Isn't that just like the Lord, so very much like Jesus? This is Larry Jones. You are listening to the Grace and Glory Hour of the Dyer Baptist Church with our co-pastors David M. Atkinson and Dr. Lee Atkinson. We are coming to you from Dyer, Indiana. Our prayer is that you will be strengthened by the Word today. Now, here is our pastor. Mark chapter 14, please. Would you like to have a plan? How many of you are planners? Like that's your middle name, and everybody knows it. And you get everything organized way ahead of time. I don't know about you, sometimes if there's not a plan, I'm just very, very uncomfortable. Like what is the plan? I don't even necessarily mind if it's a bad plan, as long as there is a plan. I'd rather a bad plan than just chaos! Sometimes I get a little too attached to my plants. It becomes a heart issue and I'm unspiritual when my plants get changed. Even if they're getting improved, it doesn't matter. I don't like changing my plants. It doesn't matter how good it is. One nice thing about plants is you get instructions sometimes with those plants. But isn't it easier to follow those instructions and the instructions of those plants when you see do this little thing here, and you don't see how it fits into the whole, it's kind of, it's not as satisfying as when you're told, you do this part, and that's how it's gonna work together with everything else. Well, I hope you'll be encouraged this morning as we realize that Jesus had, and still has, a plan. Jesus, God, the Trinity, have a plan. I have a plan or for you to say that you have a plan, that implies that we did some planning. It was a process for us where we tried to make decisions and weigh options and figure things out and make the best call we could. But the amazing thing is that God is different from us. And though God has a plan, He was never in planning phase. God doesn't make decisions and figure things out. God doesn't respond to circumstances as they unfold. God has known the end from the beginning. So I found myself, when I'm writing things down, saying things like God was making a plan. No, He already had the plan. The plan was figured out long before Jesus was even born. Isn't that awesome to think about? And God has a plan for your life. And He has every detail figured out before you were born. So God has a plan. Be encouraged. This life is not random. This life is not happenstance. It's all part of a plan, God's plan, that He's had from the beginning. He's not making this up as He goes. We'll see this in one example, a very specific example, in Mark chapter 14. This is in the last week of Jesus' life before He died. In fact, we're getting very, very close to His death. of things happened in a short amount of time. We'll start our reading at Mark chapter 14 verse 12. Mark 14 verse 12. And the first day of unleavened bread, when they killed the Passover, it's not saying that had happened, it's saying that would happen on this Passover feast at the first day of unleavened bread, when they would kill the Passover, his disciples, unto him, where wilt thou that we go and prepare that thou mayest eat the Passover?" Understand that observing Passover every year was a huge deal. You didn't not do that. It's assumed that a good God-honoring Jew is going to observe Passover. So here it is almost time, and essentially the disciples are saying to Jesus, hey, what's the plan? Where are we gonna have Passover? We have to have Passover. I mean, imagine in your family, it's December 24th, and you haven't talked about anything as far as a family plan as to what you're gonna do on December 22nd. And the kids kind of come up and say, Dad, where would you like us to go for Christmas? What would you like us to eat for Christmas? What would you like to give me for, oh, sorry. But we're wondering, what's the plan? We know something's gotta happen, But what? Verse 13, And Jesus sent forth two of his disciples. Luke's gospel account tells us specifically it was Peter and John. What a team to get things done, huh? Peter and John. And Jesus said unto them, Go ye into the city, and there shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water. Now I read that without much thought, but the disciples heard that with raised eyebrows. Because in that culture at that time, if you were carrying water in a pitcher, you were almost certainly a woman. Guys would carry like a model for water, but a pitcher of water on your shoulder or on your head, one commentator I read said that would be like today a man carrying a purse. You just don't see it every day. Although I will say, you know, the ladies have liked to tease us now about the bags that some of our power tools come in. No glitter, no sparkle, no little fake brass chain. It's a tool bag. I'm gonna get some dirt and sawdust on it when it's brand new, just to make it more manly. Thank you. But if you actually