of personal preference. It was the dial-in number of personal conviction.

All I have convictions about this personal conviction could not concede that a king would never stoop so low as to ride on a donkey personal conviction struggles to separate faith from concrete facts. That's personal conviction that me tell you something frame personal conviction baffled to believe that any good thing could come out of Nazareth. These were right racially prejudiced people. You can go to Israel.

Today we talking about in times frame. Listen to me between all the groups in Israel there is more racism that you could ever imagine. They hate each other because of the color of their skin and their language and their religion and everything else that you could ever believe friend you go to John chapter 1 and verse 46 when Jesus was introduced to the disciples and one of the disciples says having been introduced to Jesus Christ can any good thing come out of Nazareth. Are you trying to tell me that someone who lives over there could have any value in them whatsoever friend. These people were about convictions.

I had convictions. Jesus Christ had convictions as the Son of Man, but despite these personal preference, and despite the personal convictions Jesus Christ staying the course. Why, because of the third dial-in number and that is the dial-in number of absolute truth inside me to buy pasta. What was that all about is Jesus look toward Jerusalem. The dial-in number of absolute truth, my friend. As far as he is concerned, and as far as we're concerned has to do with two things.

Number one. Absolute truth concerns the matter of God's sovereignty. What is that mean it means that God has determined that God has a plan and God has provided the way, why because he has done that from before the foundation of the world. Jesus could've turned back Jesus could've used another method and another means he could've avoided the masses he could he could have subjected personal conviction to all of these things that were going on but Jesus pointed his head toward Jerusalem and he did according to that which the father had set for him because this was foreordained from before the foundation of the world God had spoken. He is sovereign but not only is God's sovereign but absolute truth has to do with the fact that God is superior in here in this passage, quoting the Old Testament prophets.

We are reminded about it, hosanna to the son of David.

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

This has to do as much with the sovereignty as with the superiority of the Lord Jesus Christ. Why the word hosanna by the way, literally means slave comes from the root of salvation. Hosanna, literally means that those people who gathered around the feet of our Savior as he rode into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey.

They were saying. Hosanna, save us because you are the one you are the only one who has the capacity and the authority to save us. Hosanna blessed is the one who is blessed is the one who comes in the know you sovereign and you are superior and there is no lie, come to the is it any wonder the Lord Jesus stayed the course.

All he could've called 10,000 angels just at the click of a finger just at the blink of an eye to safety and freedom to destroy the world but he went to the cross. Why did he do that he could've found an alternative expression to accomplish the same means, but God the father had spoken askew today is God is searching my own heart and life. What is the Lord saying to you what are you doing today personally. Are you staying the course you say to me today Foster I know the Lord Jesus Christ.

Are you staying the course on that campus are you staying the course. What dial-in amount are you facing how you doing all I know we've got personal preferences and personal convictions, but neither of those have any relevancy as far as the man and women of God are concerned, the only thing that has any relevancy is the will of my father which is in heaven. What about the church. What about our church. I'll be staying the course. We've made room for others.

Some of you been lost or put your personal preferences and personal convictions and lay them aside. Some of you are asked to wait in long lines so that you can get in the church. Some of you been disrupted in your Sunday school class. Some of you no longer have as many in class as you did before some of you trained worship services are you going to Sunday school. All have you opted out that you turned your back. Have you stopped are you staying the course are we studying the calls. Are we becoming distracted church while we about the father's business. Are we holding of the Lord Jesus Christ. Why are you staying the course are we being faithful to the Lord this a loss about care needs Jesus Christ and God is saying lay aside your personal convictions in your personal preferences. The only thing that has any relevancy is my were the absolute truth of who I am. Are you spying the course, but the Lord what about the world in which we live. All these things out. Foster showed us in Matthew 24 and will continue to do so. What about the rapture.

What about people who are left behind in tribulation saints in Armageddon. What about older suffering. What about the antichrist will surely you can do it some other way. People don't have to go to some other way, Jesus Christ says this is not the will of my father. My father is that Jesus Christ is the way the truth and the life and no man can come to me, no man can be reconciled to me accepting my son the Lord Jesus Christ's goals in the polls.

Jesus really is everything. I pray that as you listen today.

Thank you so much for spending the time together with us as this is coming to an and got just a couple minutes left before he could await Dr. John is bringing everything to the most important point of our entire week of broadcast here on this Friday, praying here done with an open heart.

Are you ready to give your heart and life to the Lord Jesus Christ. Why don't you pray this prayer with me right I know that I miss and I know that Jesus died for me today. I repainted myself and by faith I receive you into my Jesus, my friend welcome you today into the family of God. This is exciting. You give your life to Jesus Christ. Welcome to the family. Dedicate your life to have wonderful resource to put in your hands can contact us at 866899 Word 866899967 m online.

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We do have wonderful resources there to help you grow your faith right now this great awakening and accommodation.

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