At a conference in Houston, speaker Marti Ensign, a missionary to Africa, told of bringing some African pastors to the United States for a big meeting.
During their free time, these Africans wanted to go shopping. Even though they were in a small town, Marti knew there was a chance someone might have difficulty or get lost. So she gave them her phone number for such an emergency. In less than an hour the phone rang and the African said, “I am lost.”
Marti said, “Lay the phone down, go to the street corner, find out the names of the two streets at the corner, come back and tell me, and I will come and get you.”
In a few minutes he returned to the phone and reported, “I am at the corner of Walk and Don't Walk” (Phillip Gunter, Round Rock, Texas; www.PreachingToday.com).
Sometimes, you feel like you’re at the same corner. You don’t know if you should stay or go, turn right or left, go forward or back. These are uncertain times for many people, so How do you live in such times? How do you live when you don’t know what to do?
Well, if you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to Mark 11, Mark 11, where Jesus’ first disciples follow Him into a city where its leaders had threatened to kill Him. It was an uncertain time for them, and many of them were afraid (Mark 10:32). Even so, they show us how to live in such times.
Mark 11:1-11 Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’ ” And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” And they told them what Jesus had said, and they let them go. And they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it, and he sat on it. And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!” And he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple. And when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve (ESV).
Jerusalem was the place where its leaders wanted Jesus dead, but that doesn’t seem to concern Jesus one bit. On the contrary, Jesus is in absolute control here. He is Lord. He is King. He is sovereign.
Notice, He tells his disciples exactly what they’ll find when they enter the next village. He tells them what somebody will say, and He tells them how to answer (vs.2-3). Jesus is in absolute control of the situation here, not to mention that he rides the colt of a donkey “which no one has ever ridden” (vs.2). Now, if you or I would try to ride an unbroken colt, we’d both find ourselves on the ground. Not Jesus. There is no indication that this colt bucked or even balked. Jesus is in complete control! He is the King!
Look at the following paragraph and see if you can read it (on PowerPoint):
The hmuan mnid is a wndoreullfy cpoemlx oargn. You see? It deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod aearpr, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is that the frist and lsat ltteer are in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae the human mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig isn't it? (www.PreachingToday.com)
Your life is like that sometimes. It doesn’t always make sense, but those are the times you need to step back and remember that Jesus Christ is the One who controls the end from the beginning. In fact, He IS the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last (Revelation 1:8).
So when things in the middle don’t make sense, rest assured that one day God will make it all perfectly clear. Jesus is sovereign. He is in control.
So the best thing to do in these uncertain times is to obey him like His first disciples did. Just do what He says. Jesus told them to go and they went. Jesus told them to untie a colt and they did. Jesus told them what to say when somebody objected and “they answered as Jesus told them to” (vs.6).
In a time of fear and uncertainty, Jesus disciples were very careful to do exactly what He told them to do, and that’s what you must do if you want to survive and thrive in days of fear and uncertainty.
Tim Keller, former pastor of the Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York city, says:
Imagine you had a dear friend who was dying of a very rare disease, and you bring this friend to a doctor. The doctor tells him, “You'll be dead in a week. I can cure you, but I want you to know if I give you the remedy there's just one thing. It'll keep you alive for the rest of your life, but you can never eat chocolate again.”
Well, you're so excited. You turn to your friend and say, “Isn't this great?”
Your friend says, “No chocolate? Forget it!”
You say, “Are you crazy?” (Tim Keller, The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive, Redeemer Presbyterian Church; www.PreachingToday.com).
It’s crazy not to listen to your doctor at a time like that. But it’s even more crazy not to listen to Jesus in uncertain times. He will navigate you through uncertain days, but only if you choose to obey Him.
I like what Oswald Chambers once said: “Never try to explain God until you have obeyed Him. The only bit of God we understand is the bit we have obeyed (Oswald Chambers, “Run Today's Race.” Christianity Today, Vol. 35, no. 11; www.PreachingToday.com).
You might not understand what God is doing in your life; but when you obey Him, He reveals your next steps.
Jim George, in his book, God’s Man of Influence, talks about trying to sell a used boat trailer in the middle of winter. It was hardly 30 degrees outside, and no one was boating.
Then a potential buyer contacted George. The buyer was even willing to pay George’s asking price, but there was only one catch. The buyer wanted George to put only half the price of the trailer on the bill of sale “That's the way we do it in these parts,” the buyer explained That way he would only have to pay half the state sales tax, which amounted to several hundred dollars.
George said, “My first thought was, I really want to sell that trailer, and if I say no, he might back out, and I may not find anyone else who'll pay my asking price. If I agree, I'll be lying—not to mention breaking the law—but who would know?” George said, “I knew what I should do, but still I was having this inner struggle.”