had a purse purse, and it happens at church. I love it when this happens. You know, the lady has her purse on the chair, saving her place, whatever, and then she goes down and it's time to leave. Oh, honey, I forgot my purse. Would you go get it for me? Yes, dear, because I love you so much. I will go up into the auditorium, and I will get your purse, and I will walk the gauntlet of the aisles and hallways, as all the other men ridicule me, and laugh me to sport, and shoot up the lips, saying, I will carry your purse for you. It just doesn't look right. That's what was going on when Jesus be a guy with a pitcher of water. Follow him. Follow him? The guy with the purse is the one you're supposed to follow? Okay. It says then that they're supposed to speak to him, or follow him. And then verse 14 says, Wheresoever he shall go in, say ye to the good man of the house, The master said, where is the guest chamber where I shall eat the Passover with my disciples? And he, the master, the good man of the house, will show you a large upper room, furnished and prepared. There, make ready for us. And his disciples went forth and came into the city, marked this phrase, and found as he had said unto them, and they made ready Three main ideas I'd like us to decipher from this passage. First of all, Jesus had a plan even beyond the disciples' understanding. The wisdom of Jesus is just all over this passage, isn't it? There are so many details that are arranged, that are planned, that are in place, that the disciples don't understand. First of all, this plan involved either advanced preparation or divine knowledge or both. Some scholars say maybe Jesus had talked with this unknown disciple in Jerusalem ahead of time and made plans with him and said, hey, have your servant in such and such a place with a water pot. That'll be the sign and I'll send my disciples and that that man's master would be willing to let them come to the house, and that the house would have an extra room, and it would be furnished, and it doesn't matter. The point is, Jesus had an awesome plan. Whether it was divine knowledge or advanced planning or a little bit of both, Jesus had a plan that the disciples had little knowledge of. They apparently did not know this man, the owner of the house. They didn't know the servant. They didn't know where they were going. They didn't even know it was going to be in Jerusalem. They were apparently in Bethany at this time and he says, go into the city. You go downtown, and when you're in the big city, you're gonna see a man. I mean, this is Passover time. There are thousands and thousands and thousands of extra people there, and we gotta go spot one guy. Oh yeah, he's got a purse, we'll find him. But there's all kinds of details that they don't know. But Jesus knew. I like this plan because it involved unknown allies, a secret partner. Apparently, the disciples did not know the man with the water pot, nor did they know the owner of the home. But they were on Jesus' side. Because all they had to say was, hey, the master wants to know where the room is set up for us for Passover. They, he didn't even tell them to ask nicely. He just, where's the room? It's, we're ready. Oh, the room's here. The man was ready and willing to offer his room, kind of like the one he offered his donkey about a week earlier. And so these were allies of his. And you need to be encouraged today that God has allies for us that you don't know. Natural allies and spiritual allies. Remember the story of Elisha and how he was in the city and there were bad guys coming to get him. His servants all nervous. And Elisha prays, Lord open his eyes that he may see. And he looked and there were all these angelic hosts surrounding them. They were as safe as they could be. They were unknown or secret allies. It's nice to know when you have a partner, but it's nice to find out later on, I had a partner all the while and I didn't even realize it. You see, there were more than 12 people that were faithful to Jesus. The disciples constantly thought that they were all of it, you know? Hey, they're doing work in Jesus' name, should we tell them to stop? Should we call down fire? Jesus says, no, they're with us, they're on our team, you guys just don't know them. Can I tell you that there are other brothers and sisters in Christ that you don't know of? There are people in this church that you don't know well, but they're pulling in the same harness with you. We're all working towards the same goal of glorifying God. Can I tell you that there are other people in this region that go to another church that love God and want to serve Him and are pulling towards the same goal we're pulling towards? Can I tell you that there are people in other states and in other countries He's got a plan, and we just fit into that. This plan that Jesus had for them involved obedience to