Following Jesus the Coming King

What does it really mean to follow Jesus as King—not just during Palm Sunday, but every day? In this message from Matthew 21 and supporting Scriptures, Pastor Chris Teien reminds us that Jesus came first in humility to bring salvation, but He will return in glory to reign. Through the familiar Palm Sunday story, we are challenged to move beyond passive belief to active discipleship, surrendering our lives in anticipation of the coming King.

Link: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2285086/episodes/16335656

Key Points:

1. Jesus Fulfilled Prophecy by Entering Jerusalem on a Donkey – Matthew 21:1–5; Zechariah 9:9. Riding a donkey symbolized peace and humility, revealing Jesus as the promised King who came to save, not conquer by force.
2. Following Jesus Requires Obedient, Humble Service – Matthew 21:6–7. The disciples' willingness to fulfill even small tasks—like fetching a donkey—demonstrates how true followers obey Christ fully.
3. Praising Jesus Should Be Public, Bold, and Joyful – Matthew 21:8–11. The crowds celebrated Jesus openly; we too should praise Him in our daily lives, even when it’s uncomfortable or unpopular.
4. Jesus Is the Coming King Who Will Return in Power – Matthew 26:64; Revelation 19:11. While Jesus came first to bring peace and salvation, He will come again in glory to judge and rule.

Personal Stories:

• Personal reflection on how it’s easy to follow crowds without conviction, sharing a story about joining a school walkout without knowing the cause.
• Real-life examples about the difference between wanting leadership positions versus doing humble, faithful tasks.
• Story about cleaning up debris from a highway accident and being unexpectedly charged for the tire disposal—highlighting that good deeds sometimes come at a personal cost.
• Passionate reading of A.B. Simpson’s covenant as a 17-year-old, challenging listeners to commit themselves fully to Jesus.

Quotes:

• "What if your life could be summed up like this: He or she did as Jesus commanded?"
• "You can't fully follow Christ without being willing to do small, unseen tasks with great love."
• "The first time Jesus came, He rode in on a donkey. The next time He comes, He will ride in on a white horse."

Takeaways:

1. Obey Jesus even in small, ordinary tasks—faithfulness in little things matters.
2. Publicly praise Jesus and look for ways to make Him known in your everyday life.
3. Reflect on whether you are preparing your life for Christ’s return.
4. Consider making a personal covenant with Jesus to serve and follow Him wholeheartedly.

Scripture:

• Matthew 21:1–11 – Triumphal Entry
• Zechariah 9:9 – Prophecy of the coming King on a donkey
• Matthew 26:64 – Jesus promises His return in glory
• Hebrews 9:28 – Christ will come again to bring salvation
• Revelation 19:11 – Jesus returns as a victorious King
• Isaiah 66:15 – Prophecy of the Lord’s coming judgment

Keywords:
 Palm Sunday, triumphal entry, following Jesus, King of Kings, second coming, Christian discipleship, obedience, faithfulness, prophecy fulfilled, worship

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I hope this message helps you understand and apply God’s Word. Find sermon transcripts at Well.faith, learn more at ChrisTeien.com, or come visit us at Rockwell Church in Virginia, Minnesota. If this message encouraged you, I’d love to hear from you at wellfaith24@gmail.com.

Transcript

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SPEAKER_03 0:18

Okay, community. We're gonna talk about something really great. I'm stunned that.

SPEAKER_02 0:22

Yeah, that's the standard way for a full memory stuff on the way.

SPEAKER_03 0:30

No, yes, it's uh they can memory for integrated in the workshop and affected this quality and talking to that call, so I'm gonna call the coin calling host data. I mean he's just going to last it last year.

SPEAKER_02 1:38

Yeah, it says right here in Matthew 21. It says that is it's a two of it to type 1 to get in a donkey.

SPEAKER_03 2:05

So we have two disciples to go get them a donkey.

SPEAKER_02 2:12

And then it says identify them and bring them to me. If somebody asks you about it, you tell them the Lord's told us the title to feel a donkey for it.

SPEAKER_03 2:25

What type of do you read? It doesn't say that at all.

SPEAKER_02 2:27

I can't figure this out. I mean, Jesus water and the wine, cool.

SPEAKER_03 2:31

We spend the 4,000 or 5,000, you spend the 5,000 enough of course that's the 5,000 years.

