A Colt and Divine Providence: Mark 11:1-6
“ 1) As they *approached Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, He *sent two of His disciples, 2) and *said to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, on which no one yet has ever sat; untie it and bring it here. 3) If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ you say, ‘The Lord has need of it’; and immediately he will send it back here.” 4) They went away and found a colt tied at the door, outside in the street; and they *untied it. 5) Some of the bystanders were saying to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6) They spoke to them just as Jesus had told them, and they gave them permission.” Mark 11:1-6
This story has always intrigued me. Was Jesus giving a word of knowledge to His disciples? Was He prophesying future events? Or, was He speaking from His Omniscience? No matter how you answer the mystery, He was giving exact details of future events related to the colt and the owner.
When the disciples started untying the colt, technically they could have been accused of theft. This could have escalated into a serious situation.
But Jesus even mentioned what to say to the owner of the colt and his affirmative response to the disciples. For that matter, how did Jesus arrange for the owner to have the colt tied to the hitching post at the exact place and the exact time? I love this story. It builds my faith!
This was not coincidence. This was an example of Divine Providence! Matthew 21:4-5 records this as a fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy. It was recorded in Zechariah 9:9. God always keeps His word to the smallest detail.
I maintain that the Spirit of God can and does speak to people to accomplish Divine appointments. Stories like this are common today in counties with intense persecution. The Holy Spirit can and does arrange transportation, meetings, meals, lodging and specific contacts between people.
This is a signature working of the Holy Spirit in the course of spreading the Gospel. The story of Philip speaking to the Ethiopian eunuch as recorded in Acts 8:26-40 may fit this scenario.
In a sense, the words of Jesus to the twelve in Matthew ten speaks of Divine provisions and encounters between people in the context of spreading the gospel. Do not put God in a box. He can and does orchestrate divine details in the course of spreading the gospel.
He is in charge of the hitching post, the door post and the guard post. He opens doors, connects people and provides in miraculous ways for the spread of the gospel.
Burn out comes when we take charge and try to figure out and control every detail. Always leave room to walk by faith and trust Divine Providence to build bridges, open doors, connect people and provide needs.
Our big job is to stay focused on spreading the gospel. When we minimize that calling, the power and provision of God seems to be quenched and we get stuck in self maintenance mode.
We need to be fiscally responsible, but God wants us to focus on “the faith account” more than “the bank account.” Our job is to get out there, Gods job is to connect the dots! It’s our job to tell the story, it’s Gods job to move the mountain!
Daily Bible Commentary By Terry Baxter: Cofounder of GoServ Global Sent from my iPhone
“ 1) As they *approached Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, He *sent two of His disciples, 2) and *said to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, on which no one yet has ever sat; untie it and bring it here. 3) If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ you say, ‘The Lord has need of it’; and immediately he will send it back here.” 4) They went away and found a colt tied at the door, outside in the street; and they *untied it. 5) Some of the bystanders were saying to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” 6) They spoke to them just as Jesus had told them, and they gave them permission.” Mark 11:1-6
This story has always intrigued me. Was Jesus giving a word of knowledge to His disciples? Was He prophesying future events? Or, was He speaking from His Omniscience? No matter how you answer the mystery, He was giving exact details of future events related to the colt and the owner.
When the disciples started untying the colt, technically they could have been accused of theft. This could have escalated into a serious situation.
But Jesus even mentioned what to say to the owner of the colt and his affirmative response to the disciples. For that matter, how did Jesus arrange for the owner to have the colt tied to the hitching post at the exact place and the exact time? I love this story. It builds my faith!
This was not coincidence. This was an example of Divine Providence! Matthew 21:4-5 records this as a fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy. It was recorded in Zechariah 9:9. God always keeps His word to the smallest detail.
I maintain that the Spirit of God can and does speak to people to accomplish Divine appointments. Stories like this are common today in counties with intense persecution. The Holy Spirit can and does arrange transportation, meetings, meals, lodging and specific contacts between people.
This is a signature working of the Holy Spirit in the course of spreading the Gospel. The story of Philip speaking to the Ethiopian eunuch as recorded in Acts 8:26-40 may fit this scenario.
In a sense, the words of Jesus to the twelve in Matthew ten speaks of Divine provisions and encounters between people in the context of spreading the gospel. Do not put God in a box. He can and does orchestrate divine details in the course of spreading the gospel.
He is in charge of the hitching post, the door post and the guard post. He opens doors, connects people and provides in miraculous ways for the spread of the gospel.
Burn out comes when we take charge and try to figure out and control every detail. Always leave room to walk by faith and trust Divine Providence to build bridges, open doors, connect people and provide needs.
Our big job is to stay focused on spreading the gospel. When we minimize that calling, the power and provision of God seems to be quenched and we get stuck in self maintenance mode.
We need to be fiscally responsible, but God wants us to focus on “the faith account” more than “the bank account.” Our job is to get out there, Gods job is to connect the dots! It’s our job to tell the story, it’s Gods job to move the mountain!
Daily Bible Commentary By Terry Baxter: Cofounder of GoServ Global Sent from my iPhone