When Mike and I were in the Holy Land I had to give a devotional about Jesus' ride into Jerusalem. When I saw where Jesus took his last walk I could not imagine the emotions he must have had. He had asked His Father to take this cup from Him but He also said, "not my will but your will be done." Jesus carefully planned his triumphal entry in His mind. He could have easily run by using another route but He chose to come in peacefully. While His actions appeared to be passive he was actually the one ultimately in control!
I am sure the crowds were expecting a grand entrance by the one who claimed to be the messiah. But Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey and presented himself as the Messiah, the King. This showed he was coming humbly and in peace. It also evoked a prophecy that he was both the true king over Jerusalem and the true ruler of the world. Zachariah 9: 9, " Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey."
Luke 19: 35-37 "They brought it to Jesus, threw their cloaks on the colt and put Jesus on it. As he went along, people spread their cloaks on the road. When he came near the place where the road goes down to the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen:"
Once this scripture came to life I was able to see something new. By being obedient, even the donkey and his owner were able to experience the blessing of carrying Jesus. I shared with our group that I had never thought about the importance of the donkey. Was the donkey's owner worried about his donkey?? Would we share our possessions with someone in need?
What is hindering us from total obedience? (Friends, pride, sin, fear or something else?) Consider our life with these hindrances removed. What does it look like? The donkey was created in this story for a specific purpose, to be ridden by Jesus into Jerusalem. If Jesus has a specific purpose for a donkey, we know He has a specific purpose for us!
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