SPEAKER_02 2:42

You just fed a large group of people. That's cool. He raises left from the dead, and boom, he's like, hey guys, we'll still be adopted. I'm just saying, I don't think that's where WWJ needs.

SPEAKER_03 2:55

It's significantly quite a donkey. But you cannot see all the filters in the standard. Yeah, but the key is lighting and only don't you win the way the project is alive? Today, it's a time for us to recover the agony of his passion and the joy of his resurrection. So let's leave it. Let's cover the road to the cross with our hearts, our souls, and our minds as we reflect on the final week of Jesus' life.

SPEAKER_02 3:46

Let's celebrate in anticipation the return of the King of Kings.

Chris T 3:55

It is Palm Sunday, and when you come to Palm Sunday, I think that sometimes we have a problem with the familiarity of the story that we've heard this, if we've been in church all of our lives, every Easter season, and to come and make it fresh and make it practical. And what have you walk out of here and say, hey, I did something today. I recommitted my life to Christ, or I'm something besides just sharing the facts of the story. Now it's interesting in their video, and I think they probably did this on purpose to get you to think about it. Jesus actually did feed four thousand and five thousand. And some people think that, oh, it must be a mistranslation. It's 4,000, 5,000. But Jesus actually said he fed 4,000 and 5,000. Matthew 16, 9 through 10, using the New Living Translation today. He says, Don't you understand even yet? Don't you remember the 5,000 I fed with 5 loaves and the baskets of leftovers you picked up? Or the 4,000 I fed with seven loaves and the large baskets of leftovers you picked up? So it's just interesting that they left that in the video. And I think it's to get you to think about it. So anyway, Jesus commented on that, and that is good. So we're going to look at Palm Sunday passage in Matthew chapter 21. Jesus is going to ride into town during Passover. There's millions, maybe millions, thousands, multiple, probably there's a lot of people, a large multitude there, and he is going to, like the video said, fulfill the prophecy and ride in on a colt as a sign that he is a king coming in peace. So a mighty warrior king would come in on a war horse, but to come in on the colt of a donkey is showing that you're not there to wage war, you're there to bring peace. And people understood this. They were expecting the Messiah. They understood what was going on. They had heard of Jesus and were looking forward to his teaching and thought that maybe he was the miracle man that was coming to rescue them from the Roman oppression. So they weren't able to live in peace and do their own things because the Romans were there in their life, causing them all sorts of trouble, taxing them. And they wanted a mighty king warrior to come in, overthrow the Roman government, make them number one for many reasons. One, for their prosperity, for a better life, for the opportunity to do more, because it would make them more comfortable. Everything about it was about them. And you know this story that, you know, so Jesus rides in in the beginning of the week, and by the end of the week, some of the same people, I would guess, are shouting, crucify them, because Jesus didn't meet their expectations. And I think that sometimes people are quick to just forget about following the Lord when their expectations aren't met. When their expectations aren't met, when they don't get the job they wanted, or they didn't get the bill paid, or they didn't get cured of their sickness, or their loved one died, or all the difficulties in life that can happen sometimes cause people to say, well, if I'm not gonna get that, then I'm not gonna follow Jesus. But we should follow Jesus because he's our coming king, and we will see that as life goes on, that some of the hard things we go through wasn't necessarily our choice. We're more of victims and circumstances, but the Lord is working out his plan, and his plan isn't often just about us and our comfort. So in Matthew chapter 21, Jesus and the disciples approached Jerusalem. They came to the town of Bethphage. It's funny how many different ways you can say this. So I've heard Beth Phoggy. Anyway, we won't get caught up on that. We'll go with Beth Bethphage on the Mount of Olives. Jesus sent two of them on ahead. Go into the village over there, he said, and as soon as you enter it, you will see a donkey tied there with its colt beside it. Untie them and bring them to me. The other gospels don't actually make that clear that its mother is there. So here you have this young colt that's going to be ridden for the first time, and it would probably go crazy. But if its mom is there, so it's probably gonna be more peaceful. But Jesus had this worked out. So was he in his foreknowledge? Did he know that was there? Did he work it out in advance? Was he familiar with that what was going on? And so he re prearranged it. It doesn't really matter. But Jesus sent two disciples out to get the donkey and his the cult and his mom. Think about that. Would you be willing to do a task like that for Jesus? Some of us just want to do big things. We want to proclaim Jesus and do stuff and do stop. And many years ago, uh our church has been meeting in the school for a long time. We had someone come and visit, and they had been here for a little bit, and the lady said, We just