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After Jesus taught on the principles of Provision vs Stewardship in the Parable of the pounds, He goes on to show us a visual demonstration of the proper attitude of heart required of stewards. Luke 19:28-35a And when he had thus spoken, he went before, ascending up to Jerusalem. 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, 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. And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose him? thus shall ye say unto him, Because the Lord hath need of him. And they that were sent went their way, and found even as he had said unto them. And as they were loosing the colt, the owners thereof said unto them, Why loose ye the colt? And they said, The Lord hath need of him. And they brought him to Jesus ... It is important to notice in verse 33 that certain men were called the "owners" of the colt. No doubt there was some investment involved to acquire ownership of the colt. They either purchased the colt directly or it was born from an animal they already owned. Even in that case, there were expenses involved to feed and stable the colt's mother. They were the owners. When these disciples came to loose the colt they had every right to ask the question, "Why loose ye the colt?" They didn't know who these disciples were. For all they knew they could simply be thieves. But notice, all these "owners" needed to know was ... "The Lord hath need of him." These particular men, although owners, were also "stewards" for the Lord. They understood that even though they might legally "own" certain possessions, ALL of their possessions were sanctified unto the Lord. If the Lord had need of anything they "owned," that was all they needed to know. The Lord has need of such men and women today. The kingdom of God requires much in the way of material resources in order to spread the gospel throughout the world. The Lord has need of "owners" who are also "stewards." The Lord has need of men and women whose "possessions" can be tapped at a moments notice whenever "the Lord hath need of them." If the church continues in her poverty mentality to never acquire material goods, where is the Lord to go when He "has need" of those goods? Shall He go to the world? Hardly! He needs "owners" who are also "stewards" just like these men in Luke 19. It really does not matter to the Lord how great are the material goods we "own." It does matter to Him that ALL of those material goods are sanctified unto the Lord. If our Lord let's us know that "He hath need of them" … that's all we need to know in order to release them for His work. Notice Jesus' concluding statement at the end of the Parable of the rich fool: Luke 12:21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God. Jesus did not say it was wrong to lay up treasure for the kingdom of God. He said you are a fool if you spend your life laying up treasure for "yourself" and are not rich toward God. He said almost identically the same thing in Matthew 6: Mat 6:19 Lay not up FOR YOURSELVES treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal. Back
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