The Lord Needs It

Jesus sets the scene for his departure by giving the people what they want.

After he had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. When he had come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of the disciples, saying, "Go into the village ahead of you, and as you enter it you will find tied there a colt that has never been ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, 'Why are you untying it?' just say this, 'The Lord needs it.'" So those who were sent departed and found it as he had told them. As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, "Why are you untying the colt?" They said, "The Lord needs it." Then they brought it to Jesus; and after throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. As he rode along, people kept spreading their cloaks on the road. As he was now approaching the path down from the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to praise God joyfully with a loud voice for all the deeds of power that they had seen, saying, "Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven, and glory in the highest heaven!" Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, order your disciples to stop." He answered, "I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out." - Luke 19:28-40

They expected the Messiah to enter the city in a triumphant way, because they believed this would be the king they prayed for, the one who would save them.

But the salvation they hoped for was different form the salvation Jesus brought to them.  He was saving them from eternal death, and they wanted release from oppression.

What we think we want and what we need may be two different things.

The story Luke tells is interesting.  The prerequisite for the entrance into Jerusalem is a colt.  The colt belongs to someone who has no idea what is about to happen, that two men would come to untie his colt and take it away.

The Lord needs it.  That's how they answered the man when he asked what they were doing.  And he accepted that.

Why?

He wasn't asked to offer it up.  They were stealing it.  When he heard it was for Jesus, he let them take it.

He was probably proud to let them take it at that point, because he had to know who Jesus was.

This is the lesson for us.

When someone comes to us with a need, do we treat that person as though he or she was sent by Jesus?

Probably not.

We tend to be possessive of our stuff.  But if we think about it, why wouldn't Jesus offer our stuff to someone who needs it more?

It's an odd way of looking at the needs of the world, but Jesus did things in odd ways.

So, before we react, maybe we should ask ourselves if this thing being demanded of us could be at the request of the Lord.

And if the Lord needs it, who would say no?

More to come...