I just like to take over the coffee ministry and the food and the hospitality stuff, and I just like to take that over and so you don't have to worry about it. I'm like, that's perfect. Are you gonna take the coffee places the coffee pots, you're gonna take them home? Oh no, no, I'm not gonna do that. I'm like, what are you gonna do? Well, I'm gonna find people to do it. I'm just gonna oversee it and make it happen. I'm like, okay. It didn't work out very well. It would have helped a lot more if she would have just like staffed up to the plate and done the work and then found some people to come alongside and help. And I think in our Christian life we're like that a lot too. We want to do the big things, but we don't always want to do the little things, you know. Love to speak in church, don't want to help set away, put away chairs, stuff like that. But so two disciples, who knows which disciples, were asked by Jesus to go get these so that he could, Jesus could do what was required, what was needed, what was prophesied, what was foretold. One of the few times that Jesus actually got recognition for being the king he is, treated the way he should be treated. So as soon as you enter, you'll see a donkey tied there with its colt beside it. Untie them and bring them to me, Jesus said. If anyone asks what you are doing, just say, the Lord needs them, and he will immediately let you take them. And this took place to fulfill the prophecy that said, Tell the people of Israel, look, your king is coming to you. He is humble, riding on a donkey, riding on a donkey's colt. And as mentioned in the video, that's in Zechariah 9.9, at least part of it is. So that was prophesied at least 500 years before it happened, foretold. 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. So there are many miraculous prophecies in the Old Testament that you can look at and go, that's amazing. There's absolutely no way that could happen unless it was a God thing. And this isn't one of them. It would have been easy for Jesus or anyone else to look back at that prophecy and say, hey, we're riding in a town. We need a donkey and we need a goat, because that's what they're expecting, that's what we're expecting, that's what the Messiah is going to do. But it did happen, and God fulfills his word. So when things are prophesied in the past, they're gonna happen. God is true, God is reliable, and when God speaks and tells things are gonna happen in the future through his prophets, it's going to happen. So, and it did happen just as it was foretold. So, was it an amazing miracle that could have never no, but it happened, and it's consistent with Jesus fulfilling prophecy as he's supposed to. Many other Old Testament prophecies about Jesus, there's no way you could even make that happen if you tried. Jesus is fulfilling all righteousness, he's doing what needs to happen, and he's coming into town. So the two disciples did as Jesus commanded. That would be a great, a great thing that maybe even have it on your tombstone. So he or she or she did as Jesus commanded. That'd be pretty good, wouldn't it? Wouldn't that be a good way to live your life? What did you do with your life? I did what Jesus commanded. Awesome. Well done, good and faithful servant. I think a lot of people are out there and they know what Jesus is commanding, and they're hoping Jesus turns the blind eye and says, Oh, we're under grace, right? Not under works. I like to do this because it's fun. But actually, a lot of the sin that we get into, God says no, because he knows it will hurt us. Eventually we'll feel guilty, we'll feel sad, we'll destroy our lives. And so God puts fences with rules in our lives so that we will do the right thing. But these disciples were obedient, they did as Jesus commanded. They brought the donkey and the colt to him and threw their garments over the cult and he sat on it. So now they're taking care of him. They're like, well, we don't have any blanket or anything to throw over it. So other Bible translations say cloak. We don't wear cloaks anymore. But basically, they didn't like, I mean, the disciples didn't have a lot of money. They were didn't they were traveling with Jesus and they didn't have a lot of resources. So basically, as far as I can tell, they basically like took the shirt off their back and threw it on this cult for Jesus to ride on. And other people were putting stuff down in the road. Well, let's get back to this. They said, threw their garments over the cult and he sat on it. Most of the crowd spread their garments on the road ahead of him and cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road, because that's what they did to recognize the triumphant king. That's what was the cultural thing. When I think about garments and putting your garments down for Jesus, I don't think that we can actually take our garments and put them in a road for Jesus per se, but we surely can give clothes to people in need and help people in need with the clothes we have. I think Jesus recognizes that too, especially when it's clothes that we like. When we give people stuff like a coat or things that they need that they like, when you find someone that's the right size and you give them stuff that is what they like and what they need. Unfortunately, I think that some people are like, hey, if I get rid of these old clothes and give them to this person, then I'll have a need to get myself some new clothes. And I don't know if God honors that as much. But to put God first in everything, to put Jesus first in everything, and be willing to sacrifice and to throw down your garment, to share what is needed, to do what you can to honor Jesus is a great thing. So cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. Jesus was in the center of the procession, and all the people around him were shouting, Hosanna, which we praise the Lord. Hosanna, Lord, save us. Praise God for the Son of David. Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord. Praise God in the highest heaven. The entire city of Jerusalem was in an uproar as he entered. And they're like, Who is this? They asked. And the crowds replied, It's Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee. So Jesus was riding in this procession. People were praising him, and that's actually the way it's supposed to be. And think about yourself in that picture now. What would you do? Would you be skeptical? Would you go, is that really Jesus? I should I should I throw stuff down for him? Should I should I honor him? Is he truly king? Do I truly believe he's king? Do I truly am I excited or am I skeptical? Am I afraid of what the Romans are going to think? I mean, they could see me doing this and I could get in trouble. Would you give praise to Jesus? I think you would. But you know, sometimes we don't want to do that in public. So we'd be like, okay, here comes Jesus down the road, and everybody's praising him and throwing stuff down, and yay, we're part of the crowd. And it's easy actually to be part of a crowd mentality. A crowd can lead you in a good way or a bad way. So during the school walkouts over the gun protests or whatever, I was recalling to a pastor friend of mine in Colorado that when I went to school in Colorado in junior high and senior high, we walked out. I said, I have no idea why. I can't remember. I just followed him out the door. So, like a sheep. Just, I don't know what we're protesting, but I guess we're getting out of school. And so you can follow people to do the wrong things or you can follow people to do the right things. It's easy when you're in a crowd to worship Jesus. It's easy when you're in a crowd to put your hands in the air and worship the Lord. It's easy when you are around other Christians to talk about Jesus, but it's a lot harder when you're at school or you're at work or in the neighborhood and you feel like you're the only one. And so you want to bring glory to the Lord by sharing what he's doing in your life. You want to tell people about how they can have a relationship with Christ, but you're afraid of what they're going to think. You're afraid you might say the wrong thing or not have the answer to their question. So you don't. You sit on your hands and nothing happens. No praise is given to the Lord. No message of the gospel is shared because you're afraid. And we need to be like these people on this day, and praising the Lord because he is the Lord, praising the Lord because Jesus sees and knows and will even reward us. So, and as we do that, maybe people will say, Who is this Jesus? And which we'll have an opportunity to tell them about Jesus, being being God, being our Savior, rising from the dead. Easter time isn't about the bunny, it is about Jesus' resurrection. And we've got New Testaments back there that have information in the front and the back about who is Jesus and how you can live the Christian life, how you can be saved. It's a great resource. It's a great tool actually to lead someone to Christ and then disciple them, help them to grow in their faith. But as you're praising Jesus, as you're excited about Jesus, people may come up to you and say, Who is this Jesus? Tell me about this Jesus. They said, the crowds replied, It's Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee. Jesus replied in Matthew 26, 64, said about the coming king, about Jesus being a coming king, because here Jesus has come and he is riding in and he knows he's gonna be crucified. If you read through Matthew, you will see that Jesus knew he was going to be crucified, Jesus knew what the time frame was, he was laying down his life and he knew exactly what would happen, even told his disciples exactly what was going to happen, though they didn't understand until afterwards. But Jesus is our coming King. He is going to come back, he is going to reward us for serving him. He is going to take all of the saved people to be with him for eternity. Matthew 26, 64, a little further ahead, Jesus replied, You've said it, and in the future you will see the Son of Man seated in the place of power at God's right hand and coming on the clouds of heaven. So Jesus is coming back. And we are excited about Jesus, our coming king, coming back. I mentioned this last week or the week before, about Jesus returning. That when Jesus ascended into heaven after he was resurrected in the beginning of the book of Acts, when he ascended into heaven, the angels said, Men of Galilee, why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go. So Jesus knew that he was going to return. We've been told that he's going to return. I can't imagine what it will be like when he returns, but I surely want to tell other people. I don't understand everything about the Bible or the future, but I've made a commitment to understand that I believe in the Bible. So I don't understand. I can't give you an exact picture of how everything in our eternal future works out. As