March 20, 2016: The Needs of the Lord

Luke 19:29-40

“Why are you untying the colt?”
And they said, “The Lord has need of it.” (v. 33-34, RSV)

“The Lord has need of it.” Isn’t that a curious thing? The God of all glory has needs, and in this instance, he needs the services of a lowly donkey. In order to accomplish the extraordinary, God chose to yoke himself to the ordinary. While I cannot explain the mystery, I cannot escape its implication either. If the Lord needed a donkey to fulfill his gospel work, then maybe he needs me and you to do the same thing now!

I have a friend with a lovely gift for singing and teaching. She regularly visits local nursing homes to bless the residents with her uplifting voice and keen insights into the Word. She regularly concludes her teaching with this challenge for the elderly folk seated before her: “Friends, tomorrow morning when you wake up, I want you to open your eyes and look around. If you are still in your room and haven’t yet been taken to heaven, I want you to say out loud, ‘The Lord has work for me to do today.’ And then I want you to get up and get it done!”

Her words echo Jesus on that first Palm Sunday: The Lord has need of it.

Prayer: Living God, give us your grace to fulfill your purposes through Jesus.

Today’s devotional was written by Tim Brown, president and Henry Bast professor of preaching at Western Theological Seminary. This Lenten series comes from Words of Hope, whose mission is to build the church in the hard places through media. To learn more about the organization or subscribe to Words of Hope’s daily devotions, visitwww.woh.org.