Verse: Luke 19: 29-34
When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples, 30 saying, “Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat. Untie it and bring it here. 31 If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’” 32 So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had told them. 33 And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 And they said, “The Lord has need of it.”
Thoughts
I've always been interested in the people who play really small roles in the Biblical narrative. Like this guy. Let's call him Bartholomew (seems like a good biblical name!). "Bart" for short.
So Bart is having himself a normal day. Just doing whatever it is he does 2000 years ago living near the city of Jerusalem. Maybe he's a farmer. Maybe he's just gotten back from a long day of work. He's probably tired. Maybe a little cranky. Who knows? And then two strangers walk up and start untying his donkey! What??
Can you imagine the scene? "Hey you two! STOP! Why are you stealing my donkey?"
Their reply is so simple, "The Lord has need of it."
Oh how I wish I knew this guy's backstory. How did that little sentence make the difference? Had he seen Jesus teach at some point? Did he believe Jesus was the Messiah? Or, like Ananias, has the Spirit spoken to him earlier to alert him to what was about to happen?
Either way, I think we can all be inspired by his response: simple and complete obedience. The reason, "The Lord has need of it" was all the reason he needed to give up his donkey. I wonder how I would have responded. How about you? I love Bart's immediate and complete obedience. "If the Lord needs it, he can have it - and anything else!"
And I wonder, in what areas of my life (and yours) is God saying this same thing to us? Where in our lives is the Lord asking for our obedience today? This week? This year? Are we willing to give him our time? "The Lord has need of it." Are we willing to take that step of faith? "The Lord has need of it." Are we willing to give him our fear, and go pray for that person? "The Lord has need of it."
What if we lived our lives more like Bart? Always ready, at any given moment, to say yes to Jesus. No matter what the "ask" is. It doesn't matter. If the Lord has need of it, it's his. No questions asked, no strings attached.
Prayer
I pray that you would help me to be attentive to your requests, and obedient in my responses.