successive steps. This is hard for some of us. We like instructions that consist of one or two steps at the most. After that, our attention span just can't handle it. Did you notice the instructions that he gave? I counted, I think, five steps. Let's go back and look at the text. Verse 13. He said, go into the city. There's one. There shall meet you a man bearing a pitcher of water. Follow him. That's two or three, depending on how you want to count it. Wheresoever he shall go in, Say ye to the good men of the house, okay, now we've got to remember something to say. The master saith, where is the guest chamber that I shall eat the Passover with my disciples? He will show you an upper room, there make ready for us. Do this, do this, do this, do this, do this. What would have happened if they would have disobeyed the first step? Jesus said to go in the city, but I kind of don't like the crowds, let's go to another town instead. How's that gonna work out? Not so well. What if they make their way into the city and they see the guy with the water pot and they're like, boy, I don't know. It's not what I was expecting him to look like. He's just got this look about him. Maybe there'll be another guy with a water pot. Would that have worked? No, they had to follow him. What if they'd gone to the house and they said, boy, this house isn't really what I was thinking either. Hmm. Maybe he meant the house next door. No, they had to obey every single step. the plan was going to work. Jesus' plan for us is like that as well. The second major thing I like to see about the plan is that Jesus revealed his plan to them, but only in part. He didn't tell them the whole plan. He did not say when he and the rest would come or how they would get there. Isn't that interesting? He didn't give them an address, GPS coordinates. He just said, go find this man, follow him there, you get to the house. And then he said in verse 16, he said, make the Passover ready for us. Or verse 15. So obviously they were gonna be coming if he was making the Passover ready for them. But he didn't say how he was gonna get there. He didn't say what time. He just said, you go do this part. He didn't tell them the whole plan. He also did not tell them all the special things that were about to happen at that meal. Pretty special things were about to happen at that Passover meal. It was gonna be Passover like no other. It also seems from the text, very possible, that he only gave instructions to the two. He didn't give the whole plan, or the plan that he gave, he didn't give it to all of them. He took them aside and told the two of them. It really doesn't matter, because if you ever tried to give instruction to a group of 12 adult men, I guarantee you not all 12 of them are listening. It's just the way it is. We have our other ideas, the things we want to talk about, and especially if we know that that job doesn't apply to me, well then I'm not listening because I've got other things to do. Jesus gave this plan primarily to the two that needed to carry it out. He had a different plan from the other 10. He took them himself to get to the upper room, but these two had a plan, and Jesus gave it to them. Number three, I want us to see that Jesus joined his disciples, but it was after they followed his plan. It was afterwards. Jesus didn't go with them. He didn't walk next to them. They didn't even hear a little angelic voice telling them the next step. You should do this, and you should do this. He gave them instructions and let them go. They had to follow the steps, even when they couldn't see it. Jesus isn't there anymore. He's praying to be still in Bethany, and they're in Jerusalem. They had to be ready, not knowing when Jesus would come. He said, go get ready for us for Passover. But did he say what time? You know, synchronize your sundials or something like that. He didn't say that. He just, you get ready for us. We're gonna come and we're gonna have Passover. But when they went and did what he told them to do, even when they couldn't see him, when they went and got ready, guess what? Jesus showed up. Just like he said he would. Jesus gave them a plan, expected them to But can I tell you, that's just one plan that Jesus has, is one part of the plan. Jesus has a plan for you and me. He has plans for us individually, he has plans for us as a whole. I couldn't help but think of the plan that he revealed to us, in part, in the Great Commission. Turn back to Matthew, just a little bit there, to the end of Matthew chapter 28. Matthew chapter 28. Jesus outlines a plan for His disciples, a perpetual plan, a plan to be passed on generation after generation. Matthew 28, verse 18, Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. And lo, I am with you always, even at the end of the world. Amen. Just like Jesus had a plan for those two disciples that was beyond their