He told the buyer he was a Christian and couldn't do anything illegal. The man went ahead and bought the trailer anyway, and George declared the full amount on the bill of sale, but he was prepared to lose the sale to be obedient to God's standards (Jim George, God's Man of Influence, Harvest, 2003; www.Preaching Today.com)
My friends, as followers of Christ, that’s what you need to do at all times, but especially in these times of fear and uncertainty. Jesus knows what’s ahead; you don’t. So it’s best just to follow His directions, not your own. How do you live in these uncertain times? First…
OBEY CHRIST AS YOUR SOVEREIGN.
Just do what the King says. Then second…
FOLLOW CHRIST AS YOUR SERVANT.
Imitate the Lord who humbled himself. Emulate the Sovereign king who subjected himself to his own creation.
Nearly 500 years before Christ rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, Zechariah, the prophet said, “Rejoice greatly, Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey” (Zechariah 9:9, NIV). Jesus did not come riding into Jerusalem on a white horse to conquer and rule. He came on a donkey humbly and as a servant.
Earlier in Mark, Jesus Himself said, “Even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). Sure, they’re waving the palm branches here. Sure, they’re putting their cloaks on the road before Him, but that’s not why Jesus came. Jesus did not come to be a celebrity.
Jesus came to be a servant, and He calls His followers to be servants, too.
It’s what He’s been saying all along to His disciples as they have been traveling to Jerusalem. He’s been calling them to a life of sacrificial service.
Mark 8:34 – If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. Mark 9:35 – If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all. Mark 10:43-44 – Whoever wants to become great among you, must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first, must be slave of all.
Jesus, the greatest among us, became your servant. So if you want to walk with Him, you too must serve, especially in times of uncertainty and fear.
Once upon a time, a traveler, walking through the night, saw ahead of him in the dim, rainy mist a monastery with the lights on rising above the horizon. The weather was cold and harsh, so he stopped and knocked on the door. When the abbot came, he said, “May I come in?”
The abbot said, “Not only may you come in, but you may eat with us.” The food was wonderful; the monks were warm; it was a beautiful evening, safe and dry and warm inside, but because the weather was so bad outside, they asked him to stay the night. He agreed provided that they would supply him with a few things. “What is it you want?” they asked.
He said, “If I spend this night with you, I must have in my own room for myself alone this night a pound of butter, a pair of rubber pants, a poker, a cricket bat, and a bass saxophone.” It was an unusual request, but they scurried around the monastery and found it all. Then as they went to sleep that night, they heard the most awful progression of halftones and squeaks and squawks coming from his room. The next day, the weather continued to be bad, so the monks invited the traveler to stay another night. He agreed to do so, again provided that they let him have that mysterious list of the same things he had the night before: a pound of butter, a pair of rubber pants, a poker, a cricket bat, and a bass saxophone.
Each night the traveler requested those same things, and each night the monks heard the awful noises, until finally it was time for him to leave. The old abbot walked him to the door and said, “We were glad to supply all of those things, but would you mind telling me why you asked for them?”
The stranger said, “Well, it is a family secret. It has been in our family for years and years, but if you promise not to tell another living soul, I'll tell you.” And so he told the old abbot all his heart, and the abbot, being a man of his word, never told another living soul. And so we shall never know (Calvin Miller, “The Mind of a Servant,” Preaching Today, Tape No. 51; www.PreachingToday.com)
That’s life. We don’t always know the reason why, but Christ calls us to serve one another anyway.
How do you live in times of uncertainty and fear? 1st, Obey Christ as your Sovereign Lord. 2nd, Follow Christ as your Servant. & Finally…
TRUST CHRIST AS YOUR SAVIOR.
Depend on the Lord to deliver you from sin. Rely on Jesus to rescue you from ruin.
You see, Jesus came to be our savior from sin and its ruinous effects.
The people are shouting, “Hosanna!” in verses 9 & 10. Now, by Jesus’ day, the word came to mean nothing more than an enthusiastic welcome or hello. Sometimes we say “Howdy” just as a greeting without thinking about what it really means—“How are you doing?” Well, a lot of the people in Jesus’ day used “Hosanna” in the same way. They shouted it to each other as they made their pilgrimages to Jerusalem without thinking about its real meaning.
But the word has a rich history. It’s actually a Hebrew phrase right out of Psalm 118, and it means, “Save us now! Save us now!” Though most of the people didn’t realize it, they were actually calling on Jesus to save them.
Now, had they realized it, they would be thinking in terms of political salvation, or salvation from Roman oppression. But that’s not why Jesus came. No. He came to save us from our sins.
