ESOCS Devotional 16 September 2023 – God Requires Your Service
MEMORY VERSE: “And if anyone asks you, ‘Wy are you loosing it?’ thus you shall say to him, “Because the Lord hath need of it”. Luke 19:31 NKJV
TEXT: LUKE 19:28-40 (KJV)
And when he had thus spoken, he went before, ascending up to Jerusalem.
29 And it came to pass, when he was come nigh to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount called the mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples,
30 Saying, Go ye into the village over against you; in the which at your entering ye shall find a colt tied, whereon yet never man sat: loose him, and bring him hither.
31 And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose him? thus shall ye say unto him, Because the Lord hath need of him.
32 And they that were sent went their way, and found even as he had said unto them.
33 And as they were loosing the colt, the owners thereof said unto them, Why loose ye the colt?
34 And they said, The Lord hath need of him.
35 And they brought him to Jesus: and they cast their garments upon the colt, and they set Jesus thereon.
36 And as he went, they spread their clothes in the way.
37 And when he was come nigh, even now at the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen;
38 Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest.
39 And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy disciples.
40 And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.
Read Yesterday’s ESOCS Devotional here
One of the important events that took place while Christ was on earth was his triumphant entry to Jerusalem. The topic today bothers on service which refers to work done by a person to benefit another; it also means to be used by or as a utility. The Bible tells us how Jesus on his way to Jerusalem sent for a donkey. He mounted it and had a glorious ride in a royal procession into the city. This fulfilled the prophecy made by Zachariah (Zech. 9:9).
There are three things to note in His triumphant entry, in the book of Mark. First, Jesus sent his disciples to a village to find a colt that had not been used. Why not just any colt? For an ordinary donkey to be used by the Master implies that every human; young or old is useful to God. In addition to that, God delights more in our services, when we offer it at our youthful age, when we are vibrant and agile to move about for our Maker, not when we are already old, weak and fragile with ached bodies that only waits to be swallowed up in the grave (see Eccl. 12:1-2). It’s quite unfortunate how the devil has engaged so many young people in the society; you see them in clubs, camp nights, entertainment industry, football clubs, campuses, social media all working so hard for the enemy. That good voice you have as a young man, rather than use it to sing worldly songs, use it to worship and praise your Creator, why waste those God-given ability? Do not wait until you’ve had all the “pleasures” in the world before coming to serve Him with your second-handed self. Such a life cannot birth the kind of Glory produced by the colt in this end time.
Second, God expects every of his children to contribute something to kingdom purpose. As Jesus rode into Jerusalem, the people threw their clothes on the donkey for him to sit, others prepared him a red-carpet using palm fronds, and there are others who could not keep silent but lavished him with praises. With the position you occupy in the society (teacher, doctor, driver, vendor, politician, lawyer, student, pupil, etc.), is there not something you can do to propagate the kingdom of God in your local Church and the body of Christ in Nigeria? May the Lord not hear you saying “… no one has hired me” (see Matt. 20:6 and 7).
Lastly, the text ends with joy (vs. 37-38). When we offer our lives as living sacrifice to render genuine services to God, it produces joy and peace in people’s lives and the heavenly Father rejoices (see Rom. 12:1-2).
- Lord, please show me the way to fit into your plan.
FURTHER READING: Job 31:13-17; Proverbs 18:9-end; Matthew 20:3-9; Mark 16:15-20
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ESOCS Devotional 16 September 2023