understanding, Jesus has a plan that is beyond our understanding for saving the world. He's not developing this as He goes. He didn't figure this out when they ended up crucifying Jesus. God had planned from eternity past to save people in the world through His plan, and His plan includes us. He's revealed that to us, even though it is beyond our understanding. Aren't you glad to know that He's the one orchestrating it all? He's the one that is working in hearts to receive the gospel, while He works in hearts to share the gospel. He's working in the hearts of some to support missionaries, while he works in the heart of others to be missionaries. He works in the heart of some to show love to a neighbor, and another person to explain the gospel to a neighbor. And he puts together all of these tag-team efforts as part of his plan. I don't have to know it all. I don't have to understand it all. All I have to do I'm glad to be reminded that we have unknown allies. I think it's easy to let our perspective shrink, to think we're in this alone, to think that, you know, we're almost done for, Christ's kingdom, we're really flagging, you know, the banner is sinking, Christians are pretty much done for. No, no. Elijah felt like that. He says, ah, even though I only have left, in the workplace. Chances are there's another Christian somewhere in the place where you work. Maybe they're hurting. Maybe they're looking for another Christian. Maybe they don't know who you are. Let your light shine. And remember, you're not alone. There may be other Christians in your neighborhood. We had an interesting time at our home several weeks ago, months ago, I don't know, in the past. We had invited a bunch of our neighbors who had sponsored our kids in the 5K to come over to our house for a little open house thank you, cookies and brownies, that kind of thing. We were hoping to build a relationship with them and thank them and maybe eventually begin to be able to share the gospel with them. So we gave this to all the people who supported the kids and the only ones who came were already Christians. Leave, take your cookies and go, we don't want to talk to you. No, it was a really sweet time because it was kind of like, okay, it's us against the neighborhood. Let's form a strategy here. Okay, you live on this street, you live on this street. This is how we're gonna work together to see the gospel go forward in our neighborhood. It was cool to talk to other Christians in our neighborhood. You know, there might be other Christians on your street. You ever thought about that? You ought to get to know them. Let's remember that there are unknown allies. and let's be looking for them, let's not be discouraged. Jesus has this plan, this great commission that's far beyond our understanding, but he does expect me to obey some sequential steps, doesn't he? I'm glad that the steps of the great commission are fewer in number than the steps that God gave to those two. He said, teach, baptize, Teach some more. That's the short version of it. I can remember three things. Three things are a lot easier to remember than five or six. And so we have to ask ourselves, am I completing those three steps faithfully? Am I teaching the message of salvation so that a person can then, having been saved, be baptized? Am I then teaching them to observe all things that God has commanded? Am I doing that? God gave us a simple plan, and we can say, well, steps two and three are okay, but I don't really like step one very much. Okay, so you're not gonna go to the city. Oh, well, I like step one, but not step two. So you're gonna go to the city, but you're not gonna follow the man from the water pot? One and two are great, but three, that's not up my alley. Oh, okay, so you're not gonna actually go into the house. Great, how's that gonna work for Passover? You have to follow the steps! You don't have to like them. You didn't have to come up with them. All you have to do is follow the steps. Are we doing that? Ladies and gentlemen, if you're here today and you're a Christian, it's not optional. It's God's plan for you. What would we think if reading in Mark's gospel, it says Jesus gave his plan to Peter and John, and they looked back at him and said, not so, Lord. We would rather have Passover someone else. Shame, shame, nodding disciples. Are we better at following Jesus' plan? Sometimes we're not. I hope that we will submit to God's plan. Jesus has only revealed this plan in part to us. He's told us to witness, but you know what he hasn't told us? He hasn't told us who's gonna believe. It is okay, all we have to do is follow the steps. He's given us enough for us to do what we need to do. But he's not told us all the special ways he's gonna work. He's not gonna tell you how you're gonna spend years witnessing to this person and then in some passing way you're gonna be connected with