Mensa Otabil - They Brought Him to Jesus (10/02/2025)
Well, we’re getting closer and closer to Jerusalem. Luke chapter 19, verses 35 to 36: «Then they brought him to Jesus, and they threw their own clothes on the colt, and they set Jesus on him.» As he went, many spread their cloaks on the road. Two disciples were sent by Jesus to a village and were pointed to a place where they would find a colt that had been tied and must be loosened to be brought to Jesus. They fulfilled the assignment; they brought the colt to Jesus Christ, and there is something to learn here: when God sets us free, he brings us to himself. This colt was not just freed to go on his way to roam around at his own pleasure; he was freed to have a new owner, to have a new direction, to have a new purpose.
Many times, people look at the freedom that we have in Christ and think it’s freedom for freedom’s sake—freedom for them to enjoy life, freedom for them to live their own life. But Christ sets us free; he loosens us so that we can be brought to him, we can be brought to his presence. When they brought the colt, or the donkey, to the presence of Jesus, two things of note happened. First, the disciples who had brought the colt took off their own clothes and placed them on the donkey; it is a sign of worship. They took something of value, something important—something that covered them—and placed it on the donkey, saying that everything that is important to us we put at the disposal of Jesus.
Then they did something again. After they had put their clothes on the donkey, they set Jesus on the donkey; literally, they lifted Jesus up and placed him on a donkey. They didn’t allow Jesus to climb by himself; they enthroned Jesus, magnified him, and honored him. What they did was a prophetic act because they were publicly acknowledging that this Jesus is the promised Messiah, he’s the promised King. You know, Peter had said earlier that Jesus was the Son of God, and now these disciples were dramatizing that statement—that Jesus truly is the Son of God.
So, they put their clothes on the donkey, they lifted up Jesus, and then threw him on the donkey. After they did that, the people, the crowd around them, also started doing things to celebrate Jesus. People took their clothes and put them on the ground, but what the people did was because of the example of the disciples. There is something instructive there for us: many people worship God when they see us worship God. People love God when they see us love God.
Especially if you’re a parent, the way you model Christ at home influences your children to also live for Christ. If you are a teacher or you just serve the Lord, your students will see what it means to serve the Lord. Many times, we are too much in a hurry to hit people over the head with the gospel and make a lot of noise about them giving their lives to Christ, but these people just acted out their faith and their worship, and as they acted it out, the crowd who were watching also followed suit and placed their services or their clothes at the service of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Today, as we remember this great event of Jesus going into Jerusalem, we must also commit to doing things with Christ that will encourage other people to live for him, that we will live for him in such a way that people who see us will have an appetite for God and an appetite for the Lord Jesus Christ because of what we demonstrate.
Let’s pray. Say with me, «Heavenly Father, I recognize Jesus Christ as my Lord and King. Help me to tell the world all about him. In Jesus' name, amen and amen.» Well, tomorrow is the day of the grand parade to Jerusalem, and we’re going to cover it. Pastor Mensa Otabil: shalom, peace, and life to you.