Finding Purpose

Scripture:

Luke 19:29    When he had come near Bethphage and Bethany, at the place called the Mount of Olives, he sent two of the disciples, ³⁰ 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. ³¹ If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ just say this, ‘The Lord needs it.’” ³² So those who were sent departed and found it as he had told them. ³³ As they were untying the colt, its owners asked them, “Why are you untying the colt?” ³⁴ They said, “The Lord needs it.” ³⁵ Then they brought it to Jesus; and after throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. ³⁶ As he rode along, people kept spreading their cloaks on the road. ³⁷ 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, ³⁸ saying,

“Blessed is the king

who comes in the name of the Lord!

Peace in heaven,

and glory in the highest heaven!”

³⁹ Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, order your disciples to stop.” ⁴⁰ He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the stones would shout out.”

Observation:

The moment had come and Jesus was ready to enter the city of Jerusalem. The details had been prepared in advance and there was simply the need for obedience from all of the players. This included the colt. The phrase which sticks out to me is this one, “The Lord needs it.” God had a plan for this colt, and the time had now come for the colt to fulfill its purpose. 

The owners didn’t try to stand in the way of the disciples using the colt. When they heard that the Lord needed it, they allowed the colt to fulfill his purpose. 

The Lord used many people and items to complete his redemptive work. He needed a boat to cross a lake, a net to catch the fish, and a few loaves of bread and a handful of fish to feed thousands. He needed a little child to become the illustration for his sermon on faith, and a group of women to financially support his ministry, as well as apostles to preach the good news. If this is true, then God has a place for each and every one of us. 

Application:

“The Lord needs it” — if only that were said about us, as we engaged in the Lord’s work and mission. He used bread, fish, boats, and nets for his kingdom purposes, and then he used a colt. Far too often we think that God needs us to do great things, when he may just be asking us to fulfill the purpose for which we have been created. In the Hebrew understanding of the New Testament era, to fulfill the purpose for which you had been created was to be “perfect.” The colt was “perfect,” not because he was well behaved, or looked beautifully groomed, but because he fulfilled the purpose for which he had been created. He was to carry the Messiah. 

What is it that the Lord requires from us? 

1. Undivided loyalty. The colt had never been ridden before. His all was given over in service to the Messiah, and so we have to give all we have to in service to Christ. The motivations of our hearts and lives have been divided, but we are asked to give the Lord everything! In a world which encourages us to seek out our own “self” and to feed our own wants and desires, this seems counter-intuitive. However, there can be no divided loyalty in the life of a disciple. Either we live entirely for Christ, or we do not. 
2. Patience and humility. Jesus’ entire life points us to patience and humility. He patiently awaits the appointed hour, and has emptied himself of who he was, so that we could become like him. The humble colt has but this moment in which to fulfill his purpose. We are to be patient when it comes to following Christ, imitating his humility, and in the end, Christ is glorified. The colt was not the focus of the story, but was simply a player fulfilling his role in the greater scheme of things. And yet, he served the vital role of fulfilling prophecy. Therefore, we should not be seeking great things for ourselves, but it should be enough for us to be and do anything, so that Christ is glorified. 
3. Maybe just one brief moment of service. I would love to be living my life with increasing fervor and service for the Lord, but that may not be what the Lord requires. Think about Ananias who was used to minister to Saul in Damascus. He had a moment when God needed him, and he was obedient in that service. We never know how God might use us in a single moment to make a difference in history. 

The Lord needs you, and the Lord needs me. What the Lord calls us to is a life of radical obedience and preparation. Every moment, of every day, we need to be prepared to fulfill even the most menial task in service to our Lord. 

Prayer:

Lord, please help me to be prepared to be used by you at any time and in any place. Amen.