this person and they'll get saved after hardly any work at all. I don't understand why God does that, but he does that. You're faithful in one area, and God blesses in another area, and you're left scratching your head saying, I was trying to do this, and it's not working, but I didn't even do anything, and God just kind of poof, made it grow. That's okay, He's God, He can do that. All we have to do is be faithful. And then number three, we have the promise of God that Jesus will join us as we follow the plan. Jesus said in Matthew 28, Lo, I am with you. In a sense, Jesus was not with Peter and John as they went and followed the plan. You and I have Jesus with us as we seek to follow His plan. We should be comforted by that. I'm so encouraged that I don't have to share the gospel on my own. The Holy Spirit helps us. I'm so thankful that I don't have to pray for somebody to be saved on my own. But like the disciples, not knowing when Jesus would come for the Passover, they had to be ready. And so do we. Jesus has gone back to heaven. He's left us here to do his work. And he says, watch, be ready. You don't know when I'm coming back. Be busy, make sure that you follow and stick to the plan. I wonder when Jesus comes, will he find faith on the earth? we find faithful ones still serving Him in Dyer, Indiana, in St. John, in Crown Point, in Hammond, in Munster, in Cherville, wherever you live, where you'll be faithful, following the plan, sharing the gospel. We know that He will come back. He told them, I'm gonna come and we'll have Passover together. And He's also told us that I want you to see it in two other passages, and we'll be bringing this section of the service to a close. Acts chapter one, verse 11. Acts one, verse 11. This is following the Acts account of the Great Commission. We read the Matthew account of the Great Commission. Go, teach, baptize, teach some more. Jesus said that in Acts chapter one. You shall receive power after the Holy Ghost has come upon you. You shall be witnesses to me, both in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the outermost parts of the earth. And then, what does he say, what happened afterwards? Can you picture it? Jesus is teaching his disciples, and literally, he starts to float. And he goes higher, and higher, and higher, and he gets smaller and smaller. Have you ever watched a plane take off? You ever watch one of those Chinese lanterns go floating away? Or a helium balloon on its way to murder a seagull or something like that? You watch these things and you just kind of get entranced by it. It goes smaller, smaller. And that's what was happening. And the disciples were all standing around like this, the whole group of them. And Acts chapter 1 verse 11 says that these angels came and they said, ye men of Galilee, Why stand ye gazing up into heaven? What are you standing around looking up into the sky for? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner, as ye have seen him go into heaven. We have the promise from God's messenger that Jesus is coming back. I better be faithful in following the plan, because he is going to come. What if Peter and John had said, okay, we found the house, this is furnished pretty nicely, I like this. I'm sure we can borrow, like, the spices and the food and stuff. We don't need to go really get the meal ready. And Jesus shows up. Guys, where's the Passover stuff? Oh, uh, sorry. How would we feel if Jesus comes back and finds us not following the plan? Jesus will come back ultimately to rule and reign. I want to read to you from Revelation 19. You're welcome to read me, read along with me if you want to. Revelation 19 verse 11. To encourage you that God has promised us in his word never fails, that he will come back. He'll come back and receive us to himself in the clouds, the rapture. He'll come again after that to rule, to reign as the great king of the universe that he is. Revelation chapter 19. Revelation 19 verse 11 And I saw heaven opened, John said, and behold, a white horse. And he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness doth he judge and make war. written that no man knew but he himself, and he was clothed with the vesture dipped in blood, and his name is called the Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, and out of his mouth bore the sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations, and he shall rule them with a rod of iron, and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. Lord of Lords. That's my king. He gave me a plan. We better follow it until he comes back. Thank you for joining us today. We'd love to hear from you. Our email address is GraceGlory7 at Juno.com. GraceGlory, the number seven, at Juno.com. Pastor David M. Atkinson also has a ministry on Facebook and invites you to connect with him there. Now, until the next time, remember to walk softly with the Lord.