You see, most of the pilgrims were coming to Jerusalem at this Passover time WITH a sacrifice. They were coming WITH a lamb that they were going to offer for their own sins. Jesus, on the other hand, was coming to Jerusalem AS the sacrifice. He came AS the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
That’s what the cross was all about. Jesus came to die for our sins, so we wouldn’t have to die. Jesus came to be punished in our place for our sins, so we could be preserved from judgment.
Bryan Chapell in his book, The Wonder of It All, writes about a distressed father who sat at the bedside of his comatose son. He was hurt playing basketball. At a crucial point in the game, the 16-year-old lunged for a pass going out of bounds and toppled over a spectator’s chair. One of its legs caught him in the stomach and damaged vital organs. But the teen felt little pain, so he continued to play the game's final minutes while he hemorrhaged internally. By the time the pain got bad enough to take him to the hospital, it was almost too late. The doctors worked frantically to save him, but the outcome was uncertain.
The boy eventually recovered, but those awful hours of waiting for the slightest signs of recovery forced his family to ask questions they had never before faced. The father was alone at his bedside one evening when a pastor visited. Trembling with emotion, the father asked, “Will God kill my son to punish my sin?”
“No,” said the young pastor, searching for just the right words to comfort this grieving father. “The Lord is not punishing your son for your sin. He couldn't, because God punished his son for your sin” (Bryan Chapell, The Wonder of It All, Crossway, 1999; www.PreachingToday.com)
You see, that’s why Jesus came—to be punished instead of us for our sins. He came to be your Savior from sin.
All you need to do is trust him. Just depend on Him to deliver you from your own sin. Don’t trust yourself. Don’t trust in your own efforts at self-improvement. Instead, trust Jesus with your life, and He will give you eternal life. He will give you hope in these uncertain times, and you will have the assurance of a grand and glorious future.
I love the scene in the Titanic, where Rose, a wealthy heiress, seeks out Jack, a reckless young man she earlier rejected. Take a look (show Titanic, I’m Flying scene).
When he sees her change of heart towards him, he reaches out to her and says, “Take my hand.” He asks her not to speak but to close her eyes, and then he leads her to the very bow of the ship. He has her stand up on the railing, while he holds her steady. He asks Rose, “Do you trust me?”
She responds, “I trust you.”
The scene radiates as the sunset streaks in the background. When Jack stretches out her arms over the bow and tells her to open her eyes, she's overwhelmed by the beauty of the waters and the sunset before her. All she can say is, “I'm flying!” (Titanic, Paramount, 1997, written and directed by James Cameron, starting at 1:18:00; www.PreachingToday.com).
Jack is rescuing Rose from a predictable and passionless life. He invites her to something more, and that’s the kind of life Jesus invites you to, as well. He simply says, “Take my hand.” Then he asks one simple question, “Do you trust me?” Oh, dear friend, please, trust Christ with your life and start the adventure of a lifetime.
In these uncertain days, trust Christ as your Savior, follow Him as your Servant, and obey Him as your Sovereign.
In an issue of CT magazine, author and college president Krish Kandiah writes:
One of my earliest memories is of holding my mother’s hand on my first day of school. I was so nervous as I entered the classroom that I wouldn’t let go. The warmth of her fingers reassured me as my heart pounded in my chest. When I felt scared and alone, she was my lifeline and my security.
I was reminded of that day a few years ago as I sat in a dark room, once again holding my mother’s hand. The silence was deafening as I strained to hear the muted words coming from the dehydrated mouth of a woman whose body had been ravaged by cancer. This time my mother held on to my hand, seeking reassurance from its warmth in her time of distress. The comforter had become the comforted.
Those were heartbreaking days. One moment I was praying for a miraculous recovery, the next for the end to come quickly. I was also haunted by God’s conspicuous absence. What I would have given during those long, languishing hours for his still, small voice of calm.
Turkish theologian Ziya Meral, writes: Where is God when millions of his children are being persecuted in the most brutal ways? Why does he keep silent in the middle of persecution but speak loudly in the middle of conferences with famous speakers and worship bands? I have prayed many times like Luther: “Bless us, Lord, even curse us! But don’t remain silent!”
Meral’s struggles eventually led him to consider Jesus’ own experience: “The greatest glory Jesus brought to God was not when he walked on the water or prayed for long hours, but when he cried in agony in the Garden of Gethsemane and still continued to follow God’s will (Krish Kandiah, “Trusting the Great Director,” Christianity Today, June, 2015, pp. 50-54; Ziya Meral, “Bearing the Silence of God,” Christianity Today, 3-19-08; www.PreachingToday.com).
In your dark days of uncertainty, do what Jesus did with His help. Trust God enough to follow His will.
It’s like the old song says:
Trust and obey,
for there’s no other way
to be happy in Jesus,
but to trust and obey (Daniel Brink Towner).