a matter of fact, the Bible doesn't do that either. But we trust Jesus. I see that the Lord is working in my life. I see answered prayer. I see things that he is doing that proves that he is God, that he is alive in my life. And I trust him, and I know that he is going to return. Hebrews 9 28 says, So also Christ died once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. So that's why he was coming to Jerusalem. He was going to be crucified for our sins. It was foretold in the Old Testament. God sent Jesus. Jesus lived among us, taught us how to live, and then died for our sin and rose again. So Hebrews 9 28, so also Christ died once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people, and he will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him. So I know that if it's a peaceful time in our life and we have everything we need and we're comfortable, we're less likely to be excited about Jesus' return. But if there is persecution or we've come to the point in our life where we're just disillusioned and sad with it, Jesus' returning is a lot more appealing. Especially when you know that you'll spend eternity with Jesus, living much better than you're living now. So don't get comfortable. Don't waste away your days. Don't think that someone else can share Christ with that person. No, you need to share Christ with that person. You know that whole well thing, worship, encouraging, learning, and loving. Part of worshiping the Lord is you spending time with him in his word and being able to proclaim him, to praise him, and to promote him. And the E could be encouraging or evangelizing, which is sharing your faith. So do that. Help people be ready for Jesus to return or to die. People can die suddenly too. So Jesus can return at any time. Hebrews 9 28, so Christ died once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly awaiting him. Be eagerly awaiting him. In Isaiah 66, verse 15, it says, See the Lord is coming with fire, and his swift chariots roar like a whirlwind. He will bring punishment with the fury of his anger and the flaming fire of his hot rebuke. The Lord will punish the world by fire and by his sword. He will judge the earth, and many will be killed by him. So that's a prophecy of Jesus returning in the future. And we see that in Revelation 19, 11 at the back of the Bible, towards the end. And I saw heaven open, and a white horse was standing there. Its rider was named Faithful and True, for he judges fairly and wages a righteous war. So Jesus is returning, our coming king. So would you commit to serve your coming king because he is a perfect king? So we're part of this group called the Christian and Missionary Alliance. And it was founded many years ago in the 1800s by this guy, Alfred Benjamin Simpson, by A. B. Simpson. And we are not Simpsonites, so we don't follow every single thing that A. B. Simpson ever wrote. He started a movement, though we don't, we look at we follow the Bible. And he wrote a good lot of good things. He wrote a lot of books. But so he is well known for being the founder of the Christian Missionary Alliance and the founder of the Assemblies of God. There was a split actually in the group over some said you should speak in tongues and some Said you might speak in tongues. Obviously, we're on the side that says you might speak in tongues, but don't forbid it, don't promote it, kind of thing. Where the other group pursues speaking in tongues. And he is uh founder of other groups too, like I guess the missionary church and things like that. So did great things. You can learn about his history. But at age 17, so how many of you had your spiritual life together when you're age 17? I graduated from high school when I was 16 and went to Bible college when I was 17, and I trying to get it together, but I wasn't very mature. Wasn't mature enough to write what he wrote as a commitment to God, which is found in the center of your notes. So this was the solemn, solemn covenant, the dedication of myself to God. And he wrote this when he was 17 years and one month old. So I was fact-checking and making sure that he was truly 17 when this is written. And it and this is what he writes. What if this were your covenant? What if this were how you came to Jesus, our King and our coming king, and said, This is how I will serve you, this is how I will live for you, because I value you. I know that not everything in my life is perfect, but I want to serve you. Actually, A. B. Simpson said that. Let me read this, and maybe this will become valuable to you in the future. My a solemn covenant, the dedication of myself to God. Everlasting and almighty God, ruler of the universe, you made this world and you made me. You are in every place beholding the evil and the good. You see me and know all my thoughts. My innermost thoughts are all familiar to you. You know my motives for coming to you. I appeal to you, searcher of hearts. So far as I know my heart, it is not a worldly motive that brings me before you now. But my heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, Jeremiah 17, 9. And I would not pretend to trust it. I have a desire to dedicate myself to you forever. I come before you as a sinner, lost and ruined by the fall, and by my transgressions, yes, I am the worst of all your creatures. When I look back on my life, I am filled with shame and confusion. I am ignorant and rude, like an animal in your sight. Lord, you made Adam holy and happy, you gave