LESSONS SURROUNDING A COLT

The "Triumphal Entry" of Jesus into Jerusalem was unique. Even so, it is probably not new to you. We call it "PALM SUNDAY", the day of the start of HOLY WEEK. Palm Sunday is sometimes referred to as SUNDAY OF THE PASSION. This was Jesus' last time to arrive in the City. He enters to the cheers and enthusiasm of crowds waving palm branches and shouting "Hosanna" - "blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord".

This event is one we have heard about often. We've heard of the disciples' obedience to Jesus' command to go to obtain the donkey; we've read or been told of the garments which were thrust upon the donkey and placed along the roadway. We have rejoiced at the Hosannas which were exclaimed that day, and perhaps our heart has applauded the entrance of the King of kings and Lord of lords into the Holy City.

Jesus' entrance on the donkey is the exact fulfillment of the prophecy made hundreds of years beforehand: ". . .Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey." (Zechariah 9:9)

Even though we have probably heard of the colt that Jesus rode on, the colt may seem insignificant as far as offering any spiritual lessons. However, in this blog, I submit that spiritual truth regarding Christian discipleship and transforming principles can be gained by studying the colt. So, here we go!

1. The Colt Requested ----- Mark 11:1-2

On this particular day, "WHEN they came near to Jerusalem", it was the actual beginning of Passion Week. There was no accident here; there was no coincidence here. Instead, this day was The Day that God planned for this event to occur. You see, God's timing is always right! He plans and executes in a precise and purposeful way at just the right time! Nothing takes place apart from His sovereign purpose!

So it is in your life and mine! Jesus knows and understands us. We may not grasp it, we may be in a state of confusion about why certain things in our life take place when they do, and we tend to question God's care, love and direction. To be sure, God is never early or late; He is always right on time concerning our life and everything about it. Our focus must be on TRUSTING GOD, no matter what!

Not only true about God's right timing, Jesus' directions are definite, specific and involve His deliberate planning. In Mark 11:2, we read: Jesus sent two of His disciples and told them "Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it". Note the words that speak to His definite and specific directions: "Go, village, in front, immediately, you enter, you will find, a colt, tied, no one has ever sat, untie and bring it". DO WE NOT GET THE FACT FROM THIS THAT JESUS IS IN CONTROL?! Even in His last week prior to His sacrificial death to save us from sin, He is in absolute control. "When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem (where He would be crucified in a few days). And he sent messengers ahead of him. . .to make preparations for him". (Luke 9:51-52)

I have just a word here. Jesus also gives US perfect guidance for our lives! We must ask, search the Bible, listen and trust!

Now, let's go back to the colt. The colt is just an ordinary colt; we don't know if it even has a name. It is just a common colt, nothing special about it, The thing is, Jesus requested and needed that very colt.

Let's imagine for just a bit. Jesus could have asked for other things:

1. Money - for one more night on the town

2. A hotel room - for one good night's sleep

3. An appointment with His family - for one more visit and to say goodbye

4. An appointment with Pontus Pilate - to get ahead of the religious leaders before they arrested Him

5. A white stallion to ride into the City in style

Jesus is on the threshold of the greatest crisis in His life and He requests nothing but a lowly donkey for a humble ride into Jerusalem. This colt is undisciplined and untrained. No one has ever sat on him. The colt is not broken; it is "wild" and knows no restraint. It has a mind of its own and without respect for authority. It is its own authority and will not be ruled by anyone, He needs "loosed" and "untied".

We too are by nature like this wild, unruly colt. We tend to be stubborn, undisciplined, untrained, self-willed, independent, ruled by the tyranny of self, belligerent and arrogant. Only Jesus can change us. We need to confess our sin and rebellion, submit to Jesus for forgiveness, cleansing and transformation!

2. The Colt Required ----- Mark 11:3-6

"If anyone asks. . .'Why are you doing this?' say, The Lord has need of it and will send it back here". Indeed, the two disciples found it just as Jesus had told them. I wonder if they were surprised! Are we ever surprised when we discover that Jesus' word to us is absolutely correct and that we can be totally confident in it? Perhaps our faith needs strengthening!

I am somewhat amazed that Jesus had "NEED OF THE COLT." He needed nothing but the colt. He would take care of everything else,

It is not out of the realm of reality to believe that Jesus NEEDS you and me. He needs us to pray, believe, exercise faith and trust Him. Jesus needs us to be in His local church, tithe our income, serve and minister in His name, care for the orphans and widows, share the gospel and witness of our faith to, as yet, unbelieving people! If you and I do not meet HIS NEEDS, then who will?

3. The Colt Reformed ----- Mark 11:7-11

The disciples brought the colt to Jesus. This was the start of the colt's reformation. Whenever some-one comes or is brought to Jesus, potential spiritual reformation and transformation begin. It is important to know that He is the only ONE who can reform and transform people! He alone can and does change hearts and lives!

Garments were placed on the colt. For this untrained colt, these garments were a strange encounter with men; it had not experienced this before. This reminds me that Jesus would soon have a strange, never before experienced encounter with and for men by His death on "The Old Rugged Cross"!

Jesus sat on this colt. It appears that in doing so, He would break the colt, ride it, train and discipline it. The colt would never be the same. When we submit to Jesus, He changes us so thoroughly that we are never the same; we are different than we were before! YES, indeed - reformed and transformed!

The disciples told the person who questioned why they were loosening the colt, that Jesus would return it. The colt was sent back a completely different, reformed and tamed one. It was now more valuable and usable to its owner. Jesus kept His word; He sent the colt back!

JESUS ALWAYS KEEPS HIS WORD; HE IS ABSOLUTELY TRUSTWORTHY! You and I can trust Him in every situation; we can put our total weight down on Him with real confidence, knowing He holds us up!

You and I need to realize that it is never a question of Jesus' ability, desire or power to transform, change, train and discipline us. It is truly a matter of our willingness to submit and surrender to Him! If we do, He can and will send us out completely changed.

In closing, it may be that we have a DONKEY SYNDROME! We may be stubborn, undisciplined, arrogant, unreformed, untransformed, rebellious and self-sufficient. We may say things like: "I can't change", "I can't get over it or through it", "I can't overcome", "it is just who I am" or "I don't need to be reformed or trans-formed", etc.

My challenge to all of us is, let's learn the lessons surrounding this colt!