Matthew 21:1-7 NKJV

Now when they drew near Jerusalem, and came to Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, 2 saying to them, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. 3 And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them.”

4 All this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying:

5 “Tell the daughter of Zion,
‘Behold, your King is coming to you,
Lowly, and sitting on a donkey,
A colt, the foal of a donkey.’ ”

6 So the disciples went and did as Jesus commanded them. 7 They brought the donkey and the colt, laid their clothes on them, and set Him on them.

What is standing out to me about this passage of Scripture this morning is how God – Father, Son Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit – doesn’t always do things in conventional ways, according to the standards of society, so that all people will approve of what is being done in the name of the Lord. Yet, God will not contradict himself. He will not require of us what is against his moral teachings and his commands. He will not call his servants to do what is immoral, wicked, hateful, spiteful and anything contrary to his character.

But so many people put God and his servants in a box, according to their own standards and way of living, and according to what they regard as “normal” and “acceptable.” They have their own “religious” protocols which they think should be followed by everyone, and if anyone steps outside of those and does something different or out of the ordinary, by their own standards, they regard that person as “crazy” or “weird” or “strange.” And usually they will reject that individual who does not “fit the norm.”

Yet God does set a standard of behavior for us to follow. He does not throw us out there to do whatever we want to do. We can’t just “name it and claim it” and now all is good. We can’t just say it is of the Holy Spirit if it is contrary to what the Scriptures teach regarding the Holy Spirit. For included in the fruit of the Spirit is self-control. So, if what you are doing is out of your control and you believe something outside of you is causing you to do things which are out of your control, that is not the Holy Spirit doing it.

But because of those who are calling things “of the Holy Spirit” which are not of God, and so much that is being done in the name of Jesus is absolutely contrary to the teachings of the Scriptures, many people are shying away from following after the leading of the Holy Spirit and from doing what he leads them to do if it might be regarded as “weird” or “abnormal” by general society. But yes, we must test the spirits to see if they are of God or not, and then not do what is clearly against our Lord and his teachings.

So, somewhere in between way out of control by being led by demons instead of by the Holy Spirit, or “following the Lord,” but according to the teachings of humans who deny the working of the Holy Spirit, there is what the Scriptures teach as normal or acceptable practices for followers of Christ who are operating under the power and leading of the Holy Spirit in doing what God has called them to do for his purposes and for his glory and for the salvation of human lives out of sin and into walks of obedience to our Lord.

But what Jesus leads his servants and messengers to do may appear as abnormal to the norms of society even within the gatherings of “the church.” For so much of what is called “church” absolutely denies the workings of the Holy Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit, because they cannot control them and because they might scare people away from their gatherings. For so many do not operate as the biblical body of Christ but as businesses incorporated under the state being marketed to the people of the world. “Weird” is out!

Therefore, even though you may be following the leading of the Holy Spirit, and if tested against the teachings of the Scriptures, in their correct biblical context, you are not doing anything wrong or contrary to God and to his word, but that which aligns with God and his word, still you may be regarded as “weird” and as “abnormal” and as someone to be rejected, ignored, and opposed because you don’t match with the norms of society and with the institutional church and its marketing schemes for how to attract people.

But the Scriptures teach that we are not to be like the world. Being holy, in fact, means to be different, to be unlike the world because we are being made to be like Christ in his likeness, by our Lord. We who are of genuine biblical faith in Jesus Christ are to be as clay in the hands of our Potter God who is molding us and making us into his likeness. And God is the one we are to obey. God is the one we are to please, even if it means being rejected by other humans who think we are “weird” for doing what we do in obedience to our Lord and to his callings upon our lives. So go with God!

[Matthew 5:13-16; Matthew 28:18-20; John 4:31-38; John 13:13-17; John 14:12; Acts 1:8; Acts 2:14-18,42-47; Acts 26:18; Romans 10:14-15; Romans 12:1-8; 1 Corinthians 12:1-31; 1 Corinthians 14:1-5; Galatians 6:1; Ephesians 2:8-10; Ephesians 4:1-16; Ephesians 5:11-21; Ephesians 6:10-20; Philippians 2:1-8; Colossians 3:12-16; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 3:13; Hebrews 10:23-25; James 5:19-20; 1 Peter 2:9,21; 1 John 2:6]

Servant of the Lord

Based off Romans 1:1-17
An Original Work / July 26, 2012
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love

Servant of the Lord;
For the gospel you’re set apart.
Promised through the prophets of old:
Jesus, Son of God.
Through Him, and for His name alone,
We receive His grace
To call people, Him to obey;
Coming from their faith.
Servant of the Lord,
For the gospel you’re set apart.
Promised through the prophets of old:
Jesus, Son of God.

You belong to Christ;
Loved by God, and called to be saints;
Serving God with whole heart and mind;
Preaching Jesus Christ;
Always praying for others’ needs;
Helping hand to lend;
Giving courage to others’ faith,
For the praise of God.
You belong to Christ;
Loved by God, and called to be saints;
Serving God with whole heart and mind;
Preaching Jesus Christ.

Servant of the Lord;
Of the gospel, I’m not ashamed;
For salvation, power of God
To those who have faith.
In the gospel find righteousness:
Being right with God.
Turn from sin, and trust Jesus Christ.
By faith, live in Him.
Servant of the Lord;
Of the gospel, I’m not ashamed;
For salvation, power of God
To those who have faith.

Are You Different?
An Original Work / May 4, 2026
Christ’s Free Servant, Sue J Love