him the ability to maintain the state. The penalty of disobedience with death was death. He disobeyed your holy law and incurred the penalty. I am his descendant, and I have inherited his depravity, this depravity, and this penalty. Your sentence is just. Lord, I bow in submission before you. Lord, I am an evil person. How can you stoop to look on me? It is an endless deference to even notice me. But truly, your loving kindness is boundless and eternal. Lord, you sent your Son in our image with a body such as mine and a wise soul. All the perfections of the Godhead abide in him. So does the modesty of our sinful nature. He is the mediator of the new covenant, and through him we all have access to you by the same Spirit. Through Jesus, the only mediator, I come to you. Lord, by trusting in his mediation I boldly approach your throne of grace. Lord, I feel my own insignificance, but you strengthen me by your spirit. I am approaching you to covenant with you for eternal life. In your word, you told us that it is your will for all who believe in your Son to have eternal life, and you will raise him up on the last day. You gave us a new covenant and sealed it in Jesus' blood on the cross. Now I declare before you and before my conscience and everything you have created that I accept the condition of this covenant and close with its terms. I believe on Jesus and accept salvation through him, my prophet, priest, and king, as made to me by God wisdom and righteousness and sanctification. Lord, you made me willing to come to you. By your love, you subdued my rebellious heart. So now take it and use it for your glory. Whenever rebellious thoughts develop in my heart, overcome them and bring everything that opposes you into subjection to your authority. I yield myself to you as one alive from the dead forever. Take and use me for your glory. Ratify now in heaven, O my Father, this covenant. Remember it, O Lord, when you bring me to the Jordan, Lord. Remember me when you come with all the angels and saints to judge the world. May I be at your right hand, and in heaven with you forever. In heaven, write down that I have become yours, yours only, and yours forever. Lord, remember me in the hour of temptation. Never let me depart from this covenant, Lord. I sense my own weakness, and so I am not making this in my own strength. If I did, I would fail. But in your strength, O captain of salvation, I shall be strong and more than a conqueror through Christ who loved me. Lord, I have made this covenant with you according to your word. I did not make it for worldly honors or fame, but for eternal life. I know you are true and will never break your word. Give to me all the blessings of the new covenant, especially the Holy Spirit in great abundance. The Spirit is the pledge of my inheritance until the day of redemption. May a double portion of your spirit rest upon me, then I shall proclaim your ways and laws to transgressors and to your people. Sanctify me completely and make me fit for heaven. Give me all the spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus. Now I am a soldier of the cross and follower of the Lamb. From now on my motto is, I have one King, even Jesus. Support and strengthen me, O my captain, and be mine forever. Lord, place me in the circumstances you want. If it is in accordance with your will, I request that you give me neither poverty nor riches. Feed me with the food I need, lest I am poor and steal, or lest I become rich and say, Who is the Lord? Let your will be done. Now give me your spirit and protect my heart all the time. Then I will drink of the rivers of salvation, lie down by still waters, and be infinitely happy in the favor of my God. Saturday, January 19, 1861. AB Simpson, 17 years old. So you can actually get this in the book Relentless Spirituality, Embracing the Spiritual Disciplines of A. B. Simpson. And I saw you can download it on Google Play for $3.50. But actually, this has been updated. So it doesn't have he wrote thousand D's, because it was the 1800s. And so it's been more updated. But what if that was your prayer? What if that was your commitment before the Lord today? What if when we went to communion today, you told the Lord that you want some of that? And you were willing to live your life in such a way. So we see that this man who at 17 years old dedicated his life to the Lord was able to start a missionary movement, was able to help start Bible colleges. I think A.B. Simpson is given credit for the beginning of the Bible college movement, and D.L. Moody is given credit for starting the Sunday school movement, if I remember right. But what if that was your prayer? What if that was a covenant you made before the Lord? That would truly be following the coming king. I'm going to ask guys or people to come forward to help us with communion, to have communion. And you're welcome to take communion with us if you're a believer in Christ, if you received Jesus as your Lord and Savior. I did it by asking the Lord. It's not the prayer that saves you, it's by committing to Christ. But I prayed, Lord Jesus, I know I'm a sinner. Please forgive me of my sin and to come into my life and save me and make me the person you created me to be. And he did. And maybe that's your prayer for today. Again, you don't get saved by saying the sinner's prayer. You get saved by being a sinner that comes to Jesus. But one of the best ways to do that is by talking to the Lord in prayer.